2020 In Review
2020 has come to a close. Thank. God. I will not miss 2020 and neither will you. We all know why. Covid took the start of a new decade and flipped it on its head. While a lot changed this year, some things stayed the same.
Many in the Whiskey community speculated that the short lived recession we entered in late March could potentially crush the secondary markets. No one expected to find Mr Van Winkle sitting on a shelf for its retail price, but it was a safe bet to make that the elevator ride up in the secondary markets was coming to an end. Wrong. Van Winkle, Willet, Antique Collection, Limited Edition E.H. Taylor , etc… all climbed in value. I guess the stimulus checks went to bolstering home bars. To each their own.
Personally I found myself getting a little tired of the chase for all things new allocated Bourbon and Rye. I was lucky enough too snag some old limited edition bottles like old Old Scout Single Barrel and Mic Drop 2 at prices I thought were fair. This is a lot more fun than trying hunt down the latest Weller release for a price that deep down makes you cringe. All of this leads me to a topic I’d like to touch on, FOMO.
FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) - I never used to get FOMO, I’m the type whose usually quite at peace with my decisions. This little Bourbon habit sure changed that. I’m of the opinion that 80% of the Bourbon community got into the game and stuck with it because it’s a treasure hunt that makes us feel youthful again. When I was little, I searched high and low for rare baseball cards. I had a fever, and the only prescription was more game used jersey swatch cards. Now the fevers only prescription is more allocated brown stuff. I’d like to think I don’t overpay too often for bottles, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t kick myself for a few days after not grabbing Old Rip Van Winkle for $300, a silly price, but hey… FOMO. The issue is falling into the trap of comparing the price of a bottle you see in a store to the price someone is getting for it on Facebook. My my biggest takeaway from 2020? If you’re actually a fan of whats inside the bottle, and not assembling trophies on your shelf, or starting a side business of flipping, the game gets fun. You can let the schmucks pay $400 for Weller Single Barrel, while we continue to buy bottles like Old Forestor 1920, Bakers Single Barrel, and Russels store picks for less than $75 each that all kick the shit out of whatever the big distilleries new marketing play is. Less focus less on the label, and pay more attention to what’s inside the bottle.
This year I turned my attention to tracking down old single barrels for the right price, exploring new craft releases, and giving the long time pros like Wild Turkey and Makers Mark their fair shake. Below I’m going to list out some of my favorite bottles from the year, and you’ll see a trend, less Buffalo Trace allocated, more “diamond in the rough”. I would also like to add that you should buy whatever the hell you want with your own money, but we aware of diminishing returns. A bottle of Birthday Bourbon for $500 is going to leave a bad taste in your mouth.
Favorite Bourbon
Smoke Wagon Uncut Unfiltered - Smoke Wagon took the community by storm this year. They’ve been winning awards with their Bourbon for years, but with the help of one of the most fun whiskey Instagrams out there, the team from outside of Vegas is getting their due, blending MGP barrels and aging additional time in the dessert , all leading to a Bourbon that tastes great. I purchased the entire lineup from straight all the way to Private Barrel and Desert Jewel, but time and time again the Uncut Unfiltered release impressed with its depth, consistency, and approachable price point. I really hope this one remains accessible, but something tells me those days could be numbered.
Favorite Rye
Mic Drop Rye - This won’t shock you if you’ve been following along on my Instagram, I love all things Mic Drop. Having tasted all of their releases to date, the only thing I can come up with is this, me and the kind folks picking barrels at PM Spirits must have similar palettes. This Rye was a blend of five casks sourced from Wilderness Trail, one of my favorite craft distillers, whose Rye tastes years better than it actually is. I had older store pick Ryes that were a better sipper, but Mic Drop delivered both one of my favorite neat pours of the year, and one hell of a Manhattan.
Biggest Surprise
Makers Mark Wood Finishing Series 2020 Limited Release - That name is handful! I shouldn’t be surprised, but when I pitted Weller Full Proof next to this bottle of Makers, I was ready to slap myself for the price tag I paid on the bottle with the blue label. I thought I was losing my mind, we were at the end of a tasting, maybe the taste buds were dead from the 121 proof Four Roses Barrel Strength we were drinking, but I wasn’t alone, the group agreed that the Makers was not only equal to the full proof, but actually better than the six year Willet Family Estate wheated single barrel we had in the lineup. Like I said above, its moments like this when Bourbon is fun. Makers yearly limited editions will be must haves on my list in the years to come.
Best Budget Bottle
Old Bardstown - Little story here: I went to my favorite local NYC store and asked an associate what’s a can’t miss budget bottle. I was pointed in the direction of Old Bardstown, a 101 proof bottled-in-bond Bourbon made by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers, for non the Bourbon nerds at home, that’s code for Willet… yeah… that Willet, the purple top guys. This bottle truly didn’t disappoint. At $28, it punched far above its weight class. I put it next to Elijah Craig, a $32 small batch staple, and much preferred the $28 Bardstown. Put it in your next old fashioned, drink it on the rocks.. it’ll hold up, or poor a glass neat and compare it to something on your shelf you spent $50 on, you won’t be disappointed.
Honorable Mentions
-Mic Drop 2.0
-Boone County 6 Year Wheated Single Barrel
-Parkers Heritage 2018 Release
-New Riff Single Barrel Bourbon
-Wilderness Trail Single Barrel Rye
-Bakers 7 Year Single Barrel
-Russels Reserve Single Barrel
-Smoke Wagon Straight Bourbon
Thanks for reading. Here’s to a better year ahead. Comment below with some of your favorite Whiskeys from 2020.
Cheers!