The Absolute Best Bottle of Bourbon, Ever…

[bayouredd]

My “Journey of The Newb” began on Halloween, last year. Yep, that’s right, My Birthday. It became more for the adults than the children, when my Son gave me a bottle of Bulleit. It may not be anyone’s fav; but, mixed with muddled honey, lemon & bitters, it had the grownups much happier than the trick or treaters. The Frontier Whiskey was the best…

 

This sent me on an information expedition that pretty much told me how thick the shell was that I was stuck it. SB.com led the way on the knowledge train…

 

I scored several different bottles in the next couple of months to include a 2017 OFBB, which I had a hard time believing wasn’t the best. I also got a CEHT SiB which wasn’t really better than the OF but it had a single taste within its complexity that I craved. Yep, I craved it all the way into its own oblivion...

 

I finally opened my stashed Mich10 when 2018 came around & WOW! Nothing could be better! However, the Blanton’s that was around, though not better, had an everyday greatness to it that deserved to be my go-to-grilling pal...

 

And finally, a LS select KC120 scored this April. What a “Flavor Bomb”. After a pour for the third day in a row, I thought; Ohhhhhhh, Now I Get It!!! And it took me a little less than 6 months.

 

Is the KC120 the best bottle ever? Not necessarily, but it did bring about the conclusion, that “The Best Bottle of Bourbon, Ever”, it the one that you crave for your palate at that particular time, for that particular reason, on that particular day, in that particular mood & probably that particular alignment of stars...

 

Forgive the long windedness, but I still have quite a bit of stars & bourbon to navigate, Good Luck on your own journey’s, my friends…

[Bourserker]

Nice assessment.  Bourbon is an experience.  With bourbon it's about the journey, and not the destination.  Every time I think I've found the best ever, 6 months later something else replaces it.  There's so much subjectivity with bourbon that it's just hard to really crown one "the best". Heck I've even had some where I'll crack a bottle thinking it's awesome only to find it hohum a few months later.  So anyway as I stated before, well said.

[CUfan99]

On my short journey so many times i have thought, "this is the best I have had yet!" Just last night I did a SBS with 2 I've thought that about previously and I wondered what I was thinking. I'm glad the best ever is still out there. 

[Whiskeythink.com]

Have to admit Im a sucker for older KCSB store pics. My favorite bottle I bought last year was a 13.5 yr KCSB that was just amazing. (Tho theres quite a few I havent opened yet). I always have multiple 12+ yr bottles on hand, & one is always open. Im awaiting a couple 14+ yr versions that have been picked but havent arrived at the stores yet. And the great thing is since KCSB LS is so common, theres never a "limit one". I love the profile, & a 12+ yr near-CS bottle for $40-45 is a no-brainer.

[bayouredd]

13 minutes ago, Whiskeythink.com said:

Have to admit Im a sucker for older KCSB store pics. My favorite bottle I bought last year was a 13.5 yr KCSB that was just amazing. (Tho theres quite a few I havent opened yet). I always have multiple 12+ yr bottles on hand, & one is always open. Im awaiting a couple 14+ yr versions that have been picked but havent arrived at the stores yet. And the great thing is since KCSB LS is so common, theres never a "limit one". I love the profile, & a 12+ yr near-CS bottle for $40-45 is a no-brainer.

I'm actually feeling this way about the store pick KC 120. It makes me not want to try a standard bottling; fearing pick failure.

[Mako254]

‘91 Cheesy Gold Foil was the best pour I’ve ever had. A friend was gracious w/ a sample and I enjoyed it Christmas eve after my wife and daughter were asleep and the tree was set. 

 

It was a fantastic pour and a very satisfying moment as a newish father. 

[ThirstyinOhio]

George T. Stagg 2011 is the absolute best bottle ever (In my opinion)....I know that a specific bottle wasn't the point of this post, but that is the bottle that always calls to me and is the one that all other bottles get judged against.  Now that I got that out of the way, I will say the its not always the "right" bourbon for every moment. 

Edited April 24, 2018 by ThirstyinOhio

[bayouredd]

3 hours ago, ThirstyinOhio said:

George T. Stagg 2011 is the absolute best bottle ever (In my opinion)....I know that a specific bottle wasn't the point of this post, but that is the bottle that always calls to me and is the one that all other bottles get judged against.  Now that I got that out of the way, I will say the its not always the "right" bourbon for every moment. 

I definitely understand picking a favorite & comparing everything else to that; but the "not always the "right" bourbon for every moment" is more my point...

P.S. I haven't even tried GTS, yet, so that excitement is yet to come.

Edited April 24, 2018 by bayouredd

[LCWoody]

The original batch of WTRB from '91. One of the all time greats.  The PH 27y is right up their also.

[JoeTerp]

Mine was a pour of the 2015 William Larue Weller

[flahute]

8 hours ago, bayouredd said:

I definitely understand picking a favorite & comparing everything else to that; but the "not always the "right" bourbon for every moment" is more my point...

P.S. I haven't even tried GTS, yet, so that excitement is yet to come.

Stagg is a mighty powerful pour. It's my all time favorite. There's a reason that smokinjoe calls it the "king".

It is overpowering which is why it's not an "every moment" bourbon.

[Bourserker]

I got kinda philosophical in my first post in this thread, and never really answered the original question. 

 

So here goes...GTS...no matter what else I drink or try it always gets compared to GTS in my head.

[fosmith]

William Larue Weller 2017.  Insanely good!  But mostly because I got it for $89... 

[emr454]

Some dusty Old Taylor I got a sample of from Tom McKenzie at Finger Lakes Distilling. Pure butterscotch candy in a glass.

[Eggman]

Howdy,

 

 Of course it's all about the journey , with Bourbon  The best I've ever had is Baker's.

[deege]

On 4/24/2018 at 10:34 AM, ThirstyinOhio said:

George T. Stagg 2011 is the absolute best bottle ever (In my opinion)....I know that a specific bottle wasn't the point of this post, but that is the bottle that always calls to me and is the one that all other bottles get judged against.  Now that I got that out of the way, I will say the its not always the "right" bourbon for every moment. 

Same. Except I just finished my 2010 Stagg.

[kaiserhog]

No such thing.  We all have our favorites but as someone said bourbon is an experience to be enjoyed in the aggregate.  Also, favorites change depending on time, circumstance and mood.

[Old Hippie]

It's hard for me to answer this and ignore completely the price/value/availability relationship. So for bang for the buck I would have to go with OF SB (have tried about 8 different ones). Probably the best overall i've had was a dusty pint of Very Old Fitzgerald that I found in a little country store about 8 years ago.  

[fishnbowljoe]

Fair warning, I'm gonna be a bourbon snob now. There's something about my 2018 Weller Blend....... 

 

FWIW, I was just perusing my cabinet to get a quick take on some of what I have. There is the distinct possibility that I might have enough Weller's to make up another couple of 1.75's of my 2018 Weller Blend if I so choose.  What can I say?

 

Biba! Joe 

 

 

[flahute]

5 hours ago, fishnbowljoe said:

Fair warning, I'm gonna be a bourbon snob now. There's something about my 2018 Weller Blend....... 

 

FWIW, I was just perusing my cabinet to get a quick take on some of what I have. There is the distinct possibility that I might have enough Weller's to make up another couple of 1.75's of my 2018 Weller Blend if I so choose.  What can I say?

 

Biba! Joe 

 

 

Imma gonna need a sample of this. I thought last year's was magnificent.

[Bnrhodes3]

I've only been on this whisk(e)y journey for about a year now, but I've had the fortune to amass and try ~130 different bottles in that time, and have had numerous samples at bars and from friends on top of those. I jump around regularly because there are so many things to try and appreciate. 

That being said, after trying 2017 WLW on my birthday, it remains the one that I covet above all others, even though I've yet to find my own bottle. 

[graftonbc1]

The most delicious pour I ever had was the first time I tried Henry McKenna 10 year BiB. I have many other things that on any given day may taste better than McKenna, but I cannot remember anything tasting as good as that first taste.

[lcpfratn]

Imma gonna need a sample of this. I thought last year's was magnificent.

Steve, I will acknowledge that Joe’s blend this year was better than last year.

[fishnbowljoe]

18 hours ago, flahute said:

Imma gonna need a sample of this. I thought last year's was magnificent.

 PM sent. 

[bayouredd]

On ‎5‎/‎7‎/‎2018 at 6:10 PM, fishnbowljoe said:

Fair warning, I'm gonna be a bourbon snob now. There's something about my 2018 Weller Blend....... 

Since this thread is blowed up (yea I know, not proper) I have to admit being on the Fishbowl Weller Train...

I met my Son & Wife with his Bro in Law & GF at the Whiskey Bar on Saturday and we had a Weller Tasting. I even had the waitress sneak a jigger to us & we tried the W12, Antique & mixed up a couple of the PMP. The blend was killer & the rest no slouch.

 

Ah but the anguish, no Weller's around these parts for taking home. If I ever do score the lot, I will definitely be looking up FB Joe for a bit of expertise...