Booker's or Noah's mill?

[amg]

Yeah, if you're not familiar with all the house profiles yet, don't spend money on a top shelf, high proof bottle that you may not really enjoy. I'll add Wild Turkey 101 to Smithford's list as well. I really don't care for their 81 proof offering; add a little water or ice if it seems too hot.

[BigBoldBully]

Ah, they always do this, "I have a choice of A or B" then everyone weighs in, then someone says C and suddenly it's a free for for all! Fine, but even so I do not see the problem with going straight for Booker's. It's not like you can't add as much water as you want or need to, and sip it as slowly as you please. It's only bourbon. In fact, I would be more concerned about a newbie trying something like a heavily peated Scotch, intensely smokey Mezcal, funky saison, stinky cheese, or other in your face "acquired taste" sort of thing. All bourbon IMO is relatively approachable.

[393foureyedfox]

I agree that you should start with something else if you're new to Bourbon.

not always the case....

i never really cared for bourbon, then I tried a Booker's neat while on a getaway weekend with Mrs Fox and my eyes were opened to what bourbon can be. you never know....

[flahute]

Agree with Fox and BBB. I was a Maker's and Woodford guy for years (and drank very sparingly). Suddenly one day, my brother-in-law introduced me to George T. Stagg. He made sure I knew to add water, I loved it, and the rest is history. I don't know of many who would suggest someone inexperienced start with Stagg, but it worked for me. Booker's, if properly tamed and managed with a bit of water, can easily set our friend upon a very happy path.

[bdrinker]

I think I'll take my time on this bourbon journey, starting slowly and moving up to more premium brands, that's part of the fun anyway. I just want to avoid spending on the cheap stuff. I tried WT 81 neat in a bar, and it was terrible. I'm looking for neat sippers with flavor and decent noses. From what I gather here, I should stay away from entry level bottles. Thank you all for your input.

[Flyfish]

I think I'll take my time on this bourbon journey, starting slowly and moving up to more premium brands, that's part of the fun anyway. I just want to avoid spending on the cheap stuff... From what I gather here, I should stay away from entry level bottles. Thank you all for your input.

I'm not sure where you got the impression that you should avoid the "cheap stuff" or "entry level bottles." SBers are committed to drinking excellent bourbon no matter what shelf it rests on. Note the number of us who love "bottom shelf" HH bourbons, for example. Turn up your nose at value pours and you deny yourself a great deal of pleasure. Perhaps you could get someone to pour you a blind tasting so you can judge your bourbon on its own merit rather than on the bottle it came from.

[393foureyedfox]

From what I gather here, I should stay away from entry level bottles.

that is totally NOT what many of us are advising you to do. entry level bottles are a good way to get an idea of profiles, and to give you a good idea of which profiles/brands you will have interest in exploring further. And, if youre like many of us here, you will find a few of those entry level bottles to be something you choose to regularly keep around. LOTS of guys on here willingly keep going back to OGDBIB, HHBIB, EWB, WT101, 4RYL, JBB, etc, and there's nothing at all wrong with that.

[squire]

From what I gather here, I should stay away from entry level bottles.

I wouldn't stay away from entry level bottles rather I would be selective in choosing them. The good ones have been discussed here for years so they're not hard to identify. Some of them are surprisingly good so don't let price be your guide.

Price is no indication of quality either, some of the most grossly overpriced stuff out there is ordinary plonk dressed up in a fancy bottle. Kinda like a Chihuahua masquerading in a Doberman costume it just ain't what it seems to be.

One of my rules is I will not, will not, buy any whisky from a producer who pretends to have made it when I know damn full well they didn't. If they will lie about one thing . . .

[TunnelTiger]

Agree with flyfish and squire 1000%.

[flahute]

May as well pile on here in agreement with squire, fly, and TT. Though there's plenty of joy to be found with high power pours such as Booker's and Stagg, there can be just as much joy in numerous entry level pours such as OGDBIB, WT101, VOB6, 4RYL, Beam Black, MM, HH6, and regular old BT. By all means do yourself the service of becoming familiar with these bourbons.

[Paddy]

I can't believe I stayed out of this thread....until now.:grin:

So, I'm just gonna pile on and say....yes....what everyone else said!

Seriously though:rolleyes:, to the OP: Your question was Booker's or NM, so I'm only addressing that simple question below:

Booker's was a real guy in a multi-generational family of distillers, who grew up and worked his lifetime in a real distillery, where they made real bourbon and developed new recipes and brands (i.e. Booker's).

As for Noah's Mill. We don't really know what the hell it is (as they're not producing, and the product in the bottle is subject to change every time they bottle a batch). To their credit, it can be everything from ok to pretty good stuff. So, nothing against NM, and I wish them the best... but it really isn't a close call for me.

[koRn]

I enjoy the bottle of Noah's Mill I currently have, the roundtable Bookers I have is better in a sbs. I don't think you would really be disappointed in either honestly.

[weller_tex]

I can't believe I stayed out of this thread....until now.:grin:

So, I'm just gonna pile on and say....yes....what everyone else said!

Seriously though:rolleyes:, to the OP: Your question was Booker's or NM, so I'm only addressing that simple question below:

Booker's was a real guy in a multi-generational family of distillers, who grew up and worked his lifetime in a real distillery, where they made real bourbon and developed new recipes and brands (i.e. Booker's).

As for Noah's Mill. We don't really know what the hell it is (as they're not producing, and the product in the bottle is subject to change every time they bottle a batch). To their credit, it can be everything from ok to pretty good stuff. So, nothing against NM, and I wish them the best... but it really isn't a close call for me.

That's why I would vote Booker's as well..the story and people behind it.

[JvW]

I am currently enjoying the Noah's Mill and have to admit that it is one of the best bourbons on the market. It has been a while since I have had the Booker's (waiting for me in my bunker), but the Noah's Mill is verry solid indeed and I will always have a backup on reserve. Just love the variety and uniqueness in taste.

Regards,

Jan

[Mardbrown]

The one bottle of Noah's mill I had was very good. However, I've had multiple bottles of Bookers and have had it at bars and have never been disappointed. Go with Bookers, it's a staple.

[mosugoji64]

I recently tasted Noah's Mill at Willett and it was definitely HH whiskey. Save some money and buy EC12 instead, or go for Bookers.

[Ravensfire]

Between the two, I'd have to go for Bookers. I've got a couple of bonded bourbons so the 100 proof point is covered for me, but the nice high proof of Bookers, plus the relatively low price and I quite enjoy the stuff make it an easy decision to pick up.

For someone newish to bourbon, I'd probably also recommend Bookers at some point to introduce them to the work of barrel proof.

[shoshani]

I'll add my voice to Booker's. It's not only well-established, but it's about as consistent as such a product can be. Beam spends an enormous amount of time and money on getting it just right. Because of the nature of the beast, there will be variables, but overall if you develop certain expectations from Booker's based on past experience, you won't be disappointed.

[The Black Tot]

In my opinion, the better Noah's Mills will probably be better than Booker's, and the worst ones will be much worse than Booker's.

They're both moving targets, varying by batch, but Booker's will vary much less than Noah's Mill, and is probably much more reliable.

If you get a fantastic NM, go back and stock up.

[JvW]

In my opinion, the better Noah's Mills will probably be better than Booker's, and the worst ones will be much worse than Booker's.

They're both moving targets, varying by batch, but Booker's will vary much less than Noah's Mill, and is probably much more reliable.

If you get a fantastic NM, go back and stock up.

I just finished my NM batch 14-86 and it was excellent I thought.

Jan

[The Black Tot]

I just finished my NM batch 14-86 and it was excellent I thought.

Jan

[EvergladeSlim]

Great, go and get yourself another bottle from the same store shelf, fast.

[JvW]

Great, go and get yourself another bottle from the same store shelf, fast.

[squire]

Word is the newer batches (15-x) of Noah's Mill contains some older hooch.

[EvergladeSlim]

Mind sharing the source of that info?

I believe it was on bourbontruth's twitter. Love him or hate him, his intel is always spot on.