I used to chase but not anymore. I'll drive to the distillery and buy it.

I actually prefer driving to Heaven Hill. If you lucky you can get a bottle of Old Fitz or 18 Elijah Craig.

Ok, so it's amount of the bourbon that are given to states and/or stores to sell?  In doing a little digging it seems like PA might have a lottery a few times a year for the rarer stuff.  Buffalo Trace, Blanton's, E.H. Taylor, etc....doesn't seem to be part of the lottery.  However, I also see people talk about online ordering of Buffalo Trace even though the normal bourbon isn't even listed on the state's website.  

...still learning.

Thanks

Tin Cup is good, reasonably priced and readily available. At least around here. I can get Buffalo Trace easily enough as well. It’s good but nothing special.

Bunch a noobs watch Bourbon youtube. Watch four fat dudes sit around and act like the shit is vintage wine.

It's bourbon not beef wellington. Aging over five years is largely not relevant to taste. Avoid blends. Avoid anything with an "ingredients list." Don't pay more than $40. Anyone that gets pretentious about it is a dumbass.

Old Granddad BIB is one of my favs. Sazarac Rye is starting to show up on shelves again, but I have Class 6 access and they always have it.

Don’t listen to this man.

Why on earth are you chasing Buffalo Trace? It's not that good.

Wild Turkey 101, Russell's Reserve, 4 Roses Small Batch, New Riff, Driftless Glen, and the Jim Beam varieties are all way better.

What is Class 6?

Why not?

mil alcohol store.

Edit,  BT is good but nothing beats military special!

1. Aging definitely affects taste both good and bad. You can certainly tell an older bourbon vs. 5 yrs.

2. I have never seen bourbon with an ingredient list because you literally can’t add anything besides grain, water, and yeast. No flavors or colors allowed.

3. All bourbon is blended in some form unless it is a single barrel and in my opinion we are far, far better for it. I wish there was far more blending between distilleries than there is now as the industry would benefit greatly but Americans are snobs and suffer from their own hang-ups.

4. If you limit your purchases to sub-$40 then your bourbon experience will be short lived. This is 2024. 98% of all bourbon is more than $40. Hell, a Diet Coke is $2.50

5. Bourbon is like wine as far as nuances of flavor. Now I do think a lot of it is carried too far but if you can’t pick out tasting notes and you are an experienced bourbon drinker then you should quit and pick out a new hobby.

There is a tremendous amount of pretentious bullshit in the hobby. But it is not all bullshit. Drink what you like, but try different things. Especially try different things with other bourbon drinkers and then talk about it. Their comments will often make you think about your own palate and over time you really will develop some knowledge and preferences.

Yup, I don’t even try anymore I just grab a bottle of Makers if I want any bourbon.

I am not sure if your state run stores are still privately owned or does the state own them?  If they are private then get to know your local store, do most of your beer/wine/liquor buying there.  If you get to know them then they will be more likely to share a harder to get bourbon with you when they have it.  Like I said, maybe that does not work in state run ones but I know in normal states that is def the best way to get stuff.  I frequent several stores but 95% of my buying is done in one store.  They know me and will often get me bottles of stuff from the back that never see a store shelf because they know I am a good customer.

I would also get to know them and talk to them about what your looking for.  If you can find someone in your local store that is a bourbon drinker they can point you to a lot of different good options, store pics, etc.  I have found a ton of good bourbon I likely would never have tried (from all price points) because my local guy was like oh I know you like this and that so you should really try this.

Boy a lot of sour grapes on Buffalo Trace.

my friend, i am a fellow PA resident. what they didn't explain was PA has THREE TIERS of state run liquor stores.

Most Fine Wine & Good Spirits (FWGS) have nothing you are looking for, they are there to sell Old Crow to dying alcoholics.

the next tier is "premium collection" where you will find better bottles like Buffalo Trace every 4-6 weeks. Depending on sales volume SOME may get Eagle Rare, Blantons, etc too.

then there are "chairman's reserve" stores with an expanded wine selection, more vintages of what you would find at the lesser stores.

you can figure out when your local FWGS gets their deliveries by looking for people lined up outside on a weekday morning, or just buy BT out of state.

The Buffalo Trace never makes it to the shelf, it's kept behind the counter so you have to ask for it. Do yourself a favor & buy 1792 Small Batch for $33, it's a good readily available replacement for Buffy T.



Early Times Bottled in Bond showed up at PA state stores last year, sold out, & has been perpetually out of stock since. I got 3 bottles & gave one away as a gift, I won't open my last bottle until it's restocked.

I can go to one of the three liquor stores near me and get almost anything you guys talk about.

Is this just a state-run shithole issue?

Military special....is that like pruno?

True bourbon is only made in Kentucky. Folks that say otherwise also think men can get pregnant.

Never heard of "chairman stores" but I know there are 4-5 premiums in the Lehigh Valley area where we are.  The store across the street is the lowest level on the tier and they keep saying that when I ask for different rums, tequilas and now bourbons.  But I'll have to do some digging and try to figure out where the closest "chairman store" is and then make a list of the premium stores delivery days so I can call and ask.  

I will say, the store across the street are starting to get to know me and they said BT is delivered about every 5 weeks.  Maybe if I touch base on their delivery days I can get a feel for when the BT or whatever other bottles I'm looking for come in.

Thanks

I used to drink scotch, but started the switch to bourbon about 20 years ago when I realized a good bottle of bourbon was about half the price of a good bottle of scotch.

It wasn't hard to buy almost anything that is now as rare as hen's teeth off the shelf here in VA back then. Elmer T. Lee, Stagg, Blanton's, Weller, you name it. Entire end caps full of Buffalo Trace. Sure, some of it was expensive, but all attainable.

In VA, it's gotten worse, not better. They have gone through multiple different systems to try and achieve "fairness" for allocated bourbons, and the list of allocated bourbons is insanely long. At present, they do statewide events, where people line up outside the stores in the morning. There's one coming up on Saturday. Here's the list, from which each store will have a few bottles of each (they don't tell you what stores get what, you just gamble). You are allowed one bottle, so people bring everybody in their family of drinking age.

Angel's Envy Cask Strength Bourbon 750ml | 016567
Basil Hayden's 10 Year Bourbon 750ml | 016679
Benchmark Bonded 750ml | 021460
Benchmark Full Proof 750ml | 021462
Benchmark Single Barrel 750ml | 021254
Blade And Bow 22 Year Bourbon 750ml | 016834
Blanton's Single Barrel Bourbon 375ml | 016845
Blanton's Single Barrel Bourbon 750ml | 016850
Bombergers Declaration Kentucky Bourbon 750ml | 016882
Booker's Bourbon 750ml | 016906
Buffalo Trace Bourbon 750ml | 018006
Buffalo Trace Bourbon 1L | 018007
Buffalo Trace Bourbon 175L | 018008
E H Taylor Jr Single Barrel Bourbon 750ml | 021589
E H Taylor Jr. Small Batch Whiskey 750ml | 021602
Eagle Rare 10 Year Bourbon 375ml | 017764
Eagle Rare 10 Year Bourbon 750ml | 017766
Eagle Rare 10 Year Bourbon 175L | 017768
Elijah Craig 18 Year Single Barrel Bourbon 750ml | 017920
Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Bourbon 750ml | 017917
Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel 750ml | 017913
Elmer T Lee Bourbon 750ml | 017946
George Dickel Bottled In Bond Tennessee Whiskey 750ml | 016105
George Dickel Reserve Aged 17yr 750ml | 026100
Heaven Hill Bottled In Bond Bourbon 750ml | 016017
Henry Mckenna Single Barrel Bourbon 750ml | 018656
High West A Midwinter Nights Dram 750ml | 027041
High West Campfire Whiskey 750ml | 027523
I W Harper 15 Year Bourbon 750ml | 018790
Joseph Magnus Cigar Blend 750ml | 086570
Kentucky Owl Maighstir Edition 750ml | 019325
Kentucky Vintage Straight Bourbon 750ml | 019376
Knob Creek 12 Year Bourbon 750ml | 019239
Knob Creek 18 Year 750ml | 019231
Little Book Chapter 7 750ml | 024577
Michters 10 Yr Old Bourbon 750ml | 019876
Michters American Unblended Whiskey 750ml | 027546
Michter's Limited Release Single Barrel 10 Yr Rye 750ml | 027062
Michter's Toasted Barrel Strength Rye 750ml | 027219
Michter's Toasted Sour Mash Whiskey 750ml | 026618
Michter's Us-1 Barrel Strength Rye Whiskey 750ml | 027147
Michter's US1 Sour Mash 750ml | 027601
Mister Sam Tribute Whiskey 750ml | 011074
Noahs Mill Straight Bourbon 750ml | 019916
Old Bardstown Straight Bourbon 750ml | 019941
Old Charter Oak - Spanish Oak Bourbon 750ml | 020222
Old Ezra 7yr Rye Whiskey 750ml | 025995
Old Ezra Brooks 7 Year Barrel Strength 750ml | 020318
Old Fitzgerald 8 Yr Bottled In Bond Bourbon 750ml | 016381
Old Fitzgerald Bottled In Bond Decanter 750ml | 016380
Old Forester Single Brl Rye Barrel Proof Everyday 750ml | 026159
Old Taylor Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey (plastic) 175L | 020819
Old Weller Antique 107 Bourbon 750ml | 022036
Parkers Heritage Collection 17th Edition 750ml | 025013
Pikesville 110 Proof Rye Whiskey 750ml | 027114
Pure Kentucky X. O. Straight Bourbon 750ml | 021106
Rowans Creek Straight Bourbon 750ml | 021196
Russells Reserve 13-year Bourbon 750ml | 022184
Russells Reserve Single Rickhouse Camp Nelson F 750ml | 022183
Shenks Homestead Sour Mash Whiskey 750ml | 021492
Stagg Bourbon 750ml | 021538
The Sassenach Blended Scotch Whisky 750ml | 006292
Whistlepig The Boss Hog X - The Commandments 750ml | 015183
Widow Jane Decadence Bourbon 750ml | 086255
Widow Jane Lucky 13 Small Batch Bourbon 750ml | 022188
Widow Jane The Vaults 2021 Release 750ml | 025485
Wild Turkey Generations 750ml | 022101
Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit Bourbon 750ml | 021946
Wild Turkey Masters Keep Voyage 750ml | 022094
Wild Turkey Rare Breed Rye 750ml | 022172
Willett Family Estate 4 Yr Rye Whiskey 750ml | 026484
Willett Pot Still Reserve Straight Bourbon 750ml | 022092
Willett Pot Still Reserve Straight Bourbon 175L | 022093
WL Weller Special Reserve Bourbon 750ml | 021986
WL Weller Special Reserve Bourbon 175L | 021988
Woodford Reserve Batch Proof 700ml | 022279
Woodford Reserve Masters Collection Sonoma Finish 700ml | 076870
Yamazaki 18 Year Japanese Whisky 750ml | 015986

This is *insane*. Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit on there? That used to be an average bottle. It isn't worth it. Any of it. I have a good collection, but I drink it. The poster above with a safe full of unopened BTAC and Weller - sorry, that's fucking retarded. Drink the stuff. Don't hoard it.

There is no reason to participate in this craze unless you get a rise out of the hunt. There are dozens if not hundreds of attainable bourbons that are excellent and readily available. I don't even need to begin listing them. You can get old bourbon too. Plenty of 15+ year old bourbons on the shelf at MSRP. Why the others? Just the herd mentality of having something "hard to find."

So the conspiracy continues!!!

Called a few of the "Premium" stores in my area.  All of them immediately perked up and gave me the same answer as soon as I threw names like BT and Eagle Rare out there...

"You need to be in line with the others outside the store on the delivery day at opening".

2 out of the three wouldn't say anything further.  But the last one told me the name of the FB group I had already joined yesterday and said "they know and communicate very well about it".  Now that may be true, but I'm not seeing anyone post "Hey everyone....a shipment of ER/BT/Blanton's.....is coming in at the Main Street location this Friday!!!".   So what the fuck??  

Still haven't seen any replies that speak to how people get wind of this stuff even though clearly a bunch do.  Am I fucking with the illuminati here???

No, you are just 10 years behind the power curve. Stop chasing bourbon and sooner or later you will stumble on stuff. There is a ton of great whiskey out there. Hell, I have bottles of Buffalo Trace. Come down here and bring me literally anything interesting and it’s yours. And then I will let you try some really good bourbon from the barrel.

You don't "mix" good spirits.  That's like hooking a plow to an Indy car and plowing the back 40.  You mix CHEAP spirits.  The good stuff is served straight, or over rocks, sometimes with a little water to open up th eflavor and aroma.  If you are going to put it in a glass of Coke normal garden variety alcohol will do fine, as the subtleties you are paying extra for in the good stuff will be largely lost in a mix,

Bourbon is highly subjective. One man's trash is another man's treasure. Find what you like and can afford. Be happy.

Most of the people who get the really sought-after stuff sell it immediately. It sucks.

There are people who really milk the system to get the goods, and profit off of it.

There's a guy here who takes 5 days of vacation every year to wait in a parking lot so he can get crazy bourbon... just to flip.

so you see everything I told you checks out, funny how 90% of the posts here are just taters trying to flex instead of help you put the pieces together. these same shitbags create toilet paper shortages.

I bought a bottle of blantons for $72 after tax at the Phoenixville store earlier this month, i don't chase this stuff but I am happy to help you find it. that location doesn't get eagle rare but Collegeville does.

tequila is my drink, if you want to take a ride into NJ you can get Ocho blanco & repo for $45 at any Bottle King instead of $50-60 at the PA FWGS. Ocho & El Tesoro are the only tequila worth drinking on the FWGS shelf.

there is a subreddit r/PALCB which is mostly sad, lazy mooks moaning about how they can't get anything good but there is a daily hunt thread which may help you find bottles locally or when they drop online.

the PA special order system is it's own clusterfuck. if only the ATF cracked down on secondary liquor sales instead of pistol braces, these bottles would be sitting on shelves.

I used to live next door to a distillery.

When they'd do limited bottle releases people would camp out in tents.

There are varying degrees.

Four roses < Four Roses Small Batch < Four Roses Single Barrel < Four Roses Small Batch Select < Four Roses Single Barrel (Barrel Pick)
Varies from $20 to $100 ish

top of the pyramid is Four Roses single barrel ~ barrel strength, which are not available in the OP's state.

For all intents & purposes, $50 Four Roses single barrel is as good as any horsey topper without the fomo.

I don't think four posts of peoples own pics out of 130 can be considered 90% "taters" flexing. Reading through it, 95% of the posts seem like sound opinions and advice.

Military base liquor store.

That ain't happening.

Edit: Gotta step that game up.
Attached File

it's really not helpful though, you don't understand because you are in another state. believe me, I get it... VA is crap too, but better than PA.

Along with Utah we are the only state you can't get spirits shipped from elsewhere. It used to be all alcohol but during the pandemic restrictions were lifted on beer & wine, but not spirits.

The local FWGS or the PA special order system are the only options other than driving to NY/NJ/DE

In NJ, 750ml Buffalo trace sells for $50, if you can get to a PA state store on the right day a 1.75L Buffalo Trace bottle is $55.

The only way to win is to not play the game.

lol, I guarantee you would find Virginia no better. We don't even have tiered stores. They just ship what bottles they feel like wherever. So rural stores rarely see really hard to get stuff stuff even on the asinine release days like they are doing this Saturday. And that 1.75l Buffalo Trace...it is $57 here if you run into after waiting two hours this Saturday.

Just stop chasing bourbon. Go in and pick up some whiskey you have never had before and try it instead.

Larceny.

Current favorite.

Growing up I never tasted alcohol until I was about 30. After that I decided that it would be a good idea to try a lot of things to determine what I liked. When tasting bourbons I just grabbed a couple different bottles that were on the shelf of the state liquor store. One of them happened to be a bottle of Van Winkle 12 year. This was right before the bourbon craze took off. I've never seen a bottle in the state liquor store since. However, I still do have a bout a quarter of the bottle left. Good stuff.

For regular drinking bourbon, it's hard to beat Maker's Mark. Tastes great neat or on ice. It's the perfect mid-shelf bourbon.

Larceny is ok, not great, but good for the money.

Now Larceny Barrel Proof  batch C923, if you can snag a bottle of that......delicious  

This right here.

I've been on the bourbon train for over 10 years.  When you start out you can get caught up in the hype that certain brands are "special".  They're not.  It's a matter of your own taste.

I started out chasing the sought after bourbons but no more.  That being said, from my early days I currently have on hand, Weller, Willet, Blanton, Jefferson, Bullet, Woodruff, Angels Envy, Buffalo Trace, Eagles Rare, Four Roses, etc., etc.  I have these and a host of lesser known brands in qty.

My MO.... try a new bourbon every once in a while.  Maybe recommended by a friend or liquor store owner.  Some bourbons in my collection got there because I liked the look of the bottle.  If I like it, when its' time to buy more, I get two.  When I finish one of the two, I go back and again buy two.  In this way I have built up a fairly decent collection of liquors that I prefer.  Who cares what others say.  Good Luck and Enjoy!

Good stuff and it won't break the bank.

No sour  grapes.  If I threw a neighborhood party, a bottle of Buffalo Trace would be at the bar for all to drink.  It's simply not worth a chase.  It's just a very average bourbon.

Thanks so much for all the replies.  After reading all of them AND the learning I've done over the past few days I've come to some conclusions.

1.  Ya'll that are willing to chase bourbon are fucking nuts!!  

2.  I run a business and I can't get in the soup kitchen line waiting on a truck for a bottle.  If you have the time to do that and are THAT well off, I applaud it and God bless America!  But I don't.  The 1-3 hours of time that would sacrifice is not acceptable.  

3.  When it came to a similar challenge last month with tequila.  I really wanted a specific bottle that I wasn't able to get in PA and that Jersey did not have in stock within an hour's drive....Fortaleza....so I ponied up and payed almost double of what it typically goes for (I think I paid like $60 or $70 per bottle shipped).  And I was fine with that because I had no other real option.  So I'm ok doing the same here.  It is much easier to throw $200-$300 at a few bottles of shelf jewelry to impress true bourbon fans than it is to sacrifice my time at work to chase it locally.  What specific bottles I'll order....not sure yet.  We'll see.

4.  I'm going to be taking pics at two stores of the bourbon section.  That way ya'll can see what is readily available near me and then I'll grab a few bottles based on those suggestions if ya'll can come to some sort of consensus.  But I'm already seeing some common suggestions that I think the local stores have such as Larceny, Four Roses, etc.  So that'll help to.  

This way if I develop a liking for them.... I can grow and and if I don't, at least I'll be able to be a good host to company.  

Thanks again for chiming in!!!

Wrong, and it's been wrong for a long time.

My buddy is hard core into the chase, I go along sometimes.  It has gotten better and worse at the same time around these parts.

If you put the leg work in, it's "fairly" easy to get ER, EHTSmB, Stagg, and a few other allocated staples at or near MSRP... higher tier stuff is much harder to get if not impossible... Antique 107 is borderline unobtanium here, you can get FP and 12yr easier, and reserve you just gotta know the delivery schedule of your nearest Total Wine.

You are also fighting employees.  for example, a closeish costco was getting some EHTSiB in, one case(6 bottles).  My buddy knew about when, but not the exact time.  He went to that costco 4 days in a row.  I went on day three and nothing... day 4 they put it out.  Only three hit the shelf.

Ive come to the realization that there are so many bourbons out there I refuse to play the secondary market game, I refuse to put any serious effort into getting allocated bottles... if it happens it happens, and when I go with my friend, its to hang out and have a good time.

He drinks almost everything he buys, but he does use some as trade fodder, like ER10, EHTSmB, Blantons and Stagg... the easier ones to get.

Put Michters and Smokewagon on your list.  Both are very good.

@LamentConfig
This isn't true.  I had 2 bottles shipped to me from IL through the Unicorn Auction app

This times a thousand

This right here.  Still haven't checked out this Unicorn Auction thing but last month I had bottles shipped in.  It's not like they have a PA Customs with dogs sniffing the packages.  Fuck tyranny!!!