Do you keep a decoy?

[lcpfratn]

There is nothing wrong with Jameson period. The only problem I have with it is that it drinks too easy. Even at 80 proof it’s dangerous going down like water.


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I don’t entirely disagree with you, but its just not complex enough in flavor or high enough in proof for me anymore. I drank plenty of it in my younger days, but it’s just too boring for me now. The Black Barrel and the new IPA cask finished versions, on the other hand, are very nice, and I have a bottle of both.

[kevinbrink]

3 hours ago, lcpfratn said:

I don’t entirely disagree with you, but its just not complex enough in flavor or high enough in proof for me anymore. I drank plenty of it in my younger days, but it’s just too boring for me now. The Black Barrel and the new IPA cask finished versions, on the other hand, are very nice, and I have a bottle of both.

A lot of people are liking the IPA barrel, I picked up a few minis and so far it isn't working for me, I have 1 left so I guess there is still hope.

[Midwest101]

Only person I hide bottles from is my wife! Ha. But seriously.  I'll be damned if I have to hide whiskey in my own house. 

 

I do have a few bottles that have been discontinued or are hard to find that I don't wish to share. I keep them on the literal top shelf of my bottle cabinet, and have absolutely no problem politely telling people top shelf is off limits. Of course I might make an exception depending on the guest/occasion. 

 

Of course I always have several other great options, and I've never had a negative reaction from telling someone what they are welcome to drink.  If someone thinks they are entitled to my whiskey just because they are in my house,  I may have to reevaluate how welcome they are in the first place. 

 

 

[DonutsNBourbon]

my rule is simple, you can drink YOUR whiskey any way you like, but if you're drinking my whiskey you're going to have to drink it the way I like.  I have all my stuff out for people to look at and if they want a taste, I'm more than happy to give them one, but if you're going to mix it, I've got a shelf for that.

[Basil]

We entertain fairly regularly and several of our friends are into bourbon to varying degrees. My house rule is that you can have anything you like.....if it’s open.  I keep about a dozen bottles open at a time, and have the best selection amongst our friends by a large margin. However, nothing is super hard to find and the most expensive open bottle I have is probably in the $70 range. I have only recently begun to build a true collection, and have no desire to open any of the truely tough to get bottles....yet. I’m more interested in expanding my palate and tasting as many different bottles as possible.  My friends tend to be on the same page and don’t complain that none of the “good stuff” is open. At least not where I can hear them.....

[ThirstyinOhio]

I don't use decoys or deter people from trying/mixing anything as long as its open.  However, I have been lucky as only a few times has someone grabbed "the good stuff" and dumped coke or ginger ale in it, but I never say anything when they do.  Friends and family can't be replaced nor the memories that are made while sharing a pour, but a bottle of Pappy can be.  Last Thanksgiving I had just opened up a bottle of WT Decades and my father-in-law promptly poured 4-5 ounces into a glass with ice and topped it off with ginger ale.  After taking the first drink, he told us how it reminded him of being back in the Marines and drinking with his buddies and proceeded to tell us some wild stories that no one in the family had heard before.  I can't think of a better way to consume whiskey.  Sure, it might have had the same results with off the shelf 101, but life is short and so why waste the few opportunities to make memories by worrying about "whiskey abuse".  If its open, feel free to pour, if you aren't worthy of me sharing my whiskey, you aren't worthy of my time either.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 13, 2018 by ThirstyinOhio

[Bob_Loblaw]

On 3/1/2018 at 3:52 PM, DonutsNBourbon said:

my rule is simple, you can drink YOUR whiskey any way you like, but if you're drinking my whiskey you're going to have to drink it the way I like.  I have all my stuff out for people to look at and if they want a taste, I'm more than happy to give them one, but if you're going to mix it, I've got a shelf for that.

 

I used to have this "rule" but have since softened my stance.  There is no one proper way to enjoy whiskey and I realized that my stubbornness was diminishing the enjoyment of my guests.  That said, I know the habits of the majority of my visitors  and will tailor my recommendations to their preferences.  Yes, I do cringe a little at ThirstyinOhios story, but at the end of the day his guest was happier having his drink his way. I think in that spot, if it bothered me, I would just make the adjustment for the next  gathering and bring a less top shelf bottle.   Kind of a fool me twice, shame on me, situation.  

 

[Dannabis]

Always decoy. I barricade my good pour behind layers of cheap but mixable. This way they have to dig and hopefully ask for the good stuff if they want it. People dont all like what I like so if I break out ECBP and they dont like it, I am disappointed

[mbroo5880i]

Guests can enjoy whatever I have in whatever manner they like.  If they want to mix GTS with coke, they can do so.  I am fairly open and blunt though and I will steer them away from or toward different things.  For example, if they say they like GTS and believe it would be awesome with coke, I explain to them the nuances of barrel proofs and how GTS is viewed.  I try to steer them toward BT and coke.  However, if they so choose and really want GTS and coke, I will oblige.  What I find is that those folks typically only have one drink because the GTS knocks them on their ....

 

I have a niece who really likes Blanton's with sprite.  So, if she is coming over, I make sure I have sprite.

 

Bourbon, whiskies, material things are replaceable and/or meant to share and enjoy with friends.  I would rather replace expensive whiskey with something lesser than to replace a friend, even if sometimes annoying or inconsiderate.  I have an open cabinet but it is high enough and out reach such that I can easily pull out a dozen or so bottles that scratches most everyone's itch.  My really good friends might ask for something if they don't see it but generally if they are my really good friends, they already see it.  And if I have it they can have it.

[mbroo5880i]

25 minutes ago, Dannabis said:

Always decoy. I barricade my good pour behind layers of cheap but mixable. This way they have to dig and hopefully ask for the good stuff if they want it. People dont all like what I like so if I break out ECBP and they dont like it, I am disappointed

I just have to ask do you have a brother named Cannabis?   

Edited April 1, 2018 by mbroo5880i

[SouthsideRed]

On 2/10/2018 at 5:48 PM, The Black Tot said:

I'll likely refill my Pappy 23 when it's done with a generic OWA.

 

You'd have to be a proper jerk to get served from that bottle once that happens, but life does throw you some of those.

 

I don't think any of you here need to worry about it if you visit.

I plan on doing this with Lot B bottle that I got from a friend, specifically for when my wife's best friend and her husband come over.   He drinks all my top shelf stuff and doesnt ever offer anything in return when we go to their house.  

[tedsko]

Don’t keep any decoys. Have two great friends who enjoy bourbon as much as I do. Whenever they’re over, they get pick of the litter.  In fact, split a bottle of WLW, which I won in a lottery, with my one friend.  Good bourbon is meant to be shared.. it does help they reciprocate and don’t mix my WLW with coke though!  Aside from those two friends, no one else I know is a bourbon drinker.  That helps as well, but wouldn’t mind sharing with the curious soul. 

[Mickbourbon]

All these stories remind me of a Christmas several years ago when I had just opened a 20 yo PVW. I poured a little in a glass for my mother so she could try it and she topped it off with 7up. I just laughed as she is 93 now and was 90 or so then. She has earned the right to drink what she wants how she wants and I now have another wonderful memory. Btw when I was growing up my dad would drink 7&7 or CC and 7 in our house. 

[PaulO]

I keep a decoy - for myself. 

In my closet there is a box with several quality, but easily replaceable bottles.  That's there in case I just need something to open.  The discontinued/hard or impossible to find bottles stay mostly safe that way.  (I do open one once in a great while.)

I only keep a couple different bottles open at a time in the cabinet.  If it's in there; it's meant for drinking.  Most of my friends and family are only into beer or wine.  I guess I'm the outlier.