Up next in 10
The Bourbon Gift Guide - Best Bourbon to Give as a Gift
825 views
Apr 14, 2025
Looking to give your loved one a special bottle of bourbon this Holiday season? Here are my recommendations for gifts at 5 different price points. Limited Edition Bourbon Bytes Merch: http://BourbonBytes.Threadless.com Join the Whiskey & Gaming Lounge: http://BourbonBytes.com Become a Patreon Supporter: http://Patreon.com/BourbonBytes 0:00 Introduction 0:25 Best Bourbon Under $25 2:07 Best Bourbon Under $50 3:06 Bourbon Bytes Merch 3:36 Best Bourbon Under $75 4:48 Best Bourbon Under $100 6:38 Best Bourbon Over $100 #WhiskeyTube #Bourbon #WhiskeyTube #Bourbon #RyeWhiskey
View Video Transcript
0:00
Hey everyone, welcome to Bourbon Bites, whiskey reviews with a gaming twist
0:04
I'm Clifton and these are the best bourbons you should give as a gift
0:11
So whether you are a regular here on this channel or you just happen to cross this video because
0:16
you are looking for a bourbon for a special someone in your life, I'm here to show you
0:20
several different bourbons I recommend at different price points that I think would make the perfect
0:24
gift. So we're going to start at the $25 level. Now this could be, you know, just a co-worker
0:29
or, you know, just a friend that you don't want to like spend a lot of money on, but you want to
0:33
you know, show a nice gesture. So my recommendation for the best bourbon to buy someone under $25
0:38
has to go to Elijah Craig single barrel store picks. So these look pretty similar to the standard
0:45
Elijah Craig small batch, but if you notice they have the store logo or maybe just the name of the
0:50
store written on the bottle, you'll see that this says privately selected. So that's how you know
0:55
something is a store pick. And what I love about store picks, especially Elijah Craig, is each one
1:00
is unique. So this pretty much guaranteed that they've never had a bottle just like it, especially
1:05
if you're not from the area. This is specific to your local liquor store. So it is usually picked
1:10
by the owner or employees of that store that taste a few different barrels and pick out the one that
1:14
is perfect for their flavor profile. Now it is a little hit or miss, but my experience is almost
1:19
all the time a store pick is going to be enjoyable. Now I always recommend Elijah Craig in general
1:24
because I think it is one of the most approachable bourbons. But when you go to the store pick level
1:29
there is great value here for under $25. Now, as with all of these
1:33
it may be a little bit more in your area depending on your store. If it's a lot more than that, then, you know, maybe go to a different store
1:39
But really, I just think I would love to receive a store pick from your area
1:43
especially if you're coming from out of town. One alternate one, if you know that they are a fan of Maker's Mark
1:48
Heaven Hill also makes a whiskey called Larceny, which is their weeded bourbon
1:52
There are Larceny store picks. I'll put up a picture of it right there
1:56
But that's another option, especially if you know that they love Maker's Mark. It's a weeder. It'll be very similar flavor profile, but it will still be a very unique whiskey
2:03
So that is my recommendation for $25 or less. So the next price point on my list is the price point Now this may be someone that you know is already pretty experienced with bourbon not necessarily you know an expert but someone that you know appreciates a good bourbon
2:18
My recommendation for $50 is Michter's Small Batch Bourbon. So at my store, this was about $35. I've seen it up to like $45. But Michter's is probably one of the lesser known brands in whiskey, especially when you're talking about the big distilleries
2:32
But believe it or not, they were actually one of the first distilleries in America. So this is a Kentucky bourbon
2:37
It's just over 90 proof, so it's a bit more than your typical bourbon, but it brings a
2:42
lot of flavor with that. It's very sweet. It's got a lot of oak influence, especially that toasted oak I really love about Michters
2:50
And it's just an overall good bourbon. Now, Michters also makes a rye and an American whiskey, both around the same price point as
2:57
this one. So if you know the flavor profile a bit more, maybe opt for one of those
3:01
But all three are solid options and great gifts for that price point
3:06
So before I move on to the next price point, if you have someone that is a fan of whiskey and video games, check out my Threadless store
3:13
I have this shirt and as well as some other video game themed merch
3:17
I just launched a whole new collection for the holidays. So if that's something that you think either you or the person you're buying a gift for would appreciate, go check that out
3:25
Especially if you're watching this around the Thanksgiving Black Friday holiday. There are some amazing threadless sales right now. So the link to that is down in the description below if that's something you're interested in
3:36
So the next price point I picked was $75. Now, this is a little bit more. This is more than you would probably want to spend for your casual co-worker
3:44
But if this is a good friend or someone that you know really, really likes whiskey, what do you get them
3:49
For $75, I don't think you could go wrong with a Maker's Mark Private Select
3:54
So these are very, very similar to the single barrels like Elijah Craig, but Maker's Mark has a really, really cool process that they use to finish their whiskey
4:02
and it's customized per store. So each store is allowed to finish their whiskey in a choice of five different staves
4:09
Now, in recent bottlings, they've moved this a bit to the front, but you can see here the different choices you have
4:14
This store in particular picked five of the American Pure No. 2 and five of the Maker's 46
4:19
So you don have to understand what that means but basically they finish the whiskey in different types of oak staves to give it unique flavor characteristics So for example the roasted French mocha would give it a lot more of a dark chocolate kind of note whereas the Maker 46 brings out those fruit
4:36
spices. So again, it doesn't really matter what it is because I've had at least 10 to 15 different
4:41
ones of this, and I've not had a bad one. I would never be disappointed to receive one of these
4:46
They're just that good. So next up on my list is the $100 price point. Now, this would be the gift
4:52
for, I don't know, your boss or your significant other, someone that you're willing to spend a good
4:56
chunk of money on. And my recommendation for $100 has to be Booker's Bourbon. Now, Booker's is a
5:03
small batch bourbon from the Jim Beam Distillery, which you may know that name because, you know
5:07
they make some really, really cheap bourbon. But Booker's is one of their highest end products
5:13
They release three to four batches every year. This happens to be the second batch of 2020
5:18
But first of all, I mean, check out this sexy box. They all should come in a box like this
5:23
which makes them, you know, a bourbon collector's dream. I always hold on to my boxes. And something
5:27
I really like about Booker's is each batch has a unique story behind the name of the batch
5:32
So for example, this 2020-02 is called Boston Batch, and it's kind of a throwback to
5:36
where Booker No actually first started his distilling career. And it also gives you
5:41
information on the back about what went into this, you know, the age of the whiskey, where the whiskey
5:46
is from, and the bottle itself is also really, really nice, especially for someone that collects
5:51
whiskey. I know I always have to seek out each batch of these, even though the price did recently
5:55
increase. This used to be about a $60 bottle. Now it's going for $70 to $80, sometimes up to $90
6:02
Honestly, if you could find this for under $100 and you're giving it as a gift, you will not be
6:06
disappointed. You won't really be overspending. Now, if you're buying every batch like me, $100
6:11
is a bit much, but if you're getting it as a special occasion gift, I don't think anything
6:15
under $100 would be a bad decision. Now, before we get into the final category of these best gift
6:21
giving whiskeys, I do want to introduce myself if you made it this far and you don't know who I am
6:25
Like I said, I'm Clifton. I do whiskey review live streams on Thursdays and I do video game and
6:30
whiskey streams on Saturdays So if you new here I would love if you could hit subscribe and hit the like button and let me know that you enjoy this video so my final gift giving recommendation is for the person that you don mind spending a
6:44
lot of money on now my first recommendation may come as no surprise to people that know me on
6:48
this channel this is probably my favorite limited edition bourbon i've ever bought and this is
6:54
wild turkey masters heap 17 year bottled and bond so my favorite thing about these bottles is they
6:59
always come in a gorgeous box. The presentation here surpasses so many other high-end whiskeys
7:06
So they release one of these a year. This is the 2020 release. However, any of them would be a
7:11
fantastic gift. Now it is worth mentioning if you know which distilleries that, you know
7:15
may be their favorites, you can always find a limited edition release from pretty much each
7:20
distillery. So whether they are a Heaven Hill fan and they like a Parker's Heritage line
7:24
Wild Turkey fan with the Masters Keep, or a Buffalo Trace fan with a Buffalo Trace Antique
7:29
collection if you can ever find those for a reasonable price. I mean, if you can, hit me up
7:34
But ultimately, if you're spending this much on a person, make sure to know what their flavor
7:38
profile is, especially if you know they like a certain distillery. That'll really help guide
7:42
you in finding the limited edition bottle that would be perfect for them. But that being said
7:47
don't expect to find these just on the shelf at normal price. These are very, very limited
7:53
and don't get your hopes up hoping you'll find something because chances are it won't be available
7:58
or it'll be way more money than you should ever pay for it. So there you guys go. Hopefully this guide helps you out
8:03
But if it didn't, leave me a comment below with what bottle you're thinking of getting. And I would be happy to give my feedback
8:08
and personal opinion on if it's a great bottle, especially if you can give me what price
8:12
they're charging for it. Also in the comments below, let me know your favorite gift bottles
8:17
you've ever received. And maybe your least favorite too to help guide some people know what to avoid
8:23
But thank you guys so much for watching. If you liked this video, like I said, I would love if you could subscribe
8:27
and hit the like button. If you want to support the channel, we have a Patreon, patreon.com slash
8:32
Bourbon Bites. But until next time, this has been Bourbon Bites, whiskey reviews with a gaming twist
8:37
I'm Clifton, cheers and gift on
#Alcoholic Beverages
#food
#Food & Drink
#Gifts