Is Evan Williams good bourbon?

[domino79]

You could do a damn sight worse.

I drank the hell out of it at one time. Could be I just got used to it, but I didn't think it was bad at all.

You do however want to stay away from five star...

 

[Bill@ModernThirst]

The black label is solid. There's nothing special about it, but it's solid. I'd take it all day over most of the lower-priced standard labels (Jim Beam white label, for example).

The single barrel and the EW bottled in bond (white label) are better.

Heaven Hill makes really nice whiskey at a very low price point.

 

[CAT Scratch FVR]

It is a good cheap bourbon that I use when I mix with coke. Prefer over Makers for that purpose.

 

[jameslee32]

George Jones sure liked it.

Heaven Hill Bottled in Bond is better for the price. It can be a little hard to find though.

Bought one for $11.98 on Saturday. Very solid! Smooth! Can't imagine a better bargain in whiskey.

 

[Bill@ModernThirst]

Old Grandad 80 best bargain-bourbon all-time, hands-down. Old Fitzgerald just a shade behind, but a bit heavy on the oak for some. Old Grandad 100 is actually superb. Youngins don't know anything about it because it ain't marketed toward them. On par with Turkey 101, maybe better. As a general rule, the better quality the bourbon's 100 proof is so too is it's 80. Evan Williams 100 is very disappointing. Fitz makes a really good 101 but I got so drunk on it in my 30s I doubt that it was anything below 120. Respect it.

Old fitz doesn't do a 101 anymore. Just the Prime and Bonded.

Heaven Hill 6 Year Bonded is the best bargain for me. I don't care too much for Beam's yeast strain. It gives me a very cardboard-like finish at lower proofs. I do like Bookers/Knob Creek/Knob Creek Single Barrel quite a bit, and I do like OGD 114 over any of the Beam-branded stuff, and far more than Basil Hayden. The Beam folks don't really like making that mash. They seem to hate switching over their stills to the high-rye recipe.

 

[Bill@ModernThirst]

Is it better than Jim Beam? I’m usually more of a Moscow Mule guy. Maybe I mix it with some ginger ale see what happens.

My beer replacement in the summer is diet ginger beer and bourbon (I try to avoid carbs). Typically, I try not to go too oaky on Moscow Mules. I've found wheaters work best for me.. Ginger beer is already very sharp and bitter, so the sweetness of a wheater seems to compliment better. I buy the old fitz prime (About $11 a bottle) for it, or Weller SR. Bernheim wheat whiskey is outstanding with ginger ale/beer, but pricier.

I also think Old Forester 86 proof works really well for a non-wheater that is dirt cheap. It has a vanilla-heavy and gingerbread flavor to it that works better than most at that price point.