Old Grand-Dad Bonded is one of my favorite bargain bourbons for several reasons, besides its $25-per-quart price point at stores around me. My appreciation revolves around the reference to the name, the near-disappearance of the brand, and the delicious high rye porridge bill. The brand was created in 1882 by Raymond Hayden, named after his … Read more
Does a whiskey have to be made in Kentucky to be called bourbon? Is Tennessee whiskey technically bourbon too? Can God create a rock so big that he cannot lift it? I've been faced with questions like this after a certain point in a boozy evening, but when I drink Bib & Tucker Double Char … Read more
“How do I drink bourbon?” It may seem a little ridiculous at first glance. Just pour it into a glass and drink the whiskey neat, right? But the situation is a little more complicated than that. Bourbon whiskey is a deep and complex spirit that takes hard work and years of aging to produce, and … Read more
Spend enough time around bars and bartenders and you'll probably chat about their good whiskey preferences. The well, the nickname given to the place where bartenders keep easy-to-reach bottles so they can make quick cocktails or whiskey on the rocks to please the masses, is a reliable source when discussing good cheap whiskey. This isn't … Read more
American whiskey collectors know Buffalo Trace Distillery in Kentucky well. It produces Pappy Van Winkle in partnership with the Van Winkle family and releases the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection (BTAC) of limited edition bourbon and rye whiskeys each year. But the brand's core bourbon expression, the affordable and reliable Buffalo Trace Bourbon, is also worth … Read more
Four Roses is a reliable Kentucky bourbon that ticks all the right boxes: cheap, delicious, and versatile. Like many other whiskey fans, I'm always on the lookout for value. But there are a lot of expensive, limited edition expressions out there these days. While many are actually great, when I come across an inexpensive bourbon … Read more
Maker's Mark, the bottle with its distinctive red-dipped molten wax cap, is known to bourbon drinkers around the world. Bourbon aficionados like me were excited to hear that Maker had released its oldest release yet: Maker's Mark Cellar Aged 2024. Founded in 1953, Maker's Mark has always adhered to the principle of maturing its whiskey … Read more
Pappy Van Winkle, Old Fitzgerald and WL Weller are just three of the names synonymous with Stitzel-Weller Distillery, the spiritual home of wheated bourbon and the inspiration behind Blade and Bow, which recently re-released its 22 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon. . Built in 1935 by Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle Sr., Alex T. Farnsley and … Read more
For as long as I've been old enough to buy whiskey for myself, bourbon has been my favorite, Wild Turkey. I don't remember exactly how this happened, but if I was going to a house party or basement concert I would always grab a pocket-sized bottle of Wild Turkey 101. The bold, spicy Wild Turkey … Read more
I've spent nearly twenty years writing about alcohol. During this time, I traveled the world, from Taiwan to Tullahoma, TN, sipping complex and sometimes extraordinarily rare whiskeys. I've tried fifty-year-old Scotch whiskeys from the Scottish Highlands and decades-old highly sought-after bourbon from Kentucky. So I know how to pick out the subtle aromas and flavors … Read more