Blanton’s is a really tasty whiskey, but is it still worth the hunt or paying the premium?
With the huge selection of small batch, single barrel, and other bourbon styles available, Blanton’s isn’t necessarily the top pick anymore.
Separating the bottle from the hype, the higher rye content in the mash bill helps deliver a more rounded flavor profile, with the taste driven by a wonderful orange caramel note. It’s also made by Buffalo Trace, so it’s high-quality bourbon, but you don’t need to chase the hype and awards anymore.
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READ THE STORYSo, here are five whiskeys that I would pick up over Blanton’s any day of the week.
Four Roses Single Barrel, 50%, $43 / £45
I feel this is the closest bourbon in terms of style. It’s a single barrel expression from a much-loved Kentucky distiller, with an even higher rye content in the mash bill, ranging from 20% to 35% depending on the recipe. The standard recipe is OBSV. It’s a buttery, rich, spicy single barrel that sums up what Four Roses bourbon is all about.
An accessible, affordable bottle that sits on shelves while people enter crazy lotteries or overpay for a fancy bottle that’s appeared in a film. The more you say that aloud, the weirder it gets.
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I’ve talked about this bourbon a lot in the past, and my opinion hasn’t changed. It’s great quality, really well priced, and available around the world. It doesn’t have a fancy horse on the stopper or appear in Keanu Reeves’ hand, but it doesn’t need to.
When it comes to bourbons like Blanton’s, Four Roses, in my opinion, is head and shoulders above it, especially as it doesn’t involve standing in a line for hours or crossing state lines.
Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel, 55%, $52 / £80
Another higher-proof single barrel release that equals, and even beats, Blanton’s in quite a few ways.
When it comes to Russell’s Reserve and Wild Turkey in general, we’ve got a lot of fantastic quality to work with. This bottle is full of toasted pecans, toffee, caramel, milk chocolate, and waves of cinnamon and nutmeg that rush toward your nose. The taste is bold, robust, and complex, offering a bigger flavor profile than most Blanton’s single barrel releases.
Russell’s is comparable to bourbons like Blanton’s in the sense that it’s sought-after. That’s where the comparisons really stop. This is a richer, more impressive bottle of bourbon that doesn’t need Hollywood to persuade you to buy it.
Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit, 50.5%, $50 / £67
Sticking with Wild Turkey, here’s a bottle that stays true to the fundamentals of what makes Wild Turkey an incredible brand. At MSRP, this is a little more expensive than Blanton’s should be, but it’s worth the extra few dollars, if you ask me.
Packed with rich brown butter, fresh butter, toasted corn, salted caramel, warming rye spices, and that classic Wild Turkey rolling tobacco note, this is an unbelievable expression of Kentucky single barrel bourbon.
You’ve got some alligator-level char in these single barrel picks, but it’s not all about those super-rich flavors. They’re layered with fresh pear, green apple, and cherries. It’s a super complex, really well-priced bottle that shouldn’t surprise us.
What Wild Turkey does well is deliver great flavor for great value, and the brand has yet to let us down on either front. A bottle of bourbon that’s like Blanton’s, but also significantly more impressive at the same time.
Eagle Rare 10 Year Old, 45%, $50 / £33
Okay, so I’m aware this isn’t a single barrel, but you can find some store picks and selections that are. That aside, this is still a better option in terms of bang for your buck when compared to Blanton’s.
It’s generally more available, and with the current glut of bourbon and other whiskies on the market, it should be a little easier to find now. It’s very well priced for a ten-year-old Kentucky bourbon. Again, it’s made by Buffalo Trace, so the quality is still there. It has less rye in the mash bill, but the additional age makes up for that.
The taste and aroma are full of maple syrup, milk chocolate, freshly charred oak, green apples, cherries, brown sugar, and even notes of red wine. A remarkably interesting bourbon, and one that some might call a gold standard for age-stated expressions on the market.
A bourbon that’s like Blanton’s in some ways, but miles ahead in others. I know the hype around Eagle Rare is still winding down, but I’m hoping you can get your hands on this more easily and at a better price than Blanton’s.
Evan Williams Single Barrel, 43.3%, $32 / £50
This is arguably the most affordable bottle on this list, depending on which state you’re in. It’s also a bottle that still flies under the radar when it comes to big bourbon comparisons.
Evan Williams Single Barrel has a lower ABV than Blanton’s, as well as most of the bottles on this list, but when it comes to flavor, it’s an excellent example of the distillery’s house style. The nose is full of caramel-covered peanuts, muscovado sugar, barrel char, bourbon warehouse aromas, and luscious notes of honey and chocolate.
I’ve put this bourbon head-to-head with Blanton’s in a blind tasting, and it came out on top. People found it easier to drink, a little more interesting on the palate, and generally more affordable once the prices were revealed.
So Which One Should I Get?
Any of these choices would be an excellent addition to your whiskey cabinet. Blanton’s is a good bourbon, there’s no denying that, but it’s not worth the price, the time, or the frustration of trying to find it.
Any of the bottles above can easily equal or beat it when it comes to flavor, and that’s the part that really matters here. If you’re chasing a bottle and flavor isn’t the main reason why, well, that’s a separate article in itself.
