$400 for a single bottle of bourbon probably sounds outrageous. But when you get to a certain level of whiskey drinking — investing, or just collecting — it’s really not. We’re nowhere near the thousands-of-dollars-a-bottle unicorn bourbon whiskey arena yet. The bottles of whiskey at this price point are still all about small batch bottling, unique oak, and limited editions. While rare, these bottles are not impossible to find or made from some impossible set of circumstances.
To that end, the 10 bottles I’m listing below are all great tasting. That collision of rare and tasty is why they’re listed at this price point and what actually makes them worthwhile to buy and enjoy.
When it comes to ranking these whiskeys, I’m going on taste and depth. The top five bottles on this list transcend that though and are just straight fire pours of whiskey. The rest might be a little more niche for some bourbon drinkers. But hey, that’s part of the fun — trying new things, finding new loves, spending way too much time and money hunting down these bottles…
Okay, let’s dive in and find you a great rare bourbon whiskey to add to your bar cart.
10. Orphan Barrel Copper Tongue Aged 16 Years Cask Strength Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 44.9%
Average Price: $327
The Whiskey:
This release from Diageo’s Orphan Barrel program is from Cascade Hollow Distilling Co., better known as George Dickel. The whiskey is a marrying of two 16-year-old bourbon barrels that were hand-selected by Dickel Master Distiller Nicole Austin. The unique catch here is that the ABVs are very low for a “barrel-proof” bourbon.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This opens with a hint of buttery cornbread that immediately veers into cinnamon apple clusters, soft nutty chocolate spread, and a hint of stonefruit tobacco in an old leather tobacco pouch.
Palate: There’s a mild sense of eggnog spices next to vanilla buttercream with a clear note of old, musty cellar beams leading back to that warm tobacco chew that’s laced with winter spices and sharp marmalade.
Finish: The end leans into the woodier aspects of the winter spices while peach pits and vanilla cream mingle with dry chocolate powder cut with espresso bean tobacco rolled with old cedar bark and left to dry on earthy wicker.
Bottom Line:
This is earthy and creamy, which is an odd combination on paper but somehow works in this bottle. It’s a testament to expert blending by a true master. This is a rare one that proves your whiskey nerd status while giving your palate a nice expansion.
9. Kentucky Owl Batch #12 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 57.9%
Average Price: $375
The Whiskey:
Kentucky Owl’s batch releases are always adored when they drop. The latest batch — just dropped in late December 2022 — is a blend of seven to 14-year-old bourbons blended with four-year-old bourbon to create a deep and engaging flavor profile at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose feels quintessential from the jump with sweet and creamy toffee, woody winter spices, and orchards full of dry and ripe winter fruits (think pears, tangerines, and maybe even some pomegranate) with a hint of nasturtium.
Palate: The taste is soft and lush with a sharp winter spiciness — think cinnamon bark, star anise, and clove buds — aside burnt orange and salted caramel candies over a hint of figs and plums next to creamy vanilla just kissed with mint.
Finish: That creaminess drives the finish toward an orange marmalade tobacco end that’s full of subtle notes of spice, vanilla, and apple/pear/cherry cream soda and cedar bark.
Bottom Line:
This is another winner from Kentucky Owl, and worth drinking throughout 2023. If you’re already a fan, you’ll love this batch. If you’re not yet a fan, you’ll see why so many folks fall in love with this stuff.
8. Wild Turkey Aged 13 Years Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey “Father and Son” Limited Edition
ABV: 43%
Average Price: $321
The Whiskey:
This whiskey is hewn from barrels that meet a specific flavor profile selected by father and son team Jimmy and Eddie Russell. The juice is classic Turkey with a mash bill of 75%, 13%, and 12% malted barley. Beyond that, the whiskey rests for 13 years before it’s vatted and then proofed way down (for a Turkey release anyway) with that famously soft Kentucky limestone water.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with lush notes of cherry tobacco, dried summer flowers, eggnog spice, rich vanilla oils, freshly fried apple fritters, and a touch of orange oils lurking in the background.
Palate: There’s a mix of light cedar next to a Hostess Cherry Pie vibe, a touch of fancy root beer with plenty of sassafras, dry vanilla husks, and a hint more of orange.
Finish: Brittle toffee covered in chalky dark chocolate arrives on the mid-palate and leads towards a finish that has a leathery tobacco spice next to a dried-out black tea feel that ultimately ends a little soft and watery on the short finish.
Bottom Line:
This is super easy to drink neat or on the rocks but might disappear a little in a cocktail thanks to that low ABV. Still, if you’re looking for the softest and most easy-going Wild Turkey sipping experience, then this is the bottle for you.
7. Joseph A. Magnus Cigar Blend Bourbon Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 50.35%
Average Price: $386
The Whiskey:
This sourced bourbon is built from 11 and 18-year-old bourbons. The real star of the show with this whiskey is that those bourbons were finished in armagnac, cognac, and sherry casks before batching and bottling as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This opens with sticky toffee pudding that really amps up the cinnamon and nutmeg next to black-tea-soaked dates next to some stewed prunes wrapped in chili-chocolate-laced tobacco leaves and dripped in honey and then walnuts.
Palate: A savory fruitiness opens the palate with figs and pumpkin that leads towards an apricot jam with a hint of clove and cinnamon next to light touches of old library leather and cobwebs.
Finish: A faint hint of dark berries arrives on the mid-palate before the finish luxuriates in burnt toffee, almond shells, more of that leather, and dried-out apricots.
Bottom Line:
These releases are consistently delicious. They will challenge your palate and expand it all while tasting damn near perfect. Make sure to add a little water to really let this one bloom in the glass — it’ll get nice and creamy.
6. Stagg Jr. Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 65.5%
Average Price: $349
The Whiskey:
This entry point to the much older and much higher-priced, George T. Stagg, is killing the bourbon game right now. The whiskey is generally eight to nine-year-old bourbons, made at Buffalo Trace, and batched and bottled with no fussing, cutting, or filtering. The results are an award-winning bourbon that’s getting harder and harder to find.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There is distinct and rich molasses next to hints of pecan, dark and bold holiday spices, and vanilla oils on the nose.
Palate: The palate holds onto those notes and adds a cherry sweetness with a hint of woody apple in the background and a touch of toffee.
Finish: The end is long and very hot, leaving you with a spicy tobacco buzz on your tongue and senses.
Bottom Line:
This is another crowd-pleasing favorite. Stagg stans go deep with their fandom. These get a little too hot for me, so I recommend a rock or two. That said, if you’re looking for an ABV/proof firey explosion, this is the bottle to get.
5. Weller The Original Wheated Bourbon Full Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 57%
Average Price: $329
The Whiskey:
This expression is a marriage of some serious barrels of unknown age. That batched whiskey goes into the bottle at “full proof” which is not necessarily “barrel proof.” The “full proof” this refers to is the proof of the hot juice when it goes into the barrel for aging. That whiskey will come out of the barrel somewhere around 57% but not right at it. So there may be a little proofing water involved to make sure that the final blend in the bottle is always 114 proof and not 114.7 one year and 113.1 the next year or 115.9 the year after that.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Ripe and sour cherries lead the way with a thick vanilla underbelly, a hint of salted caramel, and woody cinnamon next to whole nutmeg bulbs on the nose with this slight echo of almost singed cherry bark.
Palate: The palate leans into the sharpness of the cinnamon and the lushness of the vanilla as a foundation as layers of buttery caramel cake frosting with a hint of sassafras and licorice next to dry cedar bark braids with a thin line of sweet grass and a whisper of sourdough fritters.
Finish: The end leans into creamy brandy butter cut with dark-chocolate-covered dried sour cherries sprinkled with salt and rolled in fresh tobacco leaves and stacked next to orange-laced marzipan in an old and slightly sweet cedar box.
Bottom Line:
This is another winner. It’s just so nuanced and deep while feeling familiar and almost comforting. Make sure to add a little water or a single rock to really let the lush creaminess of the vanilla and dark chocolate shine through with an added hint of burnt orange on that rich marzipan.
4. Rabbit Hole Raceking Cask Strength Double Chocolate Malt Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 54.9%
Average Price: $395
The Whiskey:
This rare release from Rabbit Hole is a five-grain bourbon that’s made with some unique grains. The standouts are chocolate malted wheat from Germany (4%) and chocolate malted barley (3%) from the U.K. combined with 70% corn, 13% rye, and 10% malted rye. That juice rests in Kentucky until it’s just right for batching and bottling completely as-is in only 1,365 bottles.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is brimming with dark chocolate cut with hazelnut, chili pepper, and orange with a molasses sweetness over cinnamon toast with a hint of sharp spearmint and maple.
Palate: The palate has a sense of that hazelnut tied to cinnamon bark and black cherry tobacco with a sense of firewood bark resting in rich black dirt next to dry dark chocolate just flaked with salt.
Finish: The end has a sense of old boot leather and cedar chocolate boxes just emptied and refilled with spiced cherry tobacco and eggnog-infused espresso beans.
Bottom Line:
If you can get this as MSRP, get two — one to save and one to drink. Honestly, that’s true of every bottle on this list. Still, this is the best Rabbit Hole has to offer in my opinion. It’s that good.
3. Old Charter Oak French Oak Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 46%
Average Price: $391
The Whiskey:
This whiskey is part of the Old Charter oak finishing series. In this case, Buffalo Trace’s iconic Mash Bill No. 1 bourbon (the same one that creates Eagle Rare, Stagg, Benchmark, etc.) is filled into French oak casks right off the stills (bourbon has to be aged in new oak — there’s no rule on which species of oak). After 12 years, those barrels were batched and just kissed with local water for bottling.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Rich vanilla and floral honey mingle on the nose with a touch of rum raisin, cinnamon-soaked dates, and grilled peaches with a whisper of brown sugar syrup sweetness that’s also somewhat floral.
Palate: That bright and floral honey opens the palate toward moist vanilla cake frosted with nutmeg and clove icing next to rich tobacco that’s just kissed with red chili and white pepper.
Finish: The end has a hint of hazelnut next to dark chocolate-covered espresso beans, a touch of dry lavender, and fresh figs tossed in honey and mint.
Bottom Line:
This is delicious whiskey. There’s really nothing more to say.
2. Michter’s US*1 Limited Release Toasted Barrel Finish Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 45.7%
Average Price: $367
The Whiskey:
Michter’s originally dropped this back in 2014; it has since become a mainstay of their release schedule. The whiskey is standard bourbon that’s then finished in a toasted barrel from the famed Kelvin Cooperage in Louisville. They build these barrels by hand from 18-month air-dried white oak and then lightly toast (not char) the inside before the aged whiskey goes in.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This opens with a pecan pie vibe that’s nutty, dry, and full of dark Caro syrup sweetness with a hint of candied orange peels, a touch of cinnamon, and dry cedar bark.
Palate: The palate holds onto the sweetness as it leans towards a campfire roasted marshmallow, a touch of saffron and clove-stewed pears, a pile of sappy firewood, and creamy nuances of vanilla pudding all meander through your senses.
Finish: The end has a light savory nature that leads back to the pear, vanilla, and marshmallow on a very slow fade toward a pile of fresh firewood piled high on soft black soil.
Bottom Line:
The softness and sweetness of the bourbon create a nice balance for the earthy wood notes. If you’re not into the hefty woody whiskeys, don’t skip this as this might be the whiskey that gets you onto the toasted side of bourbon life. It’s that good.
1. Angel’s Envy Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Port Wine Barrels Cask Strength
ABV: 59.9%
Average Price: $393
The Whiskey:
This modern classic is a yearly limited release from the beloved Lousiville distiller. The whiskey is made from a mix of locally sourced barrels that are finished in Ruby Port casks. The best of the best are hand-selected by Angel’s Envy’s team for as-is batching and bottling with only 14,000 odd bottles making out this year.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This opens with a deep sense of blackberry jam over a Southern biscuit with plenty of brown butter, vanilla sauce, and apple fruit leather with a dash of cinnamon, allspice, and star anise next to a whisper of cherry cream soda and orange-chocolate tobacco packed into a cedar box.
Palate: The palate is soft and supple with a brandy butter vibe next to mince meat pie with powdered sugar icing, meaty dates, black tea, and rich Black Forest cake.
Finish: The end subtly meanders through shaved dark chocolate and stewed cherry, eventually landing on a vanilla-laced tobacco leaf rolled up with apple-cider-soaked cinnamon sticks and old wicker canes.
Bottom Line:
This is goddamn perfect. I wrote “excellent” in my notes when I first tasted this one this year. If you’re even remotely an Angel’s Envy fan, then get this bottle immediately. If you were ever on the fence about the brand, this bottle will convert you.
