Anwalt Bourbon Trail Trip in August

[Anwalt]

10 hours ago, hughewil said:

you need to jump across the bridge into newport and hit up New Riff distillery.  Pick yourself up a bottle of their 6 year malted rye.

 

Can do on Sunday 14th.  I noticed a nice barrel in your pics, presumably from that distillery.  How was the experience?

[hughewil]

37 minutes ago, Anwalt said:

 

Can do on Sunday 14th.  I noticed a nice barrel in your pics, presumably from that distillery.  How was the experience?

It was amazing, host was super friendly and accommodating.  Out of the 5 barrels we had to choose from there was only 1 I didn't like.  The one that won the group consensus was my 2nd favorite.

[Anwalt]

So.

 

Headed out tomorrow.

 

The first few questions of many to follow:

 

1) OF is the first tour, Saturday.  If the "rare" bottles are out there (sometimes), which ones are Worth It and which ones...not so much?  Note:  Thanks to the perfidious influence of Mbroo, I get regular OF cheap in Indy.  So no buying of regular stuff at the distillery when Indy Kroger exists.

 

2) Which Louisville distillery gifts shops are worth a visit even though I'm not buying a tour?  Lots within an easy walk.

 

3). Food for Friday, Saturday & Sunday in Louisville?

 

Yes, yes, I've googled all these things.  But you all BTDT for realsies.

 

Headed to Westport first thing.  Same friend who recommended that awesome KC store pick was just there and recommended two more.  Gonna try 'em.

[fishnbowljoe]

Bourbons Bistro is a great place to eat and they have a helluva bar too.

 

Biba! Joe

[Anwalt]

Well.  It would appear I'm having dinner, via a friend, with Dave Scheurich of Boondocks.  Small world. The Boy and I shall learn a good bit.

 

Same friend (who has lived in central KY forever and a day) picked up a few bottles for me.  Decidedly on the value side, not bougie.  Looking forward to it all.

[Anwalt]

[Anwalt]

Happened to be drinking a RR10 when I got the email & pics.

[flahute]

Silver Dollar, Bar Vetti, Doc Crows, and Garage are good places to eat dinner. Royal's Hot Chicken for lunch.

[geclbxf]

9 hours ago, flahute said:

Silver Dollar, Bar Vetti, Doc Crows, and Garage are good places to eat dinner. Royal's Hot Chicken for lunch.

Love Garage Bar - they also own the restaurant at 21C hotel.

 

Repeal is fantastic in Distil Hotel.

[hughewil]

have fun on your trip, see you on the 19th

[Anwalt]

Went to Doc Crows with a friend Friday night.

 

Stopped at Westport Wine & Whiskey.

Got two store pick KC #14115 that a friend picked up for me month's ago.

Bought 2 store pick Barrel Z3A5 per recommendation of by a friend ("J") who lives in PR but is from Louisville and knows waaaay more about bourbon than I do, including my own palate.

Got a bottle of Stellum Black, slightly cheaper here than I've seen elsewhere and have heard good things about it.

 

Most things I buy 2 of are "one for me, one for The Boy".

 

2 Seagrass Rye (Costco)

2 Five Trail Whiskey, Coors attempt at whiskey (Costco)

 

Saturday, Day One, KY

 

Shopping in the am, guided to locations with drops by "J".  Also guided in some selections by a few of you via text group (you know who you are).  The selections where we did not seek or ignored guidance were but probably pretty clear!

 

Liquor Barn ("LB") in Middletown:

They had pretty much every 1792, limit one per customer.  We got Sweet Wheat $37 and 12y $56.

Got 2 RR LB SiB $86 each.  Seemed pricey, but I figured "what the heck" (you'll notice that attitude continuing; having fun)

2 Old Bardstown 100 Proof Bonded, $21 each

2 Bernheims (been meaning to try those) $31 each

RR SiB Rye $70

 

Kroger in Middletown

-  Very nice couple of guys we chatted with

An OF SiB $75.  Said there might be another one waiting for us tomorrow, 1 total per day for the whole store.

Blade & Bow for The Boy, I have some in PR, $51.  The older guy behind the counter wanted The Boy to try it.  He was a real trip - reminded me of my grandfather & his hillbilly humor.  Said we were the nicest people he'd met from Ohio, was only half-joking.  Neat guy.  The other guy behind the counter was younger, very Kentucky-Proud, easy to talk to.

Blue Note $34

3 1.75's of OF 100 $38 each

Rebel Yell 10 $96 - I really look forward to trying this one as well as the OFSiB

 

Lots of KY-only bourbons on the bottom shelves I'm curious about, recommendations welcome.

 

Went to OF Tour at 130.  Very well done & informative.  Mundane bottles available at slightly elevated prices (and way elevated compared to buying in Carmel, IN).  Birthday debacle of last year will not be repeated.  They wouldn't say much other than "get on the email list" with strong hints of "lottery".  Very nice & well-informed staff.

 

Frazier Museum with gift shop was closed for a special event.  Michters gift shop had nothing of note - but it was a Saturday.  J had gotten some very nice things there during the week.

 

Evan Williams gift shop - 2 bottles each of ECBP A122 (one of you guided us to that instead of the C series alternative) and EW Master Blend at $80 each.  

 

We got less picky about lunch once it started to rain, ended up at a Venezuelan arepas place across the street from Evergreen Nulu location.

 

Then Evergreen for a few hours.  Bought 2 RR10 for $30 each, that seemed like a good price.

 

Came back to hotel, drank some of the Coors (I know, I know.  But we liked it.).  Quick dinner at the Guy Fierri BBQ joint (Sandwich called the Fat Boy was good), another wee dram, and off to bed.

 

Lots of great conversation with The Boy, which was largely the point of this two-week trip.  He's doing a lot of things right and we are quite pleased with him.

 

Gonna get some work done this am, Beam tour is at 115.  Then back up to Middletown to follow a few more leads.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 7, 2022 by Anwalt

[Anwalt]

 

Beam Tour on Sunday.  Good tour, nice facility & bar.  Good reinforcement of what we learned at Old Forester.  I especially liked the discussion of barrel location in the rick house and how (for example) SiB Select barrels were picked.

 

Got to dump the barrel and (officially) smell and (unofficially) taste the cup.  It was a really, really good barrel.  We bought 3 bottles of it at $60 each, 1 for The Boy, 2 for me.  

The tasting afterwards was nice.  Compared Beam, Basil Hayden, and Knob Creek.  Then got to pick Legent (meh, someone else shared theirs with us), Bookers, or Baker.  I need to do more of these side-by-side comparisons, they are educational.

 

The store had normal things out, nothing special.  They periodically would put out two bottles of something like the Bakers or KC12.  Passed on KC12 at $75, got the Bakers at $65.  A touch high, but what the heck.

 

Got a kick out of the Baptist Church between the rick houses.  Someone missed a memo.

 

Went back to the Kroger where we got the OF SiB.  The person working there blew us off & said, no, there wasn’t any OF SiB.  Then our guy from Saturday came in for his shift.  Chit-chatted, smiled, handed over the bottle while his colleague avoided eye contact.  Warehouse K, Floor 2, I’m told that’s a good one.

 

Went over to Evergreen.  Mentioned we spent a bunch drinking at their Nulu location and that Bear (bartender) said “hi”.  The clerk really wanted us to buy Kentucky value bourbons and not expensive stuff that is about the same as far as far as he was concerned.  So he talked us into 2 Old Bardstown BiB’s (which we first tried down here, remarkably good for the price, a solid daily thing for all budgets in my noobie view) and an OGD114.  Nice guy, very chatty.  At the counter he quietly dropped a 1792 FP into our bag and rang it up as well.  Without saying a word or cracking a grin.  People down here can be awfully friendly, it’s nice.
 

[Anwalt]

 

Monday: Willett Day.

 

Bar was closed.  The tour guide had nice energy & did a very nice job of explaining & comparing various products..  I also liked the large amount of products presented to taste…about 8 little servings evenly spread throughout the tour and no one was counting very hard to see if someone filched an extra dram or two.  I had not tried Noah’s Mill or Pure Kentucky (sweeeeet) before, liked both, need to do more of these sorts of samplings.  Also hadn’t tried the 4y rye, really liked it, and I’m not generally a rye guy.  The Pot Still was OK.  Did try the Old Bardstown 90 proof, lighter version of the OB BiB.  Tried the Old Bardstown Estate as well, 6y version of OB BiB.  I preferred the OB BiB to it.  Fun to compare, getting a constant message each day of “do more of that”.  The curated comparisons and being around people of various different experience levels is quite educational.

 

Shop offerings below, really just the "normal" stuff. Ended up getting a Pure Kentucky at the shop for each of us for $40, they are a bit more in the stores.    I wanted to try it in comparison to Noah’s Mill & Rowan’s Creek but figured we could get those latter two for a bit less elsewhere.  

 

 

Most of the little stores we've been to are Indian-owned.  Their prices for allocated stuff (of which they have a lot) are well above even normal secondary market.  Normal things are all marked up as well, in some cases 50% above Kroger, Liquor Barn, Total Wine, and Evergreen (the latter being a bit more expensive than the first three but is reputed to have good store picks).  

 

Did find one little place outside of Danville that was a hoot.  It was a shack with a drive through.  Walked in and the place went dead silent.  Bunch of locals were drinking at the counter and carrying on loudly until we walked in.  Got to chatting and people warmed up, slowly.  I found a Noah’s Mill and Rowan’s Creek for each of us at better prices than the distillery and put those on the counter.  People warmed up more.  Someone told a dirty joke.  We laughed and told one of our own.  We got to trading jokes & barbs.  Picked up a Bookers 2021-3 and the other 4 bottles for $320 cash (they were $360 at their sticker including taxes).  Then someone bought us a drink.  Those guys were a hoot.  If we did not have dinner scheduled with a friend we’d have stayed for hours.  We’ll stop back next time we are in town, buy one of those OB BiB’s and pass it around.  My kind of people.

 

Long night and little sleep.  Our friends are outstanding cooks and have a sick amount of distilled, fermented, and brewed things.
 

 

 

[Anwalt]

Tuesday: HH Day.  

 

And boy, did we get lucky. At the bottle-your-own tour (a nice departure from going through rick houses, etc.) there were 4 options:
•    A Larceny Barrel Proof that was very good
•    A Bernheim BP that was good, but my least favorite of the bunch
•    An ECBP that was really, really good and only $60-ish to “bottle your own”.  I normally like wheated things.  But that ECBP really showed me the Other Side.
•    Heaven Hill Select Stock 14-year.  My, oh my.  Best thing we’ve tried so far – and that’s saying something after that ECBP and Sunday's OF Angel's Share.  Lonnnng finish.  They were fast to make sure no one got more than one, period, regardless of the number of visits, etc.  People were evidently flipping them for well over double the $200, signing up for the class every day, etc.  Being able to buy that on our tour was a real stroke of luck.

 

The gift shop was mundane.  They had a ECBP's (one of the "C's") behind the cash register in the open at $80 per.

 

Went nuts at Lux Row Gift Shop.  Lots of options, see pics below.  Tried the Lux Row 12y Double Barrel as suggested by one of you (both the specific bottle and the concept of Try Before You Buy).  Got two of those ($175 each).  And two of the Blood Oath 8’s (at $150 each) for a few friends whom I know like them; they are not really to my taste.  Stopped at that though I was truly tempted by some of the Ezra offerings.

 

Lunch at Mamis, enjoyed it.
 

[Anwalt]

More Ezra.

[PhantomLamb]

Nice!  Appreciate the pics, if I wasn't at max capacity, I would be more jealous than I already am lol.

[Anwalt]

 

Wednesday:  

 

BBC

 

We did “thieving the barrel”.  All their own distillate that they are preparing to release, circa 6y old.  One wheated, one high rye, and one rye.  All very good.  Also tried one of their regular Fusions, OK, not great.

 

One of the results of this trip:  I started as a high wheat guy.  Really appreciating some of the high-rye bourbons, KC really got me going in that direction.  But the BBC helped get that ball rolling more.  I am also much more interested in rye whiskey as well.

 

There were only 4 of us on the tour which was nice.  After the OF & KC tours, we did not want another “this is how bourbon is made” discussion.  Don’t get me wrong, we learned a lot on those two tours; I’m glad they were the first in the lineup because everything else made more sense.  But the change of pace from walking through the process to a small group having a bit from the barrels was nice.

Awesome facility, modern and expanding rapidly.  Would have liked to stay for the restaurant, but we wanted to get a few other things done.  

Screwed up the buying.  Meant to get 3 Disc 7’s and 3 Disc 8’s for us plus one extra Disc 8 for a friend.  Ended up with 4 Disc 7’s and 3 Disc 8’s.  Oh well.  Both came well recommended from several of you.  $140 each for either mark.

 

Went to Wilderness Trail, very close to our friend’s house where we were staying.  The tour was fairly brief & more like the OF & KC ones (minus the KC barrel pour & bottle your own).  We did get to try the distillate.  Interesting, not as harsh as I thought it’d be.  

 

The post “walking the property” tasting was nice.  Had a high wheat, high rye, and rye (if I remember correctly).  Also bought a $13 pour of their new 8-year.  None of it struck my fancy.  Maybe an off day and I’d like it more next time.  The tastings struck me as young & raw.  The 8y was good but not $80 good (and I’m a lot less sensitive to pricing that some of you).  Did not buy anything at this WT (or the other one, as we’ll see on Thursday).
 

[Anwalt]

 

Thursday

 

Four Roses

 

Short tour.  I was fine with that.  I “got” the whole process at OF & Beam.  The differences at each distillery are interesting.  4R was shut down for the summer due to lower water levels in the river from which they source.  That gives them time to refit, repair, etc.  Their focus on putting out a very, very consistent product was clear.  I’d like to visit the rick houses (elsewhere in KY).  They are evidently low-story for more of that consistency.

 

The post-tour tasting was excellent.  I really liked the side-by-side comparisons.  Listening to others’ comments was useful, whether from noob or the hard-core winos.  The recipe explanation will take a little time and many tastings to process.

 

We scheduled for Thursday because word was that their BP releases were on Wednesday or Thursday.  Word was right.  We each got a bottle for $85.  

Carrying cash is useful.  We noticed one couple only bought one of the BP’s.  We asked if they’d get us one.  They said “sure!” and we handed them the cash and netted an extra bottle.  Two of the three are for friends who really, really like the stuff.  The regular 4R products are way cheaper at Costco than at the distillery.

 

We stopped by Wild Turkey.  The gift shop had less selection and higher prices than Liquor Barn.  In & out pretty quick there.  We did get some WTRB for $46 each at a Kroger.  One of them cooked off and blew a cork in the heat.  Thankfully it was standing and so the car smelled nice and we lost very little from the bottle.  Those are really good & growing on me.

 

A PS on RR13:  The tater lines in Ohio are insane.  12 hours ahead, placing lawn chairs to "hold a spot", people getting out of a car and cutting in front of a friend, the whole nine yards.  Some of the stores are responding by putting out the good stuff once the line leaves.  Good!  Some of the distilleries put out the good bottles at random with strict control over "no spilling the beans".  Good, OH stores would do well to emulate them.  There has been no small amount of "back door bottles" saved by OH store people for "friends".  That should be stopped.  But such is human nature.  I do not stand in lines, very bad use of my time.  When in Ohio I just show up at opening time or a little later and get what I get.

 

The rest of the day was spent with a friend of my friend.  His friend happens to be a master distiller, more of which later if he lets me share details.  Suffice it to say that is was extremely educational and fun.
 

  

 

[Anwalt]

 

Friday

 

The local Liquor Barn had several bottles of Willet 9-year Rye Liquor Barn store pick for $355 each.  I didn’t know much about those.  But my bourbon buddy text group sure did!  I managed to get 3 for them, they were pretty happy.  They’ve been guiding me through the whole trip.  I’d never have found all that I did without their help.  And probably would have bought some dogs as well.  So, they are getting some of the good stuff.

 

I also missed an opportunity.  They had Old Charter French Oak for $80 per bottle.  I should have recognized it because several of you posted on it and I put it on my “Watch For” list.  But no, Dr Space Cadet missed at least 4 of them.  Still managed to snag 1 when I returned (after my bourbon buddy text group was shouting “Turn around!  Turn around!”), the others disappeared quickly.  I’ll count it as lucky that I got one and work on honing my search skills.

 

Went to Makers.  Nice tour, beautiful grounds, very zippy guide.  Very, very, very focused on consistency.  I really liked the cave/bunker in the side of the hill.  I want one.

 

The tasting was fun.  Compared regular MM to 101 to CS to 46.  My son and I both preferred 101, but this was a single tasting and hence a small sample size.

Picked up two 2021 FAE-2’s for $65 each.

 

Spent the rest of the day looking at some of my friend’s businesses. Mostly real estate related.  He’s a freaking genius in that realm.  My son (graduating with a construction management degree and a very nice job offer in hand) was most interested. And of course since it was someone other than Dad dispensing advice, the advice might actually have had some merit, lolz. 

 

I’ll post about Saturday & overall conclusions (and an XL of the 160 bottles we bought) later when time permits.
 

[hughewil]

that was a great trip and fun to watch.

[Dannabis]

When I went thru at the beginning of August, it really felt like there are almost no "KY only" bourbons any more. I understand EW Sib is exclusively KY but aside from that, the HH labels are ghosts.

Visitor center exclusives yes.

[Anwalt]

14 minutes ago, Dannabis said:

When I went thru at the beginning of August, it really felt like there are almost no "KY only" bourbons any more. I understand EW Sib is exclusively KY but aside from that, the HH labels are ghosts.

Visitor center exclusives yes.

 

Still figuring that part out.  Bought a lot that will take time to digest, as I drink at a comparatively slow pace for reasons of vanity & health, in that order.  We did pick up a few that were KY-only, I'll need to sort them out.

 

The one KY-only bottle that really struck me was Willett's Old Bardstown BiB.  A good bourbon by any standard, very good for the price.  Also makes a great gift for out-of-state bourbon drinkers and strikes me as a good gateway bourbon.  Bought 2 dozen at $20 each.

 

 

[Skinsfan1311]

Great reviews!  Makes me want to get back to Kentucky!

 

I gotta ask.

 

How are you getting all of those bottles home?  Did you charter a plane?  

[Anwalt]

2 hours ago, Skinsfan1311 said:

How are you getting all of those bottles home?  Did you charter a plane? 

 

4 bottles, one suitcase at a time.  Kids, friends, clients, seminar attendees, they all know & tend to bring a few.  I view those logistics (we have bourbon cached with friends in around 8 different cities) as part of the fun of the hobby, part of the "hunt" or the "gamesmanship".  Ditto sharing good finds, swapping, learning, and popping corks when friends visit.  Just part of the fun.

 

Come December The Boy shall start an excellent job, with no debt, and a nice whiskey collection.  Half the bottles from this trip were for him, so only 70 or so to move.  And the cheaper ones that we bought in bulk (e.g., Old Bardstown BiB) are low on the priority list. 

 

Moving all of the bourbon to PR may become less necessary.  We've been looking for a "family retreat" (in multiple senses of the word) for a bit.  The new & present plan is to buy land in KY, probably between Danville & Bardstown in 2023.  The friend previously mentioned is a genius at finding real estate deals and putting the property to creative & proper use.  Most markets lack Airbnb's that can host 20+ people; I've seen clients do really, really well with those, consistently so.  So the plan, in vague form, to develop as events unfold:  Buy land/farm.  Build.  Add trap shooting area, multiple little cabins, a central cooking, meeting, dance hall/wedding/drinking area, bike trails, game room, etc.  Use for 2 -3 months of the year.  Airbnb for the remainder.  Having a friend close by with connections (builders, chefs, transport companies, cleaners, Airbnb managers, you name it) is very, very helpful. Land is comparatively cheap in those areas and I get along with Kentuckians, so happy to have a retreat there.  

 

The Wifey thinks it's just a plot to be in bourbon country more.  That really is just a side benefit.  Bottom line, some of the bottles may end up there as well.  I've got plenty in PR as it is.

[Skinsfan1311]

33 minutes ago, Anwalt said:

 

4 bottles, one suitcase at a time.  Kids, friends, clients, seminar attendees, they all know & tend to bring a few.  I view those logistics (we have bourbon cached with friends in around 8 different cities) as part of the fun of the hobby, part of the "hunt" or the "gamesmanship".  Ditto sharing good finds, swapping, learning, and popping corks when friends visit.  Just part of the fun.

 

Come December The Boy shall start an excellent job, with no debt, and a nice whiskey collection.  Half the bottles from this trip were for him, so only 70 or so to move.  And the cheaper ones that we bought in bulk (e.g., Old Bardstown BiB) are low on the priority list. 

 

Moving all of the bourbon to PR may become less necessary.  We've been looking for a "family retreat" (in multiple senses of the word) for a bit.  The new & present plan is to buy land in KY, probably between Danville & Bardstown in 2023.  The friend previously mentioned is a genius at finding real estate deals and putting the property to creative & proper use.  Most markets lack Airbnb's that can host 20+ people; I've seen clients do really, really well with those, consistently so.  So the plan, in vague form, to develop as events unfold:  Buy land/farm.  Build.  Add trap shooting area, multiple little cabins, a central cooking, meeting, dance hall/wedding/drinking area, bike trails, game room, etc.  Use for 2 -3 months of the year.  Airbnb for the remainder.  Having a friend close by with connections (builders, chefs, transport companies, cleaners, Airbnb managers, you name it) is very, very helpful. Land is comparatively cheap in those areas and I get along with Kentuckians, so happy to have a retreat there.  

 

The Wifey thinks it's just a plot to be in bourbon country more.  That really is just a side benefit.  Bottom line, some of the bottles may end up there as well.  I've got plenty in PR as it is.

Sounds like a great plan!  We love Kentucky too.