A.H. Hirsch 16 Year

[callmeox]

There is no such thing as "board consensus". If you didnt buy something because you got bad advice, thats a shame but don't blame SB. The only expert here on what you like is you.

With something as personal as the taste of whiskey, do your own thing. If you buy a bottle that you dont like, you learned something. Some lessons are just more expensive than others.

I think the "should I buy or not" threads do more harm than good.

[Josh]

There is no such thing as "board consensus". If you didnt buy something because you got bad advice, thats a shame but don't blame SB. The only expert here on what you like is you.

With something as personal as the taste of whiskey, do your own thing. If you buy a bottle that you dont like, you learned something. Some lessons are just more expensive than others.

I think the "should I buy or not" threads do more harm than good.

Well put.

To add to that and b/c I feel like that multi-paragraph post was directed at me, let me make a few things clear.

I'm a cheapskate. My bunker is pathetic by pretty much any standard. I don't spend a lot of time or money dusty-hunting. The only rare, hard to find bourbons I've tasted have been at the houses of friends or at the gazebo. I get excited over stuff like VOB and HH BiBs.

I had my only taste of AH Hirsch Gold Foil at ACDetroit's house. I thought it was boring and not worth what I had seen people asking for it. I have never had any other AH Hirsch bourbons. So, sodapop, you guessed wrong.

We like to say YMMV. I don't buy bottles to "own a piece of history". Many people do. We're all different and enjoy different aspects of the whole American whiskey thing. That's a good thing, not something to get mad about.

[LostBottle]

Dude, very nice score and astute of you to play cool and pick that bottle up at such a price. I think anyone who says that they do not like Hirsch and would not have purchased it is only fooling themselves.

It sounds like you are on the fence about what to do with it and these are just some of my thoughts. In my opinion, Hirsch gold foil is good bourbon, especially at under $50. That said, it is probably not worth the $300 current market value and you need to look at the opportunity cost of that bottle. While I am no fan of flipping, you would be able to trade for some other really nice whiskeys. You stated that you really liked Pappy Van Winkle. I am fairly certain you would be able to find someone to trade that Hirsch 16 for 2-3 bottles of Pappy 15 or 20, which would be a nice little collection and might just give you 2-3 times the drinking pleasure. In the case of the Stitzel-Weller Pappy 20, you would also be buying a piece of history that will not be around for long.

The bottom line is that your $50 bought you a really, really good deal and the right to enjoy how you want. Congrats on one hell of a find.

[Gillman]

Just on the point of board consensus, I think there is such a thing but you can only really define it by its extremes. E.g. most, I believe, would speak in the highest terms of split-label WT 12, or the first bottling of Stagg. I believe it's equally true that most would regard a 36 month old bourbon from an established distillery (i.e., setting aside possible exceptions from craft distilleries) as decidedly bottom shelf.

But between the extremes, it's much harder to say. I recall some here feeling gold wax and gold foil Hirsch 16 were very similar. Some love VOB, some feel it's just so-so these days. And so on...

Gary

[cowdery]

Probably a good place to mention that I will soon be publishing (on Kindle) the whole story of A. H. Hirsch and how it all came to be.

It's quite a story.

Although it's a little too nebulous for the book, a case can be made that the A. H. Hirsch phenomenon could not have happened without the existence of the unique community called straightbourbon.com.

[cas]

Although it's a little too nebulous for the book, a case can be made that the A. H. Hirsch phenomenon could not have happened without the existence of the unique community called straightbourbon.com.

Well, that was a teaser. What would be the basis for making such a case?
Craig

[ethangsmith]

Probably a good place to mention that I will soon be publishing (on Kindle) the whole story of A. H. Hirsch and how it all came to be.

It's quite a story.

Although it's a little too nebulous for the book, a case can be made that the A. H. Hirsch phenomenon could not have happened without the existence of the unique community called straightbourbon.com.

...waits anxiously for the story...

[BFerguson]

Probably a good place to mention that I will soon be publishing (on Kindle) the whole story of A. H. Hirsch and how it all came to be.

It's quite a story.

Although it's a little too nebulous for the book, a case can be made that the A. H. Hirsch phenomenon could not have happened without the existence of the unique community called straightbourbon.com.

Chuck, being the wise sage that you are, have you ever thought to yourself over the years, "it's happening again?" Has SB contributed to other phenomenons over the years of it's existence?

Thanks
B

[cas]

Yeah, and what can we do in the future to cause astronomical price increases in something of which I have a lot?
Craig

[Gillman]

As far as I am concerned, SB is a big part of the bourbon renaissance, a very big part. All hail to its creator, James Butler.

Gary