LCBO "sale" on two very good bourbons

afong636807717107645200 wrote: ↑ while i do like the gamut of islay--weirdly you mentioned my favourite of them--i have a broad appreciation for non-peated speyside (balvenie being my favourite) and highland, but i actually drink mostly bourbons.

i asked earlier if it would be similar to high west campfire, but that's not an easy bottle to come by. the filtering through charcoal sounds a bit like a variation on tennessee whiskey, using mesquite instead of sugar maple. . .ok, thanks for the reply

I do have a bottle of HW campfire, but it's in the to drink pile lol. I only keep around 15 bottles open at all times. I do like balvenie, and need to get a bottle of the double wood since the triple wood was a delight. I'm a big fan of macallan , glendronach and aberlour (a'bunadh is a steel at $100).

CaptSmethwick wrote: ↑
We may have similar palates. I used to favour Lagavulin before it got stupid expensive and Laphroaig found its way into the liquor cabinet every once in a while as well. Those are Scotches that I will strictly drink neat and maybe with a drop or two of distilled water. My go-to Scotch is a good but rather straightforward one: Glenmorangie 10 y.o. and I don't feel bad about pouring it over ice or cubes.

haven't tried the laga 12 yet, but do like the 8 and 16. . .

have you tried the michter's american and sb bourbon? really like the sb--very full, rounded mouthful

Stormzo wrote: ↑ I do have a bottle of HW campfire, but it's in the to drink pile lol. I only keep around 15 bottles open at all times. I do like balvenie, and need to get a bottle of the double wood since the triple wood was a delight. I'm a big fan of macallan , glendronach and aberlour (a'bunadh is a steel at $100).

i remember when balvenie dw was $50. . .sigh. . .the a'bunadh is a wonderful dram. . .holy cow, so good. . .

i have hw campfire, and find the smoke to be subtle. . .just wondering if it is similar to wt lb, although the mesquite is certainly different--i know from smoking meat that maple and mesquite are whole different worlds. . .

afong636807717107645200 wrote: ↑ haven't tried the laga 12 yet, but do like the 8 and 16. . .

have you tried the michter's american and sb bourbon? really like the sb--very full, rounded mouthful



i remember when balvenie dw was $50. . .sigh. . .the a'bunadh is a wonderful dram. . .holy cow, so good. . .

i have hw campfire, and find the smoke to be subtle. . .just wondering if it is similar to wt lb, although the mesquite is certainly different--i know from smoking meat that maple and mesquite are whole different worlds. . .

The mesquite in LB is quite subtle. IIRC the mesquite charcoal is mixed with white oak charcoal. The result is smooth but with an interesting finish. I find that its taste is very different when you go from neat to a couple of drops of water to over ice - often a sign of a complex whiskey.

Never had bourbon before but this post was enough to convince me to get a bottle of Buffalo Trace, of which I'm having a glass. Thank you, OP.

Anything for Scotch ?

Yeah, that Buffalo is nice and all. But non-bourbon drinkers need to know that Wild Turkey 101 can stomp all over those buffalo balls for many. If you like vanilla, light fruit, wood, and balanced flavors, buffalo is great. If you like darker fruits, raisins, buffalos on steroids, turkey 101 is your dram. Try them, both are wonderful. Don't mix them at first with anything aggressive. Just add some teaspoons of filtered water to cut it down. They open up with simple water and you get more vanilla, oak and honey flavours in return for your trouble. Nuts, good chocolate, aged cheeses will take you to flavour Nirvana with these.

Went in looking for the wild turkey, got the Woodford Reserve in it's absence. I'm okay with that.

markust5775 wrote: ↑ Went in looking for the wild turkey, got the Woodford Reserve in it's absence. I'm okay with that.

Yeah Bourbon is very difficult to screw up for most people. Non-drinkers should start from the cheapest, which are still very good, and work their way up to appreciate the subtle differences than judge if its worth the price difference. It's not like beers where there's a universe of difference between something made typically by Molson and something made by Dieu Du Ciel, to give a good Canadian example.

markust5775 wrote: ↑ Went in looking for the wild turkey, got the Woodford Reserve in it's absence. I'm okay with that.

I just had my first taste of Woodford Reserve few minutes ago which I bought based on the recommendation on the other thread and I think I like it better than Maker's Mark. I just started drinking whiskey few months ago trying different brands

Picked up the Buffalo Trace yesterday. Gotta say, pretty good at that price point. Thanks OP

Hello,

Excellent Post! I’m sure many people appreciate the detailed review!

boldventure wrote: ↑ I just had my first taste of Woodford Reserve few minutes ago which I bought based on the recommendation on the other thread and I think I like it better than Maker's Mark. I just started drinking whiskey few months ago trying different brands

Woodford reserve is solid and better then Maker's Mark IMO (although their mash bill is different, WR uses rye as the second grain and MM uses wheat). Skip the WR doubled oaked as I don't think it's better than the original and cost more. Keep an eye out for the regular Weller special reserve or antique 107 if you can, defenitely worth the purchase. Weller 12YO is my favorite bourbon of all times as of now, but good luck finding it.

Stormzo wrote: ↑ Woodford reserve is solid and better then Maker's Mark IMO (although their mash bill is different, WR uses rye as the second grain and MM uses wheat). Skip the WR doubled oaked as I don't think it's better than the original and cost more. Keep an eye out for the regular Weller special reserve or antique 107 if you can, defenitely worth the purchase. Weller 12YO is my favorite bourbon of all times as of now, but good luck finding it.

WRDO is a very very good whiskey but at its regular price I wouldn't buy. When it comes to premium bourbons, it's palate-dependent as to whether or not they're "worth it". I have liked the Michters I've had in the past but I would be more inclined to plunk that kind of money down on one of my favourite scotches over any of their line-up. As another poster has said (and quite rightly), if you like one of a distiller's bourbons, chances are you will like them all.

Come to think of it, I don't think I've had a bourbon I didn't like...

Thanks OP! Tried the Buffalo Trace yesterday - really great taste, loved it!!

boldventure wrote: ↑ I just had my first taste of Woodford Reserve few minutes ago which I bought based on the recommendation on the other thread and I think I like it better than Maker's Mark. I just started drinking whiskey few months ago trying different brands

I'm not really a big fan of Maker's Mark, I'd rather go with a Blanton's in that price range. MM used to be much cheaper.

CaptSmethwick wrote: ↑ True. But if you live in Ontario, these prices are as good as they're ever going to get for these bourbons and the two I have featured are well worth the sale price. I have friends in the US who pay way more than these prices for these whiskeys. Unfortunately, taxes are a big part of the price of spirits in Ontario.

In AB I can get 750ml of Buffalo Trace for $29.99 when it's on sale at Superstore Liquor and $64.99 for 1.75L at Costco...

reachedlegendary1 wrote: ↑ In AB I can get 750ml of Buffalo Trace for $29.99 when it's on sale at Superstore Liquor and $64.99 for 1.75L at Costco...

Wow great price

Wow just checked the price in BC and its 88.99 someone enjoy this for me

JesseG5857 wrote: ↑ Wow just checked the price in BC and its 88.99 someone enjoy this for me

so even at regular price at the lcbo, bc charges more than double???

thanks for putting things into perspective. . .

upvoted for reality check!

sorry for the circumstance, tho. . .

reachedlegendary1 wrote: ↑ In AB I can get 750ml of Buffalo Trace for $29.99 when it's on sale at Superstore Liquor and $64.99 for 1.75L at Costco...

Amazing prices to be sure. Forgive my ignorance but is GST included?