This Affordable Whiskey Has Now Reached Buy on Sight Status

In 2019 and 2020, we called George Dickel’s then-nascent Bottled in Bond whisky one of the best values in the liquor store for good reason. 

The inaugural release in 2019 earned the “Whisky of the Year Award” from Whisky Advocate, was the top-rated American Whiskey of 2019 by Wine Enthusiast, and earned Double Gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. And its MSRP was just $36. 

In hindsight, we should have called it one of the most interesting releases of the year, too, given it was one of the first significant projects from Nicole Austin, who was just settling into her new role as General Manager and Distiller at the brand in 2018. 

George Dickel

Keep in mind that before Austin arrived on the scene, the Dickel brand was in a very different place. One of the final products the brand released before she began shaping the roadmap was a Tabasco barrel-aged offering nicknamed Hot Dickle that almost made Fireball seem classy by comparison. 

But the first two years of the bottled in bond series weren’t just beginner’s luck for Austin. Dickel Bottled in Bond won Double Gold again in San Francisco in 2021 and 2022. And although prices increased from its original MSRP of $36, it still remained relatively affordable.

Suspiciously, no release came in 2023, making many wonder if the company was considering allocating valuable 10+ year-old stock to a more premium-priced bottling. 

But a fifth iteration in the series, George Dickel Bottled in Bond Spring 2011, released just this May, quickly ended these worries. And like its predecessors, it won double gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, earning a 96 final score.

Despite its continuous accolades, not everyone in the whiskey community likes George Dickel.

In fact, a vocal portion of online whiskey fans believe George Dickel whisky is characterized by tasting notes bluntly described as “Fruity Pebbles” by some. Others feel the flavor is more like “Flintstone vitamins” or “mineral-like.” These flavors make George Dickel a brand to avoid in the minds of some.

George Dickell

Personally, I’ve never found this flavor profile to be overwhelming with George Dickel offerings. It just feels a bit more fruit-forward than anything, perhaps with an occasional lingering hint of bitterness . Maybe I just didn’t chew enough of the popular kids’ vitamin from the 90s. I’ve definitely never detected any flavor offensive enough that I’d consider it a major turn-off. But to each their own. 

After now having the chance to sip the fifth iteration of George Dickell’s Bottled in Bond release, only one point clearly stuck in my mind — the series deserved a spot on my affordable whiskey recommendation shortlist. 

Now five versions deep, George Dickel’s bottled in bond series has been consistent enough to make it an easy suggestion as an approachable whiskey that, at an MSRP of $44.99, still feels somewhat underpriced. It’s a particularly solid offering for anyone looking for something besides Bourbon or Scotch who wants a whiskey they can enjoy neat but not feel guilty about using to make cocktails either. 

My only remaining question is how hard it will be to find bottles moving forward.

On that front, Nicole Austin recently shared both good and bad news with Inside Hook. The sixth generation of the bottled in bond series is already, or at least in the process of being finished. The downside that she shared was this. “The individual volumes ended up being much lower. So it’s going to be harder to find, but this isn’t artificial scarcity.”

Courtesy

George Dickel Bottled in Bond Tennessee Whisky

• $46 at Reserve Bar

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