The Top Community Rated Whiskeys From Last Week

Wheated bourbon is bourbon with wheat as the predominant grain in the mash bill after corn. Traditionally, rye takes that second billing. Weller 12 Year is often referred to by some as the "poor man's Pappy". With the exception of the 23 Year Pappy Van Winkle which still has some Stitzel-Weller juice in it, all Pappy and Weller bourbons use the Buffalo Trace wheated mash bill. The main difference will be in the barrel management.

Oban 14 Year is quite the crowd-pleaser and is found everywhere from your local pubs to serious whisky bars. Its fans might be surprised to hear it hails from one of the smaller distilleries in Scotland. Also small are the size of their pear-shaped stills. Oban, a seaside town built around the distillery, is actually named after the distillery and not the other way around. The surrounding environment clearly has influenced its namesake whisky as the sea is the signature footprint of Oban whiskies.

This small batch bottling (200 barrels per batch) is comprised of selected whiskeys 8-12 years of age. This no-age statement product was introduced in early 2016 to replace the 12-year age statement (a barrel illustration on the original label took place of the number 12). Later in the year, Heaven Hill redesigned its packaging again, with the year "1789" now embossed on the glass. It remains bottled at 94 proof.

Distilled at its namesake Woodford Reserve Distillery located in Versailles, Ky. (formerly called Labrot & Graham Distillery), this Kentucky straight bourbon was first introduced in 1996. It is also known as "Distiller's Select". This high-rye bourbon has a mash bill containing 18% rye. It is made from a combination of pot still and column still whiskey. The bourbon is aged between 6-7 years and carries no age statement. Bottled at 45.2% ABV.

Eagle Rare 10 Year Bourbon is one of the flagship products of the Buffalo Trace collection of whiskeys. It is made from 10 year old bourbon aged at the Kentucky distillery. The barrels are hand selected for quality and consistency before bottling.

Larceny Small Batch is a brand extension of Heaven Hill's Old Fitzgerald line. According to their story, back in the day, John E. Fitzgerald used his privilege of holding the keys to Pappy Van Winkle's bonded warehouse, where the Old Fitzgerald bourbons were kept, to steal the best casks for himself. These became known as the "Fitzgerald Barrels." Larceny is a wheated straight bourbon made from a blend of selected barrels made in honor of this legend. It bears no-age statement and is bottled at 92 proof.

Four Roses Small Batch is a straight bourbon that is comprised of 4 of the 10 recipes Four Roses employs. They use an equal measure of both of their mash bills (60% corn, 35% rye, 5% barley and 75% corn, 20% rye, 5% barley). They also use yeast strains which highlight both a light and spicy profile along with a rich and fruity one. It is bottled at 45% ABV.

Though not officially (read, legally) established until 1816, there are records that date distillation here going back to 1742. Malted barley produced just a hop, skip, and a jump away at neighboring Port Ellen is utilized. Everything is long at this distillery: fermentation, distillation, and maturation. Good things do indeed come to those that wait. Bottled at 43% ABV after 16 years in oak barrels.

The first mass-produced single-barrel bourbon, bottled by Master Distiller Elmer T Lee in 1984, gets its name from Colonel Albert Blanton. Colonel Blanton spent more than 55 years producing, studying and upholding whiskey traditions; holding almost every job imaginable at what is now the Buffalo Trace Distillery. Insider's note: Save the stoppers. They spell out Blanton's and depict eight different moments from the beginning to end of a horse race.

The former George T. Stagg distillery was renamed Buffalo Trace when Sazerac took over ownership in 1999. Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee came out of retirement for the creation of the Buffalo Trace Bourbon which was released later that same year. This is the flagship bourbon from the distillery and is comprised of a low-rye traditional mash bill. It is bottled without an age statement at 90 proof.