Category: Buy It Again

Crown Royal Reserve 12yr takes the cake of Canadian releases so far this year. I always loved the intense grape note of Crown Reserve, but the added 12yr age statement kicks it up a notch, adding an oak driven complexity not common among regular Canadians. Intensely floral and sweet nose with a Grape Kool-Aid like aroma. On the palate, soft vanilla entry, but much more fruit driven depth, but unlike the Crown Black which just adds the oak note, this Reserve retains the smoothness and drink-ability of regular Crown whiskey, one of the world’s great blends, while adding layers of smoothly integrated flavor. Don’t ever underestimate Canadian whiskey, as the category is full of surprises, this one being on the top of that list for 2025!

A small group of Southsiders were selected in the random drawing for the opportunity to purchase a whole barrel of Buffalo Trace, and lucky for us, they only wanted about a quarter of the barrel, not because it’s bad, but rather 10 guys can’t possibly drink 8 cases of bourbon each! (Challenge Accepted! I know) That being said, “The Oaken Ones” allowed us to sell the remains of their private barrel, so here are the details: filled on 4/11/17, which makes this an 8 year old, from Warehouse S, Floor 3, Rick 79. Sweet, dark molasses, butter cream, vanilla, caramel apple, and baking spices. Joe and his boys did a fantastic job on this pick. The finish is phenomenal as well, getting sweeter with each sip. Don’t EVER sleep on regular Buffalo Trace, but especially a group pick like this!

This year’s Big Red Liquors Old Fo is a Warehouse I, floor 4 133.3 proof single barrel. Brown sugar and choclate cream pie on the nose with dark fruit in the background and a touch of honey. On the palate this taste like the most traditional of Old Forester flavor profiles, just turned up to 11. Solid oak mid-palate with brown sugar up front, and a long powerful finish. Every year we get folks clamoring for Birthday Bourbon, but more often than not, the Old Forester single barrel barrel proof releases are even better, more rare and more flavorful, so are you chasing a good bourbon, or just something rare?

High Rye, V yeast (delicate fuit) aged for 9 years and 10 months and bottled at 120 proof from Warehouse D, north side, rick 41, tier 4, position O. While our low tier barrels yielded lower proof flavor bombs, this “V” yeast youngin popped out fully formed at 120 proof and packing heat. This has one of the most traditional corn forward notes of any Four Roses I’ve ever tasted. Sweet corn, and even candy corn, with dusty vanilla, and barrel spice breaking through on the finish. If you like high proof Four Roses, this is your pick!

Low rye, O yeast (rich fruit and vanilla) aged for 10 years and 2 months and bottled at 110.6 proof from warehouse S on the north side, rick number 48, tier 2, position Q. This barrel caught our attention on the nose right off. Very complex combination of sweet vanilla, anise, and a touch of red fruit. On the palate, sweet malt, woodsy oak, and a wildly drinkable 110 proof. Love the low proof Four Roses because the drinkability goes up, but the flavor is all there. This is a mellow evening sipper.

Four Roses Private Barrel Picks are underway!
Our team is heading to Cox’s Creek to hand-select six unique barrels for our private selection program across Big Red, Cap n’ Cork, Gay’s Hops-N-Schnapps, and Crown Liquors. They’ll taste through ten distinct recipes from the legendary Four Roses 10-recipe lineup, exploring differences in mashbills and yeast strains to find the perfect flavor profiles. Expect everything from high-rye spice to delicate floral sweetness. Go behind the scenes of the selection process and distillery tour — can’t wait to see which barrels make the cut!

If you love lemon shake ups at the state fair, and you need a drinkable memento of the Pacer’s fantastic season, look no further than the locally made Liquid Gold Lemon Shake Up from Moondrops Distillery in Fortville Indiana. It’s 40 proof, just shill it, shake it and pour it over ice for the perfect Indiana made, Pacer’s approved, game-time cocktail.

Pendleton 10yr was forever a Canadian whiskey, but just this year switched it over to 10yr old MGP for UNDER $50. If you are looking for an amazing value in the bourbon category this is a hidden gem you shouldn’t pass on. If a craft brand bottles a 10yr MGP it’s usually in the $80-$100 range. at $44.99 and 90 proof you get the best that MGP has to offer. Massive sweet cinnamon and fruit with plenty of oak backbone at a drinkable proof. Mouthwatering high rye with a juicy bourbon core that’s not overdone or out of balance from the extended ageing.

Master Distiller Owen Martin’s first big project at Angel’s Envy combines three distinct barrels blended at 92 proof. Hungarian, Chinkapin, and French oak, each contributing a layer of flavor, but none overpowering the whiskey. Starts out with soft baking spice, then cinnamon and oak spice on the mid-palate then finish with dried fruits and toffee. Overall this is a rich dessert-like whiskey that performs best when sipped neat.

If you’re looking for something different in the Irish whiskey category, make sure to check out Jameson Triple Triple. It’s triple distilled like all Midleton whiskey, but then finished in three different casks, bourbon, sherry, and chestnut casks. The usual Jameson fruit, sweetness and drink-ability takes on a mellow, nutty complexity with the addition of the chestnut casks, there’s even a bit of toffee pudding, Christmas cake spice on the finish that really adds to the depth. This would be an easy innovation or line extension to overlook or ignore because it’s not at a luxury price point, but you shouldn’t because it’s really tasty.