Your Top 5 Bourbons to Avoid and Why

[weller_tex]

1) Eagle Rare 10..like chewing on a piece of wood

2) Jim Beam Devil's Cut..In general I like most of the Beam products, but not this one.

3) JD..hate it.. has this artificial banana taste

4) Old Overholt (yeah I know it's a rye)

5) EWSB..when I first got into bourbon I thought this was good stuff..then I got to realize how weak and boring it was..and overhyped. Not overpriced but sure is overhyped.

[michaelturtle1]

i dont think beam and its upper level stuff seem to share much other than a dsp#. i dont really pick up on a funk though, as a lot of you guys do. the stuff with the actual 'beam' name isnt bad, it is just completely unremarkable to me.

[Guy Debord]

"Man, don't get why people can't just answer the question without getting all touchy about it.

Here's a few that I only tried a bottle or two of, and won't be in a rush to get again:"

Thank you so much for the support. I agree with what some have said. Let's get into it. Let's talk likes / dislikes, so what.

I will not touch:

Wild Turkey

Jim Beam

Evan Williams

[White Dog]

Not trying to piss anyone off, as this is just my taste.

1. Any Beam that's not OGD. Both the smell and taste remind of wet socks left in the woods.

2. Rebel Yell. Makes Beam White taste like Pappy.

3. ER10. All wood and no fruit. (Love standard BT. ER and BT taste like they're made on different planets, IMHO.)

4. Most Turkey. They're striking me as thin and young. Quite thin as far as texture goes.

5. Baby Saz. Yeah, I said it.

[sutton]

Not trying to piss anyone off, as this is just my taste.

2. Rebel Yell. Makes Beam White taste like Pappy.

Sounds like a great way to get your Pappy. Cheap, too.

[mark fleetwood]

For me, it's run, don't walk, away from Ancient Age 3yr, 80prf.

[Don_Draper]

Interesting thread and one that I hope gets a lot of replies.

Personally I never avoid anything based on someone else recommendation, I will always try for myself, and as far as worrying about someone else not liking what I like or vice versa, well who gives a crap, thats just like your oppinion, man. Lets celebrate our differences.

Whiskey I dont buy:

1) Jim Beam small batch - starchy? The finish just doesnt work for me

2) JD - not cos its bad, just overpriced for what I consider a mixer, but I will never knock back a freebie.

3) Blantons special - why wouldnt you buy the private reserve instead?

4) Basil Hayden - too mellow for me, I dont like subtle, thats why I drink 100 proofers and Islay scotch!

5) Eagle rare 10 - i have bought a bottle every 6 months for the past 4 years and it is yet to grab me, its nice, but for me thats it

[squire]

The reputation was built on the original Eagle Rare 101 that is now discontinued.

[Paddy]

The reputation was built on the original Eagle Rare 101 that is now discontinued.

And that WAS some fine whiskey, who's memory will always remind me to pass on the current...

[bingstein]

I apologize if some folks love these, but these have been the ones I wish I hadn't spent as much money on them as I did:

1. BMH SmB NAS

2. Stagg Jr

3. PVW20

4. ER90

5. that's it. I can't think of anything else I felt I overpaid for

[CL]

Finally someone that feels the same about Eagle Rare 10 as me. It is so boring. I dont get the hype.

[Guest]

It's been years since I had the ER10 and it's for the same reason you mentioned. It was too boring to me, too.

[HighInTheMtns]

Yep boring is a great way to put it. It was one of my first forays into "premium" bourbon and i always felt like i wasnt getting something or my palate was not fine tuned enough to appreciate it, i have bought a few and tend to revisit it because on paper i should LOVE it, its BT juice and ten years.

would love to try it at around 100-110 proof though.

[tylermke]

It's been years since I had the ER10 and it's for the same reason you mentioned. It was too boring to me, too.

Edited September 21, 2013 by tylermke

[393foureyedfox]

1. Any Beam that's not OGD. Both the smell and taste remind of wet socks left in the woods.

[Guest]

Maybe 101, and drop the single barrel and batch it instead?

[CL]

Yep boring is a great way to put it. It was one of my first forays into "premium" bourbon and i always felt like i wasnt getting something or my palate was not fine tuned enough to appreciate it, i have bought a few and tend to revisit it because on paper i should LOVE it, its BT juice and ten years.

would love to try it at around 100-110 proof though.

Agree. I was careful to say I found it boring. I purposely didn't say it wasn't good bourbon. Like you, maybe my palate can't pick up what others like in it. But that's fine. I'll just leave it on the shelf for them to enjoy. ;-)

[TunnelTiger]

Jim Beam Devils Cut, a very vile product

I'm going to add all and any NDP Bourbons. Not because they are necessarily bad but because for the price the taste just isn't there.

The exceptions would be High West and WP but then again they're not Bourbons.

[AnotherCigarGuy]

Couple thoughts...

Seems like the dislikes are, in general, for the lower proofs.

And, as far as the high priced stuff, they will rarely be two to three times better if they are

two to three times more expensive then your "good" stuff. Cigars are the same way. A $20 cigar

is rarely better then a $7 one, but you still HAVE to try it?!

[White Dog]

I'm going to add all and any NDP Bourbons. Not because they are necessarily bad but because for the price the taste just isn't there.

The exceptions would be High West and WP but then again they're not Bourbons.

Seriously? Ever had Old Ezra 7yr 101? 17.99 and worth every penny. And while it's a dusty, Vintage 17yr was always worth it to me.

[tigerlam92]

It may be informative to consolidate all the data into a pivot table and sort by descending order so we can see in a summary table what SB.com thinks are the worse to avoid for any specific reasons.

Thanks,

[TunnelTiger]

Seriously? Ever had Old Ezra 7yr 101? 17.99 and worth every penny. And while it's a dusty, Vintage 17yr was always worth it to me.

Nope, haven't ever seen it. I'll amend my post to say all of the NDP's I've tried.

[393foureyedfox]

Seriously? Ever had Old Ezra 7yr 101? 17.99 and worth every penny. And while it's a dusty, Vintage 17yr was always worth it to me.

ive had it and didnt think it significantly better than a 6yh HH 100 proof that i can get for $10 here. a little different, not better or worse, but not when I know they get it from HH anyway and then upcharge 180%

[qman22]

I had to think about this one for a minute, because fortunately it's rare I taste a bourbon that I really find to be bad, but here it goes:

1. Regular Ancient Age. This is some bitter cheap tasting bourbon. For mixing only if that

2. JTS Brown BiB. I really wanted to like this, but couldn't get into it. Go for the HH 6yr BiB instead

3. Basil Hayden. I have never had this because I refuse to pay that much for an 80 proof bourbon. I love OGD and it pisses me off they waste their older stocks on this watered down brand.

4. Makers Mark. Not terrible, but way overpriced for what it is. Inferior to WSR, but more $.

5. Most any bourbon that is 80 proof. Too much water for me

[Guy Debord]

Here's what I found:

A small sample size of SB does not like these, look at what comes up most.

Disliked Bourbon:

4Roses Limited Edition Small Batch

Eagle Rare 10yr

Anything labeled "Van Winkle"

Parker's Heritage Collection

Buffalo Trace Antique Collection

Four Roses Small Batch Limited Edition

Old Crow

Ezra Brooks 12y

Russel Reserve 10y

Old Overholt

George Dickel

- Wild Turkey Rye 81: It sucks and is a serious step back from the 101, a real disservice to (former) customers.

- Rebel Yell: It sucks even more; even though it is cheap, it is not worth it.

- Woodford Reserve: It is expensive bourbon that many love, but I get a strange and unpleasant metallic aftertaste.

- Booker's: Even more expensive and like drinking a vat of cloying corn syrup.

- Any bourbon that uses GMO corn: Proven unsafe? No. Proven safe? No. Allowed into Europe and Asia? Nope.

Old Overholt,

Old Crow

Ten High

Ancient Age

Bookers

Reb Yell

Rebel Reserve

Old Fitzgerald Prime

Regular Ancient Age: This is some bitter cheap tasting bourbon. For mixing only if that

JTS Brown BiB: I really wanted to like this, but couldn't get into it. Go for the HH 6yr BiB instead

Basil Hayden: I have never had this because I refuse to pay that much for an 80 proof bourbon. I love Old Grand Dad and it pisses me off they waste their older stocks on this watered down brand.

Makers Mark: Not terrible, but way overpriced for what it is. Inferior to WSR, but more $.

Most any bourbon that is 80 proof. Too much water for me

Eagle Rare 10..like chewing on a piece of wood

Jim Beam Devil's Cut..In general I like most of the Beam products, but not this one.

Jack Daniel’s hate it.. has this artificial banana taste

Old Overholt (yeah I know it's a rye)

Evan Williams Single Barrel: when I first got into bourbon I thought this was good stuff..then I got to realize how weak and boring it was..and overhyped. Not overpriced but sure is overhyped.

Any Beam that's not Old Grand Dad. Both the smell and taste remind of wet socks left in the woods.

Rebel Yell: Makes Beam White taste like Pappy.

Eagle Rare 10 y.: All wood and no fruit. (Love standard BT. ER and BT taste like they're made on different planets, IMHO.)

Most Turkey: They're striking me as thin and young. Quite thin as far as texture goes.

Baby Saz: Yeah, I said it.