bourbons over $150


Ken Gargett

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some of our bourbon fans may have some thoughts...

Top 5 Bourbons over $150

 

Unlike with Scotch whisky, you have to work a little harder with bourbon to find a bottle over $150, especially if you stick to shopping at the local liqueur stores. Still, some truly exquisite bourbons exist on the high-end market that you can’t find on store shelves, but a watchful eye might lead you to a tasting of something rare and delicious.

 


Baterhouse 20 Years Old drinkmemag.com drink me Top Bourbon over $150

Price: $150-250

Doubtlessly one of the smoothest 20-year bourbons you’ll ever taste, Barterhouse hails from one of the mysterious Stitzel-Weller rickhouses. Easy on the nose, this whiskey touts a light sweetness, and notes of biscuits and buttercream, with brown sugar and spice on the finish. Keep your eye out for a bottle of Barterhouse the next time you head down to Kentucky for a malt that will keep on giving.

 


Jefferson's Presidential Select 25 Years old drinkmemag.com drink me Top Bourbon over $150

Price: $650

Available since 2013, this high-end bourbon from the Jefferson’s lineup presents a decadent amber color with caramel, maple, and toffee on the nose. Its smooth body is finished with lingering leather before rounding out with spice. Perhaps not an everyday bourbon, yet you won’t be disappointed in this malt should you have find yourself able to sample it.

 


A. H. Hirsch Reserve drinkmemag.com drink me Top Bourbon over $150

Price: $1,000+

With notoriety rivaling a certain Van Winkle, A.H. Hirsch Reserve is one of the rarest and reportedly most delicious bourbon whiskies available on the high-end market. The nose reveals deep sweetness, oak, spice, and vanilla before toffee moves in on the palate. Black pepper, oak, and char bring out the full body on the finish. Prepare your wallet in case you ever find a pour available to you – you can bet it’ll cost you.

 


Parker's Heritage Selection 11 Years Old drinkmemag.com drink me Top Bourbon over $150

Price: $250

Often flying under the radar, Heaven Hill has a devout cult following that raves for the Parker’s Heritage Collection. This 24-year bourbon opens with stern oak before vanilla and cinnamon open up on the palate. The finish is clean with hints of bitter chocolate. You won’t regret a sampling of this fine whiskey should you be able to get your hands on it.

 


Pappy van Winkle 23 Years Old drinkmemag.com drink me Top Bourbon over $150

Price: $2,700-3,000

What bourbon list could be complete without the infamous Pappy Van Winkle? Perhaps the most notorious and most expensive bourbon in the world, those who have tasted it say that Van Winkle’s Family Reserve 23 has hints of caramel and ripe apple, with strong flavors of cherry, oak, and tobacco. A long-lasting finish rounds out with a relaxing, pleasant sweetness. Good luck finding even a sample of this extremely-rare bourbon, as every bottle is a coveted item.

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I was thinking:  I don't see BTAC on the list, but those retail below $150.  Then I noticed they do use some "secondary" market prices on this list.  So I would add some of the BTAC, as they are often great and command more than $150

 

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Bourbons over $150 are where one is buying the bottle with sticker, pedigree, story and scarcity rather than the contents. There are very few cases where I’d spend that kind of scratch. One of the best bourbons in the world last year was the 131 proof Elijah Craig 12 year small batch which until recently had been readily available in the US under $100 (I paid $55 for my bottles). 

Hype is for suckers! ??

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3 hours ago, Ethernut said:

Bourbons over $150 are where one is buying the bottle with sticker, pedigree, story and scarcity rather than the contents. There are very few cases where I’d spend that kind of scratch. One of the best bourbons in the world last year was the 131 proof Elijah Craig 12 year small batch which until recently had been readily available in the US under $100 (I paid $55 for my bottles). 

Hype is for suckers! ??

Well said

I wouldn't pay over $125 for Pappy 20...  It use to cost $99 for the longest time and that's all it's worth to me.  

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1 hour ago, BrightonCorgi said:

Well said

I wouldn't pay over $125 for Pappy 20...  It use to cost $99 for the longest time and that's all it's worth to me.  

True dat!! ?

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  • 2 weeks later...

On recent releases, I'm partial to the Booker's Rye and Russell's Reserve 1998 that were both released in 2016, and both roughly $300 or so retail. I do like my William Larue Weller and George T Stagg, but I think the Booker's Rye & Russell's 98 were better than the more recent releases of both of those Antique Collection bottles.

 

If we toss the recent caveat out the window, I am partial to Weller 19 and early 2000s Pappy Van Winkle 15. The 20 and 23 Van Winkles are too oaky for me, and frankly I like Old Weller Antique barrel picks more than any 10 year Old Rip Van Winkle or 12 year Van Winkle Special Reserve (Lot B ) that I've had. The 15 hits the goldilocks point on age for me, and for bourbon I think barrels that aren't over-oaked above that age are few and very far between (that Weller 19 is an example). I am saving a bottle of Weller 19 for my upcoming wedding this summer and maybe going to get my hands on a Stitzel-Weller distillate bottle of Pappy 15 and an old Old Weller from the 70s or 80s. Keep the Weller 19 as an anniversary bottle, the Pappy for my groomsmen and friends, and the Old Weller for me and any other bourbon nerds that are there

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  • 3 weeks later...

I'm with @Ethernut.  There is a lot of great bourbon/whiskey/whisky available that does not require one to spend $150+.  I buy to drink, not to collect.  That being said, I have nothing against $150+ bottles or collectors.  People collect lots of different stuff and alcohol is no exception.  On occasion I'm disappointed that some bottles are out of my reach solely because of the collector market, but it is what it is.  No big deal in the long run.  When I find something really good at a fair price that is not mass produced I usually buy multiple bottles.  This strategy works pretty well and I'm a happy man.  :)   

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  • 1 month later...

I'm willing to pay that for some of the best stuff that is being released these days.  That's just where the market is.  Paid 125 for an EC 18 and about 150 for a FR Small Batch LE 2017.  Not what I'd like to pay and wouldn't do so blind, but I recently had each one and thought they were outstanding.

A friend brought me a non-chill filtered OWA store pick the other day as a gift.  He paid $40.  It was comparable to the Four Roses LE in quality, despite the very different flavor profile.

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