The San Francisco World Spirits Competition was held in early March, where more than 40 judges blind-tasted nearly 3,000 spirits over the course of four days. The judges chose a variety of bottles of brown from all over the world for various whiskey awards, and the SFWSC recently made the full results available. Here are a few of the judges’ favorite American whiskeys.
Best Bourbon Whiskey: Barrell Bourbon Batch 021 10 Year Old Cask Strength
Price: $90
ABV: 53%
State: Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana
The SFWSC’s choice for best bourbon is a blend of straight bourbon whiskeys, aged in American white oak. Enjoy this bourbon with a few drops of water. It’s available in limited quantities in most markets.
Best Straight Bourbon: Woodinville Straight Bourbon
Price: $40
ABV: 45%
State: Washington
This small-batch bourbon uses Washington-grown grains and the state’s dynamic temperature changes to create a spirit that tastes dark and rich with sweet aromas.
Best Small Batch Bourbon – Up to 5 Years: Kings County Distillery Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon
Price: $62
ABV: 50%
State: New York
Bottled at 100 proof, this bourbon is distilled, aged (for at least four years) and bottled in one New York distillery hence its Bottled-in-Bond status.
Best Small Batch Bourbon – 11 Years and Older: Eagle Rare 17 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon
Price: $50
ABV: 50.5
State: Kentucky
Eagle Rare, one of the more approachable labels under the Buffalo Trace Distillery umbrella, finds its hard-to-find 17-year-old expression winning a small batch bourbon award for the 1000th time. A part of the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, this bottle is released every fall in extremely limited quantities. So if you ever find it at MSRP, buy it, then go buy a stack of lottery tickets.
Best Single Barrel Bourbon: Baker’s Single Barrel Bourbon
Price: $60
ABV: 53.5%
State: Kentucky
The Baker’s Single Barrel is new from Jim Beam. In what was originally a blend of barrels, Baker’s is now exclusively single barrel and aged for a minimum of seven years. This is its first major award since the change.
Best Special Barrel-Finished Bourbon: Bardstown Bourbon Company Collaborative Series “Phifer Pavitt Reserve” Bourbon
Price: $125
ABV: 53.5%
State: Tennessee
Bardstown Bourbon Company takes nine-year-old Tennessee straight bourbon whiskey and finishes it for 19 months in cabernet sauvignon barrels to create, what it calls, “voluptuous” and “succulent” tasting notes.
Best Craft Distiller Whiskey: ASW Distillery Maris Otter Single Varietal Single Malt Whiskey
Price: $49
ABV: 54.2%
State: Georgia
This single malt whiskey from an Atlanta distillery uses Maris Otter malt, which it claims is the “Holy Grail” of homebrewing malts. A sip of this whiskey will be reminiscent of Speyside scotches, but with a mashbill that’s 100 percent American.
Best Tennessee Whiskey: Davidson Reserve Tennessee Straight Sour Mash Whiskey
Price: $40
ABV: 50%
State: Tennessee
Expect a heavy dose of spice with this whiskey made from 100 percent rye. But that boldness subsides to reveal a more subtle, delicate fruity flavor. For $40, this is a must-try for anyone who loves a good US whiskey.
Best Rye Whiskey: Parker’s Heritage Collection 13th Edition Rye Whiskey
Price: $150
ABV: 52.5%
State: Kentucky
The Parker Heritage Collection is a yearly tribute to Heaven Hill’s late master distiller, Parker Beam. Its 13th edition is a rye whiskey that consists of 75 specialty barrels that were charred for 90 seconds, more than twice as long as the standard. The result is a spicy and woody non-chill filtered whiskey that’ll keep you warm and toasty on the inside.
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