CUfan99 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 (edited) I went to a LLS yesterday and the owner was showing me this Whistlepig bottle. He said the only way to get them was to order an entire barrel. He had a customer ask for a barrel, and then didn't buy all the bottles. He was ticked the guy didn't take them all. That must have been the deal. Anyway, is it true that all WPSB's are store picks? My main question; is it worth the $80 he's asking for a bottle? Edited February 13, 2018 by CUfan99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marekv8 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 I would assume he's got an open bottle around-- why not ask for a tasting sample? You're the only viable judge of the liquid's value. Anderson, SC-- wow, some bad memories associated with that place. Drive safely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CUfan99 Posted February 13, 2018 Author Share Posted February 13, 2018 14 minutes ago, Marekv8 said: Anderson, SC-- wow, some bad memories associated with that place. Drive safely. If you hadn't said drive safely at the end I would have assumed you were robbed or kidnapped in Anderson in the past, since that's not uncommon here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marekv8 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 The death of my beautiful Interceptor MkII at the hands of a texting teenage driver… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CUfan99 Posted February 13, 2018 Author Share Posted February 13, 2018 Ah $*@$&@! I recognize that stretch of 85. My condolences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IncredulousNosco Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 (edited) 2 hours ago, CUfan99 said: My main question; is it worth the $80 he's asking for a bottle? I get these cask strength barrel picks at Specs for less than that, sometimes at $61, sometimes at $70, but I would pay $80 for sure. It is absolutely worth that to me. It is some of my favorite whiskey out there right now. Three different Specs picks: Edited February 13, 2018 by IncredulousNosco better photo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry in WashDC Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Marekv8, I'm glad you are ok, and I am sorry about your AM - truly a classic. CUfan99, FWIW, I've liked the taste of all the WPs I've tried and have even bought several. BUT, price has been the problem - I don't think any of them warrant an over-$100 per 750, but I have paid close to $100 each, at a Dave Pickerell formal tasting, for a couple I really liked but that's just me. I don't think I've seen any of the releases for less than $80 around WashDC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinbrink Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 It's been a while since I have seen one in NJ for under $90 so at $80 I would probably be a buyer. Generally I do think it is true that to get the single barrels you need to buy a whole barrel, here though there seems to be at least some instances where the distributor is buying a barrel and then moving some of the bottles to various stores, don't believe I've seen a WP like that but have seen lots of Four Roses, BT/Sazerac and High West stuff at multiple stores. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marekv8 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 2 hours ago, Harry in WashDC said: Marekv8, I'm glad you are ok, and I am sorry about your AM - truly a classic. Thank you, sir. It's (was) actually a Jensen-- no Aston Martins harmed in the making of that nightmare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry in WashDC Posted February 14, 2018 Share Posted February 14, 2018 5 hours ago, Marekv8 said: Thank you, sir. It's (was) actually a Jensen-- no Aston Martins harmed in the making of that nightmare. thx. Thought it was a DB Mark III. Shows you how long ago it was I paid attention to British sports cars. STILL, that's sad to see. I lost a Porche 911S Targa in a flood the same month I made the last payment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marekv8 Posted February 14, 2018 Share Posted February 14, 2018 1 hour ago, Harry in WashDC said: thx. Thought it was a DB Mark III. Shows you how long ago it was I paid attention to British sports cars. STILL, that's sad to see. I lost a Porche 911S Targa in a flood the same month I made the last payment. Sorry about the loss of your "S"-- I have a soft spot for air-cooled German rides. I'm still hanging on to my '64 VW Beetle and '71 VW Bus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EarthQuake Posted February 17, 2018 Share Posted February 17, 2018 (edited) I have a couple bottles of 120 proof that I paid $80 for. This is my favorite rye I can reasonbly buy. I did a blind tasting with HW MWND and Kentucky Owl rye recently and the WPSB was unquestionably the winner. The only negative I would say about it is it is a little hot out of the bottle, but opens up beautifully with a bit of air time, though really this applies to most barrel proofers. I would probably pay up to $100 for these, but the stores I can generally get them from charge $75-80, which is just fine with me. Edited February 17, 2018 by EarthQuake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flahute Posted February 22, 2018 Share Posted February 22, 2018 On 2/17/2018 at 12:19 PM, EarthQuake said: I have a couple bottles of 120 proof that I paid $80 for. This is my favorite rye I can reasonbly buy. I did a blind tasting with HW MWND and Kentucky Owl rye recently and the WPSB was unquestionably the winner. The only negative I would say about it is it is a little hot out of the bottle, but opens up beautifully with a bit of air time, though really this applies to most barrel proofers. I would probably pay up to $100 for these, but the stores I can generally get them from charge $75-80, which is just fine with me. The ones you have been loving - are they all Alberta sourced that have been aged or finished (can't remember which) in ex bourbon casks? Or a variety? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EarthQuake Posted February 22, 2018 Share Posted February 22, 2018 3 minutes ago, flahute said: The ones you have been loving - are they all Alberta sourced that have been aged or finished (can't remember which) in ex bourbon casks? Or a variety? Yes, bottle says Imported from Canada, and finished in Bourbon barrels. It's my understanding that all the WP 10 Single Barrels meet these specs, or at least I haven't seen any that differ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flahute Posted February 22, 2018 Share Posted February 22, 2018 19 minutes ago, EarthQuake said: Yes, bottle says Imported from Canada, and finished in Bourbon barrels. It's my understanding that all the WP 10 Single Barrels meet these specs, or at least I haven't seen any that differ. Cool. I have one that TBT gave me last year that's from an east coast Total Wine. It's really good. I've been trying to decide if I should try the one at my local TW. Sounds like these are consistently good. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishnbowljoe Posted February 24, 2018 Share Posted February 24, 2018 I sure wish Dave Pickerel was still active here. Biba Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinbrink Posted February 24, 2018 Share Posted February 24, 2018 On 2/22/2018 at 4:39 PM, flahute said: Cool. I have one that TBT gave me last year that's from an east coast Total Wine. It's really good. I've been trying to decide if I should try the one at my local TW. Sounds like these are consistently good. I've found that they are pretty consistent, interestingly I have one from the New Hampshire liquor outlet which was (I assume) proofed down to 100 and it is more of an Oak Bomb than others I have had, still really tasty. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Black Tot Posted March 2, 2018 Share Posted March 2, 2018 I found one great one. And then I found about 4 bad ones. $80 is too much in my opinion these days unless you've tasted it first and you know it's a legend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IncredulousNosco Posted March 14, 2018 Share Posted March 14, 2018 On 3/2/2018 at 1:28 PM, The Black Tot said: I found one great one. And then I found about 4 bad ones. $80 is too much in my opinion these days unless you've tasted it first and you know it's a legend. This is the first critical word I've ever heard about these SB picks. Since I posted above I also found a great deal on a 58.5% abv TW&M SB pick for $59.99! Except they had a 10% off on store picks-deal, and I got two bottles for $53.99 each! Anyway, I've now tried 4 different picks, and they've ranged from spectacular to holy-shit awesome. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Black Tot Posted March 14, 2018 Share Posted March 14, 2018 1 hour ago, IncredulousNosco said: This is the first critical word I've ever heard about these SB picks. WP's warehouses aren't magic lands where everything is always sunshine and rainbows. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokinjoe Posted March 14, 2018 Share Posted March 14, 2018 4 hours ago, The Black Tot said: WP's warehouses aren't magic lands where everything is always sunshine and rainbows. Indeed. That Would be the Gazebo in Bardstown in September and April of each year... 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0895 Posted March 17, 2018 Share Posted March 17, 2018 As others have mentioned, you need to taste first. Sometimes you find one so good you buy a case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IncredulousNosco Posted March 18, 2018 Share Posted March 18, 2018 On 3/14/2018 at 12:36 PM, The Black Tot said: WP's warehouses aren't magic lands where everything is always sunshine and rainbows. The hope would be that the sub par barrels are getting blended into the 10yo, or even sitting longer in their bourbon barrels until they improve. But the whole point of single barrel picks is that their supposed to be honey barrels. And from my experience in being 4 for 4 on these (not bottles, but different picks...I'm a dozen bottles or more in), and from all the fan-fare these get on WB&SE FB page, their status as almost all honey barrels seemed certain to me. So it really sucks to be 1 for 5 I bet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Black Tot Posted March 19, 2018 Share Posted March 19, 2018 23 hours ago, IncredulousNosco said: But the whole point of single barrel picks is that their supposed to be honey barrels. And from my experience in being 4 for 4 on these (not bottles, but different picks...I'm a dozen bottles or more in), and from all the fan-fare these get on WB&SE FB page, their status as almost all honey barrels seemed certain to me. So it really sucks to be 1 for 5 I bet! The honey barrel dream is certainly the idea. But we're in the fatigue stages of a boom AND bubble - the bees that make all this honey are getting shagged out. Another point of single barrel picks is to sell more whiskey. So keep that in mind. I'm thrilled for you that you've had a 4 for 4 record. But I'd be cautious about sending everyone out assured that every one is a gem, because they haven't been, in my experience. There again, I'm a crotchety middle aged man transitioning into a crotchety old man. And the more great whiskeys I taste, the pickier I get. I'm probably splitting hog hairs, but after some of the pours I've had I can't go back to pretending good is great, or that great is legendary. I've been very lucky - some pours still haunt me. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IncredulousNosco Posted March 19, 2018 Share Posted March 19, 2018 I just wish JB/Suntory would put an end to all this by releasing generally available and consistent 10yo ADL straight rye for $35-40 and a small batch CS 10yo ADL straight rye for $50-55. Instead we get this Alberta Dark and BH Dark bullshit. I suppose they don't want to compete with their own KY style rye? I don't know why though, they have a vast bourbon line. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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