Tried this in a bar

Price: $40/oz

Nose: powdered sugar, cherry, creme brulee, baking spice, cinnamon, butterscotch

Palate: lots of leather, oak, baking spice, cinnamon, red fruit, stewed red fruit, decent mouthfeel, burnt rubber

Finish: oak heavy, dark chocolate, coffee, medium finish

Score: 6.5/10

A bit overoaked for me. It shows some flavors of pre-fire heaven hill like the butterscotch, but it's more subtle than other pre fires I've had. Mouthfeel is actually ok for the proof.

Scale:

1.0-1.9 Undrinkable (Gold bar cognac cask)

2.0-2.9 Bad (Gold bar)

3.0-3.9 Poor (High West Prarie Bourbon, Pappy Van Winkle 23yr)

4.0-4.9 Below Average (Old Overholt, Dickel 15 yr, Weller SR, Buffalo Trace)

5.0-5.9 Average (Eagle Rare, Blanton's)

6.0-6.9 Above Average (Jimmy Russel 70th, Redemption 9yr, E.H. Taylor Seasoned Oak)

7.0-7.9 Very Good (Wild Turkey Master's Keep Triumph, Sagamore 9yr rye, Jack Daniel's SBBP)

8.0-8.9 Great (William Larue Weller(2019), Pappy Van Winkle 15yr, Double Eagle Very Rare, William Heavenhill 14yr)

9.0-9.9 Excellent (Thomas H. Handy (2010), George T. Stagg (2008, 2019), Four Roses LE (2016, 2023), Willet Purple Top 14 yr, A.H. Hirsch 25 yr rye)

10.0 Perfect (Michter's 20, OGD 114(1980))

As always, I’m doing this review live. I attempt to forget everything that I know (or think I know) about a dram prior to starting a live review on Reddit. That said, this is my favorite wheater so I’m biased.

Specs: This is the 2025 install of the Heaven Hill Heritage Collection.

Mash bill: This one isn’t actually bourbon. It’s American Wheat Whiskey at 51% Wheat / 37% Corn / 12% Malted Barley. So it is high corn and kind of bourbon adjacent, I guess.

ABV: 50%

Age: 19 Years Old

Nose: Soft oak is how I’d initially describe it. Sweet oak. But just a soft feel to the nose. There’s some honey and definitely a big butterscotch scent on the last pass. I often get a more caramel note that I’m not finding on the nose tonight.

Palate: More butterscotch up front. Big time! There’s also caramel layered on. It’s quite creamy. There’s a hint of graham cracker. Like crumbled graham cracker. A bit of baked cinnamon apple type of taste. There’s light pepper flakes, too.

Finish: As much as I love the nose and palate, the finish is the minor flaw. It’s shorter than I’d like but it is pleasant. There’s some more nice oak. I am getting dark chocolate covered cherries. The tannins are a little stronger than I recall. That hint of pepper is back, too.

It’s awfully good. I liked this bottle so much last year that I bought two. I’d been waiting awhile to open the backup and tonight was the night. I decided to pour myself a double. 😂

8.8/10

I remember when this came out and as a true T8ke fan boy, I was happy to blindly pay the entry cost that was released as an accessible but celebratory launch for his new brand. A 14 year buff turkey at 122 proof? Sign me up! To be fair the buff turkey phenomenon has been what pretty much every other bourbon fad has been: all over the place. Some have been amazing, some have been duds but all have fetched a high price due to hype, age statement and proof. I’ve had a decent amount of different iterations and while none have been life changing some have been quite tasty. This bottle has been open for some time with about a third of it having gone on a flight to Mexico for my wedding at the end of June (that was a fun search at customs.) As the bottle is at its end I figured I should actually write it up.

Nose: dark slightly medicinal cherry, oak, slight tannic / sharpness at the back.

Palate: Think a normal shelter buffalo trace but everything you like turned all the way up with little funk at the back. Insanely / frighteningly drinkable at the proof.

Finish: Long with lingering sweetness, drying, continuing funkiness with a slight wet leaves rye note.

Overall I’m very sad to have finished this but grateful to have had the opportunity to try it. As I alluded to earlier I’m more of a fan of T8ke releases than buff turkey at this point as just saying buff turkey doesn’t mean it’s good but carrying T8ke’s endorsement usually does.

8.7

For reference—

1 Hillbilly vine—> undrinkable

5.7 New Louisville Cinn City

6.2 Dark arts 13 year rye MGP Liquor Junction Pick

7.9 Reveries Degausser

8.1 Dark Arts Tropic Like it’s Hot Burlington W&S Pick

8.3 Subtle Spirits El Cerrito 12.11 year rye

10 ER 10/101, KoK, CGF—> liquid perfection.

Wild Turkey 101 8-Year

Distiller: Wild Turkey
ABV: 50.5%
Age: 8 years
Mashbill: 75% corn, 13% rye, 12% malted barley
Price: $45
Vibe: Autumnal for sure
Warm-up: Shenk’s Homestead 2024
Other: Neat in a Glencairn

Nose: Orange peel, sweet oak, maple, barbecue sauce
Palate: Candied orange, peanut butter, caramel, mulled wine, powdered sugar
Finish: Medium, spearmint, nutty

Aroma: 1.5/2.0
Complexity: 2.0/3.0
Drinkability: 2.0/2.0
Uniqueness: 2.0/3.0
(Bonus) Value: 0.5/1.0
Total: 8.0/10.0

Notes: It’s a step up from the regular Wild Turkey 101, which is already good. And it’s purpose-built for an old fashioned, if you’re into that.

Seelbach’s Private Reserve Usonia Mizunara Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Series: Usonia No. 09

Batch No. 001

Age: 9 years 6 months (includes the finish)

Finish: 5 months in Light-Toast Japanese Mizunara oak barrels

Mashbill: 75% corn, 21% rye, 4% malted barley

Distilled in Bardstown, KY

Initial barrels: Speyside; char 3

Initial barrel fill date: December 2016

Barrels arrived in Jacksonville, FL: November 2024 after aging in Shively, KY

Mizunara cask fill date: January 2026

Mizunara cask harvest date: June 2026

Length of mingling before bottling: ~3 months

Mizunara cask manufacturer: The Barrel Mill (Minnesota); $3000 per barrel plus freight; 53 gallons

Proof: 117.54

MSRP: $99.99

Release: October 9, 2026

Nose: Raw sugar cookie dough. Dried apricot. Sunny D. Cream of coconut. Pumpkin pie spice.

This smells really nice. The spice from the mizunara is pretty mild, which I enjoy. Apricot is also mild. Well balanced.

Palate: Snack Pack Banana Cream Pie pudding. Honey roasted peanuts, but emphasis on honey roasted. Key Lime pie. Thick mouthfeel.

Off to a great start! The mouthfeel is my sweet spot. Lots of interesting flavors coming together and they all somehow work w/ balance.

Finish: Rum raisin ice cream. Ginger ale. White pepper. Clove.

I really like this! I’ve heard some great mizunara and some average mizunara… this is great! I’d place this in my Top 2 for bourbons w/ mizunara finishes… along with Starlight Mizunara Reserve. Both bottles feature a similar age, but this Seelbach’s release is much cheaper in comparison.

Also, it’s worth noting that both in my Top 2 used actual mizunara barrels… and not staves.

I do enjoy finishes, but I typically reach for stuff without a finish. This is a top-notch finish… something I will happily reach for often.

Bottle provided for review by Seelbach’s

Rating: 8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional

Summary

Old Cassidy is another heavily allocated release from the NDP Rare Character. Similar to the “Pride of Anderson County” line, it is a series of releases rather than explicit batches. The earliest release from 2013 was 10 years and 5 months old at 121.4 proof; this release is the second in the series, and I believe a third is scheduled for distribution by end of 2026.

I have a thread elsewhere revealing more details than most had at the time this bottle was released. You can draw your own conclusions from the comments there, but I would guess this is at least 50% 15-year-old Wild Turkey stock artfully blended with a remainder of 18-year-old Barton stock.

Stats

Age: ~60% 15 years, ~40% 18 years

Proof: 123

Mashbill: Unknown blend of two mashbills

Value

MSRP: $200

Secondary: $300 - $450

Notes

Nose: Turkey funk, white pepper, butterscotch, sweet oak, kettle corn, hot jam, pumpernickel

Palate: Butterscotch, stone fruit sweetness, rye spice, leather, oak, dark chocolate

Finish: Long; rye spice, leather, and oak tannins

Final Impressions

The nose here is reminiscent of Calumet 18, Rare Breed, and Buckner’s 15. The high rye and ethanol components are reminiscent of the Calumet 18, while Turkey funk is present on a distant nosing and the midpalate. That Turkey note is pretty great, and the age it has adds a dash of “dusty” quality.

Some whiskeys are unique and distinct in their own right, even blends such as those from Barrell. Here I would say the pour is best judged as a sum of its components. There’s a little bit of something for everyone here; a classy Barton kick with undertones of aged Wild Turkey. It would stand to reason given the price point this was Rare Character’s answer to 2025 allocations such as Beacon and Calumet 18. Would I say this reaches those levels? For Calumet 18, absolutely, but perhaps not for Beacon.

I far prefer this pour to the tasting I’ve had of Calumet 18, which came across as tannic and punchy to me. The (presumably) Turkey blend component softens these aspects of Barton well. However, the refined butterscotch Turkey funk is likewise muted by the tannins. I enjoy this as a premium pour but won’t be disheartened once it’s gone. It demonstrates Rare Character’s competency at blending as well as sourcing, so my compliments to them for putting together a great release.

If you like high age bourbon and both Barton / Turkey, I would recommend picking this up if you happen to find “old new stock” floating around or on auction. However, the secondary prices I disagree with. I would not pay over $400 for this with so many other options on the market.

8.6 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

Before I get into the review, I recently started an Instagram Account where I’ll share shorter versions of my whiskey reviews. The full reviews will still be here as well, but if you’d like to follow along over there too, I’d appreciate it!

This bottle was purchased with my own funds. I have no association with Old Alker or its associated brands.

Background: Old Alker is located in New Orleans, Louisiana, and was founded by owner Kevin Alker. His family arrived in New Orleans in 1848 and opened a stave yard and cooperage soon after. This cooperage became one of the largest in the United States at the time. During Prohibition, Alker Hall was a speakeasy in New Orleans. So, while a few generations have been close to the American spirits industry in one way or another, he is the first to take the leap and open a distilling operation.

Now for the real question: where are these barrels coming from? Old Alker does have stills on site, but to my knowledge, these products are too old to have been made on that equipment. Some of the rumors I have heard or read include Peerless and Preservation. I have also seen barrels labeled with Preservation and IJW markings and DSP codes on the company's Instagram. In other words, we don’t officially know, but we can make an educated guess.

Old Alker Single Barrel

Unknown Mashbill

Aged 7 Years

100 Proof (50% Alcohol/Volume)

I paid ~$60 (after tax) for 750mL

Nose: Soft and inviting, with notes of green apple, light caramel sauce, bright rye spice, fresh ground cinnamon, and something that reminds me of coffee cake. In the background, there are some faint notes of sweet oak, stewed cherries, old-fashioned peanut candy, and amaretto.

Palate: Quick hit of light brown sugar before more rye spice and caramel apples with chopped peanuts. It has an approachable warmth that clings to the side of your cheeks. For the proof point, it has caramel and apple notes in droves.

Finish: Cherry cobbler and toasted black pepper are prominent. Some wisps of peanut candy and cinnamon as well. I even got a bit of green grape on the exhale. The cherry note lingers for quite a while. No real oak influence on the finish, though it does lend some structure.

Conclusion and Thoughts: This is a nice recess from the higher-proof bourbons that I tend to favor. These last few weeks, I have been gravitating towards this bottle quite often. Likely due to a combination of the rounded mouthfeel and a flavor profile that every bourbon drinker is likely to enjoy. If this is in fact a 7-year bourbon from Preservation, I would say it's a good value. Even if it isn’t, it is still a good whiskey from a brand that is local to me. Old Alker has my attention, and I need to find my way over there sooner rather than later! As always, if you have made it this far, thank you. I will see you in the next one. Cheers!

Bourbz Review #250: Rabbit Hole Heigold SiB CS USA 250 North Carolina Limited Edition

MASH BILL: 70% corn, 25% malted rye, 5% malted barley

AGE: 7 yrs 4 mos

PROOF: 113.4

COST: $60 for 750mL bottle

I was telling a buddy about working on a review for my 250^th r/bourbon review, and he was like, “you should do a review of an America’s 250^th Anniversary release for your 250^th review.” What a great idea! Only problem was, I didn’t have another 250^th anniversary release that I was planning on getting that I hadn’t already reviewed. He happened to have this bottle though and said I should do a review of it. As it turns out, I’ve not reviewed a Rabbit Hole Heigold Single Barrel Cask Strength bottle before, and the label really captivated me… I had never seen this label before and was immediately curious about researching it as I didn’t recall seeing any press releases about these unique USA 250 releases by Rabbit Hole. So, down the rabbit hole I went!

After doing a little research, I couldn’t find anything online about this North Carolina label, but I did see that Virginia also had a Rabbit Hole USA 250 release with a label that had different art than this North Carolina bottle. Now I was even more intrigued! Did Rabbit Hole make bottles for every state with different artwork? Maybe just for the original 13 colonies? The plot thickens! I reached out to Rabbit Hole with these questions while I continued my own research.

Further research didn’t reveal too much, but it wasn’t completely futile. After discussing my suspicions with my buddy that leant me this bottle, he saw that Ohio also offered a limited edition 250 label as well with another unique art work. This got me to thinking that maybe Rabbit Hole did a SiB with a unique label for each control state they distribute in (or at least offered it to each of them) since NC, VA, and OH are all control states. So, I checked a few other control states such as Michigan, Pennsylvania, Maine, Maryland, Alabama, Mississippi, and Utah. Out of all those, it looks like only Pennsylvania may also have one of these limited release labels, but I can’t seem to find a picture of one online. However, their online product listings shows a Rabbit Hole Heigold SiB CS expression for a much lower price than the regular cask strength variant and with a strange looking product code versus the other Rabbit Hole products.

While I have yet to hear back from Rabbit Hole about this label series and see how many states might have one, why the price is significantly less than the regular cask strength SiB labels, etc., I do think there’s something special and truly limited here. It would be pretty cool to pick up each of these special revolutionary looking labels. Regardless, at $60 for a 7+ year single barrel cask strength whiskey from Rabbit Hole…that’s more than 50% off their normal SiB CS products, so you can’t go wrong. Have you found one of these cool labels in your local store? If so, feel free to share a picture of it in the comments or any details. As a community we may piece this together quicker than Rabbit Hole gets back with me.

This bottle is from barrel 1-19B07A. Reviewed neat in a Glencairn.

APPEARANCE: Rich, red mahogany (1.6), clings to the glass and slow to form legs.

NOSE: Quite sweet. Malted milk balls, confectionary sugar, and a mix of fruit sweetness including fresh raspberries and apricots. A light baking spice note adds a little prickle to an otherwise delicate dessert nose. There is a touch of orange zest in the background and a slight oakiness that comes and goes.

PALATE: The mouthfeel is thinner than I expected based on the appearance. I initially get a pop of fresh raspberries dusted with powdered sugar. As the raspberry fades, vanilla malted milkshake with a butterscotch drizzle replaces it. A couple seconds in there is some nice spicy oak and tannins that replace the sweetness, a touch of anise, and bright orange zest. A rather large transformation happens from the start of the sip to going into the finish.

FINISH: Medium to long finish that leans rather spicy compared to the nose and palate. While some butterscotch and orange zest lingers, toasted oak, dried corn husks, malted grain, and white pepper dominate the finish. As some of the earthier notes die off, more spice builds with notes of cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.

RATING: 7.2/10

OVERALL: When I originally tried the core Rabbit Hole expressions side by side, the regular Heigold didn’t make an impression on me, and as such, I’ve not revisited it for years. But this cask strength variant has way more complexity than I remember! It undoubtedly spent a lot more time in the barrel than the standard 95 proof variant I first tried about 5 years ago which certainly helps, but I think it being delivered at cask strength illuminates the character that the malted grains in the mash bill provide. With 30% of the mash bill being malted grains, there’s a noticeable cereal like sweetness and malted grain note. The big 25% malted rye component adds nice warming, baking spices that creep in late on the palate and into the finish while the 70% corn provides the upfront sweetness. When thinking about this in context of being a USA 250 Limited Edition SiB release, it represents what bourbon is quite well with ample sweetness from the corn and lingering baking spice.

1 | Disgusting | see my 1/10 ratings

2 | Poor | see my 2/10 ratings

3 | Bad | see my 3/10 ratings

4 | Sub-par | see my 4/10 ratings

5 | Good | see my 5/10 ratings

6 | Very Good | see my 6/10 ratings

7 | Great | see my 7/10 ratings

8 | Excellent | see my 8/10 ratings

9 | Incredible | see my 9/10 ratings

10 | Perfect | see my 10/10 ratings

Check out all my reviews: Woodgrain & Whiskey.

Purchase: I signed up for the Whiskey Library subscription on a whim after I got a bonus at work. I figured $100 every other month for a new bottle or two that I may not be able to find in my state would be fun, so I gave it a go. This month is just one bottle. I couldn’t find a whole lot about this subscription service so I’ll try to post some more about it for others.

I was a little disappointed it was one bottle this month; I enjoy exploring, so I’m happy to end up with two less-polished spirits for the different experiences rather than one pricy bottle to avoid potential let-downs, but this is definitely a good pour. I’m hoping the bottle holds up as it opens up.

——

Pour: First pour from a fresh bottle. Rested neat in the Glen for about 30 minutes before drinking

Nose: Rich, honey, butter, stewed apples. When it was first poured, I got a distinct honey note that reminded me of old, dark wildflower honey rather than fresh grocery store orange blossom or clover honey.

Palate: Also sweet, a bit of herbal rye funk, and some pepper (vegetable, not black pepper)

Finish: Tobacco and chili pepper, but not spicy or dry.

Overall:
I’d give it like a 7.8, not considering MSRP. It’s a really interesting blend of a traditional bourbon flavor with a neat herbal rye element, and I really like the richness it gets from being barrel proof and not filtered. Drinks below its proof heat-wise, but definitely not lacking in flavor.

$140 MSRP (though I didn’t pay quite that much) feels a little steep to me for what it is considering other barrel proof options I’ve enjoyed, but it’s still good whiskey.

Ratings:
• 1: Disgusting (So bad I poured it out)
• 2: Poor (I wouldn't consume by choice)
• 3: Bad (Multiple flaws)
• 4: Sub-par (Not bad, but better exists)
• 5: Good (Good, just fine)
• 6: Very Good (A cut above)
• 7: Great (Well above average)
• 8: Excellent (Really quite exceptional)
• 9: Incredible (An all-time favorite)
• 10: Perfect

TL;DR

Across all 39 of my reviews, a little, and past $100 it gets a lot less predictable. Three expensive bottles that scored under a 5 are most of the reason. Without them, price explains 60% of the difference in my scores instead of 19%. With them, the lesson is that paying $90 or more raised my odds of a great bottle but didn't protect me from a bad one. Nothing under $60 scores an 8, and most of the bottles that do are hard to find at MSRP.

The launch post promised a scatter plot showing where the sweet spots are. Those charts are on the reviews page now, so I ran the numbers on all 39 reviews. I definitely thought there'd be a trend where spending more gets you higher quality. There is one. I'm surprised it's not as dramatic as I thought it was. Then I ran it again without the three bottles that sit farthest off the trend. Both runs are below, and so is what those three bottles are telling me, because all three are expensive.

Oh and caution... there is math below. Proceed at your own risk.

How I Counted

Quality is each bottle's Quality score. Price is the MSRP listed on each review, never a shelf price. That's 39 bottles and one palate. I also buy my own bottles and do my homework first, so there aren't many low scores here to begin with (how I score) as a result.

The Numbers by Price

Quality climbs up to about $100 and then flattens out. Value goes the other way.

The Regression

A straight line through all 39 bottles says every extra $10 buys about 0.13 points of Quality. Price explains about 13% of the difference between my scores.

A curve fits better. Each time you double the price, Quality goes up about 0.9 points: the fit predicts a 5.5 at $25, a 6.4 at $50, a 7.3 at $100 and an 8.2 at $200. Price explains about a fifth of the difference between my scores that way. Take out the $275 Master's Keep and it still holds.

So there is a trend, but most of the difference between my scores isn't explained by price.

More Spread at the Top

Past $100, I see more variability. I'm more likely to get a really good bottle, but some of my least favorite whiskeys are $100 or more too. Five bottles on the site score under a 5, and three of them cost $90 or more: Woodinville 8 Year Straight Rye (2.3, $130), Booker's By the Pond (3.5, $100) and Old Elk Rum Cask Finished Rye (4.9, $90).

I don't know if that's because things are more experimental at that price, whether there's more finishing, or whether it's higher age, and sometimes I really don't like higher age. Of those three, one is finished (the Old Elk, in rum casks), one is an 8 year rye, and one is a barrel proof Booker's.

I think part of it is that the good ones are pushed up against the top of the scale. As soon as you have a couple of 9s under $100, it's going to look like there's a lot of range. But the bottles up there are all 8s and 9s, which is a phenomenal score, but you end up with scores somewhat unable to differentiate themselves.

Why I Ran It Again Without Three Bottles

Those same three bottles sit farther below the curve than anything else on the site. By the usual outlier tests, the Woodinville and the Booker's land far off the curve, and they pull on it harder than any other bottle. Take those two out and the Old Elk lands far off it too. Take all three out and no other bottle does, so that's where I stopped.

The three aren't mistakes. Those are my real scores for those bottles. The reason to run it again without them is that three bottles shouldn't decide the shape of a line that's supposed to describe 39. The second run answers a narrower question: what does a typical bottle at a given price score for me?

The Master's Keep is the one other bottle the tests point at, and it's a different case. It never lands far off the curve. It pulls on it because at $275 it's so far out on price. Once the three low bottles are gone, the curve expects close to a 10 at $275, and the Master's Keep's 8.7 holds it down. That's the top of the scale again: a curve can keep climbing, and my scores can't. Taking it out would make the trend look even steeper, about 1.5 points a doubling, so I left it in.

Without the Three Outliers

These are the same numbers on the other 36 bottles.

Quality climbs at every step now, past $100 included. The $100-and-up bottles go from the widest spread on the site to the tightest, 8.5 to 9.2. Value still drops as the price goes up, just more gently.

Without those three, price explains 60% of the difference between my scores instead of 19%, and each doubling buys about 1.4 points instead of 0.9.

Taking out your lowest scores will always make a trend look cleaner, so treat the 60% as a best case. The fairer check is a different kind of fit that uses all 39 bottles with nothing taken out, and goes by the median so a few extreme bottles can't drag it around. It lands at about 1.3 points a doubling, close to the 1.4 without the three. So the middle of the trend holds up either way. What the three bottles change is the bottom of it.

What the Three Outliers Are Telling Me

All three are expensive, and I can't just set that aside. Of the 10 bottles I've reviewed at $90 or more, seven score an 8 or better and three score under a 5. Not one lands in between. Under $90 it's the other way around: 24 of 29 bottles land between a 5 and an 8, three score an 8 or better, and two score under a 5. Cut it at $100 instead and it's the same shape: five 8s and up, two misses, nothing in the middle.

So paying more raised my odds of a great bottle, but it didn't lower my odds of a bad one. If anything the misses got more common: three of 10 at $90 and up, against two of 29 below it. And the expensive misses cost more. Old Grand-Dad Bonded (4.0, $25) and Benchmark Bonded (4.1, $17) are my other two scores under a 5, and they still score 5.1 and 6.4 on Value. The Woodinville, the Booker's and the Old Elk score 1.0, 1.0 and 2.5.

Three bottles is a small number, so some of this could be chance. If my five scores under a 5 were spread at random across the price range, three or more of them landing among the 10 most expensive bottles would happen about one time in ten. The empty middle above $90 is a much stronger pattern than that.

That's what I said further up: past $100 I'm more likely to get a really good bottle, but some of my least favorite whiskeys are up there too. The second run tells you what a typical bottle at a price is likely to score. These three tell you what can go wrong when you spend $90 or more on something you haven't tried.

Draw the Line at $50

If you draw the cutoff at $50, you're going to see a difference. The 8 bottles under $50 average a 5.2, and none of them scores higher than Wild Turkey 101 at 6.3. The 31 bottles at $50 and up average a 7.0, and the 28 left without the three outliers average a 7.4.

The cheap bottles win on Value, though. Wild Turkey 101 and Evan Williams Bottled in Bond share the best Value score on the site, 7.8. The budget blind has those two head to head.

What an 8 Costs

When you start talking about an 8 or above, I would be willing to pay quite a bit more. Not that it necessarily costs that much more. None of the 16 bottles under $60 scores an 8. Five of the 16 from $60 to $99 do, and so do five of the seven at $100 and up. Without the three outliers, that's five of 15 and all five. The cheapest is the Holladay at $75.

Proof Might Matter Too

Proof might matter as much as price. The 11 bottles above 100 and up to 115 proof average a 7.5, and the 18 at 100 proof or under average a 6.0. But the stronger bottles also cost more ($91 on average, against $53), so I can't pull the two apart with 39 bottles. Without the three outliers it's 7.8 against 6.2, with the same problem: $91 against $49.

Good Luck Finding Them at MSRP

Most of the bottles in that 8-and-up table are really hard to get your hands on. Master's Keep Triumph, Blanton's Straight From the Barrel, Found North Snow Day, Still Austin Red Corn, Weller Full Proof. The Holladay is probably the exception, since it's actually available. Four Roses barrel strength single barrels are around in some ways, but it can still be hard to track down the right age and the right four letters.

So even the cheaper ones can cost you more. Still Austin Red Corn is really hard to find in a lot of markets. I think I got really lucky when I got mine, and paying $80 for it is probably not the case. Found North Snow Day was a limited release, and I think on secondary it's probably double or triple what it was.

So yes, the MSRPs are lower than I thought they'd be for an 8 or a 9. Good luck getting most of them at MSRP. Why that is, and what I'm willing to pay over, is in how not to get ripped off on bourbon.

Palates Are Subjective

That's the biggest thing. What someone else is willing to pay a lot more for, I won't be. At the end of the day, you buy what you want.

This is only the bottles I've reviewed so far. As I keep going, I'll keep reevaluating and updating it. And if your palate agrees with mine, you'll probably be happy to keep reading.

I write these up at openpourwhiskey.com and post them on Instagram. Not sponsored. Please drink responsibly.

Today we're checking out the 2026 Cellar Aged from Maker's Mark! I always look forward to the yearly Cellar Aged releases from Maker's and this year was no exception, especially considering the fact it features the oldest overall blend of whiskies that Maker's has ever released. The 2026 Cellar Aged is a blend of:

• 49% 11 year bourbon
• 33% 12 year bourbon
• 18% 14 year bourbon

We love seeing those ages and percentages creep up from Maker's. Let's see how she is.

Taken: Neat in a Glencairn, rested for 10 minutes.

Age: Blend of 11 - 14 year bourbons

Proof: 112.1

Nose: Rich brown sugar, crème brûlée, vanilla, and oak right off the bat. Giving the glass a swirl brings out even more brown sugar along with some strawberries and baking spices. The added age on this one shows on the aromas, absolutely fantastic.

Palate: Nice, velvety mouthfeel of cinnamon, brown sugar, oak, and baking spices that tingle all over. After a few sips, this starts to feel doughy and becomes dominated by brown sugar and leather. I'm so used to Maker's products having a relatively strong red fruit presence on the palate, but that is not at all the case for the 2026 Cellar Aged.

Finish: Medium finish of caramel, leather, cinnamon, a mild cherry, and old oak.

This continues to be one of my favorite yearly releases. The higher percentage of older whiskies included in this blend is apparent, way more oak and leather on the palate and less red fruits which is obviously, at least for me, the complete opposite of what I've come to expect from Maker's Mark bottles. That's not at all a bad thing though and is what I love to see from legacy distilleries.

t8ke scale: 8.4/10 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average.

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite.

10 | Perfect | Perfect.

Tried this at a bar

Price: $20/1.5oz

Nose: honey, caramel, red fruit, wild turkey funk, mango, tropical fruits, mint, strawberry, mild spice

Palate: cherry, strawberry, baking spice, leather, oak, mouth feel is below average, lots of honey, butterscotch,

Finish: medium length finish, leather, dark chocolate, oak,

Score: 7.0/10

This is a pretty prototypical expression of Wild Turkey. It has a good amount of funk on the nose. Palate is honey, red fruits, good spice level. Finish is pretty basic bourbon. This is just solid overall.

Scale:

1.0-1.9 Undrinkable (Gold bar cognac cask)

2.0-2.9 Bad (Gold bar)

3.0-3.9 Poor (High West Prarie Bourbon, Pappy Van Winkle 23yr)

4.0-4.9 Below Average (Old Overholt, Dickel 15 yr, Weller SR, Buffalo Trace)

5.0-5.9 Average (Eagle Rare, Blanton's)

6.0-6.9 Above Average (Jimmy Russel 70th, Redemption 9yr, E.H. Taylor Seasoned Oak)

7.0-7.9 Very Good (Wild Turkey Master's Keep Triumph, Sagamore 9yr rye, Jack Daniel's SBBP)

8.0-8.9 Great (William Larue Weller(2019), Pappy Van Winkle 15yr, Double Eagle Very Rare, William Heavenhill 14yr)

9.0-9.9 Excellent (Thomas H. Handy (2010), George T. Stagg (2008, 2019), Four Roses LE (2016, 2023), Willet Purple Top 14 yr, A.H. Hirsch 25 yr rye)

10.0 Perfect (Michter's 20, OGD 114(1980))

Picked by: Universal Wine & Spirits

Age: (via Stats from BT) 7 Years 1 Month

Warehouse: P

Floor: 5

Rick number: 21

I paid: $99

NCF - No

Drank - Neat

Rested - 10 minutes

Glass - Glencairn

Nose -
Immediately jumping from the glass are notes of Cherry syrup, Strawberry jam, and vanilla cake frosting. Diving in a but more there is some slightly funky oak and a light baking spice mix of cinnamon and cloves. Very "Poundcake"-esque here!

Palate -
First sip leads with what I can only describe as Strawberry Cream soda, a dark grape hard candy, and fresh vanilla ice cream. Going in for a second sip charred oak, root beer, and a light spice mix of cinnamon and nutmeg appear. The third and final sip yield strawberry cream soda, vanilla ice cream, charred oak, and tied together with a light spice creating effervescence on the palate. Wow! This is a Soda shop profile!

Mouthfeel -
The mouthfeel is moderately Dense and nicely coating. It creates a "film" all over with this one that stays with you, kind of like when drinking a soda.

Finish -
Medium length finish and building nicely with each sip.
The Flavor is lead by charred oak, strawberry and cherry syrup mix, with some light vanilla cream backing. Extremely sweet finish; like drinking a float. A very nice sip that makes me want more and more.

Overall - 80/100

My Scale:
1-49: Drain Pour, absolute drain cleaner, donate to the sink.
50-59: average - standard, boring, but gets the job done.
60-69: solid - reliable, but nothing to write home about.
70-79: great whiskey, well above the average pour.
80-89: excellent whiskey, top notch, well done.
90-95: exceptional top tier whiskey - very memorable.
96-98: Unreal pour - some of the best ever.
99-100: Pinnacle Lifetime whiskey - perfection in a glass.

I pulled this from the TTB website on October 25, 2026. Whether or not this ever actually goes to market, it was officially approved by the federal government for release. It’s real.

Rieger Private Stock Signature Selection 65 Year Straight Bourbon Whiskey Aged in a 500 Gallon Charred White American Oak Cask

Discuss amongst yourselves. Is this exciting? Is this terrifying?

65 years is an eternity, but the surface area of a 500 gallon barrel is wildly different than a 53 gallon barrel.

Tried this at a bar

Price: $25/1.5oz

Nose: leather, dried red fruit, cherry, oak, a bit young, strong cherry, floral

Palate: cherry, red fruit, oak, caramel, super cherry bomb, some baking spice, mouthfeel is not as good as the proof, dark chocolate, floral

Finish: lots of oak and leather. The red fruit, especially cherry follows through, medium long finish, dark chocolate.

Score: 6.0/10

This is pretty decent. If you like cherry bombs, this is something for you. It has a good amount of leather and oak too. This is a bourbon where the flavor in the palate and finish follow through to be very similar. Not too much complexity but solid flavor density. Quite floral too.

Scale:

1.0-1.9 Undrinkable (Gold bar cognac cask)

2.0-2.9 Bad (Gold bar)

3.0-3.9 Poor (High West Prarie Bourbon, Pappy Van Winkle 23yr)

4.0-4.9 Below Average (Old Overholt, Dickel 15 yr, Weller SR, Buffalo Trace)

5.0-5.9 Average (Eagle Rare, Blanton's)

6.0-6.9 Above Average (Jimmy Russel 70th, Redemption 9yr, E.H. Taylor Seasoned Oak)

7.0-7.9 Very Good (Wild Turkey Master's Keep Triumph, Sagamore 9yr rye, Jack Daniel's SBBP)

8.0-8.9 Great (William Larue Weller(2019), Pappy Van Winkle 15yr, Double Eagle Very Rare, William Heavenhill 14yr)

9.0-9.9 Excellent (Thomas H. Handy (2010), George T. Stagg (2008, 2019), Four Roses LE (2016, 2023), Willet Purple Top 14 yr, A.H. Hirsch 25 yr rye)

10.0 Perfect (Michter's 20, OGD 114(1980))

Liquor Junction (MA) Store Pick

Barrel No 1219

ABV: 65.52%

Source: Probably MGP. The back label says bottled in Indiana.

If you aren’t familiar with Nebco, I’ll say they do some phenomenal stuff. I’ve had the good fortune to meet their founder, James Saunders and he is just a cool dude that loves whiskey. He started NEBCo as an NDP and bottler. He gets barrels from all kinds of places including the usual suspects such as Green River, MGP, and Bardstown Bourbon Company. They keep prices pretty reasonable, too. IIRC, I paid $90 ~ for this bottle.

If you are in the Boston/New England area - stop by the tasting room in Reading, it’s just fantastic.

All that said, I have no affiliation with Nebco and I don’t even live in New England. But Nebco and Nashville Barrel Co and New Louisville Barrel Co in particular have really captured my imagination of late.

This particular bottle is a single barrel and it’s apparently a sister barrel to one that I had about a year ago, which I loved.

I just cracked this one and am about to taste it for the first time. Review to follow in a few minutes.

{Note: You can find me on instagram @whiskeyincontext}

I don’t have a lot of experience with Old Fitzgerald bourbons, but I do really like the 7-Year Bottled-in-Bond release, which was intended to be an accessible, shelf-stable version of the brand’s venerable Decanter Series.

The 10-Year Bottled-in-Bond is the other side of the brand entirely: the twice-annual Decanter Series release that helped build Old Fitzgerald's cult reputation in the first place, sold in the brand's famously ornate decanters and allocated tightly enough that the hunt is practically part of the product.

So, is the bottle worth the hunt? Let’s review it and find out!

Note: for more on the Old Fitzgerald 10-year, see [u/Twist_Top_Budget](u/Twist_Top_Budget)’s excellent review from earlier this weekend.

***************\*

From the Distillery: Each spring and fall, a new edition to the Old Fitzgerald Bottled-in-Bond Decanter Series is released. Inspired by an original 1950's Old Fitzgerald diamond decanter, the packaging and series honor both the history of the Old Fitzgerald brand and the historic Bottled-in-Bond designation. The Old Fitzgerald line is well-known for its distilling pedigree, as the brand was first registered in 1884 and was eventually sold to "Pappy" Van Winkle during Prohibition. In 1999, Heaven Hill bought the brand and began distilling it at Bernheim Distillery in Louisville, KY. Today, in addition to our Old Fitzgerald Decanter Series, the legacy of Old Fitzgerald lives on in our other wheated Bourbons expressions: Larceny Small Batch and Larceny Barrel Proof.

Release: Spring 2026

Mash bill: 68% corn, 20% wheat, 12% malted barley

Age Statement: 10 Years

Proof: 100

Price: $149.99

Appearance: Medium amber with decent viscosity

Nose: Very fruit-forward, at least at first. I’m primarily getting stone fruit – cherry and apricot –with perhaps a touch of grape alongside. Behind these are notes of caramel and vanilla, along with maple candy and a hint of pepper.

Palate: Nice and thick. Not super sweet overall, but there are definitely some saccharine notes in the mix. Oak hits right away, along with a wheaty-grassiness that I tend to associate with wheaters. There’s also some leather and a touch of caramel, but it’s not sugary by any means. The sweetness does pick up a bit on the mid-palate: sweet vanilla, bubblegum, and butterscotch are there, along with a touch of pepper.

Finish: Bubblegum and cola, with a good measure of oak/barrel char. The strong wheatgrass note from the palate lingers after most of the other flavors have faded (and it grows stronger with time). After a bit, it’s joined by some vanilla and leather, and a slight resurgence of that bubblegum flavor from before.

Thoughts: This is a pretty tasty wheater! I tend to prefer sweeter bourbons (but not cloying, nor overly fruity!). This one is nicely middle-of-the-road, with complex notes that complement each other in both flavor and balance. The finish is a little grassy, even for someone (like me) who enjoys the taste of wheatgrass, but it’s still not categorically unpleasant. On the other hand, I particularly enjoyed the bubblegum flavors that were there on both palate and finish – that’s always a fun one to get!

Rating: I can’t say whether this Old Fitz decanter bottle is worth the price – you have to decide that for yourself – but I did find it to be an enjoyable bottle overall. For me, it earns a rating of 7.5 (right in between “Great – Well Above Average” and “Excellent – Really Quite Exceptional”). Interestingly, that’s a couple notches below where I have the Old Fitz 7-year rated (it currently boasts a 7.7), but that’ll get sorted out when I blind these two against each other, which I’m planning to do very soon!

********************

Previous Ratings (all reviews are available in my archive, but there may be some discrepancies in numeric rating, as these are updated to include decimals and adjusted for blinds & re-reviews)

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
Maker’s Mark staved private selection (2.5)
Penelope Architect custom build (2.5)

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
Willett Pot Still (3)

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists
Found North SiB Oloroso finish (4.5)
Daniel Weller Emmer Wheat (4.5)
Augusta Buckner’s 10yr (4.6)
Shortbarrel Sapsquatch (4.8)

5 | Good | Good, just fine
Jack Daniel’s SBBP Rye (5)
Jack Daniel’s Heritage (5)
Four Roses SBBP OESO (5)
New Riff 4yr SBBP (5)
Four Roses SBBP OBSV (5.3)
Evan Williams America250 SiB (5.3)
New Riff Balboa Rye (5.4)
Blanton’s (5.5)
Old Forester 1924 (5.7)
Elijah Craig Toasted (5.8)
Lasso Motel 18yr ALW (5.8)

6 | Very Good | A cut above
Buffalo Trace Single Oak (6)
Barrell Cigar Blend (6)
Buffalo Trace (6)
1792 BiB SiB (6)
Copper & Cask Boston Rum Party (6)
Penelope Wheated (6)
Redwood Empire Emerald Giant (6)
Peerless DO (6.1)
Copper & Cask #16 (6.3)
Stagg 25B (6.3)
Augusta Buckner’s 13yr (6.5)
Green River Honey (6.5)
Pursuit United DO (6.5)
Sagamore 9yr SiB Rye (6.5)
Sazerac FP (6.5)
Green River Wheated (6.5)
Elmer T. Lee (6.5)
Copper & Cask #14 DO (6.6)
Shortbarrel Bees Knees V (6.8)
Penelope Marshmallow Toast (6.8)
Willett 4yr Rye (6.8)
Ampersand Opimus (6.9)

7 | Great | Well above average
Blanton’s Gold (7)
John J. Bowman SiB (7)
Found North 012 (7)
Rock Hill Farms (7)
Peerless Toasted (7.1)
E.H. Taylor SiB (7.2)
Blanton’s LMDW (7.2)
E.H. Taylor 4 Grain (7.4)
Eagle Rare 10yr (7.5)
Weller 107 (7.5)
Old Forester 1910 (7.5)
Penelope Estate 10yr SiB (7.5)
Old Fitzgerald 10yr (7.5)
E.H. Taylor BP 16 (7.6)
E.H. Taylor SmB (7.6)
Woodford DO SBBP (7.7)
Old Fitzgerald 7yr (7.7)
Eagle Rare 12yr (7.8)
E.H. Taylor Cured Oak (7.8)
Willett 8yr SiB Rye (7.9)

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional
Joseph Magnus Cigar Blend 420 (8)
Old Dominick Staved SiB (8)
Starlight 10yr (8)
Blanton’s SFTB (8.3)
Lasso Motel SBBP Rye (8.4)
Mister Sam Tribute 4 (8.6)
E.H. Taylor BTAC 2025 (8.7)
Thomas H. Handy 2025 (8.7)
Eagle Rare 17yr 2025 (8.9)

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Maker's Mark Cask Strength 7 Years 5 Months (Batch 26-03)

Distillery: Maker's Mark

Age: 7 years 5 months

Price: $49.99

Proof: 109.6

Nose: Sweet oak. Vanilla. Butterscotch. Warming spices. It's rich and inviting, but there's also an underlying peppermint note throughout. It provides some nice contrast and everything works well together.

Palate: Not overly thick, but definitely has some oiliness to it. Cherry Twizzlers. The corn comes through here more than I tend to find in most Maker's products and I'm finding more of that mintyness here as well.

Finish: Medium to long. Not crazy long and the flavors aren't smacking you in the face. Drinks a little under the proof point, but the flavors linger. Light cherry. Some barrel char. But the star here is this milk chocolate/peanut note. It's awesome and gives off Peanut M&M vibes. It's what I'll remember most about this one.

Score: 7.7

Summary: Just like every other cask strength Maker's Mark product I've tried, this is good bourbon. As a matter of fact, I think it's my favorite quarterly Maker's cask strength release I've reviewed. The proof point is there but at no point in the nose or sip does it even venture into getting too hot. The noticeable corn in the palate and mint presence were two things I wasn't expecting, but they were great and ended up providing some much needed balance. The whole thing was easy to like, but if we're splitting hairs I do wish the flavors were a little stronger. With that being said that Peanut M&M in the finish was unmistakable and fantastic. This is affordable, findable, and good stuff. Grab it if you see it. 7.7 is the score.

**EDIT: This is batch 26-03. In the title I accidentally put 25-03

1. Terrible | Drain pour after the first sip
2. Very Bad | Trying to choke it down but possible drain pour
3. Poor | Would drink if forced to but never under my own will
4. Below Average | Not off-putting but not my cup of tea
5. Average | I'll take it
6. Good | Enjoyable sip
7. Very Good | Well above average
8. Excellent | A drink I will remember
9. Incredible | Something truly extraordinary
10. Best of the best | Peak Bourbon

One of my favorite Maker's Mark bottles - bottled at 111.5 Proof (55.75% ABV) - On my second bottle of this.

FINISHING STAVES: 1 Baked American Pure 2; 1 Seared French Cuvee; 3 Maker’s Mark 46; 3 Roasted French Mendiant; 2 Toasted French Spice

ON THE NOSE: Dark & creamy milk chocolate mix, caramel & butterscotch, juicy red fruits, dried dark red fruits like cherries & sweetened cranberries, robust baking spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, cloves), honey & molasses, toasted oak, vanilla bean, citrus peel, & coffee crème brûlée.

ON THE PALATE: Creamy dark chocolate & the robust baking spices start the sip off followed by punchy oak, dried red fruits, dried orange peel, a minty herbal note, & a touch of milk chocolate.

MOUTHFEEL/VISCOSITY: Full mouthfeel/viscous/creamy/oily/buttery & long viscosity with flow-forming tears in the glass

FINISH: 10 seconds (long)