What Type of Bourbonite Are You?
When I first started in the bourbon game 3 years ago, I often sat back and listened to other people so I could learn from them. One of the more frequent comments (usually after someone posts a picture on social media of an allocated bottle) is: “I’m a drinker, not a collector.” I decided to ask around to get some consensus on what differentiates a “drinker” from a “collector”. I’ve found some lively discussions (shout out to the Maryland Bourbon Society and other bourbon groups) on this topic, including a few analogies to baseball card collections, shoes and cars. Here is what I’ve found:
What is a drinker? A drinker is someone that opens bottles when they buy them or intends to open them soon after purchase. They usually have a small to medium-sized stash and most of their bottles are open. They are usually partial to specific distilleries and may have several picks of their favorite brand. They still want allocated bottles, but they are not going from store to store or waiting in lines to hunt them down.
What is a collector? A collector does just that…collects bottles. They usually get allocated bottles, sometimes inexplicably obtaining more than one at a time. They may post pictures showing multiple bottles of Pappy, BTAC or whatever the current release is. I’ll admit, I have been jealous a time or two, especially when I am in a “hunting slump”.
I’ll add in a third category of Bourbonite and that is the “drinker/collector”. What is a drinker/collector, you ask? This is someone that is a combination of both, and I think most of us likely fall into this category. They have their daily drinkers, and also a few other readily available bottles for when they are in the mood for something spicy, something sweet or something different. However, they also get into the allocated bottles and have a few in their collection (depending on how lucky they are or how long they’ve been in the “Bourbon game”).
So, where do I fit in? Well, I’m a drinker/collector. My favorite daily sipper is Woodford Reserve Double Oak and I am really enjoying the Total Wine-Laurel pick right now. I think I am on my 4th bottle and have one more as a back-up. We probably have 8-10 each of Russell’s Reserve picks and New Riff picks because they are just that good. I love to hunt and often tag myself as #wifebourbonhunter in posts. We’ve been very fortunate to develop a relationship with a couple of local stores and we usually get an allocated bottle or two because of those relationships. We have over 300 bottles in our collection (which includes many multiples) and about 140 are open.
No matter what type of “Bourbonite” you are, have fun, take time to educate newbies in the Bourbon game and happy hunting in 2020!
