OT: Anything Goes 41

x Tame Impala

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Aug 24, 2011
27,885
12,558
I've had all kinds of the expensive shit. I've owned no less than 3 of the BTAC series, and 3-4 different bottles in the Van Winkle lineup. None of them are good enough to command the prices they do. I've been fortunate to try all of them at retail or in whiskey bars, so the 5-6 assorted bottles of these two series that I've gotten... I've sold for 5x what I paid, and never thought twice about it. :laugh:

There are at least a dozen bottles in the $50-70 range, that you can regularly pick up on shelves any time you want, that I'd put up against any of the "big ones". And 9/10 people who drink them blind, side-by-side, will never even be able to tell me the difference.
Sounds like an invite to come over and drink all your booze pal.

Former bartender here, there are a lot of differences between some of the nicer $100+ bottles and the more common whiskeys (Makers, Angels Envy, etc...) you've just got to be a big whiskey fan to notice them most of the time. Some of the nicer ones have noticeable structural differences in them that are really enjoyable but I do agree for the most part you're not going to be able to tell the difference.

Restaurants carry things like Pappy and Clase Azul because they know mooks trying to blow their cash and inflate their ego will be drawn to it. It's sort of a status thing which was fine for me as a server/bartender because, hey build up that check baby.

I'm also not convinced Pappy isn't just reworked Buffalo Trace with a big price tag on it. That distillery has soured on me because they make Weller so artificially hard to get and make liquor stores/restaurants sell like 1,000 bottles of Buffalo Trace in order to carry Weller/Pappy.

I stay away from Maker's/Angels Envy/Woodford/etc...because they're so mass produced and the taste is just off IMO. Clase Azul/1942 Casa Drogones put flavor additives in their tequilas and you can definitley taste it for example. If I were to go to Binny's with $200 to spend on a bottle of bourbon I'd spend on it on something I haven't heard of before and enjoy something new. Chances are it isn't mass-produced and is made with a little more TLC.
 

ChiHawks10

Registered User
Jul 7, 2009
28,271
21,756
Chicago 'Burbs
Sounds like an invite to come over and drink all your booze pal.

Former bartender here, there are a lot of differences between some of the nicer $100+ bottles and the more common whiskeys (Makers, Angels Envy, etc...) you've just got to be a big whiskey fan to notice them most of the time. Some of the nicer ones have noticeable structural differences in them that are really enjoyable but I do agree for the most part you're not going to be able to tell the difference.

Restaurants carry things like Pappy and Clase Azul because they know mooks trying to blow their cash and inflate their ego will be drawn to it. It's sort of a status thing which was fine for me as a server/bartender because, hey build up that check baby.

I'm also not convinced Pappy isn't just reworked Buffalo Trace with a big price tag on it. That distillery has soured on me because they make Weller so artificially hard to get and make liquor stores/restaurants sell like 1,000 bottles of Buffalo Trace in order to carry Weller/Pappy.

I stay away from Maker's/Angels Envy/Woodford/etc...because they're so mass produced and the taste is just off IMO. Clase Azul/1942 Casa Drogones put flavor additives in their tequilas and you can definitley taste it for example. If I were to go to Binny's with $200 to spend on a bottle of bourbon I'd spend on it on something I haven't heard of before and enjoy something new. Chances are it isn't mass-produced and is made with a little more TLC.
I've sold all my bourbon except a couple bottles I keep around for guests, or if I'm in the mood for an old fashioned or something. Just did that over like the last 6 months. I have a dozen or so bottles of Scotch sitting in the cabinet. I've always preferred it to bourbon, and I can basically get ahold of any bottle I want, whenever I want, so that's what I'm sticking to now. Not drinking much anymore, anyways. When I do, it'll likely be Scotch, though.

Obviously there are some differences with the high-end stuff. What I meant is that the vast majority of the people who drink off a bottle of William Larue Weller from the BTAC lineup, or drink a bottle of Weller green label, or even a bottle of like Maker's 46, likely won't be able to tell much of a difference. The only people who will notice will be the people who regularly drink all of these whiskies. I was that guy. Not worth my time, effort, or money, anymore. I did the chase thing, I hunted down bottles, I made connections at stores to get ahold of special bottles and releases, and now I'm over it. :laugh:

Hell, if you find a good store that has their own barrel program, you'll likely find far better bottles(and they're single barrel) than you do by trying to hunt down the "whales", and you'll pay like $50-$80 for most of them.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: x Tame Impala

ChiHawks10

Registered User
Jul 7, 2009
28,271
21,756
Chicago 'Burbs
I’ve had those pappys and other expensive shit and they are all ok or good or even great but it’s still a waste of money. I can tell you this I wish I had my money back instead. Not worth it and not much more than marginally better than other things in a tier below in flavor but several tiers below in price. If I had f*** you money I might change my opinion but lately my favorite bourbon is an old forester 1920 and it only costs like $60.
This is literally one of the best bottles you can get, and you can find it on shelves just about anywhere. My Meijer here in Bolingbrook carries it... :laugh:
I'd put 1920 up against almost anything, and it would come out on top over 99% of it. A 1920, and a 1910 were staples in my regular drinking when I was into the whiskey scene.

Fun trick. Get a 1920 and a 1910. Pour half and half into a decanter to make yourself a "1915". Fantastic little pour.
 
Last edited:

x Tame Impala

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Aug 24, 2011
27,885
12,558
My weekly drinking amount has plummeted the last 7 or so months and I feel great. Still no weed whatsoever except for a vacation last month or so. I’ll have 2-4 drinks a week now which includes wine.

I had my fun in Chicago the last 10 years and now I’m honestly just enjoying being mostly sober, healthy, and productive more than anything. Having a successful day like that is a great feeling and it’s interesting to see how my priorities have shifted from when I first moved here. What I used to think was insanely boring is way more fulfilling, going back to that old life would be very depressing honestly.
 

ChiHawks10

Registered User
Jul 7, 2009
28,271
21,756
Chicago 'Burbs
My weekly drinking amount has plummeted the last 7 or so months and I feel great. Still no weed whatsoever except for a vacation last month or so. I’ll have 2-4 drinks a week now which includes wine.

I had my fun in Chicago the last 10 years and now I’m honestly just enjoying being mostly sober, healthy, and productive more than anything. Having a successful day like that is a great feeling and it’s interesting to see how my priorities have shifted from when I first moved here. What I used to think was insanely boring is way more fulfilling, going back to that old life would be very depressing honestly.
I don't even have a drink or two a week most times. The most I drink nowadays is 2-3 beers after hockey games, and that's usually like 1 day a week, sometimes 2, depending on the schedule.

I still smoke weed or eat edibles, but far less often. Maybe once a week, and generally only on the weekends if I'm playing some video games or something. Or I'll rip a vape or eat an edible after a game to relax and get to sleep.

Feeling pretty good, myself, most days. Dumped like 45lbs over the past year and a half, and still working on getting rid of more. Feel the best I have since I was in my early 20's, and I'll be 40 in October.
 
Last edited:
  • Love
Reactions: x Tame Impala

Pez68

Registered User
Mar 18, 2010
18,647
25,764
Chicago, IL
Sounds like an invite to come over and drink all your booze pal.

Former bartender here, there are a lot of differences between some of the nicer $100+ bottles and the more common whiskeys (Makers, Angels Envy, etc...) you've just got to be a big whiskey fan to notice them most of the time. Some of the nicer ones have noticeable structural differences in them that are really enjoyable but I do agree for the most part you're not going to be able to tell the difference.

Restaurants carry things like Pappy and Clase Azul because they know mooks trying to blow their cash and inflate their ego will be drawn to it. It's sort of a status thing which was fine for me as a server/bartender because, hey build up that check baby.

I'm also not convinced Pappy isn't just reworked Buffalo Trace with a big price tag on it. That distillery has soured on me because they make Weller so artificially hard to get and make liquor stores/restaurants sell like 1,000 bottles of Buffalo Trace in order to carry Weller/Pappy.

I stay away from Maker's/Angels Envy/Woodford/etc...because they're so mass produced and the taste is just off IMO. Clase Azul/1942 Casa Drogones put flavor additives in their tequilas and you can definitley taste it for example. If I were to go to Binny's with $200 to spend on a bottle of bourbon I'd spend on it on something I haven't heard of before and enjoy something new. Chances are it isn't mass-produced and is made with a little more TLC.
When I go grab a bottle nowadays, it's always something new. There are SO many distilleries right now that I could literally drink a bottle a week, and not try everything within a year.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ChiHawks10

hawksrule

Lot of brains but no polish
May 18, 2014
20,928
10,602
Never been much of a drinker. Maybe once a month I enjoy a glass of wine or a beer, and a scotch maybe 2-3 times per year. I hate getting drunk.
 

TLEH

Pronounced T-Lay
Feb 28, 2015
20,212
16,455
Bomoseen, Vermont
Put in a ton of work so far this golf season and I'm playing really good golf, but today just went out there and hit the ball terrible. Shot 84 and oddly I feel pretty good about an 84 considering how bad I swung it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: OhCaptainMyCaptain

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad