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The 12 Best Bourbons Under $200
A $200 budget gives you the opportunity to explore some of the best bourbons money can buy.
While there are no hard-to-get Pappy or Rip Van Winkle bottles, or ultra-premium, ultra-rare liquids from renowned distilleries of yesteryear, there are a wonderful group of delicious bourbon expressions from leading American distilleries that will tickle your tastebuds.
Finding the best bourbon is entirely subjective and based on a wide variety of factors including flavor, taste, aroma, price, and accessibility. An extended budget allows you to delve into the areas usually kept for experts, where the subtleties of wood barrel aging, lengthy maturation, and hand-selected casks all play a part.
As a longtime lover of good bourbon whiskey, this collection represents some of the finest bottles I have seen and/or had the pleasure to try. When you get the opportunity to taste, sample, or purchase these bottles, make sure you do so because they don’t disappoint.
Best Buy
1. Blanton's Single Barrel Bourbon
Blanton’s Bourbon gets its name from Colonel Albert Blanton, who spent over 55 years producing, studying, and upholding whiskey traditions at what is now the Buffalo Trace Distillery.
A hard to get but distinctive bottle of fine older bourbon (a bottle of Blanton’s looks like a glass hand grenade but with a galloping horse on top instead of a pin), Blanton’s Single Barrel was the first wide-release single barrel bourbon when first bottled by Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee in 1984.
This single barrel bourbon fills your mouth with the most amazing flavors of sweet, toasty caramel, and hints of pepper and cloves. Blanton’s is sweet to the taste with a hint of citrus, while the vanilla aromas add to the complexity.
Blanton’s Bourbon is worth the price tag for committed whiskey drinkers with a taste for notable single barrel whiskey. Sipped neat or over ice, it will quickly take pride of place on the top shelf of your home bar.
2. Mitcher's 10 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon
Michter’s individuality in bourbon production and age as a distiller – it’s the oldest Kentucky Distillery having been opened in 1753 – means it suits the bourbon lover with a refined taste that enjoys a sense of history with their rocks glass.
The 10-year aged expression is one of the brand’s finest – I’m also a huge fan of their US*1 Rye Whiskey – and represents the culmination of over a decade of patient aging in specially chosen, new charred American white oak barrels.
Bottled at 94.4 proof, Michter’s 10 Year is full of big and bold flavors aged perfectly in Oak. It features dark toffee and caramel, charred oak, maple syrup, and that classic bourbon vanilla that sets your taste buds fluttering.
This is the type of American whiskey expression every bourbon lover wants to get their hands-on, and never let it run out!
3. Weller Antique 107 Bourbon
It’s pretty wild suggesting that a bourbon bottle that costs more than $100 represents good value, but since other expressions with the W.L. Weller label climb north of $1000+ the brand’s Antique 107 fits the bill for good pricing.
William Larue Weller was the first distiller of wheat whisky, and he once employed Pappy van Winkle before he rose to fame. W.L. Weller bourbon was originally crafted by the Stitzel Weller Distillery. Now in the safe hands of Buffalo Trace/Sazerac, Weller Antique 107 is a top drawer wheated bourbon expression.
Weller Antique 107 is an attractive dark copper color, aged for seven years in white oak before being bottled at 107 proof. It offers a potent yet complex taste and bold finish of vanilla, oak, and caramel, while irresistible cinnamon spice and black licorice can be found throughout.
If you are after an accessible wheat bourbon and a well-priced option in the premium whiskey sector, then Weller 107 is a highly enjoyable bottle for sipping or luxury cocktail making.
4. Woodford Reserve Master's Collection Oat Grain
Every Master’s Collection expression crafted by Woodford Reserve showcases at least one of the five sources of flavor: water, grain, fermentation, distillation, and maturation.
The Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Oat Grain Kentucky Straight Bourbon is the 13th release in the series. The Oat Grain expression uses a modification to Woodford’s traditional mash bill, subbing in a portion of oats to create a final recipe of 66% corn, 18% oats, 12% malt, and 4% rye.
The additional oat character gives the whiskey notes of brown sugar, hints of cinnamon, and a dry fruit character.
If you appreciate the subtle differences in quality crafted bourbon, the vast array of expressions in the Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection will provide you with plenty of quality bourbon to experience.
5. Knob Creek 15 Year Bourbon Whiskey
Made at the same Kentucky distillery as Beam Suntory stablemate Jim Beam, Knob Creek 15 Year is arguably the smoothest tasting bourbon whiskey in the company’s portfolio.
The brand’s name comes from the body of water which flowed through the backyard of President Abraham Lincoln when he was young.
The aromas of caramelized oak and vanilla roll off the bottle from its maturation in American oak barrels for a decade and a half – which is more an age signature for Scotch than American bourbon.
The palate features smooth caramel and toffee notes perfectly paired with toasted oak and light leather, enlivened by just a hint of peppery baking space.
If you are a bourbon drinker who enjoys an age profile similar to Scotch whisky, then Knob Creek 15 Year Old Bourbon’s smooth, rich flavor will be very appealing.
6. 291 Colorado Barrel Proof Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey
Great tasting, powerfully smooth bourbon is not just a Kentucky thing. Featuring a distinctive bourbon mash bill, the 291 Colorado Single Barrel retains a smooth, rich caramel taste despite being a loaded cask strength bourbon.
At 63.5% ABV, this single barrel American whiskey will kick you square in the pants, and you’ll be thankful. After distillation in a traditional copper pot still, it’s aged in charred oak barrels and finished with charred aspen staves for that distinctive Colorado flavor.
Sure, you could get the regular proof version, but when a barrel proof American whiskey tastes as smooth as this one, set it in your glass, and enjoy the finest in sipping whiskey.
7. Wild Turkey Master's Keep 17 Year
The Master’s Keep Series (there are six versions in all) is Wild Turkey’s decadent celebration of the brand’s best whiskey and commitment to excellence.
The Master’s Keep 17 Year is the oldest bottling from the Wild Turkey Distillery, a smooth yet complex bourbon rested for 17 years in American Oaks casks handpicked by Master Distiller Eddie Russell.
On the tongue, it starts smooth and silky before transforming into a rich liquid of vanilla and caramel notes before finishing with accents of baking rye spice amidst long-rested woody oak.
Wild Turkey’s lead in expressions do a great job balancing price and drinkability, the Master’s Keep varieties are examples of the very best bourbon whiskey you could hope to savor.
8. Kentucky Owl Confiscated Bourbon
Kentucky Owl Bourbon was founded in 1879 by C.M. Dedman and today is led by master blender, Dixon Dedman, who resurrected the brand and released his first bourbon production in 2014.
The tasting notes describe gardenia, banana bread, toasty sourdough bread crust, and red apple on the nose, that bleed into graham crackers, citrus, toffee, and cinnamon spice flavor on the palate. The finish is long and well balanced with white grape accents and a hint of cayenne pepper spice.
Confiscated may not be quite as rare as the impressive Kentucky Owl Batch 9 bourbon (which can rival Old Rip Van Winkle in price), however it’s a brilliant option to drink in the sub $200 price range, and one worth sharing over a tale or two.
9. Larceny Baarrel Proof
The cheapest bottle on our list, this old-school Larceny expression is a tremendously affordable barrel proof straight bourbon whiskey made at Heaven Hill distillery, which also produces notable brands such as Evan Williams, Old Fitzgerald, and Elijah Craig.
Larceny carries on the tradition of Old Fitzgerald bourbon whiskey with wheat as the secondary grain instead of the traditional rye. First released in January 2020, each Larceny Barrel Proof release consists of around 200 barrels of six to eight-year-old Bourbon bottled at barrel proof and non-chill filtered to showcase a deeper character, richness and depth of flavor.
Larceny carries an aroma of fresh bread and toffee with traces of butterscotch, traditional flavors of caramel and honey, topped off by a long and gentle finish that belies its power.
If you’re looking for an affordable and great tasting wheated bourbon that won’t empty your wallet, then Larceny is a great option.
10. Saint Cloud Kentucky Straight Bourbon 7 Year Single Barrel
Saint Cloud Single Barrel Bourbon is crafted from hand-selected barrels that are aged until the perfect point of maturity, then individually bottled at barrel proof without filtration.
The rich nose of sweet vanilla blends with caramel moves to a palate of rich chocolate, cedar, and toasted almonds, which is contrasted by dried fruit, baking spices, and a lovely smattering of brown sugar. The powerful ABV is most noticeable on the finish, yet remains complex with wood notes, caramel, and wisps of smoke.
As a cask strength bourbon, Saint Cloud is best enjoyed neat or with a few drops of distilled water to open up the flavors, but can also work wonderfully in a cheeky Mint Julep cocktail.
11. Heaven's Door 10 Year Old Redbreast Master Blenders' Edition
Not only is Bob Dylan one of America’s greatest singer-songwriters, but the folk pioneer is also a bourbon fan. So much so that he started his own label; Heaven’s Door.
One of the best tasting bourbons they distill is a collaboration with Redbreast known as Heaven’s Door 10 Year Old Redbreast Master Blenders’ Edition. Crafted by the duo of master blenders Ryan Perry of Heaven’s Door and the renowned Billy Leighton, this expression is aged 10 years and finished in casks that previously held Redbreast single pot still whiskey.
It’s a full-bodied bourbon with notes of red apples, figs, and dates and a nutty note of Marzipan in the finish. Yummy.
12. Elijah Craig Single Barrel 18 Year
Good bourbon for the whiskey connoisseur, Elijah Craig Single Barrel 18 Year has received countless awards for its smooth yet complex flavor, including three Double Gold Medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
18 Year showcases Elijah Craig’s Master Distillers’ expertise in crafting a smooth tasting and effortlessly drinkable premium bourbon.
This expression, one of the oldest age statement bourbons available (outside of the extremely difficult to find and expensive Pappy Van Winkle), is bottled solely from the contents of one barrel.
On the nose, you’ll find aged oak, spiced vanilla, with notes of mint and chocolate, while on the palate is richly textured wood, nuts, and old leather contrasting against honey and pleasant char.
If you are going to spend big money on absolutely top drawer premium bourbon, I heartily recommend adding an extra C-note to the price tag and buying this brilliant expression, because it’s simply that good!
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