The Best Bourbon of 2024 is...

[@michaelarsers9304]

Is there a list of all the bourbons that were in the competition?

[@Boo_Yeah]

Would like a Best of Bourbon that DOESN'T have any allocated or super allocated bottles.

[@MRpapageorgeo1]

Great list this year! I appreciate your list every year. I got the new riff 8 and was amazed by it. Glad to see it represented here.

[@audiodeluxe7647]

Love seeing that New Riff 8 up there. 👏🏼 Just finished my bottle last night. Such a well rounded pour!

[@jasono.1629]

Wow what a shocker for #1! Also for how high some off-the-shelf ones came in. But blind is the truth. I love JD it’s underrated by many of us I think. Happy new year!

[@alrago1963]

Love this every year! Keep up the great work!

[@korgs1302]

JD12 B2 is awesome. Glad to see y’all agree!

[@travisrobeson306]

Looks like y'all do know Jack!!! Happy New Year!!

[@ericmalmstrom9943]

My fave show of the year. Not just because the whiskeys were great, but the production quality was perfect!

[@breakingbelmont]

Man, I’m so glad I have a New Riff 8 year in my collection. I’m also shocked it beat out so many other great bourbons from legacy distilleries, but equally as thrilled. It’s official: craft can play with the big boys.

[@BlankenshiptheDevil]

At this point New Riff has probably graduated from Craft to some neutral ground between legacy and craft. Their core releases are solid, and the LE’s are now approaching 10 years of age.

[@fishhead680]

Hell yeah! Jack 12 yr! Absolutely love it

[@fdznmstry]

Happy New Year! Great list! Thanks for all you do. Much appreciated.

[@enotrilogy]

Great recap of 2024! For me HH18 is near perfect and seemingly overlooked on most EOY best of lists. My number 1 is KoKentucky!

[@Wawalsh1234]

The caveat in the beginning was similar to a commercial for a drug that treats a decease but the list of potential side effects take up the entire commercial. 😂 Love the video, thanks.

[@SteveCoomes-d8x]

My reviews tracked quite similar to yours. Very entertaining and fun to watch!

[@rinzlerF14]

Great review! Refreshing line up for sure! I’ve enjoyed your channel for years now due to having similar tastes. I initially felt betrayed with your #1 pick but… I grew up with that brand just being one thing and I also had the opportunity to buy that bottle and passed. Awesome to see different bottles punching higher than their weight!

[@markwanner3633]

Happy New Year! The AE and NR were definitely a surprise. I quite like the AE for a low-proof pour with personality, but I haven't seen much love for it elsewhere. I've liked NR since the Chad vs Sara SiBs, so I'll put a higher priority on seeking out the 8 and/or others moving forward.

[@AdventureAddict0]

Happy New Year! 🎉

[@javieracosta3439]

Look at that little New Riff go!! 😊

[@C_GOODIES]

RR15 at 6 is wild to me but to each their own, the blind doesn't lie!

[@Whatjoshlikes]

New sub! Love this channel already!

[@ItsBourbonNight]

Thanks! Welcome aboard!

[@SteveCoomes-d8x]

The New Riff 8 year bourbon is fantastic, but the I like the NR 8 year rye even better.

[@ItsBourbonNight]

@@SteveCoomes-d8x It’s in the running for best rye of the year! Tune in next Friday to see how it does, Steve 😊

[@MatthewGrunden]

Yep that New Riff 8 Year is so good and can’t beat the price compared to so many other “hard to find” that most of us never get to find.

[@Wawalsh1234]

I have not found a finished bourbon that I would drink yet.

[@bobbyjones7756]

JD on top. That ain't your daddy's Jack. Sipping on that Nobleman rye ya'll had on the list for 2022 (in an It's Bouron Night whiskey glass, perfectly sized). And 2nd year a New Riff is in a top ten!

[@officerdoofy8981]

Where's the list of what's included? Michter's 10? 4R LE? Old Fitz VVS/10?

[@Best_Overserved_--_No_Ice]

Appreciate the thoroughness of your testing. One thing I'm curious about ... Prior to doing your "double check" where you put the top 12 bottles together for a group blind, did you know at that point the identity of the 12 bottles in that blind?

[@Sb69minis]

Wow what an interesting list. I have a couple new riff bottles including some store picks but not the 8 year.

[@marklammers159]

Can’t get my hands on half of these. I’ll stick to Rare Breed and Green River Full Proof! Cheers! Great vid.

[@daveperfetti2802]

Try New Riff single barrel barrel proof. Uncut unfiltered. $49 here in PA. Delicious. I agree with Rare Bread. Penelope makes nice barrel proof as well

[@marklammers159]

@ yeah I love New Riff!

[@Farwalker2u]

The only one on this list that I have tasted is the Russell's 10 year. I have not even seen any of the others.

[@eafarrar]

...not even Rare Breed?

[@Farwalker2u]

@@eafarrar Oops, sorry I have Rare Breed.

[@brettheiner7125]

Fascinating! Love JD12 and your inclusion of NR 8 Year. RR and GTS topped the year for me while HH18 was perhaps my biggest disappointment of the year. Cheers! 🥃

[@davidlavin3492]

How blessed you two are to be able to find and drink such highly sought after and difficult to find bottles

[@archipelago93]

I saw the New Riff 8 Year on the shelf but turned it down just because of the high price for being 100 proof. It makes me wonder how amazing the 8 year would be if it was barrel proof like New Riff SiB.

[@DannyD892]

Other than the new riff top 8 most people will never get any of the bottles unless they pay crazy secondary prices! Do you guys have a top list with more attainable whiskies? I would love to see that. Cheers

[@TheGrafton12]

Like a "Top 10 best 2024 Accesible Whiskies for Non-Whiskeytubers"....

[@togepreee]

Which fruit specifically do you mean by stone fruit? Peaches, plums, apricots, even olives are stone fruits

[@eafarrar]

Probably the lighter side of those: peach, apricot, nectarine. (Plum is often included in a "darker" fruit category.) At least that's how I usually interpret that.

[@jessejensen7405]

I’m probably going to New Riff this week if you want me to find a bottle. I’m around an hour from Lexington

[@WhiskeyForge]

My top 3 GTS 2024 Russel’s 15 MM CA 2024

[@WhiskeyMathanDearg]

Happy New Year ya’ crazy kids!

[@B1gC4st]

Does it seem like Jack Daniel's special releases are smaller in volume from that Rye a few years ago? I haven't seen a bottle of the special releases since.

[@mike_w_21]

Savory, country ham, clove. 😆

[@JK13A]

I had an opportunity to buy HH 18 at a fair price. Seeing all these reviews on it I kinda wish I would have gone for it but wanted to spend money elsewhere at the time.

[@archipelago93]

Interesting that Russell’s 10 Year-at only 90 proof-is included in the “staple bourbons.” Same for Old Forester 100, as opposed to OF 1920.

[@labeda101]

2024 was a great year for my bourbon collection. I got a Jack 10, Jack 12, and a Michter's 10 all at retail. I paid over retail, but far under secondary for the Russel's Reserve 15.

[@kevinvitale8980]

I still struggle with some of the descriptions ‘notes’ like leather, oak, tobacco, etc? Nose? Surely not the taste?

[@ashythedon]

I don’t know about that analogy of Taco Bell bruh

[@WhiskyForBeginners]

I've had samples of the 10 and the 12 year Jack Daniel's, and I thought the 10 was clearly superior. But in my judgment the Single Barrel Barrel Proof is much better than the 10.

[@larrywade7556]

Finally a top 10 that I can agree with although I prefer the HH17 over the 18.

[@RobRhodes-c7i]

Great Best of 2024!! Happy New Year!!

[@hotwheelsandbeerhotwheelsa7205]

Nice to see the affordable New Riff 8 making it. I really loved it. Great list and channel

[@877-MASH-NOW]

HAPPY NEW YEAR 🎉

[@SteveCoomes-d8x]

"Purple" for me is purple iris, which smells like grape Kool-Aid mix. That what you mean, Zach?

[@Thomas-zu5ku]

Nice to see your opinions. I liked the RR15 better than the Coy Hill and Jack 12 I have tasted or own this year. I thought GTS 23 bottle I got this year was better (didn’t get a chance to try 24) and the Heaven Hill 17 I tasted ( didn’t get a chance at the 18) were my top 2 I had this year. Pappy 15 and King of Kentucky pours I had in October were also in my top 5 flip a coin with these 2 and RR15. Our pallets can be different from day to day and we all have different notes that we pick out and prefer. I also am not as confident when I rank something that I had 1 pour of(HH17, pappy 15, King of Kentucky)vs bottles I have had numerous pours of (GTS23, RR15). Happy new year to everyone and enjoy your favorite flavor profiles.

[@jeffruebens8355]

I like to buy 750 ml or more then average every drink of it over the next few weeks, then decide if I want to buy another bottle. Too much time for most videos. I am much more about the $20 to $30 and $31 to $40 bourbons. I got the Green River Full Proof as a gift when I saw it on sale for $40, at first I thought of it as a rebuy, but a few days later it dropped to almost a rebuy for me. For some reason my rebuys are all from either Clermont or Louisville, Kentucky. For Frankfort craft bourbons at a higher budget, I think it is a good idea to get samples from J Mattingly and Glenn's Creek.

[@Tommyjet18]

HNY 🎉🍾🥂🥳

[@ritchiewhite5278]

I said I would grab the first one mentioned that I have. I am sober.

[@offcamber]

Love this 2024 list ❕ Thank You

[@Rick-yl9jw]

Hey! Happy New Year!

[@TruckA1888]

No Michters 10!?!?!? Oh my!

[@Thomas-zu5ku]

Yea I liked the Micters ten Rye and the barrel strength rye. They were certainly in my top 20 for year . The 10 bourbon was not on my list.

[@josephwatts2904]

Surprised to not see Cellar Aged 24 in the top ten

[@eafarrar]

(It's not very good.)

[@El_LocaLoca]

@Sara and @Chad, nicely handled as far as the explanation, your criteria, and making it abundantly clear that you’ll be releasing another video that factors in value. In prior years, I know ppl have been cruel w/ their complaints about your EOY lists but you’ve addressed it and adapted to it brilliantly. Haters be gone! Cheers!

[@jessejensen7405]

I have an extra bottle of New Riff 8 year if you're interested

[@michelerivera6183]

This was a really great episode. Sarah gives awesome notes! Cheers!

[@rmolina1026]

Great yearly wrap up. Happy new year guys. God bless.

[@-RONNIE]

Thank you for the best 2024 breakdown 🥃

[@KenBassler12]

Awesome video! Happy New Year!

[@booker7004]

Great list! Good job of managing the criticism from previous list about everything being impossible to find. Still, the list had plenty of accessible choices. Also, as always, the best chemistry between the two of you of any channel.

[@josephlinstead5270]

I can get you all the New Riff 8 yr if you like. A store by me has them for $65 which is a few dollars cheaper than at the distillery. If you havent tried their 6 year malted rye Sherry cask finish it's incredible too.

[@nickp5511]

Nice video! Imagine Rare Breed non chilled filtered as a regular shelfer! New Riff is really stepping up their game! Happy New Years! Cheers!

[@mariojohnson4695]

I like TacoBell!

[@garywhite6804]

Great list! Was VVS in contention? I seem to remember your initial tasting singing its praises, but I haven’t seen it in anyone’s top __ list.

[@durzagon88]

Great list guys.

[@Mildago22]

Michters 10 was everyone’s darling in ‘23…did you guys include ‘24 in your blind? Worth picking up…? Love the show! Happy new year!

[@mikedubs9940]

You guys are my original favorite.And a far cry from some others I just can’t watch.(slb)in particular. Thanks for that and keep on

[@thomasanderson2870]

SLB 😖🫣👎

[@takashiemota9784]

Why is SLB bad?

[@camdenhochgesang6554]

Very much disagree. SLB is great. Super relatable. Like drinking with family.

[@mikedubs9940]

@@camdenhochgesang6554 eh yeh..family you may not agree with..IMO..

[@rflinch]

Nice to see someone picking something other than Russell's 15 as the #1. So hard to find and happy that something I have (Rare Breed) was higher.

[@RandalErickson-hb5vr]

So glad I was able to find a JD batch 2. Look forward to trying it now

[@joshuabunkers1494]

You should include barrel picks. Otherwise, you are just adding to the bourbon craze and bourbon allocations.

[@r2skyvader]

Glad you found the ages statement is not everything. I have a single barrel from Nashville Barrel that is only a six year, but tastes much older/mature. I do find there is a minimum amount that helps. For instance, I get a grass taste on under aged wheated bourbons. I also can’t stand under aged notes. I have found this I the Benchmark series as well as the latest WT 101 bottles (hopefully WT will up the age of 101 soon). Anyway, Happy New Years!

[@anthonydejesus-cq6fi]

Thanks for adding the classics 😮

[@dakodasteele123]

The new riff 8 year rye is almost better than the bourbon. New Riff is one of my favorite distilleries so it's awesome to see them getting some recognition finally! Great list guys

[@chadschupbach450]

Had a pour of GTS (not sure the batch) at a Xmas party. Guy I was with thought I was nuts when I told him id pick rare breed over it. Cant wait to send him this video.

[@camdenhochgesang6554]

I definitely would not. To each their own. Had a pour of 2024 GTS. Not as good as previous years, but still elite. To me Rare Breed is good, but I have to be in the right mood for it. I’d rather have a Russel’s pick.

[@DavidSmith-xi6sp]

Such an interesting video. Probably my favorite year end video by quite a bit. May have to head over to New Riff and see if they have the 8yr... Also, finally managed to buy two of the Flight Boards! :D

[@robertpatterson3106]

How can you make the statement the best of the year when you do not include staples. That within its self makes your whole list suspect.

[@eafarrar]

Rare Breed was literally in the top 5.

[@chrisobergfell8660]

Happy New Year!!! Two bourbons got bumped from the bourbon list by Tennessee whiskey lol. Ouch maybe top 10 American whiskeys next time.

[@bradleesulentic2968]

Tennessee whiskey is bourbon.

[@iseedumbppol]

By IBN standards... Jack Daniel's is in fact BOURBON! Cheers & Happy New Year with that bombshell.🎉

[@kamahhl]

I did not see that Top 3 coming at all. Super interesting! My top 3 this year (by a lot) would be GTS, RR15, and JD Coy Hill. (I was not impressed by Heaven Hill 18)

[@Thomas-zu5ku]

Well are palletes are certainly our own. I just yanked out my bottle of Rare Breed and it finishes 4th compared to the 3 I had earlier today. #1 was Short Barrel the Bee’s Knees store pick , 2 is Sagamore Spirits double oak Rye and 3 was a Blantons gold StorePick.Not that Rare Breed is bad but it is just not one of the best 50 I have tasted this year.

[@John-iw2ny]

Man, I don’t know what to say. I have always carried similar palates, I have to go back to JD12, but I typically run full sped from JD anything.

[@RobertMichaelStewart]

Nice job you two.... Another year gone.... Prayers up everyone ❤️🙏

[@Usonian7]

At Sam's Club last month i picked up a handle of eagle rare.

[@POPPAsmurf-ic9vk]

I was at the turkey distillery an overheard mr Russell say that rare breed had 18 yr juice in it

[@dewalt5599]

That jack taste like licking a tree. Hard pass

[@fredgrebner526]

And every bottle not worth a penny over msrp. ✌🏼🇺🇸

[@YoJimBo851610]

537👍

[@mdiggler]

All these disclaimers at the beginning really show how fragile the whiskey drinking community is in general lol

[@TheBarryHawk]

You get a pass this year from my criticism.

[@chriskman71]

Wait. Um teacher? Isn't this top 10 Bourbons? What is Jack Daniels doing in there? I do not see the word Bourbon on that Bottle. Maybe I am just missing something....

[@Best_Overserved_--_No_Ice]

The Master Distiller at Jack Daniel's is on camera saying that, technically, Jack is a bourbon. But, to differentiate themselves for marketing purposes, Jack chooses to call themselves "Tennessee whiskey." In reality they're both.

[@LeatherDaddy97]

Very surprised to see the angels on here. I thought it was straight up bad. Tastes like tv dinner corn, the finishes dont come across at all, no depth and it smells like a whiteboard marker. Id put it pretty firmly in my worst of the year. All that said, everybody has different taste, but im definitely not alone in my opinion. My bourbon of the year is my 2024 coy hill. Cheers!