Jack Daniels Tasters' Selection High Angel's Share Review

#26
#26
Five of my favorites in no particular order. The list may be different next week. I like a lot of different bourbons.

Russel's Reserve 10 Years Old. Good price, perfect proof, fairly sweet and woody.
Blanton's Single Barrel. Add a few drops of spring water and it's almost IMO exactly what bourbon should be.
Elmer T Lee Single Barrel. A little hard to find but very good whiz.
Four Roses Single Barrel. One of the best. Always have a bottle in my cabinet.
Angel's Envy. Aged in wine barrels. Sweet, fruity and very mellow. Do not add water. It seems to dilute rather than enhance the taste.
 
#29
#29
The more I'm reading about bourbon in general, and after visiting this thread, I think it's clear that there is not a direct correlation between quality and price point. The last bottles I've purchased have been a few by Knob Creek (bourbon, rye, and barrel proof) and a liter of Woodford Reserve. I also have a couple unopened bottles of Dickel 10 Year and Buffalo Trace.

What recommendations do you all have for bourbons that may be hidden gems with a lower price point?
 
#30
#30
GoVolsDR said:
The more I'm reading about bourbon in general, and after visiting this thread, I think it's clear that there is not a direct correlation between quality and price point. The last bottles I've purchased have been a few by Knob Creek (bourbon, rye, and barrel proof) and a liter of Woodford Reserve. I also have a couple unopened bottles of Dickel 10 Year and Buffalo Trace.

What recommendations do you all have for bourbons that may be hidden gems with a lower price point?
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It's supply and demand.
 
#31
#31
GoVolsDR said:
The more I'm reading about bourbon in general, and after visiting this thread, I think it's clear that there is not a direct correlation between quality and price point. The last bottles I've purchased have been a few by Knob Creek (bourbon, rye, and barrel proof) and a liter of Woodford Reserve. I also have a couple unopened bottles of Dickel 10 Year and Buffalo Trace.

What recommendations do you all have for bourbons that may be hidden gems with a lower price point?
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Eagle Rare is wonderful. Great on its own, but it makes a great Old Fashioned.

Old Fitzgerald
Mellow Corn
Elijah Craig 12
Elmer T. Lee
Old Weller Antique
Can't go wrong with Bulleit

Also the ones I previously mentioned.
 
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#32
#32
GoVolsDR said:
The more I'm reading about bourbon in general, and after visiting this thread, I think it's clear that there is not a direct correlation between quality and price point. The last bottles I've purchased have been a few by Knob Creek (bourbon, rye, and barrel proof) and a liter of Woodford Reserve. I also have a couple unopened bottles of Dickel 10 Year and Buffalo Trace.

What recommendations do you all have for bourbons that may be hidden gems with a lower price point?
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Bourbon making has become so sophisticated since the 70s and 80s that I don't know if there are any hidden gems. The distillers and tasters are very good and they know exactly what is going in each bottle. Now, some of the newer or up and coming distilleries may occasionally take an average whiskey call, it Single Barrell Black Bung Hole or something like that, slap a $70 price tag on it and hope to sell a few bottles. But they never and I mean never bottle a great whiskey and sell it for 20 or 25 bucks. I have bought a lot of below average to very poor bottles of whiskey for 50-100 (I said I'm a sucker for gimmicks) dollars but I have never bought a great one for 25 dollars. There are however some pretty good bourbons in the 25 dollar range. Very Old Barton 100 proof, Four Roses Yellow Label, Makers Mark (candle wax), Buffalo Trace, Jim Beam Double Oak are all decent but not top shelf. (Some people think Buffalo Trace is one of the best out there at any price).

If you are really interested in understanding and experiencing the complexities of bourbon I urge you read a lot of reviews online or check out book or two. Then try out a bottle of what is being reviewed and see if you agree or if your taste is different. It's really more about finding out what you like than anything else. I've been a bourbon sipper for over 45 years. Me and a couple of buddies who also love bourbon get together fairly frequently and try new offerings or just set around and enjoy a drink or two. Overall we disagree regularly on whether a bourbon is really great or not but are almost always in total agreement when one is bad.
 
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#33
#33
Have any of you memphis folks tried Doc 52? Curious who they’re buying their whiskey from
 
#34
#34
I appreciate all of the helpful feedback. It'll be fun the next time I need to go shop for a bottle.

For you experienced bourbon drinkers, how do you all manage the burn from higher proof barrel bourbons. I really enjoyed a bottle of barrel proof Chattanooga Whiskey, but the burn drinking it neat was just too much for me. I eventually gave up on trying to find the right amount of water and just drank it on the rocks. I'd like to buy another bottle of the lower proof Chattanooga Whiskey and see what the experience is like.
 
#35
#35
GoVolsDR said:
I appreciate all of the helpful feedback. It'll be fun the next time I need to go shop for a bottle.

For you experienced bourbon drinkers, how do you all manage the burn from higher proof barrel bourbons. I really enjoyed a bottle of barrel proof Chattanooga Whiskey, but the burn drinking it neat was just too much for me. I eventually gave up on trying to find the right amount of water and just drank it on the rocks. I'd like to buy another bottle of the lower proof Chattanooga Whiskey and see what the experience is like.
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The only way I know to cut the burn is to add water (or God forbid some other mixer). A lot of people don't know it but the distillers bring down the proof by simply adding water. Many just assume it comes out of the barrel magically at say 90, 96 or 100 proof. It does not. Most barrels are 120 to 140 proof and are cut and blended to achieve the desired proof and flavor. I have found that generally the higher the proof the more flavorful the whiskey is. But the tradeoff is the burn which can overwhelm the flavor. That is one reason many people add that splash of water. I stated in my OP that I prefer whiskey at about 90-96proof. At that proof range, for me at least, the burn is acceptable without sacrificing too much flavor. The whiskey I reviewed at the start of this thread is107 proof. That's a little hot for my comfort zone. About a thimbleful of spring water to 1 1/2 oz of whiskey made it just about right. It probably brought it dow to about 98-100 proof which is OK. I thought it actually enhanced the flavor.

A note on whiskey burn. If you're going to drink whiskey neat it is just something you are going to have to accept. Every time I have diluted whiskey below the burn threshold I have also diluted the flavor to an unacceptable level. You might say I have just learned how to love the burn. I also believe there may be some genetic component at play. Some people just sense the burn more than others. I'm kind of sensitive to it myself.

On the Chattanooga Whiskey you mentioned. A couple of years ago I bought a bottle of the 1816 Cask. I thought it was excellent and sent them an email praising their product. A few months later I tried it again and it was completely different. It was a very poor rendering IMO. I think that since they are kind of new kids on the block they haven't got their consistency down yet or need a real master blender to control the bottling. I know they can make a good bottle because I've had one. Hopefully they will get it right. I would love to see Tennessee more competitive with Kentucky in the whiskey market. More distillers are opening across the state.
 
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#37
#37
I tend to go back and forth between single malts and bourbon. While I was born and raised in the hills of E. TN, I've never really been a JD fan. When it comes to bourbon, I have a few that I'm partial to.

High West Rendezvous Rye (my favorite at the moment)
Russells Reserve Single Barrel
Jeffersons - Groth reserve cask finish
Bookers Kentucky Chew
Elijah Craig Small Batch

I also usually keep Four Roses in the cabinet as well.
 
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#38
#38
GoVolsDR said:
I appreciate all of the helpful feedback. It'll be fun the next time I need to go shop for a bottle.

For you experienced bourbon drinkers, how do you all manage the burn from higher proof barrel bourbons. I really enjoyed a bottle of barrel proof Chattanooga Whiskey, but the burn drinking it neat was just too much for me. I eventually gave up on trying to find the right amount of water and just drank it on the rocks. I'd like to buy another bottle of the lower proof Chattanooga Whiskey and see what the experience is like.
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I think on the Chattanooga whiskey the cask is clearly the better drinking one. It’s certainly stouter but to me is smoother. They’re doing a lot of experimental barrel runs right now with the original Batch 001 leading up to a new product in June I think.
 
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#39
#39
golfballs said:
Truth is, as long as it tastes good to someone then that’s all that matters. I’d prefer people stick to JD so all my others don’t become such commodities
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I meant to reply to this earlier but forgot. I totally agree that it is up to each person to determine what they like and I would never argue that my taste is better than another persons. I would also agree that if we don't like the same bourbon that our taste is just different. It's kind of like this:

To me distilling and bottling bourbon is an art and a craft. Which artists rendering below do you prefer? If you choose the first one I won't argue with you about which is best but I will shake my head and wonder.


DuRDUKdXgAItG3s.jpg


young-woman-seated-pierre-auguste-renoir.jpg
 
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#45
#45
The only JD I drink is Single Barrel Select. It's as solid of a bourbon as there is. My cabinet now consist of:

Weller 12
Weller 107
Col. EH Taylor SB
Eagle Rare
Blantons
Woodford Reserve Double Oaked
Woodford Reserve
Blade & Bow
John J Bowman
Angel's Envy
Russell's Reserve 10 year
Buffalo Trace
JD SBS
McKenna 10 yr
Bird Dog 10 yr
Blood Oath
Calumet Farms 10 yr Black
Rock Hill Farms


Planning on picking up some Four Roses SB as I too have heard many people sing it's praises. Time to reload on some Jefferson's, it's been a while. Had a chance to pick up some High West Yippee-Ki-Yay Rye and passed. Bad mistake I'm told.
 
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#46
#46
Vol737 said:
The only JD I drink is Single Barrel Select. It's as solid of a bourbon as there is. My cabinet now consist of:

Weller 12
Weller 107
Col. EH Taylor SB
Eagle Rare
Blantons
Woodford Reserve Double Oaked
Woodford Reserve
Blade & Bow
John J Bowman
Angel's Envy
Russell's Reserve 10 year
Buffalo Trace
JD SBS
McKenna 10 yr
Bird Dog 10 yr
Blood Oath
Calumet Farms 10 yr Black
Rock Hill Farms


Planning on picking up some Four Roses SB as I too have heard many people sing it's praises. Time to reload on some Jefferson's, it's been a while. Had a chance to pick up some High West Yippee-Ki-Yay Rye and passed. Bad mistake I'm told.
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I suspect your house popular on football Saturdays. Let me know if you start selling tickets.

If you like Blade and Bow which I do I hope you get a chance to try Blade and Bow 22YO sometime. They release limited quantities just every now and then. I don't remember the last time I saw a bottle. Me and a couple of friends split a bottle a few years ago during what I believe was their first release. It went for $150 then and in no time at all it shot up to $250. I'm glad I got to try it but that's a bit too pricy. If you can find a bottle I don't even know what it goes for now.

What did you think of the Blood Oath? I've only tried it one time and wasn't overwhelmed but it seems to have a loyal following. If I understand correctly no two releases will be the same.
 
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#47
#47
I used to drink Weller 12 as my every day bourbon. Bought it by the case. I still have a couple cases and even though I didn’t pay much for it, I can’t bring myself to drink it... sad!
 
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#48
#48
Times are tough for bourbon drinkers. All these damned Johnny come lately millennials watched mad men and think they should like whiskey have really made things tough for the rest of us
 
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#49
#49
golfballs said:
Times are tough for bourbon drinkers. All these damned Johnny come lately millennials watched mad men and think they should like whiskey have really made things tough for the rest of us
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Worse than the damn yuppies used to be.
 
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