Over the last couple of years, I got really into bourbon. I've probably bought or been given 40 different bottles of bourbon, ranging from bottom shelf to top shelf. I've found what I like, and I know what I'm comfortable with. For instance, I know that anything over 20 dollars a fifth is going to be good, that very few good bourbons exist below that dollar mark. I also know that once you go above 30 dollars, diminishing returns start to kick in hardcore. You can spend a fortune on bourbon, but over 35 dollars a fifth, the value just isn't there for me. I've found that the same pattern holds with regards to rye whiskey too. Then I tried Johnny Walker Black. Wow. Good stuff, but right at the top of my financial comfort zone. Maybe I should try getting into scotch, I think. So I start doing research and find out how expensive scotch is! If I buy an 60 to 80 dollar bottle of scotch, it means my wife thinks that she's entitled to spend the same amount on wine, and that wine will be gone before I blink. I also know that if I develop a taste for expensive booze, there is no going back. It's just like coffee; once you develop a taste for the good stuff, Folgers will always disappoint. My inquiry to Clutchfans is this: Is there value in scotch for a bourbon drinker at under 40 bucks a bottle? Should I be looking elsewhere for value in non-American whiskies?
Went to a whiskey tasting last year and fell in love with this bottle. Surprisingly affordable, as well. http://www.heavenhill.com/brand/18
I think there is value in non-American whiskeys......Scotch's quality generally goes with the price until about $80. I am also a huge scotch guy though.
I haven't had that one yet, but I hear it's very similar to Wild Turkey 101, which is one of my favorites. I'll add it to my list. Heaven Hill puts out great stuff for the money, that is for sure.
I mean... you named Johnny Walker Black. Stick with that. If it's too steep try the red. Personally I don't like red. You can get Basil Hayden for like $35, you might like it. If you prefer straight scotch to straight whiskey you'll never go back to whiskey. But you never want to **** with really cheap scotch. It'll ruin you man.
Yeah, I hate JW Red too. Don't like Chivas 12, don't like Dewar's. Famous Grouse is okay if I've had something better first. The only blend that I love so far is JW Black. The single malts I've had that I like are expensive. Cheaper single malts can't compete in price with bourbon or my taste for, you know, flavor. It sounds like I need to resist the call of the single malt as long as I can. Stick to straight bourbon and dabble in scotch.
Yellow Rose or Four Roses Yellow? Other than my coveted bottle of Pappy 12, Four Roses is the most scotch-like bourbon I've had. I've got a bottle of small batch FR that I caught my wife mixing with Diet Coke. It almost got ugly.
Yellow Rose; good stuff. http://yellowrosedistilling.com/?age-verified=369665ddcc might look at Crater Lake Rye as well: http://www.bendistillery.com/our-spirits/
EDIT: After years of hard work and dedication, we are proud to be Houston’s first legal whiskey distillery! We are fresh off of a Best In Class award for our Yellow Rose Outlaw Bourbon at the American Distilling Institute and a Double Gold for our Yellow Rose Straight Rye Whiskey at the San Francisco Artisan Spirits.
just finishing a bottle of the macallan 12, but you should be able to find the 10 y/o for less than $40.
