Bourbon Love — The ABV Network

It is that time of year. Fake love is in the air. Yes, it must be Valentine’s Day. That one day per year that most men hate, and most women love. In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, I ask myself the following: Is my bourbon love still burning strong or is it fizzling out? As I think about this it is a tricky question and it must be broken down.

To start, my love of drinking, tasting, and evaluating bourbon is burning as strong as ever. As time has gone by and my palate has evolved, I find myself loving different things but still loving the sensory part of drinking bourbon. I still love trying to pull out new and different notes. The hunt for those single barrels and honey barrels still remains strong.

The other part of my bourbon love that remains a strong flame is the brotherhood and fellowship bourbon typically brings. I still very much enjoy going to bourbon-related events, having tastings with my friends, and enjoying a good pour at different bars in my travels. You really do meet some of the best people out there as part of this hobby / obsession. If for nothing more than the possibility of meeting your newest best friend, everyone should get out on the road in the bourbon world.

My love for the chase of bourbon has changed dramatically over the past two years. Before, I was like every other person in this hobby: chasing the allocated. That chase is exhausting, frustrating, and irritating. I have a different opinion than most regarding the allocated chase. The chase itself is not necessarily the worst part; it is the behavior of the distilleries and store owners who keep adding shelf items to the allocated list. I fully understand once per year releases being allocated and only available to either long-term relationship customers or raffles. When companies put ECBP, Blanton’s, and Buffalo Trace on allocation; the industry has jumped the shark. My newest focus in the love of the chase is for dusty bourbon and single barrel store picks. If you want unique whiskies that either are simply not produced anymore or have a unique, one-off taste profile; this is where it is at.

I will say that my bourbon love is fizzling out in relation to bourbon social media, influencers, “content”, podcasting, etc. Are there still great examples of the items mentioned above? Absolutely there are. Are there far more examples of bad or annoying versions of the above? All day long. Instagram “bourbon influencers” who simply take selfie photos of themselves with an allocated bottle or pre-designed and arranged photos are the worst for me. Get over yourselves. We really don’t care that you can stack up 25 bottles of whiskey in some weird tower and snap a photo of it. I am sure there are enough self-centered “fans” out there that keep this trend going but it is not good content and is just another example of the “hey look at me” society we have.

These days, any person who is tech-savvy enough to record, edit, and publish a podcast is doing so. If those people can somehow add bourbon to their gimmick, then BAM!; they must have award-winning content huh? Not so fast. Most people on bourbon podcasts have no idea what they are talking about. I get it, personalities are a big part of what drives listenership, but it all comes off as bad product when there is no solid content behind it. One podcasting company that does an extremely good job in balancing this is the ABV Network. The variety of the shows on the network reaches out to pretty much every type of person who does or would ever listen to a podcast. Want to listen to crazy personalities, some of who, honestly, may not always know much about the industry but are still fun? Check out The Bourbon Daily. Want to listen to interviews with top figures in the bourbon industry? Check out The Bourbon Show. Do you prefer the viewpoint of the women of the bourbon world? They have you covered there with The Bourbon Betty’s. Companies like the ABV Network understand the vast array of people (all at different levels) who are into this industry and they excel at offering content for potentially anyone.

At the end of the day, my love for everything bourbon is still flaming hot. I just have to find my happy space between the frustrating things about the bourbon world and the overwhelming majority of things that are great.

Happy Valentine’s Day to all!

Cheers!