I wish they would make it more shelf available instead.

AgCzar said:

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I wish they would make it more shelf available instead.

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I heard from a couple of Sazerac reps that they anticipate their company's production expansion will start showing up on store shelves by mid-to-late 2026.

Hoping ER, EHT and Blanton's will be more prevalent by late 2026.

I will be patient.

I'm pretty sure Blantons can only be aged in Warehouse H which means capacity is pretty much capped. I think the same for EH Taylor but Warehouse C instead. I could be wrong but I remember hearing that on the tour.

I'm way down on my TW spending. No more 10x points is certainly part of that along with my almost complete lack of success with the "drawings" for allocated bottles. Over all the years they have been doing it I've had six figure point totals and only won a couple bottles of regular Blanton's and one bottle of OF 150th anniversary.

Any good? Just under $100

It's already been noticeably more the past 12 months since they changed distributors thankfully.

Never had it, never seen it but gut says probably not $100 good.

AgDev01 said:

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Never had it, never seen it but gut says probably not $100 good.

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I didn't buy it because it's made in Texas, but I think it's considered "allocated".

Picked up my Westward Fort George's Brewery Stout Cask bottle release at UPS today. Really looking forward to trying a stout cask at a higher proof.

The Specs Key Club Exclusives page seems to be working now

Yep, I just got in and made my selections. Now to wait, and continue not getting called!

We're gluttons for punishment aren't we!

Based on the regular stout finish bottles, I expect it to be a chocolate bomb. This should be a good rye or even bourbon lovers ASM.

The stout barrels it was aged in were originally Westward barrels when new, then given to Fort George to age the stout and then back to finish this whiskey,

a color comparison between the new bottle and the regular stout cask finish.

There is much more of a milk chocolate note versus the more of the cocoa note typical in Westward. it is basically chocolate covered bananas. at 115 proof it drinks like it is 80. the only hint of the higher proof is the feeling of licking a 9v battery on your tongue.

One pour and this is already near the top of my favorites list. Incredible release.

I assume you're saying single barrel, which is a great find especially at msrp. Local, small specs said they got 6 cases of small batch yesterday.

Snagged one yesterday at Specs in Pflugerville. Maybe the tides are finally turning.

Still a solid find. One of my favorites.

FTAco07 said:

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I'm way down on my TW spending. No more 10x points is certainly part of that along with my almost complete lack of success with the "drawings" for allocated bottles. Over all the years they have been doing it I've had six figure point totals and only won a couple bottles of regular Blanton's and one bottle of OF 150th anniversary.

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I really just got into Bourbon the last 6 months despite being a casual from afar to the level of knowing an EHT SmB is a solid pour.

From what I understand, it sounds like a lot of people are off put by the elimination of the 10x points and putting their bucks elsewhere. The carry over from last year's Grand Reserve will be seen this year, but think next year will be a big opportunity for the highly allocated bunch. I'm committed to hitting GR and also about $500 away from Specs Key Club gold tier, so I'm excited to compare what happens with both in 2026.

Yeah, my issue is I have no need for the amount of booze I'd need to purchase to get those tiers. I'd basically be buying just to get a chance at something I want. If I already know what I want, am I better off forgoing the status and just buying what I want at secondary prices? Probably saves me money overall and gets me what I actually want rather than a chance. The 10x points did actually steer me to total wine and had me purchase wines I otherwise wouldn't have. Now they'll just get none of my business. Anyway, that's how I'm viewing it.