When you hit $70 per bottle in bourbon, you start tapping into the truly special stuff. This is the price point where the great single barrels, unique blends, cask strength masterpieces, and small batch delights flourish. That’s not to say that you’ll only find one-off bottlings between $60-$70. It’s just to say that you can get something truly special under $70 per bottle.
To that end, I’m calling out 20 bottles of bourbon that clock in just under $70 and all rule. The bottles listed below are all winners and will scratch any bourbon itch out there. That all said, I did rank these bourbons, since a few near the end are unassailably great whiskeys that transcend the category.
It’s also worth noting that these prices are the current prices in Louisville, Kentucky (mostly via retailers like Total Wine). Your region may have slightly different prices than those listed below. Regardless, find the whiskey on this list that speaks to you, and go with it! Let’s dive in!
20. Horse Soldier Small Batch Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 47.5%
Average Price: $68
The Whiskey:
This craft whiskey from Ohio is made with a mash bill of 65% corn, 30% rye, and 5% malted barley. The barrels aged a minimum of six years before batching, proofing, and bottling.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Butterscotch leads the nose on this sip as ginger snaps mingle with rich and sharp toffee candies next to a touch of vanilla, pepper, and cherry lurking underneath everything.
Palate: The taste amps up the creaminess of the vanilla and the butteriness of the toffee, as a slight marzipan flourish arrives with a thin layer of freshly cracked black pepper and salted black licorice.
Finish: That pepper marries to the ginger as the heat levels off and fades out leading towards a finish with more of the vanilla and dry wood than anything else.
Bottom Line:
This is a super solid small batch to have on hand. There’s a classic bourbon foundation that supports a deep and vibrant profile. Overall, this works wonders in any whiskey-forward cocktail or as an everyday sipper over some rocks.
19. Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 47%
Average Price: $62
The Whiskey:
This new(ish) expression from Heaven Hill uses classic Elijah Craig Small Batch and finishes it in another barrel. The aged six- to eight-year-old whiskey is transferred to new toasted oak barrels for a spell so that the whiskey can really capture more of that oakiness.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Naturally, you get a woodiness on the nose that teeters between soft cedar and sweet almost fruity hardwoods with a hint of caramel sweetness as a counterpoint on the bold nose.
Palate: That caramel has an orange chocolate edge with hints of clove, cinnamon, and white pepper lurking in the background of the palate.
Finish: On the end, the spices dry out (think cinnamon sticks or spice barks), the sweetness subsides, and you’re left with a touch of that soft cedar and some well-warmed senses.
Bottom Line:
This is a nicely balanced sweet treat that captures the dryness of a well-made toasted oak finish. You get that Kentucky sweetness with a lot of spice. In the end, I’d lean towards using this in whiskey-forward cocktails primarily — especially if you’re looking for a woody spicy kick.
18. Rabbit Hole Heigold Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 47.5%
Average Price: $65
The Whiskey:
This Louisville whiskey is made with a “double malted” mash bill. The recipe calls for 70% corn, 25% malted German rye, and 5% malted barley. The hot juice goes into the barrels at a lower entry proof and rests for over four years in toasted and charred Kelvin barrels (from the Louisville cooperage that many consider the best in the game). Only 15 of those barrels go into the final batch.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This nose is classic bourbon with deep and dark cherry, burnt orange, old vanilla pods, and a hint of licorice layered into cream soda with a sprig of fresh mint.
Palate: There’s a sense of fancy Almond Joy next to clove-studded orange candies, vanilla cake with caramel frosting, and a light mint tobacco in a cedar humidor with a twinge of leather.
Finish: The cedar, dark cherry, singe orange, and bold woody spice all pop in the finish and fade slowly away, leaving you with a well-rounded “bourbon” experience.
Bottom Line:
This is quintessential Kentucky bourbon with real depth. While this works as a great sipper over a big rock, it really shines brightest in an old fashioned.
17. Milam & Greene Very Small Batch Straight Bourbon Whiskey Batch 1.2
ABV: 54%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
This whiskey is from Master Blender Heather Greene, who picked 75 barrels for the blend. The blend is a mix of contract-distilled Kentucky whiskey with Tennessee whiskey rounding out the mix. The batched barrels were vatted in a 1,000-gallon tank before being re-barrelled into French oak for a final rest.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is light but runs deep with walnuts, vanilla flowers, soft custard cut with nutmeg and clove, and a light sense of Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Palate: The palate is like walking through a fruit orchard in full bloom with a hint of wet black tea next to buttermilk biscuits dripping with butter and honey.
Finish: The finish gets slightly dry with a sense of dry and barky winter spices, dried red berries, and apple chips next to a light sense of brandy-soaked oak staves.
Bottom Line:
This is a lovely and light(ish) bourbon that’s perfect for warm-weather sipping. Pour this over a few rocks, add a floral or botanical garnish, and you’ll be set for a soft and supple sipping experience.
16. Leopold Bros. Bottled-In-Bond Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 50%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
This Colorado crafty whiskey gets a lot of attention from bourbon drinkers in the know. The mash is made from 64% corn, 21% malted barley, and 15% Abruzzi Heritage Rye, which Master Distiller Todd Leopold malted at his malting house at the distillery in Denver. That mash ran through a classic pot still before it was barreled and left to rest for five years.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The floral and spicy nature of that Abruzzi rye comes out on the nose with a touch of candied apples, sweet porridge, Quik chocolate milk powder, and the faintest hint of sourdough rye with a light smear of salted butter.
Palate: The taste leans into stewed pears with nutmeg and clove spices leading the way as Almond Roca and green peppercorns jostle for space on your palate.
Finish: The end mellows out as that spice fades towards an eggnog vibe with a creamy vanilla underbelly and a final touch of that floral rye and a hint of pear.
Bottom Line:
This is a whiskey-maker’s whiskey. It’s complex and unique in all the right ways with a serious depth that goes far beyond the ordinary. Take your time with this one and it’ll reward you — and then try it in your favorite cocktail.
15. New Riff High Note Series: Bohemian Wheat Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 8-Year-Old
ABV: 58.95%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
This late 2023 release from New Riff is all about the wheat. The whiskey is made with 65% non-GMO corn, 18% Bohemian floor-malted wheat, 10% unmalted wheat, and 7% dark wheat. The whiskey was then small batched and bottled 100% as-is to highlight the work that the wood and wheated bourbon underwent over years of resting on the Ohio River.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose feels like walking into an old bread bakery in Central Europe early in the morning before hitting this note of freshly fried apple fritters and old-fashioned doughnuts, a touch of prune, plum, and date, and a good dose of soft winter spice.
Palate: The palate is dry but full of sourdough bread crusts, Graham Crackers, and Fig Newtons with a touch of huckleberry jam, dry sweetgrass braided with smudging sage, and a touch of straw bale before the woody spice kicks in with a cinnamon bark focus.
Finish: The end leans into the woody spices with a touch of clove, allspice, and nutmeg before sweetgrass and bread crusts take over with a hint of buttery cream.
Bottom Line:
This new drop from New Riff is all about taking bourbon to new places. This does that in spades while still delivering a beautifully nuanced profile that’ll feel comforting and palate-expanding at the same time.
14. Stellum Bourbon
ABV: 57.49%
Average Price: $62
The Whiskey:
The whiskey in the bottle is a cask-strength blend of whiskeys from Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee. This whiskey is all about the blending process that Stellum (part of Barrell Spirit Company) employs to make this special and award-winning bourbon. The process is a sort of hybrid reverse solera technique where the blend gets more whiskey to keep the proof high and the blend consistent in flavor as the batch is drained off.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is a holiday cake with fatty nuts next to woody spice barks — think anise, clove, and cinnamon — with a nice dose of dried red fruits and honey-dipped over-ripe Granny Smith apples.
Palate: The palate edges away from the spice towards a powdered sugar sweetness with a hint of dry vanilla. Then a counterpoint bursts onto the scene with a hit of spicy, dried chili pepper flakes next to blackberry pie with a nice dose of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Finish: The end lingers for just the right amount of time as the spice fades back towards the honeyed sweetness and a final touch of vanilla tobacco buzz lands in the back of the throat.
Bottom Line:
This is just excellent bourbon, especially if you’re looking to batch a Manhattan, Sarerac, or old fashioned.
13. Bardstown Bourbon Fusion Series #8 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 47.75%
Average Price: $62
The Whiskey:
This whiskey is a masterful blend from the team out at Bardstown Bourbon Company. The whiskey in the bottle is a mix of two four-year-old bourbons (both high rye) from BBCo with a sourced 12-year-old Kentucky bourbon with a lower-rye content. Once those barrels are married, the whiskey is proofed and bottled as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Honey stands out on the nose next to tart apples leaning toward apple cores or seeds, supported by classic notes of vanilla pods, caramel, and light oak.
Palate: That apple becomes slightly stewed and spicy with the caramel lending sweetness as a hint of walnuts arrives with a buttery crust vibe that’s very apple pie.
Finish: The end is slightly oaky but sweet in the way that cherry-flavored pipe tobacco is.
Bottom Line:
This is a honeyed and fruity-forward bourbon that feels like a bridge toward bolder unpeated single malts from Scotland. The complexity makes this an excellent simple cocktail base for your favorite whiskey-forward concoctions.
12. Luca Mariano Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Single Barrel
ABV: 51.5%
Average Price: $68
The Whiskey:
This whiskey marries Italian-American heritage with bourbon in Kentucky’s horse country. The whiskey is a contract-distilled high-rye bourbon that spends six years resting in new American oak. That whiskey is then just barely touched with local water before bottling.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose feels like walking through a peach orchard on a sunny day with blossoming honey suckles wrapped around cinnamon sticks in your hand.
Palate: The taste builds on that spiced honey with a mild root beer vibe next to overripe peach, a touch of vanilla cream, and a whisper of fresh mint.
Finish: The finish stays fairly mellow with creamy honey and mild spices blending with a soft touch of vanilla/mint tobacco warmth.
Bottom Line:
This is a really solid sipper, especially over a single rock. Drink it during or after a big family meal for the best rewards from the bourbon’s profile.
11. Larceny Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Barrel Proof A124
ABV: 62.1%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
The first Larceny Barrel Proof release of 2024 is a classic. The whiskey in the bottle is a blend of six- to eight-year-old bourbons from the wheated bourbon barrels at Heaven Hill. Those barrels were batched and then went into the bottle 100% as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This feels warm on the nose with a sense of cinnamon toast, pecan waffles covered in maple syrup, and buttery vanilla paste with a hint of prune and maybe some dates swimming in mulled wine with a whisper of dark fruity brandy.
Palate: Rummy syrup with a deep sense of Nutella spread over a toasted brioche drives the palate toward fig jam, sticky toffee pudding, and a dark caramel cut with burnt orange and salt flakes on the mid-palate.
Finish: That caramel gets so dark that it turns into cinnamon-laced dark chocolate with a touch of allspice and clove before a dry sense of old oak staves wrapped in tobacco round out the hot and dry end.
Bottom Line:
2024’s first Larceny Barrel Proof is a great whiskey that’ll deliver beyond the ordinary with a deep and classic profile. It does have a dessert vibe, so lean on pouring this one as a digestif after a big meal.
10. Ezra Brooks Cask Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Single Barrel
ABV: 60%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
This new(ish) limited edition single-barrel Ezra Brooks is a classic bourbon. The whiskey is aged for at least five years before it’s charcoal filtered, batched, and then bottled at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Orange creamsicles and nut cake drive the nose with a soft vanilla malt shake, honey cookies, and touches of cinnamon powder.
Palate: The cinnamon and nut cake pop on the palate as dark chocolate oranges and gingerbread drive the taste toward spiced cake and hot chocolate.
Finish: The spice starts to mount on the finish with a hot end that’s very woody and spicy with an almost bitter dark chocolate vibe.
Bottom Line:
This is just good all-around bourbon. It’s great however you want to sip it.
9. Old Forester Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 1910 Old Fine Whisky
ABV: 46.5%
Average Price: $60
The Whisky:
Back in 1910, there was a fire at Old Forester which stopped bottling. Whiskies that were ready had to be re-barreled while everything was rebuilt. This created a great bourbon that’s being replicated in the modern day. To do this, Old Forester is re-barreling bourbon for a second maturation before blending, proofing, and bottling, making this their “double oaked” bourbon.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Stone fruit drives the nose with hints of apricot and maybe plum next to sweet and soft cedar and black tea-infused dates on the nose.
Palate: On the palate, those dates become a rich and spicy sticky toffee pudding with a thick brandy butter topping next to a hint of oatmeal raisin cookies cut with cherry syrup.
Finish: The sweetness of the mid-palate gives way to a dark chocolate feel with a flake of salt, a hint of masa, and plenty of wintry spice leading back to that dark cherry with tobacco dryness at the very end.
Bottom Line:
This is a big Kentucky cherry bomb with deep spice and nuance. You can easily sip this over a rock or two or pour it into your favorite cocktail. Either way, you’ll be in for a treat.
8. Pursuit United Straight Blended Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 54%
Average Price: $63
The Whiskey:
This bourbon is a vatted from 40 total barrels from three different states. While the team at Pursuit United doesn’t release the Tennessee distillery name, we know the whiskeys from Kentucky and New York are from Bardstown Bourbon Company and Finger Lakes Distilling, respectively.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a rush of cedar next to Christmas spices steeped in sweet red wine.
Palate: That sweetness tends to lean into fresh honey with a touch of caramel and maybe a little dark chocolate on the end. The taste holds onto the honeyed sweetness with burnt sugars, light cedar, chocolate tobacco leaves, and a hint of orange oils.
Finish: That orange is what builds and powers the finish to its silken end, concluding with an orange-choco vibe and a very soft landing.
Bottom Line:
This is a great entry point into the wider world of Pursuit’s whiskeys (their special barrel finishes are stellar). This is a great choice if you’re batching whiskey-forward cocktails or are just looking for a no-nonsense sipper for easy afternoon pours.
7. Woodinville Ginja Cask Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Portuguese Ginjinha Casks
ABV: 47.5%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
This new bourbon from Woodinville up in Seattle, Washington, is a crafty dream with a very unique finish. After about five years of aging, the bourbon is re-barreled into Ginjinha barrels (a Portuguese liqueur made with sour cherries) for another maturation run. Finally, those barrels are batched, proofed, and bottled for this limited run.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a clear sense of sweet grits cut with molasses, honey, and salted butter that gives way to blackberries soaked in rum on the nose with a light sense of spiced cookies.
Palate: The sweet porridge continues on the palate as dark cherry jam mingles with spiced winter cakes, fallow orchards, fall leaves, and a light moment of soft woody cherry bark that’s just smoldering.
Finish: A touch of cinnamon bark drives the finish toward more of that smoldering cherry wood, mulled wine, and soft notes of blackberry pie covered in malted vanilla cream sauce.
Bottom Line:
This is another bourbon that goes far beyond the ordinary to deliver something special … and delicious. Drink it however you like to drink your whiskey. It won’t let you down.
6. Penelope Barrel Strength Blend of Straight Bourbon Whiskeys Aged 9 Years
ABV:54.5%
Average Price: $65
The Whiskey:
This blended bourbon is a masterful lesson in the power of blending. The three bourbons in the blend create a four-grain bourbon via their mash bills. The final blend is comprised of 44% 10-year-old Indiana bourbon, 46% nine-year-old Indiana bourbon, and 10% nine-year-old Kentucky bourbon. Once batched, the whiskey is bottled 100% as-is at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: You get a sense of dry cornmeal on the nose next to apple crumble, plenty of wintry spice, a hint of mulled wine, wet brown sugar, and a thin layer of wet yet sweet cedar.
Palate: A hint of brandy-soaked cherries arrives on the palate with a dusting of dark chocolate powder next to more apple pie filling, spice, and buttery crust alongside a sweet, toffee-heavy mid-palate.
Finish: The end arrives with a dry wicker vibe, cherry tobacco chewiness, and a hint of that dark chocolate.
Bottom Line:
This is a great Penelope to grab for any collection. It’s deep, fun, and delivers. You cannot go wrong pouring it over a big piece of ice or into your favorite cocktail.
5. Noah’s Mill Small Batch Genuine Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 57.15%
Average Price: $67
The Whiskey:
This is the bigger and bolder sibling of Willett’s Rowan’s Creek Bourbon. It’s the same whiskey — a no-age-statement bourbon that’s made from four to 15-year-old barrels — that’s barely proofed down with local Kentucky water before bottling.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Maple syrup-covered walnuts greet you with a sense of dark dried cherries and a hint of rose water next to old leather books and holiday spices.
Palate: The taste holds onto those notes while adding in a stewed plum depth with a whisper of caramel apple and orange oils.
Finish: The vanilla and sweet oak kick in late with a rich depth and well-rounded lightness to the sip fade towards lush cherry tobacco, soft leather, and winter spice matrix tied to prunes and dates.
Bottom Line:
This is the most silky and nuanced bourbon on the list. It’s gentle. But it still delivers a massive depth and profile that’ll touch on everything you want from a premium bourbon.
4. Copper & Kings Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in American Apple Brandy Barrels
ABV: 55%
Average Price: $65
The Whiskey:
Copper & Kings have spent years perfecting their Kentucky brandy in Louisville. Now, they’re perfecting brandy-finished Kentucky bourbon. The whiskey in the bottle is a sourced blend of five-, 10-, and 15-year-old bourbons that once batched were re-barreled into Copper & Kings’ own apple brandy barrels. After a year of resting in those brandy barrels, the whiskey was barely touched with water and bottled as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Cranberry sauce and caramel candies drive the nose toward old tobacco rolled up with cedar and sage and packed into an old cedar box next to hints of fall leaves and fallow apple orchards.
Palate: The palate opens with a lush and leathery dried apricot next to a moment of grapefruit pith, more cranberry sauce, and plenty of winter spice before honey and chocolate arrive with a dark cherry fruit leatheriness.
Finish: Toffee-dipped tart apples lead to warm and spiced apple cider on the finish with a nice sense of dark chocolate-covered caramels and soft vanilla cream.
Bottom Line:
Delicious. Period.
3. Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Barrel Proof Tennessee Whiskey
ABV: Varies
Average Price: $60
The Whiskey:
Where Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Select is cut with soft limestone water to bring it down to proof, this expression comes straight from the barrel. These barrels are all hand-selected from the vast Jack Daniel’s rickhouses. What’s left from the angel’s share then goes straight into the bottle. That means the ABVs and tasting notes for this bottle will vary ever so slightly depending on which bottle you snag.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Expect a nose full of rich vanilla, salted caramel, and toasted oak next to a rush of cherry-spiked spice layered into fruity dark tobacco.
Palate: The sip will have a mix of vanilla, oak, and rich wintry spices with a nice dose of bright red fruits and a texture that’s more velvet than liquid.
Finish: The end holds onto that vibe as the mild spice, toasted oak, rich vanilla, and almost maple syrup sweetness slowly fade across your senses, leaving you with chewy cherry tobacco stuffed into an old cedar box.
Bottom Line:
This is another excellent after-dinner sipping bourbon. It goes down so easily and will deliver those after-dinner dessert vibes in all the right ways.
2. Maker’s Mark Limited Release BEP Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Barrel Finished With 10 Virgin Oak Staves
ABV: 55.35%
Average Price: $68
The Whisky:
This is the final chapter of this series Maker’s Mark “Wood Finish Series” before the next set starts dropping. The whiskey in the bottle is made from classic Maker’s that’s batched at Barrel Entry Proof (BEP), which is 110-proof (the average bourbon goes into the barrel at 125-proof) and then finished with ten bespoke wooden staves inside the barrel, all made from new (or “virgin”) oak.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Roasted vanilla beans and pan-toasted winter spices (nutmeg, clove, allspice, and cinnamon) mingle with lush and butter caramel sauce, brown-sugar rock candy, and a whisper of old wicker furniture with a hint of pipe tobacco.
Palate: That brown-sugar sweetness drives the palate toward woody and warm winter spices with a creamy eggnog edge next to vanilla sheet cake sprinkled with toffee chards and dried orchard fruits.
Finish: The end dries out a tad as the spices ramp up toward a holiday cake made with plenty of vanilla, brown sugar, buttercream, and toasted woody spices before being kissed with fresh pipe tobacco that was left in a cedar box for a spell.
Bottom Line:
This is a stellar version of Maker’s Mark. It sips so well while delivering an iconic profile of wheated bourbon.
1. Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 50.5%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
Jimmy Russell hand selects eight to nine-year-old barrels from his warehouses for their individual taste and quality. Those barrels are then cut down ever-so-slightly to 101 proof and bottled one at a time with their barrel number and warehouse location right on the bottle.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose draws you in with classic vibes from top to bottom thanks to rich vanilla smoothness, wintry spices, a hint of cedar, and a mix of sour cherry and tart apple with a slight lawn furniture earthiness.
Palate: The palate stays very classic with old boot leather next to dry cedar bark, a layer of rich marzipan cut with orange oils and covered in dark chocolate, and a distant hint of nasturtiums suspended in fresh honey.
Finish: The end finishes with a good hint of spiced cherry tobacco and old leather next to mild nuttiness, bitter chocolate, and soft vanilla cake frosted with cinnamon and cherry.
Bottom Line:
This is one of the best Kentucky bourbons out there. This single-barrel masterpiece is everything that you could possibly want from a sipping whiskey. Buy a case.
