Which would you start with?

[Master_Photog]

http://www.cs2photography.com/FRMorPHC.jpg

[sku]

I'd start with the PRC, a bit lower abv, probably a bit sweeter, though I can't recall if I had the '09 Mariage.

[Master_Photog]

Thanks SKU! I hope to get feedback on some that have had the 2009 FR

[AaronWF]

Open them both. Drink the PHC. Wait two* weeks. Now drink the Mariage.


*might need more than 2 weeks.

[cowdery]

The Four Roses is very good. The Parker's is exceptionally good.

[sku]

Oh, I was thinking you were asking what order to drink in a tasting. I get it now.

[Bourbon Boiler]

Beautiful pic btw.

[trumpstylz]

My buddy said? "whichever is lower proof".

[Billy Bourbon]

Brother, you have more thankful fo than what you know. It's all good.

[Master_Photog]

There was a hidden reason in the question that I'll reveal now. I'm keeping one and giving one as a gift.

The receiver of the gift is a novice bourbon drinker that has recently started to appreciate and enjoy it.

I've been an avid bourbon drinker and know what I like and know what I don't like. So, I was curious which one I would appreciate and which one he would appreciate as a novice.

If this helps:

I really like -
Russell's Reserve 10yr
Pappy 15ry Family Reserve
Woodford Reserve
Old Potrero 15 yr. Hotaling's
Old Potrero 18th Century Rye
Whistlepig Rye

I DO NOT care for -
WT 101
Booker's
Rip Van Winkle 10yr 107 proof
WH Harrison

Hope this gives you an idea which of these two I would really like to keep for myself and the one to give as a gift.

chuck

[Master_Photog]

The Four Roses is very good. The Parker's is exceptionally good.


Thanks Chuck - I was told by the retailer that he had not tried the Parker's Heritage Collection that I picked up. He advised me that last year's was a wheated bourbon as this 2011 that I got was not.

Any truth to that? If so, have you had an opportunity to try both?

Just curious if there's a significant difference in comparrison.

Chuck

[birdman1099]

Hey Chuck,
Given your likes/dislikes, I recommened you keep the 4 roses and gift the PHC....


Awesome pic as usual my friend !!!!

[Restaurant man]

There was a hidden reason in the question that I'll reveal now. I'm keeping one and giving one as a gift.

The receiver of the gift is a novice bourbon drinker that has recently started to appreciate and enjoy it.

I've been an avid bourbon drinker and know what I like and know what I don't like. So, I was curious which one I would appreciate and which one he would appreciate as a novice.

If this helps:

I really like -
Russell's Reserve 10yr
Pappy 15ry Family Reserve
Woodford Reserve
Old Potrero 15 yr. Hotaling's
Old Potrero 18th Century Rye
Whistlepig Rye

I DO NOT care for -
WT 101
Booker's
Rip Van Winkle 10yr 107 proof
WH Harrison

Hope this gives you an idea which of these two I would really like to keep for myself and the one to give as a gift.

chuck
Safe bet is to keep the 4 roses. One with such specific tastes may not Love the barrel finished Parker's. Plus i'm sure your friend will want to share with you and you'll get a fair share of the "experimental"

[jcg9779]

Thanks Chuck - I was told by the retailer that he had not tried the Parker's Heritage Collection that I picked up. He advised me that last year's was a wheated bourbon as this 2011 that I got was not.

Any truth to that? If so, have you had an opportunity to try both?

Just curious if there's a significant difference in comparrison.

Chuck

That is correct. The PHC 2010 was a wheated bourbon at cask strength. The 2011 is a bourbon that was finished in cognac barrels and is 100 proof. Very different whiskeys. While I like the PHC 2011 a lot, I think that the PHC 2010 is the best out of the five PHC versions.

[aea6574]

Tough choice, both very good.

But wanted to comment as others did that the picture is great.

Best regards, tony

[Old Lamplighter]

Great pic, tough choice(s). It would be nearly impossible for me to part with either. To keep & open both, I would start with the lower proof PHC and after it settles in, go for a nice pour of the 4R. Great Bottles!:toast:

[trumpstylz]

The receiver of the gift is a novice bourbon drinker that has recently started to appreciate and enjoy it.


I personally would not give something that expensive to a novice unless i had stacks of cash lying around that I needed to burn. I would gift a 30 or 40 dollar bottle.

But thats just me.

Wouldn't be a bad idea either though if he kept the bottle for a long time and kept track of how his views on it changed over time.

[bourbonNOOG]

The PHC is still readily available and probably will be for a little while longer. The FR 2009 is very hard to find and extremely good. The PHC barrel finish is so so in my opinion. Dull in comparison to the 2010 wheater.

Those are both very expensive bottles to gift to a newbie. I would buy them something more entry level and maybe open one of these bottles and enjoy it with them.

[cowdery]

Keep the Parker's. You need experience to appreciate it. The 4R will stand on its own.

HH makes two bourbon recipes, one that uses rye as the flavor grain and one that uses wheat. The 2010 PHC was the wheat recipe. The 2011 in the rye recipe. The rye recipe bourbon is what's sold as Evan Williams, Elijah Craig, and others. They started to make the wheat recipe when they acquired Old Fitzgerald.

[nivto]

The Four Roses is very good. The Parker's is exceptionally good.

Other way around for me. I wouldn't even consider gifting the Mariage if it was in my possession. I'm also not that fond of the new Parkers, though.

[Master_Photog]

I'm starting to lean toward keeping the two bottles based on the logic I've been reading. I too agree that gifting one of these to a newbie may be a disservice to being properly introduced (thru the ranks) to lower end, middle of the road and complex bourbons.

I think a bottle of RR would be a great gift!

The 10 Year Russell's Reserve is my little unsung hero. I love that bourbon and I'll put it near the top of any list of 10! Not to mention its price point!

Thanks all, I'm still gathering data and will keep you all posted on my decision.

Other ideas/thoughts or gifted bourbon suggestions for my buddy are welcome.

Chuck

[AaronWF]

Keep the Parker's. You need experience to appreciate it. The 4R will stand on its own.

That's an interesting stance on the PHC cognac. I disagree that you need experience to appreciate it. I haven't had the pleasure of the '09 Mariage, but if it's anything like the other 4RLE's I've had, it will be complex and exotic. Everyone I've shared the PHC cognac with has enjoyed it, though I don't think anyone I know has enjoyed it as much as I have.

I have to believe the PHC is the more accessible of the two, but Chuck's probably right that much of its pleasure will be lost on someone new to bourbon. With 4R, you either get it or you don't (though I actually don't know anyone who 'doesn't get' 4R).

[cowdery]

That's an interesting stance on the PHC cognac. I disagree that you need experience to appreciate it. I haven't had the pleasure of the '09 Mariage, but if it's anything like the other 4RLE's I've had, it will be complex and exotic. Everyone I've shared the PHC cognac with has enjoyed it, though I don't think anyone I know has enjoyed it as much as I have.

I have to believe the PHC is the more accessible of the two, but Chuck's probably right that much of its pleasure will be lost on someone new to bourbon. With 4R, you either get it or you don't (though I actually don't know anyone who 'doesn't get' 4R).

I'd parse that a little bit. I agree you know need experience to enjoy the PHC, I said you need experience to appreciate it, as in to grok what's so unusual and sophisticated about it.

[cowdery]

I'm starting to lean toward keeping the two bottles based on the logic I've been reading. I too agree that gifting one of these to a newbie may be a disservice to being properly introduced (thru the ranks) to lower end, middle of the road and complex bourbons.

I think a bottle of RR would be a great gift!

The 10 Year Russell's Reserve is my little unsung hero. I love that bourbon and I'll put it near the top of any list of 10! Not to mention its price point!

Thanks all, I'm still gathering data and will keep you all posted on my decision.

Other ideas/thoughts or gifted bourbon suggestions for my buddy are welcome.

Chuck

The RR is a good choice.

[Neat]

Keep the Parker's. You need experience to appreciate it. The 4R will stand on its own.

HH makes two bourbon recipes, one that uses rye as the flavor grain and one that uses wheat. The 2010 PHC was the wheat recipe. The 2011 in the rye recipe. The rye recipe bourbon is what's sold as Evan Williams, Elijah Craig, and others. They started to make the wheat recipe when they acquired Old Fitzgerald.

chuck, any plans by HH to either improve old fitz bib OR come out with another line of wheated bourbons? they showed they can make very good wheated bourbons and they must see what BT is doing.

[cowdery]

chuck, any plans by HH to either improve old fitz bib OR come out with another line of wheated bourbons? they showed they can make very good wheated bourbons and they must see what BT is doing.

I know that they have been testing some ideas for a premium Old Fitzgerald expression. They do still make Very Special Old Fitzgerald, but it's not widely distributed.

They probably should do something to revitalize the brand. They may have supply issues, as Old Fitz is their only wheated bourbon, while their rye recipe bourbon gets used in many different brands.

Don't give up on Fitz BIB. I expect it will get better. They've only been making it for a little more than ten years, after all. That's nothing in whiskey time. You also may be comparing it to the glut-era SW releases, which isn't really fair.

I'm a long time Old Fitzgerald fan, going back to my earliest interest in bourbon.

[gburger]

Great photography by the way.