Favorite Distiller?

[b1gcountry]

I just voted for MGP. I really like high west and smooth ambler. I came close to 4R, HH, and Beam, but HWRR is still my favorite, and my latest bottle of 4RSB was not the best.

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

[DeluxeReverb]

BT for me. ETL, Blanton's, RHF, EHTSmB, ER10 and WLW107 are favorites.

[Gillman]

 For me Heaven Hill. Traditionalists, no bull, great products, family owned, innovative. My 2nd choice would be BT, but I have a soft spot for Bardstown, so...

 

Gary

Edited June 28, 2016 by Gillman

[IowaJeff]

I voted Wild Turkey.  They have my go to daily drinker, as I can get a Liter of WT101 for under $25.  Rare Breed is consistently great, and the few higher end limited releases I've had have been very good and they are generally available.  It's not BT's fault, but I can't give them any points for VW, BTAC, and all the other unicorn whiskeys I can't anymore for less than a mortgage payment.

[jsrudd]

Keep the votes coming! We've already had 56 participants, but I'd like to get around 100. 

 

Commenting on your vote is completely optional. 

 

[jsrudd]

On 6/30/2016 at 10:54 AM, jsrudd said:

Keep the votes coming! We've already had 56 participants, but I'd like to get around 100. 

 

Well, it looks like I'm not going to get to 100 votes. 

 

With 26 of 63 total votes, Buffalo Trace is the clear favorite. It received more votes than the #2 and #3 most popular distilleries combined. I guess this shows why BT is heavily allocated. 

 

The next two most popular distilleries were Four Roses and Heaven Hill. Each received 12 and 11 votes respectively. I'm a little surprised that the result was so close. I thought that Four Roses would be a clear #2. I think it's likely that BT and FR "split the vote." By that I mean that lots of people voting for BT would have chosen FR as their #2 and vice versa.

 

Among the rest of the results, the most surprising thing is that someone voted for B-F. As I stated earlier, when I created this poll I didn't think that would happen. Maybe it was a JD collector. 

[Harry in WashDC]

Yeah, well, some of us would have voted for at least three major distilleries if we could have.  SO, . . .

[Darwin]

I agree with Harry.  My favorite 3 bourbons come from 3 different distilleries and I consider them fairly equal.   

[Tony Santana]

I love 4R and HH, and Beam and WT are making gains with me, but I have more bottles of BT products than anything else, and that seems as good a criteria as anything.  Wide variety of choices, and even with stuff being allocated I always have something BT in the regular rotation.  For the coveted releases, I'd probably seek out BTAC bottles over any other LE's.  Didn't really hesitate in making the choice.

[fenderbender4]

2 hours ago, Tony Santana said:

I love 4R and HH, and Beam and WT are making gains with me, but I have more bottles of BT products than anything else, and that seems as good a criteria as anything.  Wide variety of choices, and even with stuff being allocated I always have something BT in the regular rotation.  For the coveted releases, I'd probably seek out BTAC bottles over any other LE's.  Didn't really hesitate in making the choice.

 

Yeah.  I agreed in a similar sense.  The bottles I covet most, that I haven't tried (WLW, PVW, Saz 18, etc.) all seem to be Buffalo Trace.  Given that, one of my favorites is RHF.  

 

However, I really wanted to go 4R or HH as I believe both companies are truly trying to meet the demand, in ways that seem to leave quality intact.  The hunt for bottles of anything BTAC is to the point that it's more off-putting. 

[flahute]

I wonder what the results would be if Limited Editions were removed from the equation? BT would have been an easy choice for me if I only considered BTAC and VW ( and other impossibles such as Weller 12, Sazerac, and ETL of a couple years ago). If I consider what I can buy without major effort and hustle, BT falls down the list for me - there's just far too few (though what's left is still dang good). 4R (what I chose) on the other hand, is consistently great. Small Batch and Single Barrel on their own hold their own and do better against what I can get regularly from BT. When I factor in all the 10 recipes available as Private Selection barrels at barrel proof, 4R shoots way ahead for me. Granted, they all aren't available at will at my local, but when they do show up, I can stock up, and, I can find others online regularly, and, I can find the rest at the 4R gift shop when I visit. In short - it's been way easier to find those than any of the BTAC LE's.

[whiskey buyer]

I would say Buffalo Trace.

[jsrudd]

20 hours ago, flahute said:

I wonder what the results would be if Limited Editions were removed from the equation? BT would have been an easy choice for me if I only considered BTAC and VW ( and other impossibles such as Weller 12, Sazerac, and ETL of a couple years ago). If I consider what I can buy without major effort and hustle, BT falls down the list for me - there's just far too few (though what's left is still dang good). 

I think the scarcity of BT LEs rightly go into deciding which is your favorite distiller. I can't vote for them as my favorite because the effort required to drink their really good stuff is simply not worth it. I also don't think their standard releases are nearly as strong as HH or 4R. 

[mortre]

I picked Wild Turkey because I've enjoyed most of what I've had of their stuff, Russell's Reserve Single Barrell will be my next purchase.  Beam stuff has an after taste that I dislike.  I'm not a fan of the earthy flavor I get from most Buffalo Traces stuff either, though I am enjoying their OWA.  I've only tried one bourbon from Four Roses, so I threw them out for my own lack of exposure to their products.  I found basic Maker's Mark to be horribly hot, I could taste little other than alcohol.  However their cask strength I would put in my top 3, with Rare Breed and Four Roses Single Barrel.    

[Gentleman Racer]

Beam.  In today's environment where you have to beg, borrow, and steal to get a special release (an activity for which I've exhausted all tolerance) I can walk into virtually any liquor store in the country and walk out with Jim Beam Black, OGD BiB, OGD114, KCSB, and Bookers.  Not to mention the occasional Basil Hayden and Bakers.  The quality, affordability, and variety of that line up would keep me happy forever.  

[Mark S.]

For me, it's Buffalo Trace---hands down!  My favorite top three all come from there PLUS----they are one friendly, helpful, courteous bunch of people.  Customer satisfaction rates high with them.  That being said, I also  like Woodford Reserve, Distiller's Select for an everyday sipper.

[BDanner]

I chose based on consistently good products from top shelf to bottom. There are bourbons I enjoy a great deal from just about all of these but there is a Heaven Hills product at every single price point that I consider excellent buys. Buffalo Trace was 1A for me, but so much of the stuff I enjoy from them is so hard to find (Wellers, Col EH Taylor, even Buffalo Trace Bourbon). When your namesake bourbon is only available in my area a couple times a year, you lose a few points. Beam is choice number 2 based almost entirely on the OGD's

 

Bottom Shelf Dweller: Henry McKenna

Upper Bottom Shelf: Evan Williams

Mid Shelf: Evan Williams BIB

Upper Mid Shelf: Larceny

Low Top Shelf: Elijah Craig

Mid Top Shelf: Henry McKenna 10yr SiB BIB

Top Shelf: Elijah Craig Barrel Proof

 

Rye: Rittenhouse BIB

Wheat: Bernheim

Corn: Mellow Corn

 

You could stock your entire bar with these 10 whiskies from HH and be perfectly content.

[Whiskeythink.com]

I had to go with Four Roses. I feel they do things differently there, with the different recipes & their one-story rickhouses, their lower-proof barreling; it seems they really want to push the envelope & with great results. I respect that. And I love their bourbons.

[Midwest101]

Tough choice for me between Heaven Hill and Wild Turkey, but I had to choose WT. WT101 is the first spirit I ever developed a taste for. A standard against which all others are judged, for better or worse.

[Limegoldconvertible68]

Up until last week Beam was my favorite. After the Bookers news Beam is a company I can do without. Buffalo Trace is now my favorite with Wild Turkey a close second.