How Bourbon Hype Can Lead You Astray As A Beginner

Bourbon exploration is a worthwhile pursuit. Bourbon is a category of whiskey that must be made in the United States with a grain bill that's 51% or more corn; it also must be aged in unused white oak barrels, and bottled at 40% ABV or higher. Within those guidelines, a world of different expressions awaits the curious imbiber. It's exciting stuff, but if you're new to drinking bourbon, there's one thing you never want to do: get caught up in bourbon hype.

For Tasting Table, expert on this subject Kenny Jarvis compiled beginner tips for drinking bourbon, from a whiskey connoisseur. The reason he stresses the importance of looking past bourbon hype is that it limits your own discovery. By only chasing famously coveted bottles, you're not figuring out your own preferences. The bourbon segment is rich with names known the world over, like Pappy Van Winkle. But what if you'd really swoon for a bourbon finished in armagnac casks, with fruit and spice notes, from Colorado craft distillery Hoot + Howl Spirits? Or the High Rye Straight Bourbon Whiskey from Maplewood Distillery in Chicago? 

There's also the fact that the hyped bourbon brands are the priciest, too. Often, these bottles get said hype because they're allocated bourbons, meaning they're hard to find because they're sold in limited quantities or aged longer than usual. They take time to track down and serious cash to invest in. It's risky to sink resources into them before you even know your bourbon tastes.

Don't get us wrong. Brands like Blanton's, Maker's Mark, Pappy, Stagg, and Weller's are among the all-time best bourbon brands. Industry experts often acknowledge that while these brands might be overly hyped, it's not incorrect to hype them in general. They just don't deserve to get 100% of the spotlight, steamrolling other bourbons just because they're less expensive or less limited. Consider where bourbon hype comes from in the first place. Distillers either intentionally mark bottles to be allocated because they're from a barrel aged under special conditions, or they just release a small quantity because the batch was a one-off experiment. These limited supplies drive demand, and bourbon enthusiasts hunt for these bottles and pay resellers jaw-dropping amounts. 

So, while hyped bourbons can be great, limited supplies and triple- or even quadruple-digit price tags don't mean they're the only ones you should pursue, and certainly not the first ones. The quickest way for a bourbon novice to become well-informed is to try, try, try. There may be distillers right in your own town making delicious bourbons, which have the appeal of being local. You can find bourbons made with varying grains, from barley to Kernza, a regenerative wheatgrass engineered for heightened eco-friendliness.