Bourbon

[a fan]

.... my name is not John...

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CV6k9IHg ... =copy_link

Deluding yourself into joy! A little whiskey? Everything in moderation. Including moderation.

I am alot like you. I'm really not a bourbon connoisseur at all (I've been given "good" bourbon and honestly did not see a difference ) but A Fan suggested Wild Turkey 101 to me about a year ago. I would highly suggest it. It is now my favorite one out there and it is at a fantastic price point!

Agreed on the WT101.

I would respectfully disagree with you on your "I'm not a connoisseur", Bart. WildTurkey 101 is a great whiskey....don't let that low price point fool you. The Russells are fine, fine distillers. It's really a question of how much more barrel presence you want in your whiskey. If you like that lower age, as I do? Enjoy the price break!

I tell tours and groups all the time.....if you gave me a choice between a bottle of Buffalo Trace Bourbon, and any of the Van Winkles that are literally Buffalo Trace Bourbon with more age? I'd take the Buffalo Trace Bourbon (mostly ~4yo with a bit of older whiskey) every time.

Drink what you like. And if what you like is easy to find on the shelves, and at a nice price? Lucky you! Bottom's up!

[youthathletics]

This is what all VA ABC stores look like this morning, as each store received ~6 bottles of allocated bourbon. Some started Friday evening, hoping to be first in line. #Taters

[Kismet]

Just finishing this one - Blue Note - 9YO Small batch straight bourbon from Memphis. A little spicy but smooth.

Local shop confirmed Leopold/Dickel Pre-prohibition Rye blend should be available in mid-December - $110/bottle. Available in those states a fan mentioned earlier in this thread - On the East Coast, It will be available in MD, DC, NY, NJ, CT, GA, FL. Should arrive the 1st week in December.

[a fan]

This is what all VA ABC stores look like this morning, as each store received ~6 bottles of allocated bourbon. Some started Friday evening, hoping to be first in line. #Taters

Can't get over pictures like this one. This was unthinkable at the start of my career. Completely unthinkable.

What a ride it's been....

[bmorelax]

I spent my career in the beverage alcohol business including many years with Buffalo Trace's parent company, Sazerac.
While it's great that many people have discovered bourbon, it's a shame that many are hoarding and hoping to resell on the secondary market.

I picked up a 1.75 of Benchmark bourbon for my son's graduation party this summer for $19.99, and enjoyed it all summer long.
You don't need to spend a lot to find decent bourbon.

[a fan]

I spent my career in the beverage alcohol business including many years with Buffalo Trace's parent company, Sazerac.
While it's great that many people have discovered bourbon, it's a shame that many are hoarding and hoping to resell on the secondary market.

The same people who are responsible for the boom, are the same people who are both hoarding and buying/selling on the secondary. They did this to themselves.

I picked up a 1.75 of Benchmark bourbon for my son's graduation party this summer for $19.99, and enjoyed it all summer long.
You don't need to spend a lot to find decent bourbon.

Couldn't agree more.

If you don't mind me asking.....what did you do at Sazerac? Have you retired from the biz? Or moved on to another business sector?

[get it to x]

I spent my career in the beverage alcohol business including many years with Buffalo Trace's parent company, Sazerac.
While it's great that many people have discovered bourbon, it's a shame that many are hoarding and hoping to resell on the secondary market.

The same people who are responsible for the boom, are the same people who are both hoarding and buying/selling on the secondary. They did this to themselves.

I picked up a 1.75 of Benchmark bourbon for my son's graduation party this summer for $19.99, and enjoyed it all summer long.
You don't need to spend a lot to find decent bourbon.

Couldn't agree more.

If you don't mind me asking.....what did you do at Sazerac? Have you retired from the biz? Or moved on to another business sector?

So I had considered a bottle of Colonel E. H. Taylor Small Batch as a sipping bourbon. Had a glass at a neighbor's house. Spectacular! I can't find it anywhere in Greenville. Looking on line it was between $125 and $199. As you can see by the 5 year old review below the MSRP was $55. Is this a product of people hoarding or the demand for a fine bourbon, or both?

https://www.bourbonbanter.com/drink/dri ... ZwBxNDMKUk

[youthathletics]

I spent my career in the beverage alcohol business including many years with Buffalo Trace's parent company, Sazerac.
While it's great that many people have discovered bourbon, it's a shame that many are hoarding and hoping to resell on the secondary market.

The same people who are responsible for the boom, are the same people who are both hoarding and buying/selling on the secondary. They did this to themselves.

I picked up a 1.75 of Benchmark bourbon for my son's graduation party this summer for $19.99, and enjoyed it all summer long.
You don't need to spend a lot to find decent bourbon.

Couldn't agree more.

If you don't mind me asking.....what did you do at Sazerac? Have you retired from the biz? Or moved on to another business sector?

So I had considered a bottle of Colonel E. H. Taylor Small Batch as a sipping bourbon. Had a glass at a neighbor's house. Spectacular! I can't find it anywhere in Greenville. Looking on line it was between $125 and $199. As you can see by the 5 year old review below the MSRP was $55. Is this a product of people hoarding or the demand for a fine bourbon, or both?

https://www.bourbonbanter.com/drink/dri ... ZwBxNDMKUk

I will say yes to both, and coupled with the same thing going on with our supply chain,,,this is a bit of long read but you'll get the just. Kinda hard to ramp up bourbon product, when it takes years and years to make.

I spent 30 minutes with a store owner today and we were talking about this very subject. He said just today he received an allocation lot of 4 bottles of Blanton's, 4 bottles of Eagle Rare, and 2 EHT Barrel Proof. He then received a call that said don't sell it.....it accidentally went to your store and was allocated for another store. He then went on to state that some times he may receive 2 cases of Blantons or a single bottle...and yet, his Sazerac sales on their products remains robust. And when he receives those products....they are gone in hours once someone finds out they are there.

He often puts your name on a ticket if you spend x dollars and throws it in barrel, then raffles the rare bottles at MSRP.

[Bart]

I spent my career in the beverage alcohol business including many years with Buffalo Trace's parent company, Sazerac.
While it's great that many people have discovered bourbon, it's a shame that many are hoarding and hoping to resell on the secondary market.

The same people who are responsible for the boom, are the same people who are both hoarding and buying/selling on the secondary. They did this to themselves.

I picked up a 1.75 of Benchmark bourbon for my son's graduation party this summer for $19.99, and enjoyed it all summer long.
You don't need to spend a lot to find decent bourbon.

Couldn't agree more.

If you don't mind me asking.....what did you do at Sazerac? Have you retired from the biz? Or moved on to another business sector?

So I had considered a bottle of Colonel E. H. Taylor Small Batch as a sipping bourbon. Had a glass at a neighbor's house. Spectacular! I can't find it anywhere in Greenville. Looking on line it was between $125 and $199. As you can see by the 5 year old review below the MSRP was $55. Is this a product of people hoarding or the demand for a fine bourbon, or both?

https://www.bourbonbanter.com/drink/dri ... ZwBxNDMKUk

I will say yes to both, and coupled with the same thing going on with our supply chain,,,this is a bit of long read but you'll get the just. Kinda hard to ramp up bourbon product, when it takes years and years to make.

I spent 30 minutes with a store owner today and we were talking about this very subject. He said just today he received an allocation lot of 4 bottles of Blanton's, 4 bottles of Eagle Rare, and 2 EHT Barrel Proof. He then received a call that said don't sell it.....it accidentally went to your store and was allocated for another store. He then went on to state that some times he may receive 2 cases of Blantons or a single bottle...and yet, his Sazerac sales on their products remains robust. And when he receives those products....they are gone in hours once someone finds out they are there.

He often puts your name on a ticket if you spend x dollars and throws it in barrel, then raffles the rare bottles at MSRP.

I guess one of these days I will have to spring for one of these $125+ bottles to see what all the fuss is about. I'd be hard pressed to decide on what to drink at that price point let alone actually buying in

[a fan]

So I had considered a bottle of Colonel E. H. Taylor Small Batch as a sipping bourbon. Had a glass at a neighbor's house. Spectacular! I can't find it anywhere in Greenville. Looking on line it was between $125 and $199. As you can see by the 5 year old review below the MSRP was $55. Is this a product of people hoarding or the demand for a fine bourbon, or both?

Both. The secondary market-----people reselling hard to find bottles-----is about half or more of that cost. So "flippers" buy ten bottles, instead of just one.

The other, is that after 50 years of "not being cool", the Bourbon and Rye producers are finally pricing their whiskies appropriately, given market conditions.

[a fan]

I spent my career in the beverage alcohol business including many years with Buffalo Trace's parent company, Sazerac.
While it's great that many people have discovered bourbon, it's a shame that many are hoarding and hoping to resell on the secondary market.

The same people who are responsible for the boom, are the same people who are both hoarding and buying/selling on the secondary. They did this to themselves.

I picked up a 1.75 of Benchmark bourbon for my son's graduation party this summer for $19.99, and enjoyed it all summer long.
You don't need to spend a lot to find decent bourbon.

Couldn't agree more.

If you don't mind me asking.....what did you do at Sazerac? Have you retired from the biz? Or moved on to another business sector?

So I had considered a bottle of Colonel E. H. Taylor Small Batch as a sipping bourbon. Had a glass at a neighbor's house. Spectacular! I can't find it anywhere in Greenville. Looking on line it was between $125 and $199. As you can see by the 5 year old review below the MSRP was $55. Is this a product of people hoarding or the demand for a fine bourbon, or both?

https://www.bourbonbanter.com/drink/dri ... ZwBxNDMKUk

I will say yes to both, and coupled with the same thing going on with our supply chain,,,this is a bit of long read but you'll get the just.

And that article is year old. Prices are far, far higher now.

Market forces. Three generations of men and women became American whiskey drinkers almost overnight........Covid and "Stay at home" was the match that lit the gasoline.

[youthathletics]

I spent my career in the beverage alcohol business including many years with Buffalo Trace's parent company, Sazerac.
While it's great that many people have discovered bourbon, it's a shame that many are hoarding and hoping to resell on the secondary market.

The same people who are responsible for the boom, are the same people who are both hoarding and buying/selling on the secondary. They did this to themselves.

I picked up a 1.75 of Benchmark bourbon for my son's graduation party this summer for $19.99, and enjoyed it all summer long.
You don't need to spend a lot to find decent bourbon.

Couldn't agree more.

If you don't mind me asking.....what did you do at Sazerac? Have you retired from the biz? Or moved on to another business sector?

So I had considered a bottle of Colonel E. H. Taylor Small Batch as a sipping bourbon. Had a glass at a neighbor's house. Spectacular! I can't find it anywhere in Greenville. Looking on line it was between $125 and $199. As you can see by the 5 year old review below the MSRP was $55. Is this a product of people hoarding or the demand for a fine bourbon, or both?

https://www.bourbonbanter.com/drink/dri ... ZwBxNDMKUk

I will say yes to both, and coupled with the same thing going on with our supply chain,,,this is a bit of long read but you'll get the just.

And that article is year old. Prices are far, far higher now.

Market forces. Three generations of men and women became American whiskey drinkers almost overnight........Covid and "Stay at home" was the match that lit the gasoline.

Yea....I know ETL was my drink of choice for years and years, always available. During CV19, I started joining a bunch of local bourbon facbook groups in hopes of finding it once again.....noppity nope, not at 4x the price I was paying before the debacle. If it came out of Buffalo Trace, it was gobbled up...hell, even Ancient Ancient Age 10 is hard to find which is the lowest price product out of their production line.

The good thing about all this....I have found some really other great tasting bourbons. Even blending some of my own with no science behind it, just winging it. Working on Evan Williams Bottled in Bond now, which was $26 for a 1.75l.

[get it to x]

I spent my career in the beverage alcohol business including many years with Buffalo Trace's parent company, Sazerac.
While it's great that many people have discovered bourbon, it's a shame that many are hoarding and hoping to resell on the secondary market.

The same people who are responsible for the boom, are the same people who are both hoarding and buying/selling on the secondary. They did this to themselves.

I picked up a 1.75 of Benchmark bourbon for my son's graduation party this summer for $19.99, and enjoyed it all summer long.
You don't need to spend a lot to find decent bourbon.

Couldn't agree more.

If you don't mind me asking.....what did you do at Sazerac? Have you retired from the biz? Or moved on to another business sector?

So I had considered a bottle of Colonel E. H. Taylor Small Batch as a sipping bourbon. Had a glass at a neighbor's house. Spectacular! I can't find it anywhere in Greenville. Looking on line it was between $125 and $199. As you can see by the 5 year old review below the MSRP was $55. Is this a product of people hoarding or the demand for a fine bourbon, or both?

https://www.bourbonbanter.com/drink/dri ... ZwBxNDMKUk

I will say yes to both, and coupled with the same thing going on with our supply chain,,,this is a bit of long read but you'll get the just.

And that article is year old. Prices are far, far higher now.

Market forces. Three generations of men and women became American whiskey drinkers almost overnight........Covid and "Stay at home" was the match that lit the gasoline.

Yea....I know ETL was my drink of choice for years and years, always available. During CV19, I started joining a bunch of local bourbon facbook groups in hopes of finding it once again.....noppity nope, not at 4x the price I was paying before the debacle. If it came out of Buffalo Trace, it was gobbled up...hell, even Ancient Ancient Age 10 is hard to find which is the lowest price product out of their production line.

The good thing about all this....I have found some really other great tasting bourbons. Even blending some of my own with no science behind it, just winging it. Working on Evan Williams Bottled in Bond now, which was $26 for a 1.75l.

Never thought something like bourbon would have inelasticity as a problem. Have to hope it's like the Dutch Tulip Craze, in that eventually increased supply will bring prices down to earth. Of course, cigarettes are still like $8-$10 pack or more, but a lot of that is tax.

[a fan]

Have to hope it's like the Dutch Tulip Craze, in that eventually increased supply will bring prices down to earth.

Knowing your bourbon is knowing your wine in the 70's and 80's, or knowing beer in the 90's and 10's. It's become an overnight status symbol to know which bourbon is which.



The tariffs are ending.....that was your last hope. US whiskey sales were down by 20-30% depending on the brand in 2020.

The plan for these companies is to get them hooked on the bottom line whiskies-----JDaniels, Beam, etc, and then as the population who got a taste of Bourbon ages? Hit them with the high end stuff.

There are millions and millions of Europeans and Asians that have never had Bourbon. The market is bottomless. And unlike beer, it doesn't spoil...and it's a concentrate. With beer, you're shipping water. Bourbon delivers 8 times more alcohol for the same volume, making it very inexpensive to ship, and makes it sustainable, to boot.

[get it to x]

Have to hope it's like the Dutch Tulip Craze, in that eventually increased supply will bring prices down to earth.

Knowing your bourbon is knowing your wine in the 70's and 80's, or knowing beer in the 90's and 10's. It's become an overnight status symbol to know which bourbon is which.



The tariffs are ending.....that was your last hope. US whiskey sales were down by 20-30% depending on the brand in 2020.

The plan for these companies is to get them hooked on the bottom line whiskies-----JDaniels, Beam, etc, and then as the population who got a taste of Bourbon ages? Hit them with the high end stuff.

There are millions and millions of Europeans and Asians that have never had Bourbon. The market is bottomless. And unlike beer, it doesn't spoil...and it's a concentrate. With beer, you're shipping water. Bourbon delivers 8 times more alcohol for the same volume, making it very inexpensive to ship, and makes it sustainable, to boot.

And zero carbs!!!

[a fan]

And zero carbs!!!

And gluten free!

[youthathletics]

A few months back, my son's new girlfriend told me she was going to be visiting Denver, so I told her to swing by Leopold Brothers and enjoy their offerings. She returned from her 30 days of leave with an unexpected gift, shown below. She is certainly a keeper in my book.

Ack! Next time, tell me she's coming!!

Dude.....congratulations!!: https://www.instagram.com/p/CV3QRaFP_Na ... _copy_link

I love their BiB and Rye....and especially their price point.

Thank you! Just spent a couple days at the TN distillery, doing some work with Nicole, their Master Distiller.

It's been a lot of fun.

More congrats.....some love from Fred, this ought to make even harder to find.

[richard]

Reading about supply chains and prices and hoarding of bourbon seems to me to be defeating the purpose of the drink like sports contracts etc. Although timely it leads me to disinterest.
30-40 years ago my uncle passed away. He had stashed a bunch of bottles of Maryland Rye whiskey, Pikesville, K&L and Sherbrooke. The star of the show was the Sherbrooke. My brothers and I were the lucky recipients of the stash. A year or so later there was an occasion with a couple buddies to break out the Sherbrooke. One of my buddies thought I was lying about it until I brought it out and cracked it open. Three of us polished it off and had a great time just talking trash.
I hate to think of what those bottles would bring in today but that is ok. The memory of that time with those boys is certainly worth more.

[a fan]

Reading about supply chains and prices and hoarding of bourbon seems to me to be defeating the purpose of the drink like sports contracts etc. Although timely it leads me to disinterest.
30-40 years ago my uncle passed away. He had stashed a bunch of bottles of Maryland Rye whiskey, Pikesville, K&L and Sherbrooke. The star of the show was the Sherbrooke. My brothers and I were the lucky recipients of the stash. A year or so later there was an occasion with a couple buddies to break out the Sherbrooke. One of my buddies thought I was lying about it until I brought it out and cracked it open. Three of us polished it off and had a great time just talking trash.
I hate to think of what those bottles would bring in today but that is ok. The memory of that time with those boys is certainly worth more.

Great story. And I couldn't agree more that the memory of enjoying that whiskey with your friends is 1000 times more valuable than selling it to someone who in all likelihood won't drink it, either.

That must have been a helluva fine evening!

[a fan]

A few months back, my son's new girlfriend told me she was going to be visiting Denver, so I told her to swing by Leopold Brothers and enjoy their offerings. She returned from her 30 days of leave with an unexpected gift, shown below. She is certainly a keeper in my book.

Ack! Next time, tell me she's coming!!

Dude.....congratulations!!: https://www.instagram.com/p/CV3QRaFP_Na ... _copy_link

I love their BiB and Rye....and especially their price point.

Thank you! Just spent a couple days at the TN distillery, doing some work with Nicole, their Master Distiller.

It's been a lot of fun.

More congrats.....some love from Fred, this ought to make even harder to find.

Better to be lucky than good, right?