I recently came across a YouTube video—almost certainly produced by AI—that paired 12 supposedly attainable bourbons with 12 bottles that are much harder to find.

Some of the comparisons were questionable.

The video described Buffalo Trace as difficult to find, which may still be true in some places but certainly isn’t universal anymore. It also suggested that Old Fitzgerald 7-Year compared favorably with Pappy Van Winkle, which felt like the kind of thing an AI narrator says when nobody involved has actually tasted either bottle.

Still, a few of the pairings were interesting enough that I wanted to test them for myself.

The premise was simple: Can an attainable bourbon deliver the same quality as a bottle people chase, overpay for or wait months to find?

For one of the comparisons, I added a third bourbon because I thought it could offer a better alternative than the bottle suggested in the video.

All five rounds were tasted blind.

Round 1: Larceny vs. Weller Special Reserve

This was one of the more logical comparisons in the video. Both are approachable wheated bourbons, but Larceny can be found almost anywhere while Weller Special Reserve still carries the glow of allocation.

Glencairn A

The color was a solid amber. On the nose, I found oak, dusty peanuts and caramel.

Those same notes carried directly onto the palate, with caramel, peanut butter, light oak and cinnamon. The mouthfeel was slightly thin, and the short finish brought caramel and vanilla.

Score: 76.71

Glencairn B

This one was also solid amber, but it bordered more closely on copper. The nose was fruit-forward, led by grape juice, along with caramel, light oak and vanilla.

Again, the aromas carried neatly onto the palate. Grape candy led the way, followed by toffee and vanilla. The mouthfeel was modest, and the finish returned to the grape candy while adding a dose of cinnamon.

Score: 76.60

The Reveal

Glencairn A: Larceny Small Batch
Glencairn B: Weller Special Reserve

The Verdict

These two bourbons delivered very different flavor profiles, but the overall quality was almost identical. Only 0.11 points separated them.

Larceny leaned into the familiar combination of peanuts, caramel and oak, while Weller Special Reserve was much fruitier, with grape juice and grape candy dominating the experience.

Weller carries more prestige because of its Buffalo Trace connection, but it is also more difficult to find in many markets. Larceny is readily available, usually costs a little less and, in this tasting, scored slightly higher.

The difference in quality certainly wasn’t enough to justify chasing Weller Special Reserve.

The nod goes to Larceny.

Round 2: Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond vs. E.H. Taylor Small Batch

Both of these are 100-proof bottled-in-bond bourbons from major Kentucky distilleries, making this another comparison that sounded reasonable on paper.

Glencairn C

The color was a solid amber. Oak led the nose, followed by toffee, peanuts and vanilla.

Cinnamon and caramel took the lead on the palate, with dusty peanuts and vanilla following behind. The mouthfeel was modest, and the finish was decent, with cinnamon, toffee and oak dominating.

Score: 79.10

Glencairn D

This one was also a solid amber. Tree fruit and oak led the nose, backed by caramel and vanilla.

The palate was more complex, with caramel, brown sugar, raisins and butterscotch all showing up. The mouthfeel was solid, and the finish was strong, led by cinnamon, grapes and caramel.

Score: 81.59

The Reveal

Glencairn C: Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond
Glencairn D: E.H. Taylor Small Batch

The Verdict

This comparison didn’t really work as an example of an attainable bourbon matching a harder-to-find one.

Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond was solid, and I may actually prefer its peanut, caramel and cinnamon profile. But E.H. Taylor Small Batch was simply the better bourbon in this tasting. It had more complexity, a better mouthfeel and a stronger finish, winning by nearly 2.5 points.

E.H. Taylor also seems to be getting easier to find than it once was. At or near MSRP, it is the bottle I would recommend from this pairing.

That does not diminish Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond. It remains one of the best bottled-in-bond bourbons available around—or sometimes below—the $40 mark. Drinkers who prefer a nuttier, more dessert-like profile may even enjoy it more.

But judged strictly on overall quality, E.H. Taylor Small Batch wins this round.

Round 3: Penelope Four Grain Barrel Strength vs. Stagg vs. Wolcott Rickhouse Reserve

The video suggested Penelope as an attainable alternative to Stagg. I decided to add Wolcott Rickhouse Reserve because its proof and price made it an interesting third option.

Glencairn E

The color was mid-copper. There was a little proof up front on the nose, followed by apples and grapes, toffee, vanilla and light oak.

Raisins and cinnamon led the palate, with butterscotch, vanilla and light oak trailing behind. The mouthfeel was creamy, and the finish was long and spicy, dominated by cinnamon, fruit and caramel.

Score: 83.87

Glencairn F

This one was light copper. The nose featured buttery toffee, toasted nuts, nutmeg and caramel.

The palate led with butterscotch, cinnamon, brown sugar, citrus zest and light oak. The mouthfeel fell just short of creamy but was still substantial. The finish was solid, with toasted nuts, baking spice and toffee.

Score: 82.89

Glencairn G

The color was deep amber. The nose carried buttery toffee, caramel, nutmeg and light oak.

Sweet cinnamon syrup led the palate, followed by caramel, toffee and a touch of oak. The mouthfeel was the thinnest of the three, but the finish lingered nicely, bringing brown sugar, cinnamon and light oak.

Score: 81.81

The Reveal

Glencairn E: Stagg Batch 24C
Glencairn F: Wolcott Rickhouse Reserve
Glencairn G: Penelope Four Grain Barrel Strength

The Verdict

Once again, the comparison proposed by the video didn’t quite work.

Penelope Four Grain Barrel Strength was good, but it did not measure up particularly well against Stagg. It finished more than two points behind and had the thinnest mouthfeel of the three.

Stagg was clearly the best bourbon in the flight. It had the richest mouthfeel, the longest finish and the most complete combination of fruit, sweetness and spice.

The problem, of course, is finding one anywhere near its intended retail price.

The surprise was Wolcott Rickhouse Reserve. It finished less than one point behind Stagg and delivered plenty of buttery toffee, toasted nuts, brown sugar and baking spice. More importantly, it is available every day at Total Wine for a very reasonable price.

Penelope remains a perfectly good barrel-strength bourbon, especially for someone who enjoys its sweeter cinnamon-and-caramel profile. But based on this tasting, Wolcott is the more convincing attainable alternative to Stagg.

Still, there is something fun about having a bottle of Stagg on the shelf. At around $100, Stagg is an easy recommendation. I could still understand paying up to about $125 for the right batch, but I wouldn’t go much beyond that. At those prices, however, it is a special bottle worth adding to the collection.

Stagg wins the tasting. Wolcott wins the value argument.

Round 4: Russell’s Reserve 10-Year vs. Eagle Rare 10-Year

This may have been the most straightforward comparison of the group.

Both are 10-year, 90-proof Kentucky bourbons. Russell’s Reserve is usually easy to find. Eagle Rare is increasingly available, but it still carries an allocated reputation that sometimes pushes the price far beyond where it belongs.

Glencairn H

The color was light copper. Light oak led the nose, followed by caramel, nutmeg, pears and toasted nuts.

Apples and caramel took the lead on the palate, with cinnamon and brown sugar following. The mouthfeel stopped short of oily but was still respectable. The finish lingered nicely with cinnamon, tree fruit and vanilla.

Score: 80.62

Glencairn I

This one was deep amber. The nose began with light oak before moving into creamy peanut butter, nutmeg and caramel.

Dusty peanuts opened the palate, followed by caramel, toffee and cinnamon. The mouthfeel was slightly better than Glencairn H, though still a little thin. The finish, however, was excellent, with cinnamon, brown sugar and a touch of oak.

Score: 80.62

The Reveal

Glencairn H: Eagle Rare 10-Year
Glencairn I: Russell’s Reserve 10-Year

The Verdict

I ended up with something I don’t see very often in a blind tasting: a tie.

The two bourbons reached the same score in very different ways. Eagle Rare leaned more heavily into tree fruit, caramel and vanilla, while Russell’s Reserve brought peanuts, brown sugar, cinnamon and oak.

Since the quality was identical in this tasting, the deciding factors have to be availability and price.

Russell’s Reserve 10-Year is generally easier to find and often costs less, especially when retailers still try to cash in on Eagle Rare’s allocated reputation rather than pricing it according to what is actually in the bottle.

Eagle Rare remains a very good 10-year bourbon, particularly for drinkers who prefer a fruit-forward profile. But when the scores are tied and one bottle is easier to find at a fair price, the choice becomes simple.

The nod goes to Russell’s Reserve 10-Year.

Round 5: Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit vs. Blanton’s Single Barrel

Both of these are well-established single-barrel bourbons, but Blanton’s receives considerably more attention—and usually requires considerably more effort to find.

Glencairn J

The color was light copper. The nose carried dusty peanuts, oak, caramel and vanilla.

Cinnamon quickly took over on the palate, followed by butterscotch, caramel, vanilla, light oak and just a touch of toasted nuts. The mouthfeel was lightly creamy, and the finish was strong. The buttery notes came through clearly, joined by brown sugar and cinnamon.

Score: 82.68

Glencairn K

This one was deep amber. The nose was a little lighter, with pears, light caramel, oak and vanilla.

Cinnamon was also a major note on the palate, followed by sweet fruit—possibly grapes—along with caramel, vanilla and oak. The mouthfeel was lightly creamy, but the finish lagged behind Glencairn J. Fruit and toffee dominated, accented by a touch of cinnamon.

Score: 81.48

The Reveal

Glencairn J: Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit
Glencairn K: Blanton’s Single Barrel

The Verdict

This result surprised me.

I had heard from plenty of people who consider Kentucky Spirit overrated, usually because they prefer Wild Turkey Rare Breed. That may be a fair comparison within the Wild Turkey lineup, but against another respected single-barrel bourbon such as Blanton’s, Kentucky Spirit showed exactly what it can do.

It was richer, more flavorful and better on the finish. The difference wasn’t enormous, but it was clear enough to give Kentucky Spirit the win.

Kentucky Spirit is not the best bourbon you will ever drink, and it does not need to be. It is a highly drinkable single-barrel bourbon that is usually available and reasonably affordable.

Blanton’s remains a solid bourbon, but when quality, price and availability are all considered, Kentucky Spirit wins across the board.

The nod goes to Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit.

Final Thoughts

The video’s premise didn’t always hold up, but the experiment still made one thing clear: difficulty does not automatically equal quality.

In the first round, Larceny and Weller Special Reserve were essentially equals. Russell’s Reserve 10-Year and Eagle Rare finished in an exact tie. Kentucky Spirit beat Blanton’s outright.

E.H. Taylor and Stagg proved that some allocated bottles really are better than their easier-to-find alternatives. But even then, the difference has limits.

E.H. Taylor is worth buying near MSRP, but Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond remains a strong bottle at a lower price. Stagg was the best bourbon of the entire tasting, but Wolcott Rickhouse Reserve came surprisingly close while costing far less and requiring no chase at all.

That may be the real lesson here.

The goal shouldn’t be to find a bottle that tastes exactly like Stagg, Blanton’s or Weller. Most of the time, that bottle doesn’t exist.

The better question is whether you can find something equally enjoyable—or close enough—without spending your weekends following delivery trucks, entering lotteries or paying a store owner three times what the whiskey is worth.

In several of these rounds, the answer was yes.

Final Results

• Larceny defeated Weller Special Reserve.
• E.H. Taylor Small Batch defeated Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond.
• Stagg won the three-way flight, but Wolcott Rickhouse Reserve won on value.
• Russell’s Reserve 10-Year tied Eagle Rare and won the availability tiebreaker.
• Kentucky Spirit defeated Blanton’s.

Allocated bourbon can be excellent.

It just isn’t automatically better.

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Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.