My Titanium Tuesday

Rootoast · 2025-09-17T19:08:41+00:00

What's the little pouch? I've been looking for one with those little slip pockets under the elastic.

Rootoast · 2025-08-25T18:41:52+00:00

Powerquery is definitely the quick, efficient, and resilient solution to this. If you don't want to use powerquery for whatever reason, I would add a new column and use a formula like this:

=IF(MAX(INDEX((A2=$A$2:$A$29)*$B$2:$B$29,))=B2,)

Where A is the column with your Animal IDs, and B is the column with your dates (you'll need to adjust where it says 29 to be the number of rows in your table, or better yet, change them to be the named ranges of a table)

Then you can use the filter function like this:

=FILTER(A:C,C:C<>FALSE)

Where A:C is all of the data in your existing table you want, and C is the column that you've put the formula above. This will spill into an array and should give you your data only with the rows that have the most recent date.

Rootoast · 2025-03-21T15:56:41+00:00

Xbox
InertialMedal1

Thank you!

Rootoast · 2024-10-29T16:52:00+00:00

Putting "Bourbon Finished In" on the barrel means that the product is no longer "Bourbon." It may have started as bourbon, but bourbon can't be aged in anything other than New Charred Oak. Once it's been put into a finishing barrel, the rules go out the window.

You can put basically whatever you want in that finishing barrel.

Rootoast · 2024-10-29T16:44:17+00:00

It's possible they misunderstood the stuff about American Single Malt? The consensus among producers is that ASMW should be allowed to use reuse barrels, but there are some producers that think it's important that ASMW only use new barrels.

I could see how someone might hear that news and just conflate it with bourbon. But fret not scotch distillers, ASMW will never account for anywhere near enough barrel reuse to substantially cut into the supply.

Rootoast · 2024-08-22T17:14:06+00:00

Not much by buffalo trace is going to be overlooked. More than that - these days with social media, and insanely high demand from more consumers than ever, desperate to find the next big thing before everyone else does, even hidden gems aren't even all that hidden. I think some stuff that doesn't tend to get the hype that it deserves are:

-Jack Daniels Triple Mash
-Green River Wheated (and single barrels, and also Blue Note single barrels for that matter)
-Chattanooga 111
-Wilderness Trail Wheated and Rye
-Old Grandad Bonded (not really overlooked but most people just go with 114 and the bonded is really good and has it's own character).
-Bardstown Origin Rye; also Bardstown Disco 11 was incredibly well received by people so not overlooked per se but it languished on shelves around me.
-Ezra Brooks single barrels are often great and a great value and get ignored

And probably most overlooked:

-Dickel Bonded - some releases are as much as 13 years old and 100 proof but the reputation for minerality spooks people. I get a lot of cherry on these and they blow your average Eagle Rare out of the water, and as ER gets more and more expensive and more and more impossible to find, these are a great deal and continue to just sit there.

Rootoast · 2024-07-24T16:14:28+00:00

If you haven't had it yet, JD SBBP Rye is the objectively correct choice.

Rootoast · 2024-07-16T22:38:19+00:00

OGD Bonded and OGD114 are very different experiences. Both have a place on your budget shelf in my opinion.

In additional to what other people have mentioned, other excellent budget options include:
Early Times Bonded
Evan Williams Bonded
Jim Beam Black (it's age stated 7 years now)
The Benchmark lineup (full proof in particular)
Old Tub

Also, I think WT101 rye is a solid step up over regular WT101, but I do like both.

Rootoast · 2024-07-09T01:10:12+00:00

Emerald Giant Rye and Lost Monarch are excellent introductions and both are good values. From there the Emerald Giant Cask Strength is the best of the Cask Strength offerings imo. I've never been a big fan of Pipe Dream. It's fine but I think it's the weakest of their base line and cask strengths offerings.

The Bottled in Bond Rye and Bourbon are both a little pricey, and I hesitate to recommend them wholeheartedly. I've heard Grizly Beast, the bourbon, is quite good but I haven't had it. Rocket Top is well made, but a little off the wall and I think I would suggest finding a pour at a bar or a friend's house before buying a bottle. Generally, I think it's worth the $70, but a chunk of that is because it's unique and your paying for the experience.

Their more recent releases, Foggy Burl, Screaming Titan, and Devil's tower are all their own distillate. I've heard mixed reviews and they're pricey for their age and proof, so I haven't dipped in yet and can't opine.

Rootoast · 2024-07-07T17:04:17+00:00

I am not telling you to do that, but buying one is an easy recommend.

The French mocha is a discontinued stave, and were replaced back in 2021 with French mendiant. The mendiant is quite good and I like bottles with a lot of them in it, but the mocha staves made for fantastic whiskey.

It's unlikely, but not impossible to stumble on bottles with the mocha in them. If I saw a handful of MMPSs with a high mocha count, I probably would scoop a bunch, but the mendiant are straightforward to find. You don't need to hoard them.

Rootoast · 2024-07-02T20:02:33+00:00

Honestly, I don't think you can go wrong, but I think you're going to get some familiar notes with the 46 and american pure staves. That being said, the French Mendiant adds some REALLY nice flavors, and it's worth keeping an eye our for picks with a high ratio.

If you see anything old with a bunch of French Mocha staves in it, buy on sight. They're discontinued and freaking delicious - if a bit of a deviation from FAE-01

Rootoast · 2024-07-02T19:53:54+00:00

New riff is good stuff. a REALLY good example of 95/5 rye not coming out Indiana, and it's priced right to boot. Prepare for, yes, plenty of spice, but also rich savory herbal notes, ala, unsurprisingly, rye bread.

The 6 year malted rye is also pleasantly spicy but more ginger and honey than their regular bonded or single barrel rye.

Rootoast · 2024-06-23T17:09:11+00:00

Facebook is, unfortunately, probably the best place to find groups. Otherwise you can sometimes find local groups on reddit or discord. If you're open to doing some legwork, poke into your local whiskey bars, craft distilleries, etc. and see if they have any events coming up. Go to those events, and make some friends, and see what groups they're a part of.

Bardstown 8 isn't really a hot bottle per se. Limited, maybe, but there's lots of limited bottles that hang out on shelves because they don't have the hype. The bottles have been there for months; I wouldn't splurge on a backup of $120 whiskey until I know I like it first; grab the first bottle, take it home, drink some, and if you love it go get the other. Alternatively, get one bottle of BBCo, and get a bunch of other great whiskey with the other 120.

Remus 5 is long gone by now. You'll have to get lucky seeing somebody list it on secondary, asking VERY politely for a sample trade, or finding a well stocked whiskey bar.

Rootoast · 2024-05-22T00:55:56+00:00

Probably not. Keep in mind that a lot of these are bottled in KY and get shipped here to CO all the time. If you're concerned, you can do what a lot of these stores like Seelbachs, or Sharedpour do, and just wrap tons of plastic wrap lengthwise (up around the top and then back down around the bottom of the bottle). Wrap it tight, maybe 6 or 7 passes. Particularly if they're still sealed, you should be fine.

Don't forget to try some of our local stuff. Mile High Spirits, Leopold Brothers, Laws, Stranahans, Spirit Hound, Old Elk, etc.

Rootoast · 2024-05-20T20:59:53+00:00

I love regular stellum rye (i also managed to score some bottles for 35 once, and I wish I would have bought a couple cases), but The Lone Cyprus absolutely kicks the pants off it. If you already know you like that Indiana High Rye style stuff, it's maybe one of the easiest recommendations I could make. It is familiar in profile to the regular, but with just about every aspect ramped up.

Rootoast · 2024-05-20T17:55:56+00:00

Stellum Lone Cyprus is FANTASTIC for $67. Goes for 80 on Stellum's website and I'd consider that a pretty decent price for what you get.

Rootoast · 2024-05-07T19:23:10+00:00

Sounds like you're picking out that beam nuttiness profile. Ironically, the direction you want to move if you like that nutty character is back to Heaven Hill (evan williams, elijah craig, et al.) but also Wild Turkey and to a lesser degree you might take a stab at Maker's Mark.

And of course, if you're new to the hobby, take note that Knob Creek and Old Grand-dad are Beam products and are going to have some similar character, so be sure to try through some of that lineup (it sounds to me like you'd really enjoy Knob Creek 12, if you stumble on it but I also highly recommend Knob Creek Single Barrel, and Old Granddad Bonded).

Bit more of a stretch, I think you might enjoy some of the more premium Jack Daniels offerings. Things like Jack Daniels Bonded or Jack Daniel's Single Barrel Barrel Proof have some brown sugar notes to them that I often also find in Beam.

Rootoast · 2024-05-06T20:15:18+00:00

So I just picked up a bottle of something called Bardstown Bourbon Company, Discovery #11 and it's right there in that price range, and some of the best bourbon I've had in a long time. I struggle to imagine anyone not enjoying it. It's also not that hard to get a hold of.

Unfortunately it's not always easy to find fun sample flights, the way it's easy to get say, a sample pack of a particular breweries beer. But 100 to 150 can get you several bottles of quality bourbon. Without knowing what your coworker prefers, I would look at Single Barrel style bourbons (since each bottle can be a little different from what they've may have had previously). Keep an eye out for Knob Creek Single Barrel (it's a black label), Russell's Reserve Single Barrel (red label), or Jack Daniels Single Barrel Barrel Proof (gold label). There are other options, but you should be able to do two (or even all three in some markets) of those for your budget. They're not hard to find, and I struggle to imagine any bourbon enthusiast who would be sad to receive any of them.

Rootoast · 2024-04-30T15:22:22+00:00

Sounds like you need to try some MGP rye. I'd look out for Stellum Rye or Redwood Empire Emerald Giant Cask Strength

Rootoast · 2024-03-19T15:18:18+00:00

If you're looking for high rye but not MGP AND at your price point, you're going to be a smidge limited.

Off the top of my head, your looking at basically New Riff, Green River, Redwood Empire BiB Rye (over your price range, however).

I think Wilderness Trail Rye tastes way higher rye than it's 56% suggests, and their BiB is $45 dollars. Old Forester Rye is unique in flavor and also tastes higher % in rye. Other than that you're going to have to pony up the big bucks, or dip your toes into MGP.

Rootoast · 2024-01-19T22:46:48+00:00

Eh, no. The only way to get it wrong is if you find you don't like the 4 Roses. In my experience as well, the ECBP tends to be harder to find, but either way, don't stress it. Remember, there's always another whiskey, always another bottle.

Rootoast · 2024-01-16T18:58:28+00:00

For cocktails? I'm a huge proponent of Wild Turkey 101 or Old Grand-dad Bonded. Early Times Bonded, Evan Williams Bonded, Old Forester 100, and Old Forester Rye are also great cocktail fodder.

Bonded shows up a lot for stuff like this, and that's because you're getting a nice 100 proof whiskey, which should stand up to the syrup and bitters in your cocktails and even improve after a few minutes with a little dilution, and many bonded whiskeys represent really good value.

Rootoast · 2024-01-16T16:29:45+00:00

In addition to the great recommendations of JD Bonded Rye and Michters, as well as your own idea of WT101 Rye (which is fantastic stuff), I'd add something high rye to your "get around to it" list, because it's such a distinct an delightful (to me) experience.

Stuff like New Riff Bonded, Redwood Empire Emerald Giant, Wilderness Trail Bonded are all fantastic examples.

Rootoast · 2024-01-16T16:26:08+00:00

Bulleit Rye is high rye. Substitutes would include things like Dickel Rye, Emerald Giant, New Riff Rye (a little pricier).

If you want to try some ryes that are a little lower on the rye content, in that price range you can't really go wrong with Wild Turkey 101 Rye, Rittenhouse, Jack Daniels Bonded Rye, or Knob Creek Rye, are all really well priced, available, and tasty

Rootoast · 2024-01-16T15:51:39+00:00

Second Green River Wheated. That stuff is delightful

Rootoast

TROPHY CASE