Ultimate Bourbon Showdown: RR15, Pappy 15, GTS, and EC15; Ep. 62

Daniel AI: On this episode, Nick Calvin and Mike join Dan for an absolute elite lineup of 15-year-old bourbons, Elijah Craig, George T. Stagg, Russell's Reserve, and Pappy Van Winkle. We also throw in a couple dusties. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight.

Dan, Mike, Nick, and Calvin: welcome back to Bourbon Brass and Beyond. tonight it is a fifteen year battle. And they are all champions, so this is going to be a lot of fun. I think to start, ⁓ we're gonna do fifteen year Elijah Craig single barrel just came out this year. This one was bottled February eleventh of twenty twenty six. ⁓ Barrel number two ten, hundred and eight proof. is a fresh crack. Now we we have tried it. We d we had your bottle. With eighteen. I've never tried it. Yeah. You haven't had it yet? this is a good one. Yeah. Bob had to go check on his kids. Street. say across the street, but it's Ohio. You know, you gotta take the highway, take another detour, another detour. A lot of construction between here. Western Reserve and Tippy today. Yeah, four years will be nice for two months until they rip it up again. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. I I really love this bottle. So to me it's just got a nice lasting finish. It gives you a little bit of the Kentucky hug. But the the flavor that stays on your tongue is one of my favorites. ⁓ yeah? Yeah, big fan of that one. Yeah, that's easy to drink too. ⁓ yeah. Like you said, we compared it to the fifteen and ⁓ eighteen. So check out the previous episode. Right. ⁓ this I don't think it drinks 108 proof either. No, I think I think it drinks I agree. ⁓ it has, you know, being that 108, like we talked about in the episode, different proofs from the 18. I think it ⁓ you get that full flavor of I feel like what the eighteen should have, but not quite the the proof. yeah, I'm a big fan of that one. That's good. A little bit got like a bright a bright fruit taste in the back. Yeah. the ⁓ The back end does have kind of a little bit of ⁓ almost ⁓ I don't know, you know what I I don't really remember getting a little ⁓ does anybody else get like a tad bit of like banana on the back end? Like is that is you know I don't I don't ⁓ don't remember that from this, but yeah. Hopefully. ⁓ 21 sound yeah that's this weekend so yeah road ⁓ road so this one course Pappy's fifteen this has been my favorite of all the bourbons even all the dusties this has been my favorite yeah I just don't think you get a a finer bottle. 107 proof, 15 years old, of course distilled at Buffalo Trace. But I I just And you've had this, Calvin. I wish I did. ⁓ you haven't had So okay, so all right. So I have a lot B. I have ⁓ this ⁓ this bottle. Thank you, Dan. Before. all right, good. So little first time for you guys. Thank you. So you guys give us your tasting notes on it. Calvin so I went ⁓ good. what Freddie Johnson says, right? What's what's the point in having it? It's true. Not ethanol y at all. No. No. Not one bit. one bit. ⁓ sweet caramel nose. It's got almost that little dusty funk to it. It's got that carameless. Yeah. It's just so I I get it on the tip of the tongue, it goes to the mid of the tongue, and then it to the back of the tongue. It's like a a ⁓ a delayed response. it never turns bitter. It just stays that same consistency all the way through. Mike. get that nice cherry. ⁓ get I get I get I get cherry on the f yeah, the fifteen I think I it's incredible how you guys pick things out and like you said banana on the last one and I never even would have thought of that until I heard you say that and I was like Yeah you're right, a hundred percent. So you guys are are ⁓ good at picking out things and I don't feel like I am. Like w if they're sweet I could get ⁓ Sure. It just takes those up. It just takes more time and then trying a whole bunch that's fantastic. Yeah. And good thing is it's cheap, affordable, easy to find, you know. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I mean, you know, maybe that gets the the elephant in the room on, you know. Nice little warm up with the Elijah Craig fifteen and then the next three are you know, not maybe very accessible, so You get to that point you know, availability and pricing. ⁓ you know, are they worth what they go for? You know, who knows? Everybody's different. But can you deny that it's just exceptional? I you know, without a doubt. You know, I mean it's one of those ones that you just price aside, you know, if you're able to find one and you're comfortable ⁓ paying that price. With whatever price it is, wherever you get it. You know, not all of us can minimum. It's all relevant to if you want to if if it's worth it to you to spend the money and you don't you know you want to open it and it and it's something that you look forward to. Yeah. Is any bottle worth whatever, you know? Who knows? But it's just a dealer's choice. I mean Exactly. It's you know, there's some of ⁓ that you just The number is what it is and you just it's exceptional whiskey and I mean if you could find it for MSRP, you know, fantastic. Buy it immediately. I mean Buy me buy me one. Buy a couple of Buy me one. Buy me one take care of the group all first thing first and foremost. You're really getting optimistic, Calvin. Yeah, that's fantastic. Anything you go in the state of Ohio. Yeah. Pappy's not really particularly something that I spend a lot of time chasing after. Never personally owned a bottle. ⁓ have tried a few different things, but I mean that one is I were based off of what I've had, if I were to get one the fifteen, I think is where it really it falls. Yeah. It's like we were discussing on Tuesday. You know, it's fun. Getting the ego areas just take a small batch. You it's fun to kill a squirrel every now and then, but every now and then you want to hunt a lion and try to kill one. Like with with that being the Pappy or being a Russell's fifteen. I have a bottle of that at ⁓ Null Run golf course. So when I saw it on the rack, I was kind of curious to see what they would sell a ⁓ shot for. And it's ninety-one eighty just. I was that's not bad actually. Right, right. For the fifteen years. For the fifteen. I was randomly I think I might have told you this, Dan. I was at the hotel in ⁓ Rochester. New York and they had Pappy pours and they had I think the full line and the twenty-three was like fifteen dollars for a pour of twenty-three. Yeah. we gotta take a trip up there. I really I really Give me all of Turn it out. How many pores can I How many pores can I buy? So I really ⁓ I really don't like when work trips send me to Rochester, but if I get to go back to that hotel, ⁓ you know, it's worth ⁓ it's really worth revisiting. Yeah. it's ⁓ I think it was ⁓ a high at down. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. We can learn the look at the trip I'll look at the trip sheet and let you know. But learning the you know, when you guys say things and and kind of just being the probably the the newest member of of all of this, ⁓ when you you say those notes that you taste and it and you're nailing it at I'm I'm feeling that too, but I didn't know what it was. Sure. You know. ⁓ that is ⁓ Well and I think Dan and I might have talked about it on the last episode that ⁓ we did together of just it doesn't always have to be that, right? You don't always you know, and yeah and we do that here in this setting and you try to, you know, break it down and figure out what's there, but You know, e it's it's also just as much fun to just sit down and drink it and be like, damn, that's good. You know, and and not dissect every single how you like it. Yeah. Right. It's all yeah, seriously, that is all that matters. Yeah, we had you know, on the last one we had the discussion of ryes and you and I are really more ⁓ we're really heavy not preference, but we both really enjoy ryes as well. And that's not for too, but ⁓ That's the one thing about the the community, I guess, is the one is that everybody's palette's different and nobody knocks somebody from liking something or not liking something at all. Right. Right. You know? At least always try to pick out the notes that you like in the bourbon. Even if you not even if you're not the biggest fan of it, try and pick out some things that you like about it because they might have another offering that might have those same notes but then also Supplements the bad things, it makes it good for what you like. So it's always good to give a good try and good varieties. That was great. Thank you. Yeah. ⁓ yeah. So this one is Nick's bottle. limited release, 2024, 15-year-old Russell's Reserve. Now I I really do like wild turkey. Mm-hmm. We had that 2003 16 year. I know. I see it. Which is I see it there. I see it there. Yeah, I know. I see it. You know, th that's the interesting thing on that one. But there was so much flavor. So I'm really curious. I have not had this. Okay. And I'm really curious about it. So I'll I have had this. This is my bottle and this is a fresh crack, but I did actually have it at the distillery in twenty twenty four. so I try when I was there in twenty twenty four I had the the fifteen ⁓ and whatever batch of the thirteen it was in twenty twenty four. Was I batch three maybe in twenty twenty four? I'm not sure. What are we on? Five now and then the now six with the forty five. The forty fifth anniversary is supposed to be I think batch seven last year was six. I think twenty twenty four they supplemented the thirteenth for the fifteen. If I'm correct. Yeah. so I have I have had it, but that was ⁓ a years ago. You had it? ⁓ I've had it sitting on my shelf. But Yeah, well I know I know that. I know that. Secrets coming out. I know that. But right now that's my specialty bottle. I mean, that's gonna be for once I hit landmark. I know Dan has his specialty bottle with the Pappy twenty three. Right. Everybody has their own specialty. I mean right now that one's mine. Yeah. Yeah, for me personally, ⁓ you know, we've had this talk of, you know big wild turkey fan it's one that I've wanted for a really long time. Thankfully I was able to get an acceptable deal to me to obtain one and they keep up and go up again. So you know good friends is a good enough excuse and if we ⁓ if we open it then never have to think about getting rid of it. So that's right. Calvin, here we go my friend. Thank you, sir. Steph always makes the jokes that she's like, There's not a bottle you won't open, is there? And I'm like, No, pretty much. Fresh glass. I just burnt that. That's cool. ⁓ Color on that. ⁓ yeah. You gotta love the turkey. Yep. Turkey smell. Have it. Yep. do get a little bit of the ethanol, but I mean for a fresh crack. Well, it's crack, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And ⁓ Yeah, one seventeen point two is what they're bottled at, so Not a not like the next ones there, but I do get that turkey fine. I get yeah. I mean that on the nose. And I y you know, to your point, Mike, right? ⁓ used to think people were crazy. When they would smell something, they're like, ⁓ yeah, that's turkey or ⁓ yeah, that's bee, whatever. And then You find what you like and you really get down some of these rabbit holes and then you get to the point of you're like, ⁓ yeah, that's turkey. Right or that, you know, and so it's it's nice learning. Yeah. You know, over over time you just 'cause I would say the same thing. I'm like, you're you're crazy. If you think you can smell it and can't learn until you do it. Exactly. Yeah. ⁓ that's the the best part about this and and talking with guys and and getting that that, you know, what what they smell you know, what they knows and it's ⁓ it's it's incredible. It's a great learning experience. ⁓ wow. I've really had a blast with it. So that is very similar to that 2003. just a lot more concentrated, I would say. Yeah. Yeah, that that's why I was curious to look at the proof when you mentioned the eighty-nine and a half on the two thousand three versus ⁓ one seventeen two, I think I just said. wish non choice I learned a lot less of them to be honest. I really really wish that there were some really bad ones. I I haven't really come across an absolute awful one yet and ⁓ that's scary. but ⁓ I really enjoy a lot of the different flavors and different, you know, ⁓ as I go. It's really nice. Yeah yeah. I and I think part of it is, you know, finding out you have to find out what you don't like just as much as you find out what you do like. Absolutely. and I think I'm at that point. ⁓ I think that ⁓ there I I know what I won't spend money on, but I also know what what I will. ⁓ Yeah. ⁓ you know, where it's the the I like and the I don't like are the the stacks are completely offset right now. Well and you eventually, you know, you work your way through so many different things and like I think we were talking about earlier, you still may may have your order of preferences, right? And might be here and something might be here, but you know, that still doesn't make this down here bad, right? Just in your that's the beauty of in your hierarchy, you know. ⁓ after you just try enough things and kinda figure out where where it all sits for you. I think if you if you zoom in on it and it's like this, but if you zoom out Yeah right when you take the yeah. The window's really small on ⁓ what I would what I would spend money on and what I Yeah. And plus you're still new to this, so your palate will get more refined and it'll change over time. So then your that gap will grow more. It's not that you don't like it's not that you hate it. It's just that you prefer other bottles more than you prefer those bottles. Right. It does, Dan, it does remind me of the two thousand three. But almost at that same time, it really just makes my brain hurt of how at the eighty-nine and a half proof, because I've said that, you know, we had the discussion on the last one of the everyday drinker, right? Right. If I could afford to buy enough of those to drink every single day, the Russell's two thousand three is one of my favorite things that I've ever had, ever. Yeah. So how in ⁓ 'cause those are sixteen years, right? Yeah, sixteen years. The amount of flavor in the sixteen year at eighty nine point five proof is No is in lower ⁓ barrel proof. Yeah. Is that what caused all that flavor? I think we talked about that on the last yeah episode we did together. Yeah, I don't I don't know. ⁓ 'cause this barrel entry proof is about one twenty five. Yeah, it should be right around that that one twenty five, 'cause that's That's ⁓ standard, yeah. But and there's been more talk recently, right, because Buffalo Trace, the new experimental that they did, right? That was the new lower entry proof, right? So there's been like eight barrels that are there's been more talk about that again. there's one on unicorn. So bid against me. Okay. ⁓ What's bidding at right now? But the it's fifteen year experimental Low barrel entry proof what we did. Which to me is gonna be that's what I wanna take. You love the wheaters. That's how you're out. Yeah, that's right in your Yeah. Yeah. Boy, that good. That is really good, really good. I'm so biased towards but but well ⁓ the flavor is so distinct and I really do like the ⁓ the flavor. Yeah. You know, that's like the ⁓ the Austin Nichols, the Wow the 83. Mm-hmm. eight year, 101 proof. I just think I would put that against that. Yeah. I th I think that to me the the the two thousand three Russells is a lot more bitey. It's just it just it's just packed full of flavors. Yeah. But that year hundred and one proof nineteen eighty three with that, I would that those are yeah on par one hundred percent. Yeah. So I I mean, we could try it. The the Austin Nichols? I We might as I got all this. I guess I'm gonna learn something, right? So this is what ends up happening. Okay. Yeah, yeah. Well ⁓ Welcome to the show. ⁓ to the show. And ⁓ so this is eighty three, you said? Nineteen eighty three. Eighty three. Now, Mike, have you had anything? ⁓ Pre nineteen pre two thousand, I should say. Yeah, I I no. Okay. Like everything just new. You had the old Taylor. I did have the old Taylor. ⁓ that's that's that's something else. Yeah, that was something else. Alright, I think I did try this one time over here before, so let me just take a tiny little just to refresh my memory. Yeah, that was an interesting discussion they had. ⁓ we referenced in the last podcast about ⁓ Bourbon Pursuit with ⁓ Kevin from Bourbon Notes and they talked about, you know, Dusties, right? Well what is dusties anymore, right? ⁓ but yeah, I guess when you get back maybe Pre pre nine early nineties to you know, or we are we now in maybe early nineties is kinda dusties. Yeah. I see that to me tastes very, very similar. I mean it's it a hundred percent has that same base, right? I mean at its core it has that But I get I get a little more of the caramel aftertaste. Yeah, you definitely taste a little bit more of the proof on the fifteen, that Russell's fifteen, ⁓ I was about to say you don't get as much of the Baking spice and tobacco on this versus the Russell's fifteen. Yeah. But it's still so smooth. You get that sweetness right at the end. It's really smooth. Yeah. It's really, really smooth. Yeah, sometimes that I say that incorrectly too, because sometimes what I perceive as proof really is kind of that baking spice kind of thing. And you're right. You you kind of get a little bit more of that proofy baking spice kind of on the The Russell's 15. You don't really get that on that nickels. which again, two different proof points, but same, definitely the same core kind of profile to it. Yeah. but still just makes me to understand how ⁓ at 89.5 you know, that yeah, because the on the 2003 is in a league of own. let the yeah. This what this is what happens. So that yeah. is the Russell's Reserve 2003, 16 year, 89.5%. you take mine. Go ahead. I've had it. I've it several times. Go ahead, you you give it to Calvin. I'm good. I've had it several times. This is Yeah, Wilson Jeans, yes. Yeah, yeah. No, no, no, don't worry about it. Trust me, I dream about this bottle. I know exactly I know exactly what it tastes like. This one's kind of like a crop. But just think about it. I it it this is only eighty nine and And we've been drinking above well above a hundred at least three drinks now. Yeah. Four drinks. And started at one seventeen on the Russell's fifteen, you went to one ⁓ one on the Nichols. And then now you're dropping down to eighty nine point five. But ⁓ for that being below the hundred proof mark, I mean that flavor still carries through like it's a one fifteen, one twenty. Yeah, there's just there's it's the flavor on it ⁓ ⁓ Is that? Yeah. It it is the Russell's Reserve two thousand three. Comes in a wooden box. I have the box upstairs. Yeah. But ⁓ Well when I went when I went fishing for my Russell's fifteen. If you could find one of those trying to pull out, you know, maybe a actually don't bid on it. ⁓ ahead. I I'm gonna bid on it. Go ahead. there's two thousand, yeah. the two thousand three is the eighty-nine point five proof. But the barrel entry proof was one ⁓ seven, you know. It just the flavor to me is one of the best. If I had to choose my favorites, I I would say this Pappy Van Winkle fifteen years my my number one ultimate favorite. This comes in a close second. my all time favorite bottle right there. Right there? Yeah. And I never had it until Dan let me try it and That would be Wow, what did If price was you know, I'd drink that all the time. Absolutely. But almost, you know, you wonder, right? Because I you sit here and say that, right? Well, if price was irrelevant, I would just drink that every single day. Well, would you? Or does is it so exceptional because you go and like we were just talking, you try so many different things. ⁓ You kind start to build your hierarchy of favorites. And then ⁓ You know, every month you come back and you're like, yeah, that's yeah. That's my baby right there. Right. ⁓ You I definitely find myself ⁓ trying things like every day I'll have a small glass of something and I I really rotate what it is. I I don't have an everyday what I would go to. I mean I I'm I would pick the old Forester ⁓ barrel proof rye. Yeah. ⁓ but I don't drink that every day. I try to Switch it up. I think it's good to always have a mixture of like at least three different whether you have a wheater or a rye and then some other third other kind, whether it's another wheat or another rye or wheat or Yeah. A corn whiskey. I mean it's good to have variety 'cause in that way 'cause your palate could be different every single day. ⁓ One day might be wanting a rye, the next day you could say, You know what, I'm not feeling right or my tongue does not want a rye, let me get something else. Yeah. Yeah. I experiment a lot. ⁓ I mix stuff and try and I took I took a ⁓ spire out of Oak and Eden and put it in my basil Hayden just to what happens in a week. Yeah I figured I'd give it a shot and I didn't want to waste it. ⁓ I haven't tried it yet but we'll what happens. Fifteen year continuing with this ⁓ Tournament, I would say. ⁓ hundred and thirty five proof. it twenty three? What is it? I believe twenty twenty three. The thirty five, I think, is twenty three, I believe. Yeah. I think I have the twenty-four is thirty one thirty six point six point something, yeah. And then obviously the twenty-five. Yeah. But give it credit give the BTAC credit. I mean, always a great lineup and then plus the George T Stagg, always consistent, always considered one of the best to get along with the William LaRue's if you were able to get them. Yeah. Bob has a William LaRue weller in. And that is probably up there in my top five. Yeah. ⁓ we were talking about the the BTAC lineup earlier and yeah, probably the George T Stagg. said I wanna try the Eagle seventeen, but the W L W is probably One of the ones that I would absolutely put up there with ⁓ the most worthy of the BTAC bottles personally. ⁓ Have you had any of the George T stags? Any of them? Okay. know you have twenty four. Why? And I have twenty twenty and then I have twenty twenty I just recently got twenty twenty five. ⁓ okay. I thought you okay. So you got twenty five recently. Have you tried the twenty three before? I have not had the twenty three. Okay. Yeah. I've had this before. So I'm curious. It's been a little over a year since I tried this though, so get some fruit, get some caramel on that. So my whole into bourbon, so was I was looking for JW Dant. And I in and I saw Bill, who was he's since retired and sold out to the current owner at Chalet. But Bill Diamico, ⁓ I said, looking for JW Dant, can you get it? And it turned turns out Ohio could not anymore. But he calls me and he goes, hey Danny, he goes, I've got a George T Stagg here. Would you would you want one? So I went in and I said, well, I don't know anything about it. But I'll yeah, I'll buy one. $78. Took a T Stagg home. I think it was 2015, 2016. I have empty. I'll have to check. But I tried it, ⁓ loved it. I'm it with everybody. went through that bottle probably in probably in a couple weeks. And so I called Bill back and I'm like, hey Bill, can I get another one of those short George T stags? He's like, hell no. He goes, haven't that's the first one I've seen in two years. I'm like, ⁓ I said, so these are hard to find. He's he's like, Yeah. I'm like, wow, that bottle was wonderful. And So ever since I've I said, so do you have other bottles that are hard to find that you have? He's like, well, I'll let you know when they come in. And that's that's what started my my search for for different bourbons. It it was the the JW Dant, but then ⁓ George T. Stagg It's a hell of a start. Yeah. ⁓ yeah. that's good. that's wonderful. What do you think, Calvin? Calvin, what's your favorite of the fifteen years? That's showing. I mean, the Pappy fifteen, I mean and it's not and to be fair it's not even close. And I'm a jet I'm a George C. Stagg fan, so probably Pappy fifteen will probably be my first Probably have to give the Russell fifteen time to open up, but play the George T Stagg second, the Russell fifteen third, But it's close between those two and then the R Elijah Craig fifteen year. But the whole lineup, I mean, it's spectacular. mean you can't go wrong with any of ⁓ Right. Just because I rank one fourth through first truth, fourth. I mean, they're still bang bang bang right at the top. Yeah. Yeah, I'm I'm pretty close with you there. I mean, the Pappy fifteen is ⁓ The George T Stagg, ⁓ I take like I said, I I I tried the twenty-three maybe a year, year and a half ago. It's not as I actually had like a little bit more sweetness to it when I first tried it. that's not an it's just not the same as I remember it, but ⁓ they're always exceptional. ⁓ I'd love to come back to the Russell's fifteen, like you said. I think we talked about the last one we filmed. I've had open up several of those Michter's whether it's the barrel strength bourbon or the ten year, and hated it right off the rip on the first sip. And then ten minutes later I'm like, okay, this is what this is what I wanted, right? Right. But for whatever reason, some of those just really need a minute to open up. So Yeah, the George T. Stagg and the Russell's fifteen are really close for me at this point. I'd love to come back to the the Russell's fifteen and see what that's like again. But yeah, I agree. I I the Pappy fifteen is yeah ⁓ still the obvious winner for me. And I mean there's a reason why they're they're the king of the k they're the king of the crop. I mean not the king of Kentucky, but I mean they're the king of the crop. Pappy Pappy won for sure. Russell's is ⁓ second for me. like the Elijah Craig but ⁓ the the is third and I'll I'll finish with ⁓ the Elijah Craig fourth. Yeah. Yeah. Well i and I think tend to lean towards wheat anyway. but that that Pappy for me is just fantastic. Yeah. But that George T Stagg and that Russell's fifteen both are put I like both of them for different reasons. So it it's hard to say that one is better than the other. Yeah. I would say that they're both phenomenal. That's kinda where I was at on those two. They're they're very different. And considering that being a fresh crack, I mean, for it to be that close, I mean it's Yeah. ⁓ I that time to open up, I think that's gonna be Comp that's gonna be over the George T Stagg. Will it be at the Pappy level? Depending on the day? You never know. But I mean it's gonna be Yeah. It'd be interesting to see. I mean for that group to put Elijah Craig fifteen last is still. Yeah, I mean that's a th and that's you're still the discussion we had of this lineup, right, is I love the fifteen. Right, but I'm like, should we should we put it with these other three? You know, it's a but it I mean that's an exceptional You know It's a different flavor profile which is phenomenal. Yeah. So it its own, absolutely But I I think that for me personally, then it becomes palette, you know, what what do I prefer? I I like the wheaters, so I'm gonna go with the Pappy fifteen. But otherwise they're they're all just fantastic bourbons. I'm not gonna lie, the the Stagg is still staying with Yeah, the the the Stagg's ten minutes for a while. It's still there. It's still there. Yeah. All fantastic. Great stuff for sure. Yeah. I appreciate everybody watching. it it is a true battle of champions. Yeah. So ⁓ thank you. Please like, subscribe, share, and ⁓ leave any comments. Tell us what you like. think what ⁓ let us know what you think is the best bourbon of all of these ⁓ and ⁓ we it. So once again, thanks for Thanks guys. Thanks for being here. Thank you. Thank you. Thanks for having us. Yep.