‘Tis the Season for Top 10 lists, and my feed has been full of Top Whiskey Lists since September. While I do pay attention to them, I have mixed emotions about them as well. For one thing, everyone’s taste is different, so these lists are incredibly subjective by nature.They can also change as one keeps tasting new juice. As a matter of fact, the impetus for this post was a private tasting I did a few weeks ago where a participant asked for my favorite whiskeys. Turns out that one I tasted for the first time that day made my list. So while some of the whiskeys on my list have been solid go-to’s for a while, the list will change. Consider it a snapshot of what I’m really enjoying now.

The worst thing about some Top 10 lists is that they list bourbons that are inaccessible to most people, both because of price and availability. This Top 5 list starts out with a nice $60 bottle, then jumps to $250 and goes up to $3000. I do have one rare and somewhat expensive whiskey on my list, and I struggled with its ranking for that reason. A quick internet search for the current release of it lists it from $139 (MSRP) all the way to $599. The secondary market pricing has invaded the primary market, and that is not good on my opinion.

In my head I’ve had a list of go-to’s and favorites for a while, but as I said it is fluid. There are a few that are always hovering at the top, but usually when asked by people what my favorites are when they are looking for suggestions, my usual response is “It doesn’t matter.” I then ask them what flavor profiles THEY like or are interested in exploring, because my role as a Bourbon Steward is exactly that, to steward them through the experience and help them find what they like, not to give them a list of “what’s good and what’s not”, because there isn’t one.

So why am I doing a Top 10 then? I’ve done a couple of private tastings with one group of people here on the coast, one an exploration of the Five Regions of Scotland, and the other was all about Bourbon. (They’ve decided the next one will be Ryes, but it will have to wait with the current COVID restrictions in place now.) A couple of people in the group are good friends of mine, and one of them asked “the question”. I responded with a couple of favorites, but have been thinking about it ever since. So here we are.

On Judging

So what are my criteria? First and foremost it’s flavor. After that it is price and availability. The majority of these are relatively easy to find. One on the list is not; I myself searched for it for 3 years, and it took the help of the distributers sales rep to find it close by.

What I Like

I tend towards sweeter whiskey: Flavors like vanilla, brown sugar, corn, dried fruit, and/or caramel up front and baking spices like cinnamon playing a supporting role, but not over whelming everything. I’ve also grown to like higher proof whiskey as I find they have a little richer texture and more flavor. When I first started drinking whiskey, it was mostly Scotch, Irish or Japanese whisk(e)yes. Now I tend more towards Bourbons and American Single Malts. A couple towards the bottom of my list used to be at the top before my preferences changed. Below is my current Top Ten, with some personal history and tasting notes if available.

10) Jameson Black Barrel Irish Whiskey

This was the second whiskey I tasted when my journey began about 7 years ago. The first was an incredibly peaty Isaly Scotch, and I thought my whisky journey was done. When sharing my experience the next night at dinner with some colleagues, one of them said “You know, there are other whiskeys?” and after discussing an experience with Seamus Heaney and a bottle of Jameson, he ordered some Jameson for after dinner. Rich, caramel, vanilla and brown sugar with a nice toasty flavor it was everything I was looking for in a dram. When I got home I bought a bottle of Jameson and was disappointed that it was not the same at all. I tasted all the Jameson Expressions searching for “the one” with no luck. At least I thought I had. Earlier this year a co-worker mentioned this Jameson version that I hadn’t tried. Some research pointed to it being the one I had tried oh so many years ago, but apparently they had changed it a bit and it isn’t quite as thick and rich as it was in the past. For $30 I was willing to try it and while not quite as good as I remember, due either to their change in production, my building it up in my head for 7 years or both, it still starts out the top 10 for both flavorful as well as sentimental reasons.

9) Nikka Coffey Grain Japanese Whisky

When I got back from the business trip where I had tried the Jameson, I went to a local restaurant bar that had a nice selection of whisky. I went at an unbusy time, told the bartender what flavor profiles I was looking for and to create a flight of three whiskys for me based on that. This was one of them, and he nailed it with it. Vanilla, brown sugar, light cinnamon, shortbread cookies. I’ve bought several bottles of this over the years, but the current bottle in my collection has made it a lot longer than the ones early in my journey and is not the “go-to” pour it once was.

8) Michter’s American Whiskey/ Michter’s Bourbon

Here we have a tie because I couldn’t decide which one of these to put on the list! I’m a big fan of Michter’s. The first of their products I tried was the US*1 American Whiskey. This is a gateway to bourbon whiskey, as it is their bourbon mashbill but aged in already used bourbon barrels so technically (and legally) can’t be called a bourbon. What the aging in used barrels does, however, is bring out more of the vanilla and brown sugar flavors from the barrel into the spirit. (Are we noticing a theme yet?) I took this over to a neighbors once, and he called it “The chocolate chip cookie of whiskey.” I was under the impression he didn’t like it, but a couple of weeks later when I went over, there was a bottle of it sitting on the table. The Michter’s Bourbon is a bit less sweet and has touch of smoke and spice to it that the US*1 doesn’t. It was the second Bourbon I tried and liked.

7) Michter’s 10 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon

As a big fan of Michter’s (see #8 above!) I wanted to try this for some time. It is however, a very hard one to get and a bit more than I usually spend on a bottle. It took me three years and a little help from the distributor’s rep to find one. I happpend to find it when I was doing the 30 Bourbon Challenge last year (September is Bourbon Heritage Month) and I saved it for the last day. I also shared that first taste with someone who had started distilling locally, as whiskey is to be shared with friends, not sit on a shelf, unopened, even (especially?) if its a really nice on. I was not disappointed. At the time it was the most exquisite whiskey I had ever had. It was at the top of my list for a while, but for this list, due to it’s rarity and price point as well as the fact that I found something equally if not more delicious for a lot less money, it sits around the middle of the list now.

47.2% ABV
Nose: vanilla, tart apple, slightly earthy
Taste: caramel candy apple
Finish: Ceylon cinnamon. Very rich mouthfeel.

6) Maker’s Mark Cask Strength Bourbon

Maker’s Mark was pretty ubiquitous at weddings and other celebrations when I was growing up (and too young to drink it) and I never really thought about it as I was trying whiskeys, thinking it was pretty pedestrian. Well, my attitude about large market whiskey has changed. I bought a 50cl bottle of it during the 30 Day and thought it was ok. Then I added a few drops of water, and it opened up some butterscotch flavor, and I really enjoyed it for what it was. When a local store had a sale on their cask strength expression for a really good price, I jumped at the chance to try it. I was very impressed.

Maker’s Mark Cask Strength
ABV 55.75%
Nose: Peach, Cinnamon, Vanilla
Taste: Oak, Peach, Vanilla, hint of Leather
Finish: Acidic peach and light cinnamon linger a bit

5) Balcones Blue Corn Bourbon

This was the overall favorite at a Bourbon Tasting I recently gave. It was also the first time I tried it, and have to say I do find it impressive. It is made from 100% Blue Corn from Texas, which is also where the distillery is.

64% ABV, aged at least 37 months
Nose: Dried apricot, Light Smoke, Candy Corn
Taste: Leather, dried stone fruit, smoke (slightly more than on the nose, but not overpowering), Cinnamon
Finish: The leather comes back, and then cinnamon again with a long warming sensation.

4) Willett Family Estate Small Batch Rye

I call this “A rye so good it should be called a bourbon.” Most Rye whiskey is heavy on the spice, but I have found a few that are atypical. This is one of them. I am working on a lineup for an Atypical Rye Tasting. Stay tuned…

The picture below is of the 2019 release. My tasting notes are of the 2020 release. They are similar, but 2019 had a bit more cherry on the palate and the 2020 is slightly higher in proof, but still very easy to drink with a rich mouthfeel.

2020 55.2 ABV
Nose: Oak, Corn, Grilled Stone Fruit
Taste:Light Oak, Corn, Hint of Leather, Cherry
Finish: Cinnamon comes on strong then fades slowly for a nice long finish

3) Four Roses Small Batch Select Bourbon

Four Roses Small batch was one of the first bourbons I liked, being mostly on a diet of Scotch and Irish whiskey. Small Batch Select is the first new standard release whiskey from Four Roses for some time, joining Four Roses Bourbon, Four Roses Single Barrel and the aforementioned Small Batch Bourbon. You can read more about them here.

52% ABV
Nose: Candy corn, cinnamon, vanilla and alcohol even with retro-nasal breathing
Taste: cinnamon, oak, a touch of leather leading to a finish of red hots.
Not as much burn when drinking than in the nose.
The mouthfeel is very rich, almost chewy, and the legs move very slowly down the glass

2) Moylan’s Cask Strength American Single Malt

I literally stumbled across Stillwater Spirits in Petaluma. The wife and I were up there to visit a few distilleries (for me) and to do some shopping (for both of us, but why she agreed to come along.) After lunch, I realized we were just around the corner from Sonoma Portworks, where my old work connection and friend Caryn works, so we decided to go and say hello. As we were walking, right next door to them there was an open roll-up door and some guy sitting at an upturned barrel table on the phone. As I turned to see what was inside, there were many more barrels and a Vendome Copper Still! I told my wife we would have to stop by on our way out. We walked into the Portworks Tasting Room and Caryn comes out, says she saw I was in town on Facebook and “You have to meet my friend Tim! He’s right next door!” Tim was the guy on the phone and the distiller of some of the most amazing whiskey I have tasted.

58.7% ABV
Aged 4 Years
Small Batch Copper Distilled
Finished in Orange Brandy Barrels
Nose: Vanilla, Cotton Candy, Hints of Orange Peel
Taste: Orange, Light Smoke, Vietnamese Cinnamon
Finish: Cinnamon and just a hint of leather. Fades very slowly.

1) Moylan’s American Rye

I had told myself that I wasn’t going to buy any whiskey on the trip to Petaluma, but after tasting several of Tim’s whiskeys at Stillwater that day, I just had to buy his rye. Last year when I was helping expand the whiskey selection at New Leaf, I made sure this was in the mix. It was, and still is, the best whiskey I have ever tasted.

Stillwater Spirits, Petaluma, CA
49.5 ABV Aged 6 Years
Nose: Vanilla, Sherry, Spice, hints of Orange
Taste: Vanilla quickly taken over by spices that fades into citrus then watermelon candy. Another sip is brown sugar followed by cinnamon. Every sip brings different variations on a theme.
Finish: A balanced spiciness sits on the tongue and the roof of the mouth for quite a while, fading gently with a nice warming sensation that lingers comfortably.
Adding a few drops of water seems to throw the balance off. Even at 99 proof, this is one to drink neat.

Mashbill is 95% rye/5% malted barley, aged in new American Oak four and a half years, then transferred to once used French Oak. It is then blended with their Single Malt (also finished in French Oak) to take it down to 87% rye/13% malted barley and aged an additional one and a half years.

So What Now?

Go try some whiskey! You probably won’t like all of them, but that’s OK. Figure out what you do like and drink that; don’t let anyone tell you its bad. As for me, I have a few things on my list that I want to try and some regulars in my line-up that need to be replenished after I work my way through some other bottles on hand. And hopefully soon we’ll be able to get together and share some drams. Until then, I leave you with the advice of the folks at Bourbon & Banter: “Drink Curious”.