Whiskey Thread (3 Viewers)

You ever try Balvinie Double Wood or Caribbean Cask?
Double Wood is great. They make a 12-year ($75) and a 17-year ($150). I prefer the 12 regardless of cost; the 17-year is kind of thin.

Caribbean Cask is very candy-sweet. I gave mine away.

If you like their stuff, check out Anthony Bourdain's visit there on YouTube.
 
So, I finally went to Total Wine on Veterans Blvd. this weekend. I was impressed and disappointed at the same time. It's a good selection and some of the prices are good, but I guess I was expecting more. I noticed that there are at least a few things that Dorignac's has that they don't have. Of course they have some stuff Dorignac's doesn't have. Prices seem to be hit and miss each having better prices on some things.

Anyway, I spent way too much money on whiskey this weekend. I decided to really try out the Balcones line. I bought Rumble, Texas 1 Single Malt Whiskey, Lineage, and their Texas Rye. The Rumble is good and very different. It's made from fermented Wildflower Honey and Figs. The taste is pretty much so light honey with home made fruit cocktail. That's not something you taste in whiskey every day but I really like it.

The Texas Single Malt is amazing. I can't describe the flavors, but at 106 proof it's surprisingly smooth and tastes amazing. It may be my favorite whiskey right now.

Here's the thing. No store really has access to something that another doesn't, with few exceptions such as specially selected and purchased barrels.
 
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Here's the thing. No store really has access to something that another doesn't, with few exceptions such as specially selected and purchased barrels.
While true, a smaller store with more personal hands on is more likely to curate more interesting offerings and cater to smaller groups of customers than a national big box purveyor.
 
Here's the thing. No store really has access to something that another doesn't, with few exceptions such as specially selected and purchased barrels.

Yeah, I'm not saying that either doesn't have access, just saying they have different stock so one is not far superior to the other in terms of what they have. Of course, that may depend on what you are looking for. But, Total Wine has a lot more space to have a larger selection and a larger network in which to keep stock flowing. That's why I'm surprised that Dorignac's still competes in terms of selection and price.

You would know better than me, but for instance Balcones is a fairly small distillery in Waco, TX, so I would think that it might be a bit more difficult to get. But, for all I know they have a big distributor who any retail store can buy from.
 
While true, a smaller store with more personal hands on is more likely to curate more interesting offerings and cater to smaller groups of customers than a national big box purveyor.

100% agree. That's my point. With prices being competitive across the NOLA market, it's not necessary to ditch your local stores whose office numbers start with 504.
 
While true, a smaller store with more personal hands on is more likely to curate more interesting offerings and cater to smaller groups of customers than a national big box purveyor.

I didn't really think of it that way. But, it does feel like the guy in charge of liquor at Dorignac's is far more likely to care to help you with liquor you may not know much about as opposed to the people at Total Wine.
 
Yeah, I'm not saying that either doesn't have access, just saying they have different stock so one is not far superior to the other in terms of what they have. Of course, that may depend on what you are looking for. But, Total Wine has a lot more space to have a larger selection and a larger network in which to keep stock flowing. That's why I'm surprised that Dorignac's still competes in terms of selection and price.

You would know better than me, but for instance Balcones is a fairly small distillery in Waco, TX, so I would think that it might be a bit more difficult to get. But, for all I know they have a big distributor who any retail store can buy from.

Louisiana has a three tier system so they all have to buy from the same distributor.
 
100% agree. That's my point. With prices being competitive across the NOLA market, it's not necessary to ditch your local stores whose office numbers start with 504.

I'll still buy whatever I can from local stores, I just wanted to check out the price and selection at Total Wine. And, they do have a few things I had not seen at other local places. Of course, I haven't really spent a lot of time looking a lot of places during the pandemic so maybe some of it is more available than I realize.

Edit: By the way, it would really help if those stores with offices with a 504 area code would make it easier to search for what liquor they have in stock on their web site(s).

Edit #2: I see that one of those 504 stores has really updated their website and did a good job of it.
 
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Louisiana has a three tier system so they all have to buy from the same distributor.

Interesting. I did not know that. Thanks for the info. So, it's really more a matter of what they choose to stock than what they can stock?
 
Interesting. I did not know that. Thanks for the info. So, it's really more a matter of what they choose to stock than what they can stock?

more or less, and I’m sure Brennan will correct me, but there are also some smaller boutique distributors that a national chain may not want to deal with on a local level.
 
Interesting. I did not know that. Thanks for the info. So, it's really more a matter of what they choose to stock than what they can stock?

Yes. There are exceptions such as privately created wine labels or specific barrel selections. For example, I've got a bottle of Rouse's selected buffalo trace and a Martin Wine Russell's Reserve at the house. Of course the access to highly allocated items can vary with purchasing power. But your personal access to buy those bottles might be better served by having a relationship with a salesperson in the store as well.
 
Double Wood is great. They make a 12-year ($75) and a 17-year ($150). I prefer the 12 regardless of cost; the 17-year is kind of thin.

Caribbean Cask is very candy-sweet. I gave mine away.

If you like their stuff, check out Anthony Bourdain's visit there on YouTube.
I have read that 7-12 years is the sweet spot for bourbon. It's rare to find bourbon older than 12 years that's really good.
Here's the thing. No store really has access to something that another doesn't, with few exceptions such as specially selected and purchased barrels.
Except of course for barrel picks and private label wines. I don't hold barrel picks from big chains like Total Wine in high regard. If it's a local place and I find that their people bottle stuff that's what I like, I might stick with their barrel picks.

TW has a couple private label wines that we buy frequently, including an $8 Malbec.
 
I have read that 7-12 years is the sweet spot for bourbon. It's rare to find bourbon older than 12 years that's really good.
Except of course for barrel picks and private label wines. I don't hold barrel picks from big chains like Total Wine in high regard. If it's a local place and I find that their people bottle stuff that's what I like, I might stick with their barrel picks.

TW has a couple private label wines that we buy frequently, including an $8 Malbec.
Comparing to scotch though, Bourbon is new barrels, Scotch has used barrels... Climate - which has a big disparity as well...Continental-aged stuff at 25 years is not over-oaked. In America, 18 - 20 (or less imo) is probably the limit. In the Caribbean? For me, it's probably 15. Generalizations, I agree.
All that said;)
The Balvenie Caribbean cask is quite awesome to me.
 
I have read that 7-12 years is the sweet spot for bourbon. It's rare to find bourbon older than 12 years that's really good.
Except of course for barrel picks and private label wines. I don't hold barrel picks from big chains like Total Wine in high regard. If it's a local place and I find that their people bottle stuff that's what I like, I might stick with their barrel picks.

TW has a couple private label wines that we buy frequently, including an $8 Malbec.

Barrel picks are the same for any place. They either get samples shipped to them or go to the distillery and taste there. The distillery narrows it down beforehand to a handful of options that are for sale and you choose from those. Local places have their trusted staff members taste through to collectively decide what they and their customers will enjoy. Some store put more effort into this than others.

Private label wine can be anywhere on the spectrum from junk with a custom label to really cool stuff specifically blended by legit wineries with non-disclosure agreements. The latter is where having a trusted store relationship comes in.

Also, I agree that bourbon can get too old pretty quickly.
 
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TW has a couple private label wines that we buy frequently, including an $8 Malbec.

Maybe Phebus? We are always on the lookout for inexpensive Malbecs - we’ve probably tried most of them there.
 

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