2015 Fall Bourbon Releases
Every fall some of the best best bourbons are released to Bourbonr’s across the country. Problem is there’s never enough to go around. The past few falls have been welcomed with lots of phone calls and long lines at liquor stores but that’s what makes the bourbon hunt more exciting.
Annual Releases:
Pappy Van Winkle and Van Winkle line
Buffalo Trace Antique Collection (BTAC)
Four Roses Small Batch Limited Edition
More info here
Old Forester Birthday Bourbon
Angel’s Envy Cask Strength:
Elijah Craig 23 Year
After releasing Elijah Craig 18-23 (skipping 19) Heaven Hill has decided that 23 is high enough. This release doesn’t get as much hype as some other fall releases but the 23 I tried was tasty stuff.
Parker’s Heritage Collection #9 Malt Whiskey
The mash bill for the Malt Whiskey is 65% Malted Barley and 35% Corn. The whiskey will be aged 8 years, 108 proof andunfiltered. The price will probably follow prior year releases and be around $85-$90.
Booker’s Bourbon 2015-04 “Over Buster Batch”
Michter’s 10 Year Bourbon and Rye
New Releases:
John E Fitzgerald Very Special Reserve
This is the 20 year old Stitzel-Weller bourbon released by Heaven Hill. Expect it to be distillery only (a Heaven Hill favorite) and at least $300 for 375 ML bottle.
Elijah Craig 18 Year
This is a re-release rather than a new release but there’s rumors that Heaven Hill will bring back the Elijah Craig 18 year. Probably because they see what the old releases are selling for on the secondary market.
Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength
I imagine this will go the same route as the regular Maker’s Mark Cask Strength. Distillery only in 375 ml (my assumption was correct based on the recent TTB filing), expand distribution the the rest of the country and then move to 750 ml bottles. What I like is Maker’s Mark hasn’t try to inflate their prices and I hope this remains the same for the MM46CS
Woodford Reserve Frosty Four Wood
With all these bourbons getting ready to be released which bottles are you most excited for? Which bottles will you bee hunting?
67 comments
And here we go!… The Van Winkle’s & the BTAC’s will be followed with the usual lunacy. The EC23 – while indeed tasty — IS NO WHERE HEAR WORTH THE PRICE!! That said, I am looking forward to the EC18. Michter’s is overpriced garbage as is the Maker’s 46 (yes even at “cask strength”). Would love the Fitzgerald – but I have no plans to venture to Kentucky. All the rest – no interest. Happy hunting!! Drink more WT101 & Rare Breed!!
I am beyond being sick and tired of hearing about the BTAC.
What a charade. Where I live, I believe that 100% of the allocation of this stuff gets swallowed up in the distribution chain only to reappear somewhere on the black market. The top retailers can get precisely zero product for their best customers.
This whiskey boom will eventually bust, and I for one cannot wait.
Concur Lu on the Rare Breed. Excellent stuff that I can actually buy. For now.
Hey Farmy!! Yeah Dude! SOOOOOO Tired of the VW / BTAC nonsense. Stopped by a local shop (never been in) a few weeks back. The guy had a VW10 & 2 Lot B’s. Asked the price of the 10… $600.00 — But he said he’d make me a “deal” — $400.00!! Whoa!!! I tried to explain to the good “Gent” about Wine Searcher Prices vs. Bottle Blue Book Value vs. Reality. Do ya think that got me anywhere..?
Here in Australia >IF< I can get a bottle of G.T. Stagg, it's around $500 AUD (about $420US)
As of now, there will not be any Michter’s 10 year bourbon released this year.
How do you know that?
How do you know?
Inside sources.
Which “inside sources”? How deep “inside”?
Deep.
I am interested in advice on how to go about acquiring a bottle of the Van Winkle line.
All I know is our son has ALS and has wanted the Van Winkle 25 for years. Never have found it for him. But he did find it through a friend and they had their “tasting party”.
I would so love to give him one of VanWinkles best but don’t know how to go about it and don’t have the resources to pay the exuberant pricing from a vendor.
Advice on this matter is surly welcome.
Thank you in advance,
Diane
No such thing as a Pappy 25 year. There is a pappy 23, which will probably run you around $1,500 on the black market. If you want it at retail, you will probably need to get added to a waiting list that is already 5 years long or camp out at a big chain retailer 2 days in advance.
Or, in the case of Total Wine (which say they are not selling it but in fact they are – they just keep it locked up in the back and sell it discreetly to their “best” customers).
So when the big box places tell you they are getting it or selling it – they are lying through their teeth (I know this for a fact – at least in the case of Total Wine from an employee).
This isn’t true. Total Wine has not release last years allocation. https://twitter.com/totalwine/status/528191779037011969 I’ve emailed them a couple times and they’ve confirmed they have it but corporate hasn’t announced plans on how it will be distributed.
Don’t trust anything you hear at the store level. The knowledge of Total Wine employees goes from expert to idiot, and I’ve heard tons of bullshit from their experts.
My store hasn’t released it either. It’s been almost a year and they haven’t come up with a plan yet? Gimme a break. I agree with “just me” who states that Total Wine is holding its Pappy products for its best customers. In the past year I’ve asked Total Wine many times about their Pappy plan and their answers are always intentionally vague
Internetwines.com almost always has the three Pappys at high but not extreme prices, depending on your mindset. If I had an extra bottle obtained at list price, I’d give it to you. Best of luck…
Just looked at the prices Internetwines is asking for the Pappys – they’re pretty extreme in my book :-O
Exactly. There ETL is also $109 – way overpriced. Weller 12 for 200? Ridonkulous.
LORL at “ridonkulous”…..too funny! LOLLOLLOL!!!
I checked also. Robbery would be an understatement! Might as well be holding a gun.
Craigslist in your area.
Be prepared to overpay. For example 15 year old is north of $500.
Be careful around the NYC area regarding the Craiglist & Wine Searcher. Certain entities have been buying empty bottles off Ebay – filling them with swill – re-shrinking them & trying to resell them as original. I have “family — eh’ hem…” in the “business””. That’s why I don’t buy 3rd market. Just a warning!
If this is true – and please understand I am NOT calling Bravo Sierra on this.. I am sorry to hear about your son’s condition. I try to give as much as I can to ALS research. I lost a “friend” to that disease a few years back. ODD that you posted it on here though…
Diane,
If your child is truly suffering from ALS, send me a private message off the board. I have a bottle of ORVW 10 yr that is unopened. I’ll sell it to you for current retail+Shipping and handling.
Hi Dianne,
Depends on where you live, what your local liquor stores are doing. Some stores have a waiting list, some have a lottery, some state stores only sell premium online. I would check out a few of your local liquor stores and talk to the manager.
Good Luck
I’m excited for the Four Roses SB LE. The BTAC stuff is always great. Hoping I can actually get a WLW this year. Also, how overpowering is the wood in the EC23? I’ve always wanted to get a hold of one of the older EC’s. I’m a big fan of their barrel proof releases. Granted, that’s a totally different animal, but I like to see how the age, proof, etc affects the final product. I go back and forth on super old bourbons. Sometimes I like them. Sometimes, the wood has an overwhelmingly bitter taste for me.
I’ve tried EC23 a couple times and it was the most overoaked thing I’ve ever drank. It didn’t even taste like bourbon, more like oaky water. I’ve spoken to others who have said the quality varies dramatically between batches, but both of my experiences were bad.
Hey j. hill! The EC23 (at least my bottle) was not overpowering at all. In fact it was quite gentle & believe or not, lose to the base 12 year. HOWEVER… the bottle of 21 I have IS in fact an over oaked disaster. Go fig!
Sorry. CLOSE to the base 12 year.
The EC has been on Kroger shelves in FL for $199.. recently.
Which EC? The 18?
If I was to choose only one, I’d pick G.T. Stagg. The rest is pretty much over priced hype marketed to flippers and amateurs who are new to bourbon. Even though I’m still a novice, I figured out a couple years ago that most of these fall releases are not worth the bs you have to go thru (time/money) to get them. On any given day I can go to most distillery gift shops and get a bottle of unique premium and ultra premium juice that blows most of these out of the water. I guess that’ s a luxury I have by living in central KY.
Luck Bastard!! HaHa!
[“Lucky”, he meant] 😉
Yes. That.
I also live in KY. Which distillery gift shops have “unique premium” or “ultra premium” juice? I was at Buffalo Trace not long ago and they didn’t even have regular eagle rare in the shop. It was just regular Buffalo Trace, white dog, and their vodka they produce. I’ve also been to several others and haven’t seen anything limited. If you are indeed serious, I would love to know which distillery I need to hit up next. Thanks.
Unlike some other distilleries, the liquor license that Buffalo Trace has prevents them from selling certain products at their gift shop including BTAC and PVW, That’s what the Buffalo Trace PR department told me a couple years ago.
What distilleries are you referring too? I visit 2-3 times a week on average because we do tour transportation. Every distillery has to ship ALL product and place orders for stock to sell in the gift shop. They are actually at the bottom of the list and rarely get anything unique, especially Buffalo Trace. Mater of fact, people in other states gave a better chance of finding anything on the shelf because of less demand outside KY. That has been my experience.
Also, just curious as to what distilleries you are referring to and what labels you consider unique and ultra premium bourbon? Buffalo Trace gift shop sells Eagle Rare ( when they can get any) for $34.00/750ml . I can buy it for $26.00 at Rite Aid or Kroger who has it more often then the gift shop. Same situation with Four Roses, Woodford, Makers and Wild Turkey.
You sound like a a flipper licking your chops waiting for me to reveal my honey hole. Well, it ain’t going to happen. Furthermore, the distilleries I am “referring to” charge flipper prices for their premium stuff thereby squeezing out the flippers by cutting into their profit margins. I will pay a premium to the distillery any day rather than give those $s o a flipper.
I buy bourbon to drink! I rarely pay more then $30 for a bottle of anything because there’s so much good bourbon under $30. I do pay more for E.H. Taylor when I find it and just paid $50 for a Weller 12yo theough an online liquor store in CA because I was sick of chasing it for $30. I also bought some Willet 11yo barrel proof for $115 when I was there in May. Thankfully, I found a store out of state that’s holding 7 bottles of Weller 12yo at $29/750ml and $49/1.75L for me until I get there next month. They said their main distribution center has almost 2k bottles of it. If that’s true, I plan to stockpile as much as I can. I already stockpile Weller special reserve, which is my daily pour
I’d love a little love from LIMO!
How about a deal? You cut out 3 bottles of 12 yr for
me. I pay for the Three, and you keep one for yourself
and send me the other two! How’s that for a deal?
Let me know, Brother-of-Weller.
Bo
I would have to say Willett. Close to $400 for the 20+ year bottles. I picked up 2 xcf’s and a wfe 13 there back in May. The Bourbon Heritage Center at Heaven Hill sometimes have limited releases, like the WHH cask strength. They will have the John E Fitzgerald very special whatever the hell it is for $300+ for a 375ml bottle of sw juice for all the idiots that go retarded over that stuff. Comes in a really cool box though.
Hell yeah!
4 Roses Small Batch is what I’m gonna set my sights on this year. Love me some 4 Roses. I’ve accepted my fate w/ pappy and BTAC. If I gets the call I gets the call. If not. Not worth the fight.
I’d only consider picking up any of the Pappy releases if I could actually get them at retail price. Even then, I’d only consider ORVW 10, Lot B, or Pappy 15. In my opinion, the older releases aren’t worth the high retail price, much less the absolutely insane secondary market prices.
I *Will* be seeking out this year’s Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch, though!
I agree about the secondary markets. $200 is my limit on a single bottle, so the PVW 15yo at retail would be my max, if I happened to find it. I’m not going to camp out to get it though.
Anybody know which states have gotten their Old Forester Birthday Bourbon as of yet? Still waiting here in Chicago
I’ve heard Tennessee and Kentucky
Indiana should have it next week or sooner according to my guy. He expects it in from his distributor before next Friday.
I got my bottle today although it was available at the store on Saturday for me. It was shipped in from another location so it could have been in Indiana for a few days prior to that.
Waiting in line for birthday in Louisville right now.
My liquor store offered me a bottle of BDay on Friday Oct 23rd. They had it behind the counter and the owner said he offered it to me because I’m a regular. I bought it for $67 . I’m in Scottsdale, AZ. I’m going to save it for a while instead of open it. I have never tried the Bday bourbon myself.
Chicago has the birthday bourbon if still looking. Just got one from binnys Lincoln park
Yep came in Wednesday 16th in Chicago
Anyone seen who’s gotten Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch thus far? I imagine Chicago is still a few weeks out, but I know it’s been popping up
Any news on four roses in Illinois?
Binnys sold out today on FR LE
Binnys in Chicago/burbs didn’t get much. No list allowed. Hit the shelf and gone quickly.
I sell Birthday Bourbon and its so yummy.
We got our Birthday Bourbon here in California via BevMo last week. Today BevMo released the Antique series (online and invitation only). We could pick one bottle out of the five choices. We were torn between the 18-year old Sazerac and the George T. Stagg ($99 plus tax & shipping) — we decided on the Sazerac.
Has ANYONE tasted the John E. Fitzgerald 20 year old? We have a chance to buy a bottle at retail ($300) which is just crazy but we do have a whiskey collection and how cool would this be for the holidays. Don’t know what to do…
If you don’t want the JEF 20 I’d buy it from you
For those of you who have tried it, is the Elijah Craig 18 year worth $120? Seems pricey to me. Thanks.
What do people think of the fitz 20 release? Just became readily available in NYC for $800+
Just picked up two bottles of Elijah Craig 18yr for $450, did I overpay?