what are the 10 worst bourbons
The Bonded version basically takes everything thats just a whisper in the above version and lets it shine while layering in deeper flavor notes. Paying homage to Kentucky is a good start. "I had the grilled chicken with bourbon bbq sauce and garlic mashed potatoes with rice pilaf." more. George Dickel Bourbon. Benchmark Old No. 10. greasy meal the next morning to help you with that hangover, Knob Creek's Kentucky Straight Smoked Maple. It was intended from the start to be a premium brand a radical idea at the time when bourbon was seen as a working person's drink. Union Horse White Bourbon Whiskey 3. The Private Release program has exploded, there is now a Gold Label tier for premium bourbon and rye whiskey and the named releases keep on coming after the success of Dovetail in late 2018.. 5) Best Single Barrel Bourbon - Henry McKenna. This bourbon is so sweet that it's been likened to a bottle of diabetes, and one reviewer on Flaviar said that the sweetness was bad enough to hurt their teeth. Getty Images for Bulleit Frontier Whiskey 1. But Id argue that Benchmark Bonded for $20 is such a big jump in quality and flavor that you should try that first. Its just so watery. Tasting Notes: Spice, sweet tobacco, orange, mint. Reviews on Flaviar say it's "Too rough and not very enjoyable," andDistiller comments won't give you much more confidence: "Flat, thin and weak. Barrell Craft Spirits has undergone massive changes throughout the last 3 years. Aged for four years and bottled at 46 percent ABV without chill filtration, Clyde May's opens with rich caramel aromas and follows with hints of sweet . Four Roses Small Batch is such a small step up in price (only $28) but a huge step up in taste. This is hot in that it tastes like burning instead of hot notes from spice, wood, or tobacco. So you'd think that this boozy elixir would, you know, at least have some nice legs on it. But Whiskey Wash called their Yellow Label expression "the little black dress of bourbonappropriate for everything." Like a stranger in the night, it's best to just stay away from this one. This bourbon is aged six to eight years and has won multiple awards, including Whiskey of the Year by Whiskey Advocate in 2020 (via Kentucky Bourbon Trail). Flavor is sweet at first, with a hint of old leather although it has some oak char bitterness, but nothing too severe. This introductory juice from Four Roses is a blend of all ten of their whiskeys. According to Breaking Bourbon, the original Elijah Craig was a Baptist preacher and said to be the inventor of the process of aging bourbon in charred oak barrels. Still, if you do come across this, it is a great mixer I cant deny that. Another chimed in that it was like drinking straight maple syrup. Old Foresters 86 Proof is a very straightforward whisky. If you want to stick with Diageo, however, then Id recommend getting yourself some George Dickel Bottled-In-Bond for $40. Another Distiller commentereven noted that it reminded them of a breath mint or menthol cigarettes, sans tobacco. Generally, I log those and move on without slagging them off because its pretty obvious that a $7 plastic bottle of bourbon isnt going to be something anyone is going to line up to buy. The artificial and chemical taste was also a source of disgust on Distiller, with samplers commenting that it was heavy on the ethanol. Bourbon can take a number of forms with vastly different personalities, but most critics and casual tasters agree that no matter what the brand or expression, a good bourbon should have a few fundamental characteristics: A caramel sweetness, a distinct taste of oak in the background, a flavor that matches and complements its initial aroma while balancing out the potentially overwhelming burn from the alcohol, and a pleasant mouthfeel and finish. At a very good price point for a 10-year-old whiskey, a bottle of this won't disappoint. The soft, creamy mouthfeel makes it an incredibly easy tipple to enjoy, even for newer members of the bourbon drinking collective. It's not the pleasant aspects either, it's more like licking an oak plank," wrote Thirty One Whiskey. Instead of watery muted notes, this suffers from a bit of a burn that overpowers whats in the whiskey. This is the first bottle of whiskey I ever considered pouring down the drain. Founded in 2012, the brand is so young the bourbons it produces in its own distillery in upstate New York are not yet sufficiently aged for consumption, according to31 Whiskey. That doesn't sound like it can go bad, does it? Critical consensus seems to put it in the middle of the curve as well not a terrible place to be at a time when even budget brands are turning out good-quality products. However, taste is subjective andRedditreviewscomparethe flavor to "bitter rubber," while a consumer on Distiller reports "hints of Redman chew spit and unsweet tea fermented in a styrofoam cup in mid July.". I didnt, but I have no idea what to do with it otherwise. Human beings like to think that an inflated price and a striking bottle means it must be good, right? In this case, this is a standard straight bourbon thats sort of like a base-level Eagle Rare, in theory, but from barrels that didnt make the cut and were then proofed all the way down for bottling. Fantastic whether you're sipping neat or mixing into a cocktail, this Barrel Strength Bourbon offers a palate of vanilla, orange peel, maple, and nutmeg, with a long, spice-filled finish. Best budget bourbon under $30: Wild Turkey 101 Bourbon - See at Total Wine If you want complex flavor without breaking the bank, Wild Turkey 101 Bourbon offers a pleasant burst of flavor while remaining smooth. Literally any other bottle made at Beam from any of their brands, or just grab a Jim Beam Black Label. Well, at least the price tag under $20 makes it a good gag gift. Like a moth to the flame, human beings are naturally drawn to loving shiny objects. While whiskey can be made anywhere, bourbon can only be made in the United States, according to Distiller, and its mash bill (grain composition) must contain at least 51% corn, a grain native to the Americas. One of the best non-Kentucky high-rye distilleries out there is Indiana's own Hirsch, whose The Horizon bottles have a 94:6 ratio of two different straight bourbons: one distilled from a mashbill containing 21% rye (aged 4 . It could be smoother and its hotness may strike some as excessive but it offers remarkable quality for a budget tipple, which is why it deserves a position in our top five bourbons. 1. Nikka Whiskey from the Barrel - Never mind that all whiskey comes from a barrel, this complex Japanese blend is a delightful exploration of fruit, wood, and sweet vanilla. . And the similarities don't end there Basil Hayden's even boasts the same rye-forward malt bill as Old Grand-Dad. Well, according to Lexington Bourbon's website, that's the case. One Reddit usersums it up nicely by saying "There's nothing 'gentlemanly' about it." Brought to you by the Lexington Brewing and Distilling Company (not to be confused with Lexington Bourbon, the ones who brought you the bottle with a horse on it), Town Branch Kentucky Straight can only be described as a waste of money. This delicious and smooth bourbon has slight aromas of dark honey and brown butter. The distillery closed in 1992 but was resurrected in 2014 by Diageo, a company based out of London that specializes in a broad range of spirits. To that end, Im naming ten bottles of Kentucky bourbon that I think you should avoid. This bourbon is an award winner (Double Gold at the 2016 San Francisco World Spirits Competition and Platinum at the 2018 SIP Awards). What if you were told that the inspiration for this bourbon comes from a famous racing horse? The palate follows suit with simple notes of vanilla, caramel, and dried corn dominating the palate. While its not mind-blowingly better, its miles ahead of Kentucky Tavern and that watered-down nature is gone allowing the flavor profile to shine through. Zagat's video team filmed the proceedings, so if you want to see what it was like to taste 10-plus cocktails in one evening, watch the wonderful video embedded at the top of this post. Don't expect to impress your friends by pouring from a bottle of Paddleford Creek (even though the label is pretty darn cool which is all it seems to have going for it), because, as one observer on Distiller states, it "just doesn't do much of anything." This 95% New York-grown corn bourbon holds the distinction of being the first (legal) whiskey produced in the state since Prohibition . Wild Turkey Rare Breed. The family's unusual longevity as owners is presumably due in part to its roots in pharmaceuticals, which enabled them to pivot to medicinal alcohol during Prohibition, keeping the distillery alive until better times returned. Malt described their Very Old Barton Bottled in Bond as having "a solid quality/price ratio" that would make it a potentially "reliable go-to or house bourbon" were it more readily available. The burn carries through to the finish, muting the vanilla, peanut, caramel, and oak. The barrels are a minimum of five years old when theyre plucked from the warehouses, blended, brought down to 80 proof, and bottled. Meanwhile, Caskers describes butterscotch, molasses, brown sugar, and coffee. 11 min read. Its also a pretty good shooter without too much burn but not much else. Some reviewers on Flaviar noted that it had a rather off-putting aftertaste, and the word harsh came up multiple times. The oak aging gives this Bourbon dry and spicy character. Per Saucey, back in the 1920s, physicians could legally prescribe it for conditions like high blood pressure and pneumonia, and this bourbon tastes about as good as medicine. Blade and Bow'sconception starts with the legendary Stitzel-Weller Distillery in Louisville, Kentucky, whose claim to fame is being founded by the man behindPappy Van Winkle (via Whiskey ID). A1A Ale Works Restaurant & Taproom. Like all bourbon, its mash bill is mostly corn with a touch of malted barley. What's even more mind-boggling is that in 2018, this bourbon won Gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. The problem is that, as one taster states, this bourbon is excessively sweet, without much complexity (via Distiller). And why be disappointed (or even disgusted) when you can be satisfied for just a few bucks more? This bourbon from Lux Row is a wheated bourbon mash thats contract distilled partially off-site and partially made at the distillery. It was neither founded by anyone named Barton nor was it founded in 1792 (rather, that date refers to the year of Kentucky's statehood, according to Malt). Don Lockwood Whiskey Cocktail. In short, if Old Grand-Dad had a life philosophy, it was probably "go big or go home.". The mash bill is mid-range rye with 18 percent of the grain next to 72 percent corn and a final ten percent of malted barley (the same bill for all their bourbon). Maker's Mark is one of the best-known bourbon brands. Barton doesnt disclose the mash bill but it is aged at least four years. (That's a good thing.). But just because something has won medals doesn't mean it's universally adored and beloved. The juice in this bottle is from Buffalo Traces Mash #1, which has a scant amount of barley and rye next to mostly corn. Given Bulleits dismal history with the LGBTQ and BIPOC communities, Im not going to recommend any other expression from the brand. It's all good when you're drinking the best bourbon under $100: 6. The end is another left turn with a dusting of dark chocolate with a hint of honey as the water kicks in a fades out the stone fruit, spice, and oak pretty quickly. And the family resemblance is clear, although Basil Hayden's is smoother, with flavors of oak and nutmeg balancing out the peppery notes from the rye. At least Early Times is giving bourbon lovers some bang for their buck: For the low price of around $22, you can buy one liter of this sweet Nyquil-esque bourbon. So what makes Old Grand-Dad distinctive? Claim Now Must be 21+. When Jefferson's master blender tapped the casks, the sugars in the bourbon had caramelized and turned into a viscous, black liquid. It's aged for more than six years in American oak barrels, giving it what Ohanneson says are "notes of caramel, peanut brittle, and a thread of delicate, early summer fruit." Maker's Mark Sadly, it's also rated two stars by many reviewers on Distiller(as one taster laments, it was $20 down the drain). This is the same mash thats used for bigger hitting brands like Eagle Rare, Stagg, and E.H. Taylor. There have been some new additions to Wild Turkey's rye lineup in recent years, including the high-end Master's Keep Cornerstone Rye, a blend of nine- to 11-year-old whiskey bottled at 109 proof . But while easy to love, Buffalo Trace isn't always easy to find.