Single barrel bourbon has so much appeal. It’s special, it’s unique, and these are the barrels that really stand out to a master blender or distiller. Being released this way is quite a nod of respect. However, with so many single barrel bourbons now on the market, what are the better alternatives to some of the best-known releases?
This isn’t about saying, “this single barrel bourbon is bad.” Quite the opposite. They’re still good whiskeys, but the prices of many of them are becoming increasingly difficult to justify.
Overrated: Blanton’s Straight From the Barrel Bourbon, 60%+, $140+ / £148+
Blanton’s has become popular for so many reasons. The biggest is that the liquid inside is very tasty, but rising prices, which have softened a little but not enough, are placing it into some very serious territory for competition.
Beyond the whiskey itself, the bottle is incredibly eye-catching for the general consumer, it has picked up numerous awards, and its appearance in John Wick helped put it in front of an even wider audience.
The whiskey is good. It has those wonderful orange and caramel notes that Blanton’s is famous for and, at barrel strength, it’s robust, spicy, and still has plenty of complexity. But so many other bottles can give you a similar experience for less money.
Instead: Wilderness Trail Family Reserve Single Barrel Cask Strength, 60%+, $59 / £69
An amazing alternative is Wilderness Trail Family Reserve Single Barrel Cask Strength, which you can find for around £69 from many UK retailers.
Like Blanton’s, it has a higher-rye mash bill, is bottled at barrel proof, and costs almost half the price. It’s not as fancy a bottle and it hasn’t appeared in a box-office film, but it doesn’t need to.
This sells out constantly and is already a firm favorite among the modern bourbon crowd. It still has loads of orange, butterscotch, and caramel notes, while offering similar flavors for around half the money.
Overrated: Willett Family Estate Single Barrel Bourbon, 57%+, £300+ / $500+
Willett built its impressive reputation by selecting some remarkable barrels from older Kentucky stocks before eventually distilling its own whiskey. The “purple top” Family Estate releases became must-buys for many bourbon drinkers.
Willett has these unique fruity notes alongside cinnamon and some decent oakiness as the finish develops. Being offered at barrel proof with no filtration is also a big nod to what many whiskey enthusiasts want.
However, as good as this stuff is, demand has cooled. Bottles are still sitting on shelves and the flipper market isn’t buying and selling them like it used to.
Instead: Frey Ranch Single Barrel Straight Bourbon, 60%+, $80 / £100
If you’re looking for an alternative, try Frey Ranch Single Barrel Straight Bourbon at around £100.
This is a wheated bourbon, but that helps bring out the fruitier, sweeter notes that we expect from something like the Willett Family Estate releases. It’s loaded with mint, cherries, mango, butterscotch, and sweet honeycomb as the palate rounds out.
I’ve really fallen in love with Frey Ranch over the last year. As far as cask-strength bourbon and rye go, this is a must-have that doesn’t ruin your wallet.
Overrated: W.L. Weller Single Barrel Bourbon, 48.5%, $300 / £195
It would be hard not to talk about Weller on this list. I should point out that £350 isn’t the recommended retail price for these products, but it’s what many retailers in the UK end up asking purely because of demand.
I say “selling.” A lot of them just gather dust.
Weller is an incredible bourbon brand, but much like Blanton’s, it stops being such a compelling proposition when the price is cranked up. Once drinkers made the connection between Weller and the wheated bourbon profile associated with Van Winkle, things started to go crazy. Only recently has some of that demand begun to cool.
Instead: Ben Holladay Soft Red Wheat Single Barrel, 61.2%, £80
If you want a wheated bourbon that actually keeps the single barrel part of the comparison, Ben Holladay Soft Red Wheat Single Barrel is a much better option. This UK-exclusive release comes in at a massive 61.2% ABV and costs around £80, which is still a serious bottle of bourbon without getting anywhere near Weller prices.
It has that softer, sweeter profile you want from a wheated bourbon, but there’s loads of intensity from the higher strength. Peach, apricot, caramel, vanilla, oak, and plenty of spice all come through, and you’re getting a genuinely single barrel release for less than a quarter of the price being asked for Weller. For me, that makes a lot more sense.
If you are in the US, Ben Holladay Rickhouse Proof or Bottled-In-Bond is a great alternative, although not single barrel.
Overrated: Blanton’s Original Single Barrel Bourbon, 46.5%, $75 / £80
Here we have the regular Blanton’s release. It’s famous for all the reasons listed at the start of the article, and this is the classic expression bottled at 46.5% ABV.
It’s wonderful bourbon, but once you’re in the £80 price bracket, there is a lot of competition. As much as I love almost all Buffalo Trace products, the UK price of this bottle is simply too high.
Instead: Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage, 43.3%, $30 / £42
Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage at around £50 is my go-to alternative.
Even when Blanton’s was closer to this price, it was a hard-fought contest between these two for me. Yes, it’s lower in ABV, but the peanut, caramel, and sweet lemon notes Evan Williams delivers are second to none at this price point.
Heaven Hill makes excellent whiskey, and you’d be hard-pressed to say that many of its products are being price-gouged by retailers. It does have rarer releases that are sought after, but those prices never reached the same extremes during the COVID-era boom-and-bust market.
Overrated: Colonel E.H. Taylor Single Barrel Bourbon, 50%, $140 / £150
I feel bad about this one. It’s another Buffalo Trace product, but E.H. Taylor Single Barrel has always been expensive in the UK compared with the US.
Even when I first started out in retail, this was around £99, and now it has climbed towards the £120 mark. The Taylor story is incredible and is part of what has made the brand so in demand.
It uses Buffalo Trace Mash Bill #1 and is bottled at 50% ABV. I know some people aren’t fans of these releases compared with Eagle Rare 10 Year Old or even regular Buffalo Trace, but its following is huge, especially with E.H. Taylor now part of the BTAC lineup.
For me, it has always had these wonderful spicy pineapple notes. It’s tropical but loaded with fresh wood spices.
Instead: Four Roses Single Barrel 100 Proof, 50%, $36 / £45
If you want to save a lot of money without giving up layered and complex flavors, we have to talk about Four Roses Single Barrel 100 Proof at around £45 a bottle.
Four Roses is every bit as good a distillery as Buffalo Trace. Some would argue it’s even better, but that’s all personal preference.
I love this bottle. It has no obvious flaws; it’s available, it’s interesting, and it has so much versatility. At this price, it’s very difficult to argue with.
Single Barrel Bourbon Is Still Great, But Hype Matters
Brands mentioned here like Blanton’s, Weller, E.H. Taylor, and Willett all make excellent whiskeys, but they’re still suffering from hype created by inflated auction demand, as well as exposure through film and TV.
There’s nothing wrong with that, but it doesn’t mean you should pay more simply because something is more famous.
Single barrel whiskeys are inherently difficult to keep on shelves, and higher prices can keep them there for longer. Alternatively, you could flood the market and let the hype die down, but that’s not how business works.
The important thing is remembering that a great single barrel bourbon doesn’t have to be the bottle everyone else is chasing.
Read the full article at 5 Overrated Single Barrel Bourbons, And What To Buy Instead
