15 Best Bourbons Under $100 (2023 Edition) Complete Guide
Last Updated on February 2, 2023 by Lydia Martin
High price tags are not the basis for picking the best bourbon brands. Bourbon bottles under $100 can compete head to head with expensive labels. These bottles possess the same exemplary flavor and smoothness but with lesser zeroes on the price tags.
If you are unsure which brands are these, take a look at this list and discover which is the best bourbon under $100.
Top 15 Bourbons Under $100
15. Belle Meade Reserve
Price: roughly $67.99 per 750 ml (Total Wine)
Distillery: Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery
ABV: 54.15%
Flavor Profile:
The nose has bold spice notes with cinnamon and vanilla. The palate has a strong alcohol taste with rye spice, cinnamon, and corn.
Why We Like It:
We liked the syrupy smell of this high-rye bourbon. It is very enticing and surprisingly smooth despite the high alcohol content.
Being aged 7-11 years did a lot of good to the taste and texture.
14. Booker’s Bourbon
Distillery: Beam Suntory
ABV: 63%
Flavor Profile:
The taste is sweet with baking spices, vanilla, and nutmeg hints. The finish is warm and pleasantly long.
Why We Like It:
Booker’s Kentucky Straight Bourbon was always one of our favorites, especially for a cold day.
The warm notes, as per the manufacturer, is because of the climate and time spent inside virgin white oak barrels.
13. E.H. Taylor Jr. Small Batch
Distillery: Buffalo Trace Distillery
ABV: 50%
Flavor Profile:
E.H. Taylor has a full taste of corn, licorice, and caramel to the finish. It leaves an aftertaste of tobacco and honey.
Why We Like It:
This bottled-in-bond bourbon whiskey is one of our favorite whiskeys below $100 because of its simple flavors.
Alcohol strength is already a factor why we like it so much, but the taste is undeniably enjoyable, bright, and spicy.
12. Woodinville Single Barrel Cask Strength
Price: roughly $89.99 per 750 ml (Total Wine)
Distillery: Woody Creek Distillers
ABV: 60%
Flavor Profile:
It has sweet and earthy tasting notes, with hints of licorice, vanilla, baked apples, and bread.
Why We Like It:
Woodinville Single Barrel Cask Strength bourbon was aged in charred new oak barrels (1) for around five years.
However, this single barrel bourbon is not just a fine bourbon but a bold and interesting one.
Read: Top Bourbons Under $40
11. Redemption 10-Year Barrel Proof Bourbon
Price: roughly $99.99 per 750 ml (Drizly)
Distillery: Redemption Rye Whiskey Winery
ABV: 57.4 %
Flavor Profile:
It will greet the palate with a full taste of caramel and vanilla that transitions to cool, earthy notes of charred oak, hazelnut, and menthol flavor.
Why We Like It:
This bourbon is a barrel-proof bourbon with bursting dark flavors. This contains 36%rye, where the spicy flavor comes from along with other grains.
We love the serious balance of taste and depth of this barrel-proof bourbon, making it one of the best bourbons under $100 for us.
Read: What are Store-Pick Bourbons?
10. W.L. Weller Antique 107
Distillery: Buffalo Trace Distillery
ABV: 53.5%
Flavor Profile:
It has gentle floral and vanilla scent notes with balanced earthy, floral, spicy, and sweet flavors on the palate.
Why We Like It:
This wheated bourbon has one of our favorite tastes. W.L. Weller Kentucky Straight Bourbon has sweet and mellow attributes greeting your tongue while hints of earthy tobacco and oak tannins tug gently.
This straight bourbon whiskey is often enjoyed neat, but we loved Weller Antique more on the rocks or with a bit of water dropped. But who makes Weller bourbons?
9. Joseph Magnus Bourbon
Price: roughly $99.99 per 750 ml (Total Wine)
Distillery: Jos. A. Magnus & Co.
ABV: 50%
Flavor Profile:
The nose has bold citrus and oak notes, the same as the palate but with hints of vanilla, honey, and dried fruits.
Why We Like It:
Joseph Magnus Bourbon has bold scents you can chew on, making us love it.
We don’t care why they did not disclose the mash bill of this bourbon because the taste tells a lot of different interesting stories. This bottle is one of the best bourbons under $100.
8. Knob Creek 12 Year
Price: roughly $61.99 per 750 ml (Drizly)
Distillery: Jim Beam
ABV: 50%
Flavor Profile:
This bourbon has a strong woody taste with bold vanilla and maple syrup. The finish is lengthy and spicy with white pepper and chocolate hints.
Why We Like It:
We love the taste of Knob Creek Kentucky Straight Bourbon when served neat. The myriads of flavor work very well without overpowering the other [2].
The layered finish is what places Knob Creek bourbon whiskey at the top. This Straight Bourbon whiskey is one of the best bourbons under $100.
7. Widow Jane 12 Year Single Barrel
Price: roughly $96.99 per 750 ml (Total Wine)
Distillery: Cacao Prieto Distillery
ABV: 49.5%
Flavor Profile:
The palate has a nice strong blend of caramel, dried fruits, citrus, cherries, licorice, and tobacco.
Why We Like It:
We can never say no to a blend of the rarest bourbons from Widow Jane.
The rye content in this single barrel bourbon whiskey is just enough to give this bottle the spicy kick as it dances along with the parade of sweet flavors.
6. Elijah Craig Barrel Proof
Price: roughly $72.99 per 750 ml (Drizly)
Distillery: Heaven Hill Distilleries
ABV: 60.4%
Flavor Profile:
It has a fruity scent with hints of vanilla and oak. The palate has an intense vanilla taste with chocolate-covered cherries, menthol, and caramel hints.
Why We Like It:
The malted barley on Elijah Craig bourbon whiskey made it more savory and nice, with just enough spicy notes along the edges.
We love this bourbon more when mixed in an Old Fashioned as it elevates the drink to a higher level.
5. Four Roses Small Batch Select
Price: roughly $59.99 per 750 ml (Drizly)
Distillery: Kirin Brewing Company
ABV: 52%
Flavor Profile:
Notes of orange blossom, vanilla, cola, and berries greet the nose. The palate has dried fruits with chili flakes and black pepper that lingers all through the finish.
Why We Like It:
Four Roses Small Batch bourbon whiskey is part of their limited edition series, but these are always available in stores.
It doesn’t stick to the “limited edition” story, but it is good for us because this barrel-strength bourbon has one of the best flavor blends.
This small-batch bourbon whiskey has a rich and full taste that is very enjoyable when drank neat.
4. Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel Bourbon
Price: roughly $63.99 per 750 ml (Drizly)
Distillery: Wild Turkey Distilling Co.
ABV: 55%
Flavor Profile:
The flavor is multi-layered, with licorice, honey, cinnamon, floral, vanilla and toffee flavors.
Why We Like It:
Russell’s Reserve single barrel bourbon’s tasting notes shift from sweet to spicy.
This single barrel bourbon also has a slight bite of alcohol. However, the floral notes mask the scent well, and the long chocolate-flavored with light oak finish seals the deal.
3. Stagg Jr
Distillery: Buffalo Trace Distillery
ABV: 66.4%
Flavor Profile:
Stagg, Jr bourbon has the sweet taste of dark chocolate, citrus, caramel, vanilla, and honey. It emanates on the nose down to the finish.
Why We Like It:
We like the balanced blackberry and blueberry fruits in this bourbon bottle.
It is the only bourbon we tasted that showcases a bittersweet burnt sugar taste with an alcohol flavor we love.
It cemented its amazing tasting notes with a finish of coffee and dark fruit jam that is so smooth.
2. Wild Turkey Rare Breed Non-Chill Filtered
Price: roughly $67.99 per 750 ml (Drizly)
Distillery: Wild Turkey Distilling Co.
ABV: 58.4%
Flavor Profile:
The taste of dark fruits, caramel, honey, rosemary, cinnamon, and roasted almonds is present.
Why We Like It:
This bourbon whiskey has the same tasting notes as the Wild Turkey Rare Breed variant, except for the intensity.
The two bottles have the same ingredients, but the flavor of the Non-chill Filtered is fuller and bolder.
1. 1792 Full Proof
Price: roughly $42.99 per 750 ml (Total Wine)
Distillery: Barton 1792 Distillery
ABV: 62.5%
Flavor Profile:
This whiskey is a decadent bourbon with a sweet taste of caramel, chewy nougat, brown sugar, and ripened orchard fruits.
Why We Like It:
This Kentucky bourbon has the smoothest finish. The viscosity, taste, and character are sealed in this straight bourbon.
These are bourbon produced with years of bourbon heritage, which is why it has an amazing character and flavor.
The Criteria We Used To Select The Bourbons
The criteria we used to select the bourbons are the price, the flavor, and reputation.
We tested the bourbon whiskey brands to avoid blind-guessing. We also researched famous reactions coming from bourbon drinkers who take time to share their experiences.
Lastly, we compared prices since we searched for the best bourbons under 100 dollars.
FAQs
Is $100 too much for a bourbon?
No, $100 is not too much for a bourbon, especially if you want the highest quality. There are affordable bourbons that are also flavorful and sweet comparable to expensive brands in the market.
Can you buy a bourbon with a higher than $100 tag?
Yes, you can buy a bourbon with a higher than $100 tag. These are bourbons specially blended and aged in charred barrels with the best quality ingredients.
In Summary
We find 1792 Full Proof bourbon whiskey as the best bourbon under $100. This bourbon exceeds other whiskeys because it has its raw taste straight from the charred oak barrel it was aged in. The alcohol content is high but remains smooth and easy to drink neat. We give credit to the life-long experience of the distillery that made it.
There are other bourbon whiskey brands that you can choose below $100 based on your preference. You do not have to spend so much to find a quality bourbon whiskey. If there is a specific flavor you want, we’re sure you can find one on this list.
Reference:
- https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/whiskey-barrel-design/index.html
- https://www.thespruceeats.com/knob-creek-bourbon-whiskey-review-761601
Lydia Martin hails from Redmond, Washington, where you’ll find some of the best cocktail bars and distilleries that offer a great mix of local drinks. She used to work as a bar manager in Paris and is a self-taught mixologist whose passion for crafting unique cocktails led her to create Liquor Laboratory. Lydia can whip up a mean Margarita in seconds! Contact at [email protected] or learn more about us here.
