Best Bang for Buck Sipping Bourbon

Words by Colin Hampden-White

Bourbon is having a boom. There are lots of new distilleries opening and some of the rare bourbons are becoming extremely expensive. The big brands are selling more than ever before with premium versions of their standard bottles selling more than ever. With so much bourbon on the market The Three Drinkers wanted to put a short list together of bourbon we have tried, didn’t cost the earth and think should be on anyone’s shopping list if you wanted to try bourbon that not only can be mixed to make great long drinks and cocktails, but which are fabulous to sip, read on.

 Eagle Rare 10

From the legendary Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, comes Eagle Rare 10 Year Old. A spectacular Kentucky straight Bourbon whiskey, matured for at least a decade before making its way into its very smart bottle at 45% ABV. What's so distinctive about the bottles, you ask? Well, we're going to say it's the massive bald eagle, wings outstretched, looking like it's about to snatch up some dinner. Distinctive, yes? The whiskey is also pretty distinctive too, boasting full-bodied notes of toffee, orange peel and buttery corn. This is a bourbon for those who like them big and bold.

ABV: 45%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £36.99

Four Roses Small Batch

Four Roses Small Batch is a step up from the classic Four Roses Bourbon, showcasing the variety of mashbills that the distillers have to work with in Lawrenceburg - and their talents at making them sing together. Ten bourbon recipes are produced by Four Roses, and four of them are blended together to create this approachable but flavoursome expression. Great value-for-money, this whiskey has a huge amount of flavour for your buck and goes down very smoothly to boot. There are notes of manuka honey, winter spice, toasty oak, a little crème anglaise.

 ABV: 45%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £27.23

Yellowstone select Bourbon

From the Yellowstone range (owned by Limestone Branch and run by Steven Beam, which was founded to bring back the glory that Yellowstone once held many moons ago) comes the Select Bourbon. Full-bodied, with a good kick of rye lurking around in the background. If you like your Bourbon with a little nutmeg spice then you will love this. It is rather creamy with lots of vanilla fudge notes. Some herbaceous spice appears on the mid-palate giving lots of complexity.

ABV: 46.5%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £33.64

Woodford Reserve

The mashbill for Woodford Reserve features a high percentage of rye: 72% corn, 18% rye and 10% malt. Unusual also for being triple distilled and having the lowest proof upon entering the barrel where it matures for at least six years. A must have Kentucky bourbon. It is very thick and full. There are notes of espresso beans, winter spice, cereal sweetness, plenty of rye, ground ginger, almond oil, toasty oak and a little rum. A lovely whiskey to ponder as you sip.

 ABV: 43.2%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £33.99

Michter’s US*1 Bourbon

The US*1 Bourbon from Michter's in Louisville, Kentucky, is made in small batches, typically comprised of no more than two dozen barrels. Top quality stuff, brimming with caramel, vanilla and fruit notes, alongside a pleasing earthy quality at its core. Even though this is produced in small batches, there is a core style which is particular to Michter’s which run through all the batches, with the batches giving extra interest as none are exactly the same. If you like this bourbon, the different batches will keep rewarding you time and time again.

 ABV: 45.7%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £53.83

Hudson Four Grain Bourbon

Up in New York, Hudson Four Grain bourbon is made using the Tuthilltown distillery's unique recipe of corn, rye, wheat and malted barley. Hold on a minute, that’s four grains - like what the name says! Tuthilltown Spirits were producers of the first legal pot-still whiskey in New York since prohibition. Four Grain is aged in small three-gallon barrels to accelerate maturation, and each bottle is numbered and wax-dipped by hand. The interaction of the four grains is intriguing and rather unique, but certainly tasty.

 ABV: 46%
Size: 350ml
Buy it now for £36.13

Elijah Craig Small Batch

Elijah Craig has long been a favourite bourbon of many whiskey enthusiasts, and certainly is with The Three Drinkers - to the point where their stocks of 12 year old bourbon have been under a lot of pressure, not that we are drinking all of it! The producers made the decision to discontinue the 12 Year Old expression and create this expression to take its place. It manages to maintain the incredibly high quality that Elijah Craig is known for, including the delicious core of cooked apple drizzled in honey notes. This expression has been well received, taking home not one but two San Francisco World Spirits Competition Double Gold medals!

 ABV: 47%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £39.95

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon

Wild Turkey's Rare Breed Bourbons are bottled at cask strength, and are often absolutely staggering. The bottles have had a little redesign recently, and look very stylish indeed - though the eponymous turkey on the label looks rather surprised to be there. This particular edition was bottled at 58.4% ABV. Heavy caramel and chocolate. A touch of smoke develops on the back pallet, there is brown sugar and touches of pepper on the finish too. This is a bourbon on for the feint hearted! 

ABV: 58.4%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £52.25

Brough Brothers Bourbon

This came to our attention recently and we can’t recommend it highly enough. Brough Brothers Bourbon is the brilliant brainchild of Victor, Chris and Bryson Yarbrough in Louisville, Kentucky. A marvellous small batch Bourbon full of spicy sweetness, cooked fruit and toasty oak notes. Great for sipping, but it also shines in some classic cocktail recipes, too. At a bourbon that is under £30, we would have this in our drinks cabinet at all times. If you want a bourbon which is a true all-rounder, then this is the one to buy. We also love the funky label with the brothers on it.

ABV: 41%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £28.95 

Pappy Van Winkle 23

Now we know this is a whiskey which is beyond most of our pockets, but if you ever get the chance to try it on a special occasion in a restaurant or bar, then go for it, it is a truly memorable experience. This has to be the king of sipping whiskey. At 23 years old it has so much complexity, and yet is still simply pleasurable to drink, the complexity isn’t demanding yourw attention. With aromas of Dark fruit, espresso coffee, oak and buttery toffee. The flavours are rich and spicy. Oak underpinning nutty sweetness, honey and star anise come in on the finish. Produced yearly in very small batches, this hits the market at £250, however this increases to well over £2000 once sold out and bottles find their way onto the secondary market, which happens almost as soon as it is released. 

 ABV: 47.8%
Size: 700ml
Savour it if you get the chance

If you’ve enjoyed exploring bourbon then have a read about one of its founding fathers, and the man who taught Jack Daniels how to make whiskey: Uncle Nearest.

Uncle Nearest: A True, Black, Whiskey Icon

You may well know what I’m going to say, but I shall tell you the story regardless. There has never been a more important time to tell it. Events in the US are showing us that we need to do so much more to raise awareness of black culture and history in every pocket of society as well as heal the gross divide we still see seen when it comes to opportunities and privileges. Let us start here by raising a glass to one man in the drinks industry that history almost forgot. Let us shout about his name, his story and now, his whiskey.

Who was Uncle Nearest?

More than one hundred and sixty years ago, in the hills above Lynchburg in Tennessee, there was a farm owned by a young preacher man called Dan Call that still stands today. Reverend Call had a side hustle down the road on his farm: a small whiskey distillery, which made a silky smooth, maple-sweet whiskey that was highly regarded by all that tasted it. The man who distilled the whiskey was a black slave named Nathan Green, known affectionately as Uncle Nearest, and he brought with him a special technique of charcoal filtering that he had learned back home when cleaning water in West Africa. This method of filtering whiskey through sugar maple tree charcoal became known as the famous ‘Lincoln method’ and it’s still used today.

A fascination for distillation

At some time in the 1850s, a young white boy came to Reverend Call asking for work. The Reverend took him on and gave him chores but the boy became increasingly fascinated by what was going on down the road at the distillery. Eventually, after begging his master, the boy, named Jasper, was introduced to Nathan ‘Uncle Nearest’ Green, who was told to teach him what he knew. A natural entrepreneur, Jasper so believed in this whiskey that he started selling it as far and wide as he could. 

December 6th 1865 came around and the thirteenth amendment was finally passed. Uncle Nearest was a free man. Not long after, Jasper bought the distillery and named it after himself, though he didn’t use his given name; he preferred what the locals called him: not Jasper Daniel, but Jack Daniel. He asked Nathan to be his very first master distiller, a position which he happily accepted. The men worked together until Nathan retired.

Nathan’s story was lost for a long time. We can only imagine why. However, a new distillery was built just down the road from Jack Daniel’s, where Nathan’s descendents work today. Quite rightly, it was named after the man who turned out to be the true founding father of Tennessee Whiskey: Nathan Green. Uncle Nearest. Both distilleries still enjoy a warm bond formed by their shared histories.

There are three Uncle Nearest Whiskies to try. Seek them out and please, tell the story. 

1884 Small Batch Whiskey

Whiskey aged a minimum of 7 year-old, the 1884 commemorates the final year Nearest is believed to have put his own whiskey into barrels before retiring. Now blended by his descendents. Lighter in style and proof than the 1856. A great, accessible whiskey.

See more here.

1856 Premium Aged Whiskey

Tastes like the mix for fruit cake! Raisins, sultanas, butter, vanilla and soft cinnamon spice.

Find it for £55 at at Master of Malt.

1820 Nearest Green Single Barrel Edition

Aged a minimum of 11 years, with a cask strength above 108, less than 1% of Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey barrels are selected as these rare, single barrels.

See more here.

Black charities to support

Please help us go beyond just this story to helping those on the ground. We’ve compiled a list of official charities that support this vital cause. Let’s stamp out inequality. For Good.

Thurgood Marshall College Fund -Established in 1987 to support public historically black colleges and universities and students. (US)

Black Girls CODE - Teaching young, black girls how to code. (US)

100 Black Men of America -Improves educational, quality-of-life and economic opportunities within African-American communities. (US)

Black Minds Matter - To support black people struggling with their mental health during this particularly triggering time for the community. (UK)

Exist Loudly Fund - Set up by youth worker and activist Tanya Compas to support Queer Black young people in London and across the country. (UK)

Black Lives Matter UK - “To eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes”.

If you liked this, check out our articles on ‘Three best whiskies to invest in’ and the ‘World’s favourite whisky glass’.