Liquor stores can pick when they release their allocations. I've seen stores sit on stuff for a couple months before putting it out. Also, sometimes it just takes a while to get to the store.
I had one store tell me they are planning on holding it all until Black Friday and then letting everyone in line pick one bottle
Place in Austin hoards it all year and keeps it in a case, then they do a raffle a few days before christmas to sell everything at msrp. Only way you can get a ticket is to go to one of the bourbon tastings they put on in the month of december which are free.
I’ve found the best way to make inroads with bourbon is through bribing. Create relationships with stores, share some of your scores, etc. Even if it doesn’t pay off with Pappy, it’s nice to have stuff held back/reserved for you throughout the year.
What do you bribe them with? I found a store in SF that I’m going to try to build a relationship with. I think they sell stuff for a bit over MSRP usually but not crazy. I go there for work and have the managers email address.
I used to just share harder to find beers/bourbon with a few stores in my area. The two places I had hookups with moved on so those connects died. I’m a convenience drinker now so the hunt is a thing of the past for me at this point.
Randomly saw this at my store today and bought for 50 because why not. On a sad note Russel reserve 10 year is sold out at my store and the state warehouse is dry. People might finally be in to it.
I’d probably pay that. K&L had it for $80 but sold out when I was there. Probably worth the extra $10.
Drinking some Barrell 15 year. Haven’t tasted it since I cracked the bottle a couple of months back. I remember I liked it, but right now I’m pretty blown away. It’s like milk chocolate with a perfect amount of heat to keep it from being too creamy.
NYGator had a pour of the Clyde Mays tonight. I can smell the apple on the nose but it’s not really there for me much in the flavor. Not a huge fan. It’s just a bit harsh to me.
Man, I got apple bigtime on my 2nd sip. Delicious. It's crazy how different tastes can be. I poured some Dovetail the other night and got no cherry whatsoever, and my wife took a sip and the first words out of her mouth were "whoa, cherry."
Well I just had some Benchmark... ...from my barrel aged benchmark old fashioned. Glad I found a use for that handle.
I paid closer to $220, but hard to say anything is worth that, but really good, so if you don’t mind spending the money you likely will be happy.
It’s still Benchmark, but it’s definitely smoother. At the end of the day, it’s premade old fashioned that I just need to shake, pour over ice, and garnish.
Speaking of flavor notes, anyone know what makes OF bourbons have such strong banana flavors, or maybe it's just me?. I taste it in the 1910 but was drinking some 1920 last night which I haven't had in a while and was getting strong banana. To me tasted like some oaky banana nut bread. I don't like bananas so was a little off putting.
I get that from the 1910. I have no idea what makes it taste that way but it was off putting for me as well.
Think that is just a overall OF taste profile. Haven't had enough but when watching people do blind tasting they usually can guess a OF product based off the Banana flavor.
What is a good pricing standard for pours at bars? I just went to a new restaurant in town for lunch and they had a great bourbon selection. However, every pour was 1/3 the retail price of an entire bottle. That seems incredibly steep.
That's going to depend on where you're at. Most of what I see is usually between 1/3 and 1/4 the price of a bottle, but I live in suburban Cincy.
For comparison, here’s the whiskey list from one of my favorite Atlanta spots: https://localthree.com/menus/menu_liquor.pdf
NYGator I just returned home from vacation and opened up the box. Thanks again. Looking forward to trying these “new to me” bourbons.