I am looking for ideas on a nice bottle of smooth whiskey. Want to spend more than $100 But less than $200. I’m thinking Bushmills or an 18 year old Jameson. Any suggestions?

I'm not much of a whiskey drinker, but I like Woodford Reserve Bourbon more than any other brand I've tried.

And it's weird that you mention this, because I had a giant text convo with my Bro about this today. During the Browns game.

I wanted to have a Woodford n Coke, but the bar was out so, I tried some other stuff, but it didn't taste nearly as good.

Tastes between brands vary widely.

Here is something that describes how Woodford tastes, if the link works.

https://www.woodfordreserve.com/whiskey/bourbon/

Here is what it says:

TASTING NOTES
Proof: 90.4°
Appearance: Clean, brilliant honey amber.
Nose: Heavy with rich dried fruit, hints of mint and oranges covered with a dusting of cocoa. Faint vanilla and tobacco spice.
Taste: Rich, chewy, rounded and smooth, with complex citrus, cinnamon and cocoa.
Toffee, caramel, chocolate and spice notes abound.
Finish: Silky smooth, almost creamy at first with a long, warm satisfying tail.

The answer is Pritchard's Double Barrel.

Whiskey/bourbon is barreled at 120 proof, aged, then cut with water to final proof and bottled.

This is aged, cut to 90 proof, then put back in to a new barrel to age another 2 years.

Trust me...just trust me.

Have you tried there chocolate?

They won't cost you $100, but if you like Rye Whiskey, these are pretty good, IMO:




Templeton Rye “The Good Stuff” Rye Whiskey $30

Review:
No, they weren’t lazy when they named this. It’s what Templeton, Iowa, residents called the rye whiskey they illegally distilled during Prohibition. Made with a whopping 95% rye mash bill, you’ll get more grassiness and spice floating around, balanced by a fruity fudginess that’s worth more than a few minutes of chewing.




Bulleit “95” Rye Small Batch Frontier Whiskey $27

Review:
The “95” in the name should clue you in, you’re back in 95% rye mash bill territory. Not that all 95s are created equally. You’ll get some rounder, richer fruit on the nose and a weirdly (but pleasantly) softer palate with some citrus and sturdy oak. Softly sweet as it burns gently down your gullet.


If you really want to spend $100, I have heard Angel's Envy is good, but I've never tried it ...



Angel’s Envy Finished Rye $100

Review:
“Finishing” is when you take an aged whiskey and stick it into a barrel that used to hold something else. In the case of Angel’s Envy Finished Rye, the juice was finished in rum casks. Actually, those rum casks originally held Cognac. So basically, the aging process behind Angel’s Envy Finished Rye is like "Inception". The results are a luscious, tropical rye with a warm sugar-packed nose that follows with a palate of fruit, oak, and banana bread. You’ll get rye spice too, don’t worry.

Angel's Envy is my go-to bourbon. I've found nothing to eclipse it, I've probably tried about fifty bourbons, whiskeys and ryes over the past few years. It's about $50 per bottle. It is finished in Port barrels, so there is a faint taste of some deep caramel, toffee and orange on the back-end. The absolute silkiest and smoothest finish in the world of bourbon (in my opinion). I'm on the list for the "cask strength" but couldn't make it to Louisville to pick it up this year... $200 per bottle at the distillery, 300+ one week later on the open market. Tried it while in Louisville ($40 per two ounce pour). Pretty "hot" at about 125 proof. Put it on a whiskey cube to let it open up -- and enter a different world.

Lately, I've been drinking a lot of Rye. For many, it's love it or hate it. Whiskeys made with 95% rye mash can be a bit much for some people. Some describe it as "chewing" on rye... I'm head over heels lol.

Bulliet Rye is the simple solution because it is usually the "house rye" at many bars and pretty inexpensive. When I look at a bar and see a small collection of bourbon (or all swill lmao), I look for the green labeled Bulleit Rye and breath a sigh of relief. To me, it matches wits with anything five times it's price.

Angel's Envy Rye is always in my stock... Because it's always very hard to find, so I hoard it in the cellar. It is also a "finished" product... It is aged for eighteen months in Caribbean XO Rum Casks - that first served as Cognac Casks. Incredible finish. It's my second favorite to WhistlePig, they make the most awarded Rye in the world, the 12 year is about $125, 15 year about $250.

My other notable bourbons are Rabbit Hole (about $50, also make a great Rye), and Jeffersons (small batch, about $75-100). Jeffersons Ocean tumbles through the barrels for the last year while it is aged at sea. Thought it was a bit "gimicky", but there is definitely a unique profile between the salt water air, temperature changes and constant motion of the sea. A must-try.


Any lover of whiskey, bourbon and rye should really make a trip to Louisville and Whiskey Row. It is the center of the whiskey universe. Most bars offer "flights" so you can try alot, about a million distilleries that all offer tours and tastings... Other things to do include the Muhammad Ali museum (you can literally spend 5-6 hours there if you're a fan), the Louisville Slugger factory tour and museum, Churchill Downs, and a lot of great food and drink.

Blanton's single barrel.

If you can find it, buy it.

A bit more than $200, but:

WhistlePig's "Boss Hog"

Hey, if anyone wants to make the trip to Louisville, I'm open in February and March and plan on making a trip from the STL... I'm more than willing to be the designated Uber dialer once we get there!

I'd trust Peen on this on this one.

Yep stick with coors light Hey what can I say I got a beer taste on a beer budget.

If I was going to spend a lot of money on a bottle of whiskey, believe me, I’d trust you. The poster who started this thread should have just PMed you

No. I don't like chocolate.

I might have to go there... I love chocolate beer

I think it also depends on if you want bourbon, rye or scotch. They couldn't be more different. If you want American whisky...go with ballpeen's wise advice. Scotch, however, is so varied in flavor...much more so than bourbon. And, usually the older any whisky is, the smoother and less hot it is.

Ball...I am definitely going to try that bottle you recommended!

Looks like I'll have to try Pritchard's Double Barrel!

Just drink Canadian Mist.


It’s the Canadian beer of whiskey.

Best I have had is Midelton Irish whiskey. It has gotten too expensive but if you can afford it it is soooo smooth.

Going to look for this. Sounds like they are sweating the right details right. How do you take their whiskey? Rocks?

I like mine neat, but a cube or two wouldn't hurt.

Woodford is a good brand, I agree with Eve. That's about the best I have had, but I am not a big whiskey guy anymore When I was a whiskey guy, it was my younger days and Jack was the go too.

too bad coors lite isn't beer. yuck. that's pee flavored water.

Actually, if you're going to have mixed drinks it's very smooth. I mean who wants to waste great whiskey by mixing it in drinks?

I agree as well.

It along with Jack can be sipped, but lend well to mixing....you know, soda, coke, ginger-ale....never Pepsi

Double Barrel sets you back $99 plus tax around here. Probably close to the same everywhere. I am not mixing a fine sipping whiskey with anything other than maybe a ice cube. I usually don't even do that.

I don't smoke cigars anymore, but it sure didn't hurt to smoke a nice stogie and blow some smoke in the glass to enhance the flavor.


Someone said something about Coors Light....I like Coors Light. It's a nice, refreshing beer.

My go to is Guinness. Low cal, low alcohol, high in flavor. It's perfect. People see the dark color and say they don't like a heavy beer. OK, cool, I then order a black and tan and ask the why the Guinness is floating on the top if it is so heavy?

I then order a draft and point out the bubbles are going down to the bottom of the glass. How heavy is a bubble? LOL

A really nice 18-24 year old bottle of Scotch is liquid gold. Laphroaig is a particular favorite, but it is very peaty and couldn't be more different than American whisky.

My go to in winter is guiness in summer its corona

Laphroaig is my Bro's favorite also.

I would agree, it’s gives coke a reason to be consumed. I’m not sure if J.D. Powers has an award for that though.

I mix it with coke because I'm a girly girl and dont like drinking liquor straight.

Great stuff. Smells like old shoe polish, but man it is so good!