The World’s Best Bourbons — According To The Judges

Every year since 2000, a panel of 40 esteemed tastemakers convenes in San Francisco for the city’s annual World Spirits Competition. Although this ‘gathering’ was a little less convivial than in previous iterations—the show still went on as planned in the middle of March. Now the results are in. You can have a look at the complete list here—which includes nearly 3,000 entires spanning every major category of spirit. But let’s cut to the chase: you’re thirsting for the best bourbons. And here’s who made the cut.

In Kentucky alone more than 7.5 million barrels of the liquid is resting, patiently awaiting a rendezvous with the bottle—and your home bar. This year’s winners, however, prove that great bourbon can come from many corners of the country. Perhaps you don’t associate places like Washington state (home of Woodinville, winners in the ‘Best Straight category’) or Brooklyn (its native King’s County Distillery snatched top nod for ‘Best Small Batch – Up To 5 Years’) with top-tiered liquids. But the hardware speaks for itself, demonstrating that good American whiskey is, indeed, a wholly American enterprise.

Still, the Bluegrass State has plenty of reasons to hold its head high. Four, to be exact. Buffalo Trace continues to dominate any performance where awards are involved. Typically the Frankfort-based distillery is attracting attention for Pappy Van Winkle, Colonel EH Taylor, or W.L. Weller. This time it’s Eagle Rare wooing the judges; the 17 Year Old Kentucky Straight bottling notched the honors for ‘Best Small Batch Bourbon – 11 Years and Older.’

A 90-proof sipper of superior substance, it fades beautifully into the finish with notes of toffee and caramel. A limited offering, usually released in autumn, it already has a mean habit of magnifying its suggested retail price of $90 many times over. In fact, before it even won its latest accolade you could find bottles on shelf for upwards of a $1000. Don’t expect procurement to become any more affordable now.

An easier find will likely be Batch 021 by Barrell Bourbon—also listed at $90 (wink, wink). It just took home best in show for ‘Best Small Batch – 6 to 10 Years’. The critically-acclaimed brand has been crushing the blending game for the better part of a decade. Without a distillery to call its own, this independent bottler continually exhibits the elegance of rendering constituent parts into unified works of art.

Batch 021 is a particularly poignant point in case. A combination of 10 to 14-year-old barrels from Tennessee, Kentucky, and Indiana, carries to nose a voluptuous florality that would be difficult to discern from a whiskey that draws from a narrower supply stream. Bottled at cask strength—106.34 proof, to be exact—these springtime aromas become more pronounced in the presence of a drop or two of water. Best of all, you can still find it…For now.

If you’re looking for a Kentucky specialty that enjoys the widest distribution, there’s one waiting just for you. In 2019, Jim Beam relaunched its small batch Baker’s label as a single barrel, brandishing a more modern-looking bottle. It didn’t take long for 2.0 to turn heads. Now it’s officially the, ‘Best Single Barrel Bourbon – Up to 10 Years’, according to the judges at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. At 107-proof it’s got heat and a heart of bold…unapologetic barrel spice. It’ll arrive at your door from most online delivery sites for less than $70.

Impressive whiskey, all around. And if you’re lucky enough to sip on any of them, you certainly won’t be disappointed. But are these truly the best bourbons on shelves today? Only you can be the judge of that.