what I brought home this week and why? vol. III

[PaulO]

I tried the Old Crow reserve again. Now I think it tastes mabe more like a younger rougher OGD.

[bourbonv]

Fred Noe once told me that Old Crow and Old Grand Dad were the same whiskey.

[EllenJ]

Mike, are you SERIOUS ? Which Old Crow? Which Old Grand Dad?

National Distillers' Old Crow, while certainly not the William Gaines product, was one of the finest bourbons ever made available outside of Kentucky. Beam Brands' Old Crow is (and always was) a 36-month old abomination, which both you and I have often characterized as an intentional slam against what was once Jim Beam's more successful competitor.

National Distillers' Old Grand Dad, on the other hand, was a completely different bourbon, with a high rye-content mashbill, and Beam Brands made a very strong effort to continue that brand's quality and flavor profile. Even today, the taste of Beam's Old Grand Dad more closely resembles the old whiskey than does just about any other current version of a well-known old brand.

I believe I had once heard that the original run of Knob Creek (which is Fred Noe's particular favorite, and for good reason) was actually the last of the Old Grand Dad stock that Beam inherited with the Falls of the Elkhorn facility when the bought out National Distillers. That might have been what Fred meant. But there is virtually no similarity at all between Old Crow and Old Grand Dad. Even vodka drinkers should have no problem establishing that in a side-by-side taste test!

[bourbonv]

John,
Fred was talking the present Beam distillate.

[gillmang]

John, I can't agree that current OG resembles ND OG. Current OG IMO resembles the Beam line, with that marked yeasty-like note.

Gary

[p_elliott]

edit

[gauze]

Parkers Heritage Cask Strength. 127.4 proof. Last bottle they had at this place and last time I hesitated on a bottle and went back for it it was gone, better to regret something you have done than haven't right? Curious about it after reading reviews.

[gauze]

Parkers Heritage Cask Strength. 127.4 proof. Last bottle they had at this place and last time I hesitated on a bottle and went back for it it was gone, better to regret something you have done than haven't right? Curious about it after reading reviews. $75 including tax.

[delaware_phoenix]

Well I decided to start a little bourbon and whiskey collection. So I got Makers Mark, Bulleit, OGD BIB, and Wild Turkey Red 101.

I can see many old timers here don't favor MM, but I decided that it's probably not bad bourbon, maybe more generic or uninteresting. But I know so little that I'm going to have to taste generic to know what that is. I have to go through some of the recent lists and suggestions and see what I should put on my list. Interesting just to compare the colors of these. And which ones actually say "distilled by" instead of just "bottled by".

Looks like Chuck's blog will get a visit and well as the reviews (for me to read not write).

[delaware_phoenix]

I hope I haven't developed the reputation as a thread killer, as it appears that this valuable thread has been neglected. I suspect that people have been purchasing interesting bourbon and whiskey in the past two weeks.

But if folks haven't been acuqiring interesting spirits in the interim, I'll say that I'm doing my part, as insignificant as it is. Today acquired the George Dickel No. 12, and recently the OGB BIB. Certainly they're both excellent whiskies. Tomorrow I travel to the big city and so I hope to get some more. Hoping for some Four Roses and maybe the Buffalo Trace White Dog Mash #1. I think my budget will be exhausted at that point.

Sipping the Dickel now. Very nice. I don't have the tasting skills of Mike or you folks, so I can't say much about it other than it is quite good. As you can see by the little aminated figure at right.

[Mike]

Sipping the Dickel now. Very nice. I don't have the tasting skills of Mike or you folks, so I can't say much about it other than it is quite good.

I hope I don't disappoint ya, dp, but for me reviewing whiskey is as much or more about using words as it is about tasting, so don't sell yourself short. I like twisting words about as much as I do sipping bourbon. Now, I have drunk enough bourbon to be somewhat familiar with it and know most of the stock descriptors, but a goodly portion of the fun of the enterprise of sipping (in addition to smelling, tasting, sharing, writing, and jaw-boning about it) is to learn what your own palate favors. It looks like to me that you are working toward that very goal.

[BBQ+Bourbon]

Since I haven't been posting much on this board, I have more than a weeks' worth to post. These are from the last 3-4 weeks.

The first shot is a haul I got from a defunct liquor store that had been shuttered for some time. One day I drove by and it was open, a sandwich board out front with a hand written sign; "Liquor Clearance". Everything inside was 50% off so I found a few solid bottles. The Beam collection was $10 and I had not tried Bakers or Bookers so I thought it was worth a purchase. The WTKS are 03 and 04 and cost $25, the OFBB were 2005, and cost $21 and the Bulleit was free. It was worth what I paid for it.


Why did I buy them? I've never been a big fan of WT101, but there is so much appreciation for it, I knew I was missing something. WTKS is some seriously good juice. I opened an 04 and was just amazed that WT could actually produce a great bourbon. I have a 2005 OFBB and I think it's a great bourbon. I also have an 06 that I just love, so these two were a no brainer at 1/2 price.


Last week's dusty haul. I have looked for dusties for months with no success, and then I came upon a little honey hole. All but two of these came from one store and the other store was just down the road.


I'm expecting the OGD 86 on the left to be worth the $23 I paid for it. At that price, it can be used as a mixer. Louisville WSR is a fantastic pour and I've only had one sample of it to this point. Easy call at $14 or so each. Old Fitzgerald BIB, faux tax strip. Probably worth the $11 I paid for it. You'll have to ask Hectic1 to be sure. The liter behind it cost a few bucks more. The Old Taylor is from the end of the ND era, so it's not as desirable as the earlier juice, but still very good. Probably worth the $13. The faux tax Old Charter 8 year is a Louisville bottle and cost about the same. I'm not a huge Charter fan, but if it's bourbon, and it is $13, and it has a faux tax strip, I'm probably buying it. The Jim Beam 75 month 1995 bottle was just over $20. I have no idea what to expect, but a) the bottle is cool and b) I've never tried it. I had very low expectations of the Old Fitz Prime after reading the feedback on SB, but it was really cheap and it's SW juice, so why not? I opened the 375 and found a delightful young bourbon that hides it's low proof well. The BIB Old Forrester is from around 1983-84 and is DSP KY 414 juice that has been highly praised on SB.com. I've sent out a few samples but have not tried it myself. The 375 BIB is a 414/375 bottle. The 86 proof OF has to be worth the little money I paid for it. The Yellowstone was $10 and I have a feeling it's nothing great. For $10, it's worth a shot.

This week, I started at the store that produced the above haul, and radiated outwards. There were a few bottles here and there.



Left to right again; More ND Old Taylor, from the end of ND. Again, not ND's best year, but it cost the same as a current bottle of Beam white label. The ODG 86 caught my eye immediately because of the giant neck on the bottle. As you see, the bottle has been accented with overspray from the last time this fine shop was painted. It had a faux tax strip but it's largely gone now. This is ND juice and worth the $25 I paid for the handle. Next up is a liter of Gentleman Jack that set me back $18. I'll probably give that to my dad since he's a big JD fan. Another Old Forrester, this one a liter with the three dents on each side. Should be good juice, as it's also DSP 414. Old Fitz Prime, I believe from the end of SW distillate. The one I have is really good, but several years older. I gambled a bit with this one, but it was a $6 play so it's a risk I could take. I've wanted to buy a WTRB for a long time, but the price has been a deal killer. This one is a 2003 and it was marked at $31 so this was the bottle for me. I'm beginning to like the WT label and hopefully this one is significantly better than WT101.

[PaulO]

Quite a nice haul there BBQ. The stores around me don't usually have any stock that is more than a few months old. The current Old Charter 8 year old does not have the clock on the label. I went to Bloomington the other day and picked up some of the current Weller Antique . I couldn't find any Old Fitz BIB, or Rittenhoude Rye . Those three appear and then disappear for months at a time.

[mcer]

I am new to bourbons so I probably bought more than average this week.

- BT A&L Selection (the bottling from my local store in Ann Arbor)
- Ezra Brooks (standard bottling)
- WL Weller Special Reserve
- Eagle Rare
- Elijah Craig 12yr
- Old Forester 86 proof

I bought them because of reviews I read here and in other sites.

Rene'

[PaulO]

So the BT A&L selection is the regular Buffalo Trace 90 proof, except it is a single barrel version the store picked out?