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Late April Bourbon Trail Trip Question...


Goose1023
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Hi All,

 

My fiancé and I will be doing a long weekend trip to Louisville at the end of April (4/28-5/1) and will be doing tours/tastings at Old Forester, Michter's, Heaven Hill, and Willett while we're in town.  I'm sure plenty of members on the forum have done these tours before, so I was curious to see if anyone had any insight into what to expect as far as gift shop releases around this time of year?  Anything special to look out for considering it's the weekend before the Derby?  Any retail shops in particular in the area that might have some good finds at decent/reasonable prices (I know most will be around secondary but figured it would be worth the ask)?

 

I'm new to the forum, so I apologize if the questions are redundant. Looking forward to getting more involved in the community!

 

Thanks!

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When you visit distillery gift shops, I’m pretty sure that nowadays it’s one of those deals where “you pays your money and you takes your chances”. A semi-educated guess is that most distilleries probably don’t have a set pattern for what special offerings they put out for sale in their gift shops. Wherever you go, be prepared for it to be busy. Distillery tours aside, people have started treating distillery gift shops like liquor stores. Sometimes folks line up before the gift shops open so they have a chance to grab a decent bottle or two. That’s one of the reasons distilleries have started putting limits on certain items in their gift shops. The last time I was at HH, I believe it was one bottle of each limited edition “special” offering a year. At another distillery, it’s one bottle every three months. Ya’ just never know. The best advice I can give you is to go in prepared, but with little or no expectations. You won’t be disappointed that way, plus you’ll be surprised if you do find a decent bottle or two. Anyway, have fun and good luck. 
 

Biba! Joe

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2 hours ago, fishnbowljoe said:

The last time I was at HH, I believe it was one bottle of each limited edition “special” offering a year.

HH now only puts out any "special release" on Tuesdays and Thursdays (although they just announced no release this week).  One of each release per person per year.  AFAIK, the only thing limited they might have in addition to that day's release are the "grenades".  The "You Do Bourbon" tasting/tour is a good way to get a limited bottle of one of their whiskies at barrel proof.

At least HH did away with the chair wars and don't let people just line up a bunch of chairs and save spots.  You either stand in line or you don't.  No chairs, no saving places.

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1 hour ago, Clueby said:

HH now only puts out any "special release" on Tuesdays and Thursdays (although they just announced no release this week).  One of each release per person per year.  AFAIK, the only thing limited they might have in addition to that day's release are the "grenades".  The "You Do Bourbon" tasting/tour is a good way to get a limited bottle of one of their whiskies at barrel proof.

At least HH did away with the chair wars and don't let people just line up a bunch of chairs and save spots.  You either stand in line or you don't.  No chairs, no saving places.


Thanks Tim. The last (or next to last) time I was at HH, it was a fustercluck. We did a tour and tasting. Afterward, I was in the gift shop and I had a question for the gal at the counter. The gift shop was full of folks making there way to the counter to buy goodies. There were lines almost out the door. As I approached the gal at the counter, I got yelled at by a guy in one of the lines. It went something like this, “Hey pal, there’s no cutting in line. You need to get to the back of the f**cking line!” I just looked at him and shook my head. I then “politely” told him I just had a question for the employee at the counter. He then gave me “the look” and a “harumph”. I got my question answered and headed for the door. As I passed by the asshat, I smiled at him and showed him the goodies I had purchased earlier. I received a different look, and another “harumph”. 😂 BTW, I miss my “grenade”. 😢

 

Biba! Joe

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Thanks for the input, gentlemen!  Don't think we'll be able to get down to Bardstown for the HH & Willett tours until Saturday, so it doesn't sound like there will be any limited releases while I'm there (would LOVE to be proven wrong here 👌).

 

Anyone have an insight into Michter's?  I'm sure its a long shot but I'd love to get my hands on another bottle of 10yr Single Barrel if they do release it in the shop on a rotational basis (which I was told when I called a while back). If not, anywhere else in town that might have some bottles for a decent price (i.e. less than the 400 I'm seeing pretty much everywhere online)?

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Michter's just randomly gets things throughout the day and puts it out. They claim they don't know what or when they will get something.  If you call them they will tell you if they have X on the shelf currently. Gift shop is pretty small. Had to show proof of vax. They were kinda "douche-y" last time I was there. They had a 10 year rye on the shelf but it was up kinda high on the shelf. They refused to sell it to me and claimed it was only for display. Not like I was trying to buy the 20 year. 🤷‍♂️

Evan Williams is walking distance from Micther's and Old Fo a little further.  EW has the red label 12/101 often. Its good but pricey.  They occasionally have EW23.  VERY pricey ($350?) but VERY good.

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