Just One Bourbon

well, if you find it, go for George T. Stagg! Apart from the outstanding quality, it's bottled at usually more than 70%, which means you have infinite possibility to play with water and experiment more than a single bourbon! Pappy Van Winkle 15 (wheated recipe) is another top of the shelf dram and well within your price range, but I'm wondering why our @victor has not taken part in this discussion yet :)

My favourites are George T. Stagg, Knob Creek, Buffalo Trace, Bookers.

some others that I think are great are Elijah Craig 12, Wild Turkey 101 and I hear Eagle Rare is good too.

For wheated bourbon, which is softer, Pappy Van Winkle can't be beat.

@RoganFox, everything depends on what will be available where you will be. My first choices would be among great but tightly allocated whiskeys, in this approximate order 1) (stitzel weller) Pappy Van Winkle 15 (probably impossible to find), 2) George T. Stagg, extremely difficult to find now, 3) William Larue Weller (wheated) same situation as Stagg, 4) Parkers Heritage 10 yo wheated (just slightly more available than 1-3)

What you CAN find, and since I see no bourbon in your cabinet, is Bookers (from Beam), Knob Creek Single Barrel, and Wild Turkey Rare Breed. These are all generally excellent. (there is some variation among single barrels.)

In the inexpensive but very good category are Jim Beam Black Label, standard Knob Creek, Old Weller Antique 107 (wheated), Makers 46 (also wheated), Eagle Rare 10, Elmer T. Lee, and the Evan Williams Single Barrels. Standard Buffalo Trace is good too.

@Victor provides a great list to work off of. I have yet to crack open my bottle of Stagg, but the sample I have tried was amazing.

I am a bit of a 'wheater' so I would strongly recommend the Parkers Heritage Collection 10 yo wheated bourbon ("4th edition" which came out in 2010...I have read lesser, though still good reviews of the PHC 5th edition bourbon finished in cognac casks).

The Bookers Small Batch is awesome, and available in Ontario, though not BC, and is probably one of the best widely available bourbons around. I love it!

Victor introduced me to the George T. Stagg and I fell in love...am drinking Baker's right now and love it. But if you can find the Stagg, go for it....

Thanks to all for taking the time to post and all of the great suggestions. I am on the West Coast of the US for a few days so will see what I can find. Having read the suggestions and done a little research George T Stagg is calling my name but I know it may be a tough find. Will update if I get hold of it but if not there are plenty of other options based on all your replies....Cheers

I just secured one of the few bottles of George T Stagg coming into Seattle this year. I'm saving it for a while...

Easier to find and one of my favorites is Wild Turkey Rare Breed.

@Wodha Am coming home via Seattle so maybe there is hope in finding the George T Stagg

@RoganFox, please be sure to give us the 'post-trip wrap-up' on your acquisition(s) and your experiences.

At $ 20 for excellent whiskeys like Beam Black Label, Old Weller Antique 107, George Dickel # 12, Wild Turkey Rye, Wild Turkey 101 bourbon and Buffalo Trace Bourbon, you can probably afford to pay the ridiculous duties coming back into Canada and bring in a few additional bottles in addition to your special selection.

@RoganFox All gone before they hit the shelf. The early worm get eaten.

@RoganFox I don't know what the bourbon selection is like out in BC, but I would say if you don't have a lot of options out there then instead of one amazing Stagg or Van Winkle for $100 why not go 1 great for $50ish and 2 solid for $20ish...

For your more pricey bourbons ($40-60~): Jefferson's Reserve (drinking right now), Eagle Rare 10yo Single Barrel, Bookers, Knob Creek Single Barrel, Woodford Reserve, Elijah Craig 18 and/or Angels Envy. (all are quite good IMHO)

For your inexpensive ($18-30~) Beam Black, Buffalo Trace, Maker's Mark, Turkey 101, Knob Creek 9yo, Elijah Craig (standard bottling is my bourbon benchmark)

None of them should let you down and the only one I have not tried was the Booker's but it has come highly recommended by my source for bourbon knowledge. Hope my thoughts help and good luck on your vacation and venture.

@OCeallaigh The bottle of Eagle Rare 10 that I got a small (6ishoz) sample from was great. My buddy has since bought a second and said the one that I sampled out of was not quite as good. It being a single barrel bottling some variances have seemed to crop up but nothing that would put me off from it. I recommend it to you, I doubt you'll be disappointed.

George T. Stagg from the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection

I am pretty much in the same situation as you. If I were going to the states, I would be looking for Van Winkles, any of the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection or Parker's Heritage Collection.

I know they're not bourbons, but I would also keep an eye out for a few micro-distilleries as well: Stranahan's Colorado and High West.

@Matthieu With all due respect, Stranahan's Colorado and High West are not Bourbon. In fact, tasty as they both are, they are not even Bourbon-like. They both fall into a neither world of somewhere in between single-malt and American. And in my opinion they are both good to drink.

If it's one bourbon to rule the rest I'll reiterate: GT Stagg FTW.

@ssmith84 You make a very good point and I will certainly see what my options are but there are some good suggestions there....thanks

@Victor Certainly will give a wrap up on how it all pans out. It has been interesting so far for sure.

Well, I agree that Stranahan's and High West are not bourbon. But if the idea is to get one bottle of American whiskey, Stranahan's is the one I'd pick--assuming I could find it. Under budget and a fantastic dram. There are other unique American whiskies too; Leopold Bros. Small Batch American whiskey, for example--$30 and like no other.

High West makes rye; there are several and they're great, but there are better ryes for me, like Sazerac 18, or Thomas H. Handy. Even Rittenhouse 100 Bottled in Bond--a ridiculous deal at $20.

But if it really is to be a bourbon, I find Evan Whilliams Single barrel to be sublime, and a fantastic bargain; Four Roses Small Batch; or, if you can find it, Colorado Straight Bourbon by Peach Street distillers. Utterly unique and extraordinary.

@Charlie-Davis, perhaps you could give us a review of Colorado Straight Bourbon. I don't think that I have seen it this far east.

@Victor OK, I'd love to. Let me get home and get to nosing, and I'll try to post a review this evening. (It's a small batch affair, natch, so every bottles a bit different...)

www.peachstreetdistillers.com

So as is often the way with all things Whisky related, events did not quite go to plan. As mentioned I live in Vancouver so prices are quite prohibitive at times. Therefore it was hard to not purchase half the store based on the prices that were staring me in the face.

Anyway I ended up purchasing a Macallan 18 for almost less than two thirds of the price it is here. And yes I do know its not a Bourbon :-).

Bourbon wise I purchased a bottle of Bookers Small Batch and a bottle of Woodford reserve and both together were well under the $100 budget. So it was a very rewarding exercise and I look forward to sampling them all. Cheers to all who contributed to the discussion, as always much appreciated.

@RoganFox Sounds like you made out well, glad I could help and enjoy! The Woodford should not disappoint.

I really like Black Maple Hill. It's aged about 8 years, very smooth. It's 95 proof, but not too hot. Butterscotch, thick mouthfeel, autumn spices, engaging finish. I particularly like that it isn't very sweet – I need a little toughness to hold my attention. I find BMH be pretty unique and special.

In WA it's pricey, but I've seen it for less than $35 in CA. They also 16 year old for double the dollars.