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Happy fRYEday. I decided to crack open my HH GtG Rye. I purchased this back in February after resisting the urge for months to buy another expensive rye. I had read positive tasting notes from fellow SBers that were encouraging and tempted me. Then I think the price dropped at my local store by ten to $90 for awhile, ... which proved to be just enough to entice me to pull the trigger. Hah, ... I know we've all been there before My initial tasting feedback... If I tasted this blind I'd imagine that Four Roses finally made a straight rye whiskey that some have been clamoring for. Very strong minty notes, mixed with spicy rye bread. This is only my first pour, so take with a grain (no pun intended) of salt. This is right down my alley for a rye whiskey. Now I can understand why this is priced the way it is. I'm going to enjoy this bottle, and time will tell, ...might even pick up a backup.

For me, the “right” beer can definitely quench my thirst. Unlike other liquids though, it is a one bottle/can kinda thing for me. After one beer, it tends to make me thirsty again. Cheers

This reminds me of my father. He had a fridge in the garage full of beer and some soft drinks. I was middle school aged and one day I was pounding Pepsi’s in the Texas heat. I was probably annoying him with my lack of production in helping him in the yard. He glared at me and said, “if you want to quench your thirst drink a beer goddammit!” So I have been since that day 30+ years ago. And I used to drink that fridge dry and have my own fridge full of beer to this day. Tonight I drank a Maine Beer Company Lunch IPA and a Deschutes Hazy on a little east coast holiday.

For what it's worth, I couldn't resist buying the HH Grain to Glass Rye, based solely on tasting notes from folks here on SB that I have familiarity with and have some level of trust in. I tried to resist buying it (trust me, I do try, lol). I didn't buy the GtG Bourbons simply because they didn't sound interesting enough to me to shell out around a Benjamin for one. I can't explain it, but sometimes a unique rye whiskey makes me pull the trigger (even though I have more ryes than I need, plus I still prefer bourbons over rye, lol). The BIG caveat here is ... I haven't opened the GtG Rye yet. So I don't know whether I made a good choice or not! EDIT: Scratch that last caveat. I've been trying to decide what to have for my weekly fRYEday pour and I think I've just answered my own question. I've been meaning to open the GtG rye and now I have a reason. New bottle crack to be posted over the in American Rye thread in a few.

I only learned it from @flahute Glad I did!

I’ve never thought of that beer as a thirst quencher. But, I see it now. Good call I will give it a try. Cheers

I'm with you sir, cheers to that

I've never had an Old Charter Oak before but was always intrigued. Good to know that it tastes good.

Thanks sir, I love it too. Cheers

Right, no sir. I share your sentiments. I have no interest in buying from someone who isn’t licensed to sell alcohol. Trading is a whole different things. I have a small group where we do this, but yeah, my secondary market purchases are from liquor stores.

I may pick up the rye variety of this tomorrow. It’s at my local total wine. Rye’s are starting to grow on me

Ahh, by secondary market I was thinking you meant unlicensed flippers. Well licensed liquor stores that sell above MSRP are different and I have no problem with buying from them.

One of my favorites. Good choice!

Thank you for responding and sharing your perspective. I can certainly appreciate your position. I think I’m accustomed to seeing prices for some things going above MSRP. Cars, electronics, bourbons, etc for instance all see prices change based on the market. At the end of the day, I’m not a flipper of bourbons. I am a consumer of them. Now with cars, I am a collector. I have a daily driver, but I have others that I just sit on and watch them appreciate. I keep tabs on the market and make every attempt to unload them when the market is high, and buy them when the market is low. If I were in to real estate, I’d take the same approach. Back to bourbon, I see many bottles that I am interested in are only available above MSRP. The places I buy from are local business owners who are running a business. I don’t see them as being flippers in the traditional sense. I do buy from online places, also liquor stores. Again, I see them as running a business, not someone who is hoarding bottles for profit, but hey, if that’s their thing, so be it. I do have a method to my madness on what my limit is for paying above MSRP. I can sleep at night, my family is taken care of, we’re not taping into our retirement, etc. I would submit that is all that matters. I appreciate your point about Elmer T Lee being essentially a $50 bottle. I sampled it a few months back at a bar, and drew the same conclusion. That said, I’d like to add one, but have yet to find one in the price range that I am comfortable with. So the search goes on. As someone else pointed out, there are no shortage of exceptional bourbons, better than Elmer T Lee perhaps at a lower price range. It’s good to be a bourbon connoisseur

I guess it's an Old Fitz night!

Opened this one tonight. Very unique flavor profile. It has a lot going on with floral notes on the nose, but rye forward and citrus on the palate.

I think whether a whiskey is "worth it" at a particular price point is almost an unanswerable question. I do really like Flahute's answer above. I agree with him. But I'm happy to just talk about how ETL tastes and the value. On taste alone, for me it tops out as equivalent to a $50 bourbon. It's a 90 proof version of Blanton's with less barrel influence but with a more consistent profile for a single barrel. I used to buy it when it was $35 to $45 but now at $49.99 I believe I have purchased my last ETL, especially if they keep going up. I'm not buying it anymore at that price. Of course it helps that I have 3 or 4 in the bunker. (see above point about "scratching that itch" lol) To my taste buds RHF tastes exactly like ETL but at 100 proof. RHF is my favorite of the BT mashbill #2 expressions. But I'm not the biggest fan of BT in general. Very nice sweet caramel notes but not enough spice for me to be a favorite. You mention secondary prices a fair amount. I personally know next to nothing about the secondary values, not my thing. I would stay away from the secondary market ... I feel it can skew a person's perspective on prices. To each his own but personally I'm not interested in keeping those flippers in business.

Close enough for us!

Sorry to hear about the rain. Good call on the Old Fitzgerald. Have you compared the Old Fitzgerald 10 to 17? If so, what are your thoughts?

The only reason I recently bought an ETL was because I haven’t seen one in years. I liked it better at the $39.99 I paid a few years go as opposed to the $65.99 I recently paid. I probably won’t buy another.

Happy Fryeday! This kinda/sorta counts, right?

I'm sharing some online ordering experiences for those who have considered ordering online. I hope this is useful to others. Feel free to reach out with any questions. Flaviar - My wife gifted me a bourbon of the month for Christmas. It is referred to as the Champions of Bourbons and are advertised as being bourbons, or whiskeys which aren't as common. A part of that subscription includes a Black Card membership which gets you a deeper discount and accessibility to harder to find bourbons. I've placed 2 orders with them. The first one was lost. The second was cancelled after 3 weeks as the bottle was no longer able to be shipped. Each time, my money was tied up for weeks. Of the bottles that came as part of the bourbon of the month so far, all are what I would consider fairly common in any liquor store in my area (Wilderness Trail, Barrell Bourbon Foundation, Wild Turkey, Rare Breed, Milam & Green), and available for +/-$50. One of the bottles arrived empty, and it appeared the cork seal failed. Seeking a human to help with a claim has been less than convenient. All correspondence is over email or their chat bot (which is limited). Each time there has been an issue, they reply with the same script, "shipping alcohol can be challenging". While I understand that point, others are doing it with greater precision. It also seems that they are just a broker for others who sell alcohol as there are times where they send me an email about a bottle only for me to learn they are unable to ship to my state. All this to say, I would avoid them at all costs. Liquor Bros - I've found some really good deals with them, always have a coupon or discount code of some kind. Every order has been fulfilled within a week and arrived in perfect condition. Their shipping charges aren't terrible and they don't charge tax so more often than not, I pay the same or less than if I were to buy it locally. It's been great to find bottles that aren't available locally at MSRP and sometimes below. Not that I recommend it, but for those who are looking for buy now, pay later options, they offer many options for you. I really like using them. Maybe my favorite of them all. Wooden Cork - In much the same way, as Liquor Bros, I've had great experiences here with them too. No tax, always a discount of some kind, shipping charges are a bit higher than others, as are their prices when compared to others. That said, they aren't terrible, especially if you have a discount code in the mix. Orders get fulfilled quickly and have consistently arrived in perfect condition. I will continue to use them when the deal is right. Sip Whiskey - The experience here is good, not great. No tax, always a discount of some kind, shipping charges aren't terrible, and their prices on most aren't terrible either. In some instances, they run specials which are cheaper than what I can find locally. For instance, they had a bottle which had an MSRP of $150 and goes for that much at Total Wine, it was offered for $130, with a 10% off coupon reducing the price by another $13. Good deal. Orders get fulfilled in 10 days or so, a little longer than the others. My first order arrived in perfect condition, and I am awaiting my second order to arrive next week which was ordered 12 days ago. I would recommend others before them, but would buy from them if the deal was right. Whiskey Caviar - Some of their deals were incredible. For instance, all four Michters for $119 was hard to beat. Locally, it would run me $150 plus tax. No tax here, and always a discount code, but not as high as others. For instance, they only offered a 5% discount, when others had 10% (or higher). I did get free shipping though with a purchase of over $450. The other places offer free shipping too over a lower threshold. I placed my first order with them on June 1, and it was on the way by June 3, expected to arrive on June 11. So far so good. Hopefully it arrives in perfect condition. Frootbat - They have good prices on a few things. If you're looking for allocated, chances are they have it, so long as you're willing to pay their price. On that note, their price is often the cheapest on allocated, but they do charge tax so the savings is a wash. They always offer a coupon or discount of some kind too. I find their shipping to be the cheapest of all the sites. I've ordered many things from them. They fulfill orders within a week, and they always arrive in perfect condition. I would recommend. Hi Proof - I've ordered from them twice. I ordered a Smokeye Hill Barrel Proof. It was listed at slightly below MSRP. I also ordered an Old Forester 1924 which was slightly above MSRP as you can't find them in my part of Texas. Orders came in within a week. They also charge tax, but their shipping is reasonably low. Not as low as Frootbat, but the second lowest of any of the others. I've not had a discount code work because the bottles I purchased were at the maximum discount. I would buy from them again as even with shipping and tax, the prices are equivalent to many things I would buy locally. It's been great especially for bottles I can't find locally and I'm not paying a premium. I hope this is useful for those who are considering whether to buy online or not.

Wright's is the best bacon

Congrats and happy anniversary! Very cool that you were able to go back to the same carousel and horse!

I agree. You need to get rid of some of those excess LE bottles you acquired in exchange for all those donut favors. I am here for you