Just curious guys and gals.

In my 54 years I've tried several bourbons, finding more than a few that I really like. With that said, a year or so back I tried this bargain small batch from Evan Williams and I keep going back to it.

No, it ain't in any way a PVW, but for my taste regardless of its modest price this is an exceptional value in a very smooth unassuming sipping whiskey.

Anyone else here have any experience with this or another bargain bourbon that you'd care to share?

Thanks CD

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GOA
USA Shooting Supporter

I'm pretty happy with regular Evan Williams bourbon.

Same here. Now I'm going to have to find some of that 1783 small batch.

I'm no connoisseur, but my favorite so far is Four-Roses single barrel. Not really a bargain, but I got it when the grocery store had it on sale.

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Common sense isn't so common.

Was scrolling to the end to type this. If it's available near you, try it. I get it all day long for less than $30 and it's great!

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Mike C

I'm far from a connoisseur myself. I agree that EW black label is a genuine bargain. EW's bib white label has become my "go to" bourbon.

I love to try different bourbons, and occasionally do double blind tastings.

For me a higher sticker and fancier bottle often doesn't provide a better, more enjoyable bourbon.

My own blind taste test have proved to my taste buds the bonded white label EW to be the equal of and better several bourbons at twice its price.

EW's Small Batch is 86 proof compared with the bonded at the mandated 100 proof. The Small Batch isn't as bold in flavor, so if you're a huge fan of this the 1783 may not appeal to you? I admit to being a fan of Wild Turkey's rich flavor, but at 50% less the Small Batch Evan Williams is a smooth good tasting bourbon that I can enjoy and enjoy sharing.

I enjoy my bourbon most often neat, but occasionally throw in a couple of cubes of ice. Bottom line, I like bourbons. I like several of the more costly bourbons, but I really like the one's I can buy in 1.75 ltr bottles for around $30.00 and be proud to surprise others when I tell them their low cost!

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GOA
USA Shooting Supporter

I am another fan of Evan Williams black label.
I tried googling PVW to no avail, is it so common of a term that an abbreviated form is common knowledge?
What is the spelled out version of this term?

Sorry, it's so costly to buy I was afraid there may be a charge for typing it on the interweb?

Pappy Van Winkle

Pappy Van Winkle?s Family Reserve 23yr | Old Rip Van Winkle

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GOA
USA Shooting Supporter

Eagle Rare. very nice at $26 a bottle.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using Tapatalk 2

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

Pappy Van Winkle and Eagle Rare are distilled and aged at Buffalo Trace distillery which is less than two miles from my office. Actually Eagle Rare is Buffalo Trace, just aged longer.

The best cheap bourbon I have ever found is Old Fitzgerald, be sure to get the 86 proof though. It is $9.99 per fifth and pretty smooth.

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SWCA #2421

Good! I've been waiting for another bourbon thread.

I have a bottle of Rip Van Winkle that a friend gave me years ago. I am saving it for the night I retire. I am stalking a local liquor store that hopes they might get some Pappy around November.

I recently finished bottles of Jefferson's Reserve and Blantons, both of which I like very much. We stopped at a bourbon bar and restaurant in CO Springs last week. They had Jefferson's Presidential Reserve for $60 for 1 1/2 shot! I passed but I would love to try it.

The same store that might get the Pappy had an EW tasting last week. They cracked open their last bottle of 2003 to taste against the 2004. It was remarkable how different they were. I preferred the 2003 because it had a cinnamon/nutmeg kind of vibe to it. Unfortunately it was for tasting only so I bought (and liked) the 2004.

Another vote for EW here, but of late I have really come to enjoy Bulleit whiskey. Very smooth, not too pricey...
BULLEIT FRONTIER WHISKEY - HOME

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Ret'd LEO
SWCA #2275

I tried the Larceny Small Batch from Fitz and wasn't wowed by it.

It wasn't that it was bad. Simply put it wasn't much different in taste than the white label EW.

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GOA
USA Shooting Supporter

I've tried both and the regular black label square bottle seems to have the better taste, I'll stick with it. As you realize, Opinions Vary!

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Sam
S&WHF 333 S&WCA 2198

Another fairly cheap Kentucky Bourbon is J.T.S. Brown and also Benchmark Old number 8. Gotta try the Evan Williams though.

I'm interested in trying "Duke" bourbon. While it may be great, I'm sure that I'm not alone in questioning the choice of marketing it @ 88 proof?

Somehow 88 proof and John Wayne just seems so wrong...

I'm currently enjoying a taste of W. L. Weller Special Reserve. It's an easy on the pocketbook wheated bottled @ 90 proof.

Did I mention that I like bourbon whisky? Yea, that's quite apparent ain't it?

Thanks for the suggestions folks. I genuinely appreciate them all!

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GOA
USA Shooting Supporter

If you drink enough of any brand mentioned above, will she be pretty at closing time?

Oklahoma teacher shows up to school drunk, not wearing pants: sheriff - NY Daily News

You done good! Well good may not be the best term, but the timing is excellent.

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GOA
USA Shooting Supporter

My Favorite Bourbon is Woodford's Reserve. My favorite drink is Single Barrel Jack Daniels. I've tried Williams, Dickel, Makers, Beam, and plenty of others - I still keep coming back to the Single Barrel & Woodfords.

I'll second the Woodford Reserve. I tend to drink small batch single barrel bourbon. I have a bottle of Rare Eagle I got the first part of this summer, It remains unopened as does the Willet Single Barrel. I still have 3 bottles of bourbon opened. I still drink Jim Beam as my back up.

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Carpriver.

Whatever's on sale, I can choke it down.

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That's just somebody talkin.

Conchita (that's Spanish for Shelly) bought me a bottle of Bulleit rye the other day. I prefer it to any bourbon. For that matter, I'll take Overholt over any bourbon.

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Not in jail.

The WL Weller bourbons (another Buffalo Trace brand) are tasty and not outrageously priced. I'm with Chief38 on the Woodford... I keep coming back to it. The Wild Turkey Forgiven has, however, snuck out of the cabinet next to the Woodford on the countertop; a nice changeup. the Four Roses single barrel is tasty; the Bulleit brands are also well-priced.

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50 Years of Wish You Were Here

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No good deed goes unpunished.

Is it just me or have many brands of bourbon whisky seemed to have lost their quality over the years. Old Crow seems to have gone from a decent brand name to a plastic bottle rot gut. And while I mostly drink Scotch or gin, it seems Jack Daniels goes down in quality every year.

Thus far, my favorite Bourbon is; Evan Williams Single Barrel. But, I haven't tried the 1783 you mention.

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Mbr; LEAA,KSRA,M.C.League

I never thought about it but I think you're right. I used to drink whiskey in the Navy back in the early 70's and I remember certain brands being a lot better than they are now. We have numerous micro breweries here and a lot of people won't even drink the swill they pass of as canned or bottled beer anymore. Light beer comes to mind here. They won't drink it in Mexico, period. In this state there were no distilleries until a few years ago. Now they are popping up everywhere and the shelves are full of small batch whiskey. The small batch I've tried wasn't much but I'm sure someone will figure out how to make it sooner or later. This ain't Kentucky.

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That's just somebody talkin.

Your aging taste buds are the cause! Just like eyesight, they lose their "acuity" over the years.

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No good deed goes unpunished.

Geo. Dickel No. 12 [Ivory Label] has been my favorite for nearly 52 years. Although not technically bourbon, Tenn. Sour Mash is just what it is labelled as, "sippin whisky". Nick

This Tennessee boy likes George Dickel Barrel Select. Jack Daniels is for the tourists. Tried some Bulleit a while back and it wasn't bad either, but Dickel Barrel Select is my #1.

Attached Images

george dickel.jpg (34.3 KB, 19 views)

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LIVE FROM THE DAWGHOUSE

No, it is not a bourbon but, it is perhaps the best Tennessee Whisky available, George Dickel "white label" and barrel select. Distilled in Cascade Hollow/Tullahoma, TN. Four miles from my humble abode.

I really like Eagle Rare and back it up with a bottle of Buffalo Trace in case I run short. I did pick up a bottle of Willet Single Barrel the other day, (fell for the interesting bottle) and I really like it too.
Distilleries have been popping up here in New York lately and failing miserably at bourbon. Of course, their impatience shows when they try to sell a 4 year old and call it bourbon.

Home cooked food still taste the great. Bourbon, taste better than it ever has.

The eyes? Without a doubt.

Taste buds? The one thing I believe that Father Time hasn't deteriorated!

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GOA
USA Shooting Supporter

I just opened my bottle of Rare Eagle. It's great. smooth, mellow very full flavored.

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Carpriver.

Cheap Whiskey? Banish the thought. The feller above who suffered over $60 a shot? No way. Even with drinkin' there are limits.

OK, about 10 or 12 years ago a bunch of friends were headin' down to Daytona for speed week. And as they crossed over the river they pulled off to pick up a bottle. So they went into the local booze store and asked for the best bourbon they had. And the proprietor led them over to the top shelf and pointed to the A H Hirsch. So's they bought a bottle for a couple of guys to drink over a full week. Stupid. And they got down there and into the motel or hotel. Had a view of the ocean even, lookin' east. And they got the bright idea (they don't get many) of sittin out and drinkin' till the sun came up.

Well, guess what? That poor bottle only made it to sunrise. Go figure. So they spent a few hours in every well stocked liquor store they could find. Struck out big time. So their next step was to call me and ask if I could buy them another bottle or two. Sure, I'm everybody's patsy.

So after work (they called me at work, as is the custom) I stopped at the Cork'n Bottle down the road. Yep, its the only place the stuff was sold this side of the west coast. Two owners bought the tanks after it had been dumped and strained. One happened to be the Hue family that owned the liquor store. And when I walked inside I stumbled around until a guy came over to help. And the price had just gone from $54.95 to $59.95. So I asked how I could get last weeks price, expecting failure. And the guy was really nice and said "just buy a full case of it". So I did.

And when the guys got back from FL, they picked up 3 bottles and paid. So I did what I always do with excess or surplus, I took a few to the gun show. And then one show a while later I gave a bottle to Charlie Sherrill. He drank it and commented how good it was. Later he found a bottle down in New Orleans for a couple of hundred bucks.

So I was down to 4 bottles. And I've been drinking on the one for all this time. Its for special occasions, just like the 3 unopened ones. And there's even a book about the stuff. Its titled "The Best Bourbon you'll Never Taste". Thats because you can't get it these days (unless you come to visit and I'm in a good mood.) And it probably doesn't qualify as economy stuff. Just the best ever made. Even the folks who review booze say that. And I somehow lucked into it and I'm holding on.

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Dick Burg

I enjoy Woodford Reserve and makers Mark 46. Just picked up (have not tasted) a bottle of "Double Oaked" Woodford Reserve. Gonna taste it with the original Woodford Reserve and see if I can tell a difference.

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Baby Chief Admirer
SWCA 2870

No fan of Overholt as it's only 51% rye, just barely legal. Basically the same as Beam Rye and out of the same vats. I do like Bulleit. 95% rye. Really holds up in a proper Manhattan. Their Bourbon is nice as well. Rye prices are sadly going up as it's being rediscovered, but at least it's more available and new brands are out all the time. If you can find them, look for High West Distilling's rye offerings. Tasty but not bargain priced.

High West | American Craft Whiskey | Park City Saloon and Distillery

I'd also recommend Rough Stock, out of Montana. They use locally grown grains. They have an all barley malt whiskey that is really nice, an unusual all wheat and very good rye.

RoughStock Montana Whiskey



Haven't tried the EW single barrel, but there cheap stuff is great bang for the buck.

Well fellas as much as I brag on Geo. Dickel[Post # 29 above]I ran into a bottle of Dickel Rye about a month ago. Never saw it before so, what the hey give it a try, right? I have to be charitable and and loyal to Dickel but then I say I wouldn't poison your dog or MIL with that nasty stuff. And it was higher than the Ivory label good 12 year old Sour Mash Dickle!
I haven't seen Dickel Barrel Select[thanks sheepdawg!] but, you can bet grannies cast iron step-ins I will, if I can find some.
Did I mention I have a liver disease? [Thanks, Agent Orange and Dow Corning!] I don't get to do much alcohol but when I do, I try to enjoy it. Heck, drink in moderation but don't give up quality of life so some sawbones can keep chargin' ya! Nick