Thanks for tuning in to our latest episode where we're gonna talk about should you splurge or should you save a little bit? We're gonna taste blind a variety of different liquors hand-chosen for us by Mr. Patrick Barofi. And Pat, what do we got today? Well, we're gonna do four different categories. We're gonna do some bourbon, some single malt scotch, some gin, and some mezcal. And I tried to choose bottles that I want to say there's a minimum twenty dollar price difference on everything. We're just gonna taste them blind side by side and choose which bottle we like better. And then we'll give the prices and we'll see whether it was worth the premium or not, or should you go with the cheaper option, I guess? Twenty dollars? I was hoping for a little bit more gimme than $20. I know. So I thought about this and I was like, well, should I get one of those $13 bourbons and then a $60 bourbon? I was like, you know what, realistically, no. We're not gonna appease Roger's palette and pocketbook with that bourbon choice. Yeah. Okay. Well, we'll see what we learn. So save or splurge. You're listening to Barrel to Bottle, The Binny's Podcast. I'm Roger, I do beer here for Binny's. I'm Greg, I do communications. Pat, you're d***ing around. All right, Chris, what do you do? I'm Chris, I do wine, and I save and splurge, alternating. I'm Pat, I d*** around with spirits here at Binny's. Today, we have a bunch of bottles, tiny little sample bottles. We're going to compare the expensive stuff with the slightly less expensive stuff apparently. Screw you, just taste it. All right. All right, look away. Chris, you have these samples too, right? I do have them. I'm not in the room, but I've got numbered samples. We should have made him use the same crappy sample cups that we have. Now, I'm using a Glen Cairnglass. Do you have two or are you going to do them side by side? I've got a little snifter here too. Wait, you're going to have one in a snifter and one in a Glen Cairnglass? You're just starting off apples to oranges. You're changing the outcome by measuring it. Sample one. We can look? Okay. Sample one. Smells like a- Sample two. Liquor of some kind. One and two. I might have screwed it up already. Can I have a cup? Both are rye-heavy bourbons. Who's going to take a guess at that? Okay. Well, fine. We have a couple of bourbon samples here, one and two. Both smell bourbon-y. You guys think two is a little more rich? I haven't gotten to two yet. I think two shows a bit more like dry oak on the nose. Yeah. Two definitely has a much drier oak finish. I mean, I could be totally off because I'm not a great bourbon guy, but it reminds me of something in the wild turkey family. Am I crazy? You said it reminds you of wild turkey. Which one reminds you of wild turkey? Number two. Number two? I could see it. I mean, turkey is known for that really rich baking spice character, but a nice sweetness to it as well. Really well balanced. It finishes with that rich spice, but it's got some nice sweetness in the mid palate. Seems like it has more cut too, more cut on the finish. More importantly, which one do you like better? Two, but only marginally. One, I think is probably the less expensive one because it's a little more thin, but just taking on its own, it is completely fine. Completely fine. People don't like to hear completely fine, Greg. Okay. I hope I'm scratching the expensive one right now. Both are non-chill filtered. Both are 100 proof or more. Which is how everyone should enjoy their bourbon. When it's over 100 proof, you can put ice in it. Don't tell me that I can't have ice in my bourbon. I love putting bourbon over one big block of ice. You can't have ice in your bourbon. Roger, you can have banana ice in your bourbon if you want. Two seems more visceral and fruity on the palate too. Two is a mouthful. Two is a mouthful. Two is a really nice bourbon. One is a really nice bourbon. One I think is punchier and more spirited. Yeah. It definitely would be great in cocktails because it has so much character that it could hold up to things like bitters and vermouth. You think two would get a little flabby in cocktails? To me, it has a very punchy peppermint or minty black pepper spice on the finish. What's that something like? Buffalo trace? Is that what that tells you? Very spicy. What do they give you? Strawberries? Buffalo trace isn't that spicy generally. Cheap four roses? Yeah, I'm not sure, but do you guys agree it's quite spicy? Yeah, it's quite spicy. Yeah. I think two would work in a cocktail as well, but it's a little more graceful and I want to just enjoy it on its own more. I would absolutely put two in a cocktail without reservation. Yeah, me too. Me too. I know what these are, so I should pretend like I don't. Roger, did you peek? No, I poured them into the sample bottles on his front porch last night. Son of a bitch. Me and Chris are the only ones blind tasting this? Yes. Cheaters. Make us all sound smart. That's half of the room. We should have had someone like Alicia or Brett pour all the samples. This is a statistically sound sample size as far as percentage of the room being tested blind. Plus, this is what we did for years on the floor when we would talk to people. We know what all the products are, but you have to help people understand what different things are good for what. I think there's a misconception that we don't put things on the shelves we don't believe in. Spoken like a man who knows what the product is when the rest of us don't. Listen, you know they're bourbons and you know they're different price. Which one do you like more? I like number two more and I would say that there's more than a $20 price difference, but I bet that the other one, the less expensive one is still probably $20 to $25, and the more expensive one is probably $50 to $60. There's not a lot of bourbons that are $20 to $25. Yeah, I was going to say. Number one is New Riff Bottled in Bond, which in retail stores in Illinois, you will find only at Binny's currently. That was number one? That was number one. What's that like $50? It's $40. $40. That's a really nice $40 bottle of whiskey. It really is. Like all New Riff, it's non-chill filtered, bottled in the bond, it's 100 proof. It's like four and a half, five years old. It is 30 percent rye, five percent malted barley. In the world of bourbon where you're buying a lot of bourbons that were essentially hand-picked from someone else's distillate, this is worth noting that they're making this themselves. They're making their own. Larry Ebersold, who was the long-time master distiller at the Lawrenceburg, Indiana Seagrams plant essentially set them up there and got them running. It's his recipe and all that. Really nice bourbon. The other one is Four Roses Small Batch Select, which is the non-chill filtered, slightly higher proof, slightly different recipe small batch. It's 104 proof. This is older juice for sure. I think most things in here are going to be closer to seven, eight years old. Oh, six and seven-year-old, excuse me. This is 60 bucks though. Worth every penny. Worth every penny. I've already bought a couple bottles of this. It's a really nice bottle for 60 bucks, especially since a lot of stuff that used to be 60 are now 80. Both of those are worth the price. They're really good. Save or splurge? What do you think? I'm saving, personally. I'm saving. I would save because I drink most of my bourbon in the context of a cocktail, so that's an easy one for me. If our listeners haven't tried Four Roses, they make some of the best bourbon on the shelf, and I've developed a particular taste, and I really enjoy their stuff. Moneybags Adamsen throw it in. Yeah. Well, that should go to show you that, yeah, I usually buy, I get lambasted for always wanting- For buying cheap stuff. Budget bourbons, but Four Roses is one of the brands that I routinely will- Worth every penny. Will slurge on their stuff because it's that good. All right, cool. Let's try the next round. Next round. Okay. Look away. Look away. All right. Here you go. Number three. Number two. Oh, number three. Yeah, screw you. Number three. Number four. Number four. Okay. There's a bigger difference between three and four than there were between one and two. Than there was between one and two. There is on the nose, I would say. First of all, what kind of spirit are we dealing with here? Are these malt whiskeys? Scotch, for sure. Yep. Single malt Scotch. These are both 12-year-old single malt Scotch. But they're both Highland or something like that. There's no peat on either of them. No, no peat. They're actually both space sites. So, yes, Highlands. Yeah. Definitely leaning fruity. I mean, both of them seem to have apple and peach to me. Yeah. Yeah. And then they have that pencil-led pencil-shaving finish. I mean, on the nose, finish on the nose. Three definitely does, but I'm not that sure about four. I totally agree with you, Pat. Number three has, to me, almost a cedar-y pencil note to it, but not so much in four. Yeah, maybe not. Classic, classic character from the type of barrel that three was aged in. I get it on four too, but that's after further consideration. I do. Great mouthfeel on both. I really like the nose on four. It's really just all fruit. Yeah, I would say that four has more of a floral character to it. Is it Sherry Barrel's? Pat nodded, forgetting that this is an audio meeting. Well, I had a mouthful of scotch I was chewing on. I was doing the old Kentucky chew. Yeah, these are number three, very known for its Sherry Barrel character. Number four also saw some time in Sherry. Number four has a notable meaty mouthfeel. That is a scotch you could cut with a knife. I'm a really big fan of that. Do I get the tiniest, tiniest whisper of some peat, maybe from the water, not necessarily the grain? I think it's more the Sherry Barrel, giving you a bit of an earthiness or a spice. Number three is higher toned and more spirited, but I don't think it's in a way that belies being cheaper. I think it's in a way that just indicates less age or some kind of freshness, something more citric instead of the more, not really red fruit, but more like orange and peach are the other one of four. These are outstanding. These are both really good. Yeah, four is definitely remarkable for the silky, buttery, rich mouthfeel, especially for a scotch. I really like it. It's got some really nice peachy and appley fruit. Four is phenomenal. You said these are a spread of at least $20, right? I bet one's like $110, the other one's like $129.99. What are you doing to us, man? All right. What's the vote? Who likes what better? Well, I'm all about number four. You're all about number four. Yeah, they're both really good. Yeah, me too. I could go for number three, but I think that number four is probably the more expensive one. Okay. Interesting. Ha! Saversplurge got you. Ha ha ha. Number three is Macallan 12-year-old, which now it is $79.99 on the shelf now, a Macallan 12-year-old traditional sherry oak. It says the result of some outlandish tariff or something? Partly tariff, also ego. The M tax that comes with a Macallan? Yeah. Just remember, when you think Macallan, think McDonald's because they're about as ubiquitous. Number four. Put your claws away, guys. It tasted fine. It did taste fine. No, this was a good whiskey. Number four is Mortlock 12-year-old, which is $44.99. Holy shit. Are you serious? Yeah. It is one of the few 12-year-olds on the shelf left below $65 and then it's $45. That's $45? It's almost half as much. Ask me if I'd put that in a cocktail. Would you put it in a cocktail? Yes, I would put it in a cocktail. I think it's a bit burly and meaty for a cocktail, but I could see it. Yeah. At $45 though, you wouldn't think twice about putting it in a cocktail. An $80 Scotch whiskey. I'm a cocktail guy and this is one I want to drink neat. Yeah. Yeah, personally. It's Scotch. I mean, it's Scotch is just better neat. Scotch fans who are looking for fruity, buttery, not peaty, and just soft and delicious, for 45 bucks, this is killer. It's amazing for 45 bucks. Yeah. It's blowing my mind. I want to say it's 44% alcohol or something. Actually, I could just look at the bottle in front of me. That it's in front of you. 43.4% alcohol. Here's our $80 bottle of McCallan, which is 43% alcohol. Mortlok's 43.4 and is just a hair over half as much. That's awesome. Mortlok and Glenn Farkless. That's another one. That's a great. Joey, when I was getting all these from the sample cabinet yesterday, Joey's like, Glenn Farkless, you got to grab a Glenn Farkless. I said no, only because we talk about Glenn Farkless all the time. But the price difference here is massive. Yeah. What a phenomenal use of your whiskey spending money. Mortlok, 12 year old is. And that's all I got to say about that. Absolutely true. 100%. Okay, the gins are next. I need more oakheart cups. Here you go. Interesting, there's a bit of color on gin number two. Is that safe? Roger, you remember that time that you defended Bombay Sapphire along with me, but then turned around and said that St. George terroir gin was too herbal? Five. Tasted like pine salt to you? Five. Five. That wasn't cool. Six. I know you love it. Thank you. I don't care for it. All right, everyone has number five and number six in front of them. It should be pretty obvious what these are. Okay. The striking difference is striking, but it seems obvious that it's a flavored whiskey or a flavored vodka. The difference is not in the process, but in the botanicals. Yes, we have gins in front of us. Okay. One is way more citrus driven. Everybody's got a different botanical recipe. Yeah. Well, number six definitely smells like evergreen. I think they both have a solid juniper underpinning for sure. But number six is definitely more lifted. I mean, I'm just going to make up some botanicals, but this is what it smells like to me. It's more citric, it's more coriander. I agree. There's a berry quality underneath on the nose too. Fruity berry quality under all the juniper. They both seem like solid London dries to me, but I haven't tasted them yet. Five's a really well-balanced, Jim. It's a little bit softer on the nose, and it seems more like Meyer Lemons, something like that. Five does? So lemons and oranges. Oh, wow. Six is floral, really floral on the palate, perfumey. Yeah. Five seems more like a linear nose. It's like just working on juniperry with little things floating around it. The other one is a broad and expansive nose, where you get lots of different things going on. Six stays with you though. I get a lot of a licorice kind of quality to Six that lingers, or almost like a root beer, sarsaparilla kind of quality to it. Perhaps some oris root. I don't know what oris root tastes like, but there's a little bit like a cocoa quality, like a powdered cocoa quality, under a real lively burst of fruit, and yeah, like root root spices. I like both of them though. Can we talk about how fruity Five is? It's not even like genuine fruit, it's like a fruity pebbles. Yeah. I'm reading that as a burst of kefir lime leaves, like a real floral limey flavor that is almost like fruit loops or something. I totally get what you're saying with that. Yeah, I agree. It is definitely more fruity, and whereas the other one is more those root and floral components, this is more like citrus. I would say six is drier on the palate by a long shot, and also, yeah, more root-oriented, very savory, very, very savory, and lots of juniper. Which one do you think is more expensive? Probably six, although it seems a little more ham-fisted in some ways. More spirited and bursting, which could be less restrained alcohol. It's really tough for me to guess here. Yeah. I could see six being slightly stronger in alcohol, but it wouldn't surprise me if it was weaker, and it's just coming off that way. Yeah. All right. Any preference? I would go with, if I had a choice, I would go with number six, and I would definitely be drinking it with tonics in cocktails. I like that it's more bright and lively. I think there's a lot more going on in six personally. Yeah. If I were to guess, I think six is the more expensive one. Yeah. What do you think, Chris? I agree. I think five is very straightforward in style, but it's good. I think it's a very well-made gin, but six is very complex. All right. Number five is Bombay Dry, classic Bombay Dry. It is 43 percent alcohol. The Bombay no one buys. The better Bombay. Plenty of people buy it. I don't know if I've ever had that or in a really long time or if I was paying attention. Every time I look at the shelf, I wonder and then I buy the Sapphire instead. Bombay Dry is $19.99 a bottle. I think from my point of view, it's exactly what you'd expect. It's a straightforward London dry, juniper heavy, not too complex, lightly sweet. For the benefit of the listeners, out of curiosity, why do you say the better of the Bombay's? I find Bombay Sapphire to be overly perfumey. So completely subjective, and Bombay Sapphire is fine and don't let that- Oh, it's totally fine, but Bombay Dry is better. D***y, I agree, or gin, don't let it keep you from having the deliciousness of Bombay Sapphire. Every time we've done big blind gin taste scenes, Bombay Dry has finished higher rank than Bombay Sapphire. If I was going to guess either of these two was Sapphire, I would have picked 6 and not 5. Number 6 is Nolet's Dry Gin, Nolet's Silver. This is 47.6% alcohol, so more of a cocktail proof for sure, really big heavy metal cap. This gin used to be like 60 bucks, now it's $40. Right now, it's on sale for a few bucks off that, like three bucks off or something. If you take regular price, it's 20 versus 40 here. Plus- Do you save or splurge? I think what you should also put into the equation is that most people, if they're buying Bombay, are buying it as a handle. Yeah. Oh, for sure. Which is only $10 more. More direct, I know. We're keeping that out of the discussion. Well, there's a pretty tremendous value there that, because I like the Nolette a lot, but it's $40 for a fifth and the Bombay is 30 for a handle. Yeah. So- With all respect to Mr. Nolette, Nolette? Nolette? I don't know. 40 is probably a more appropriate price for this one. I like it more. I like it more too, but I'm not sure if I- I don't know if I like it twice as much. I don't think I like it twice as much. Yeah. I'm buying Bombay all day, but I'm buying Sapphire, not regular. Yeah, Team Sapphire. And you're still saving. FWP. Yeah. I think the Bombay is a very serviceable gin. I think it's going to be perfect in a gin and tonic. The Nolette is really quite complex and really good, but I would reserve that for a gin martini with a twist. I mean, something where the gin is really going to be highlighted. Yeah. Or gin on the rocks or whatever. I don't think you need this for a tonic, personally. Yeah, I agree. I'd like to make a martini with this, like equal parts with a Blanco vermouth. Yes. A Bianca, a white vermouth. If I was having a famous gin and gin, I might prefer this one. Eight of the first ten generations of Nolette family had one of two names. They have all ten generations listed on the side of the bottle. Is it Renee? No, Ioannis and Jacobus. Yeah. You named after grandpa. Was I named after grandpa? You were named after your grandpa's grandpa. Ioannis, Jacobus, Joannis, Joannis, Jacobus, Joannis, Jacobus, Joannis, and then Paulus and Corollus. All right. These are the good people who bring us kind of one too, right? Yes. Same guys, same distillery. Funny Dutchman. Fun people there. Worth saying that this is a gin showdown from the country that invented it to the country that popularized it. True. Good point. That was an excellently pedantic point, brother. Winner of the British Empire in my book. I am going to save, I think. Yeah. Save. All right, my last pairing for the day for Save or Splurge. Okay, look away, look away. I think this would be a perfect opportunity for you to explain a little more about Mezcal, the still daunting of of spirits categories for a lot of the average consumer. Somebody didn't listen to the Mezcal episode. We've had so many Mezcal episodes, and then we had Mezcal Mondays, and it was like two and a half months of Mezcal. Pantani and Powell. Still not enough Mezcal. Pantani and Powell's Mezcaleros. Again, that's for the person that's already well in the know to geek out about Mezcal, but just for the average person that's never had it before, or somebody that goes, oh, is that the thing with the worm? All right. Number seven. All right. Number seven. Wow, he must really like number eight. He wants the fat-poured one. Seven closest to you than eight. Okay. Mezcal. Okay. Dude, it's so excellent. So interesting. Okay. This is way more interesting than gin. It is very interesting, but I would say that they're both really balanced and restrained in the nose. I mean, there's some smoke notes, but they're not blowing you away with smoky phenolics. It's not overwhelming. But that said, seven is more in the face. An intensely smoky Mezcal is a flawed Mezcal. Really? Honestly, it's a bad Mezcal. Yeah. These are well-made in the artisan category, I would say. They're probably pot stills, not little clay Filipino stills. But I don't know. Is that true? Will you give me a hint? I'll give you a hint after more discussion. One of the reasons that I sometimes struggle with Mezcal is that it can have, for lack of a better word, the simplest way to put it is a dirty flavor to it. That's like a, I think I've said the zoo before. I mean, I have had some Mezcals that are just, it's almost like I look over my shoulder to see if I'm being filmed, as if it were a joke or something. They're really challenging, let's say that much. This ain't bad. Others are great. Yeah. Obviously, Pat's going to bring us good ones. I bring this up because if you've tried a Mezcal in the past and it hasn't been your thing, there can be pretty great variants within the category. I've gone to Spirit's Tastings before where I've tried a bunch of Mezcals, and again, they can be almost no smoke versus they can be filtered through an ashtray amount of smoke. So it's definitely a category worth exploring. I think it too often gets portrayed as just tequila adjacent, and really because of that smoke character, it has much more of an audience with, say, Scotch, single malt drinkers, fans of beer. Some of the flavors and complexities in this, I think, in Mezcal appeal to much more than just liquor drinkers in general. It definitely has some pretty bold flavors to it. Yeah. I think it's worth pointing out that the comparison to tequila, tequila has to be Weber Blue Agave, and Mezcal has a much broader palette to paint with as far as the agave goes, right, Pat? Oh, yeah. I mean, there's, I want to say, at least over 30 types of agave now allowed in Mezcal. There might be over 50 or something. Yeah. What do you say the most common is? Espidine? Well, it depends where you're at. So if you're in Oaxaca, where most Mezcal is currently made, espidine is the most common because espidine is easily farmed. If you're in Durango, it's Senezo, which is the Durangensis agave, and that's another one. It grows there better and it's easily farmed. Yeah. You just lost me. Okay. Can we talk about these two specifically? Yes. My question is, one of these has a slight amount of smoke. It's restrained, it's classy, but it's there. The other one is way more dialed back on the smoke. If there's anything in that vein, it's like a little bit of a rubber quality. Do you think, knowing what we know about Mezcal, that the smokier one is a sign of more or less money? I have no idea. It can go either way. I think there's more body and more complexity in number eight versus number seven here. Number seven is it's got that minerality, that slatiness, that bit of earthiness, a bit of smoke. Yeah, I got a limestone on there. Yeah, and it's light on its feet. Number seven is the clear, seems more like a straightforward, like it's still complex, but it's very front to back and linear, and number eight is a little more expansive, I would say. Both would be really great in cocktails. Both would. Seven is more stereotypically mezcal in my head, and would bring more of the mezcal qualities that I would look for if making a cocktail. I'm perceiving eight as a lot sweeter. Is anyone else feeling that? I think so. I think it might have some more residual sugar in there, maybe. Thickness on the body, and it has a salinity. Yeah. Oh man, this is a tough choice. This is a really tough choice between these two. I bet you eight's more expensive. There's some fruity notes here too that nobody's addressing. I almost get like a honeydew melon or something going on. There's also some pretty leathery qualities to both of these, like new shoe, leather, tanned hide. That might be a little challenging for people, at least at first, and if you mix with them, that gets pushed back a little. It's almost more approachable. Yeah. Just because of roundness and- Because it's more round, right? And fuller body. I think eight's probably the better one for drinking on its own. Seven has a freshness that would cut through a cocktail. Seven would make a really nice paloma. Yeah. How do you typically drink mezcal when you drink it, Pat? With a feeling of superiority compared to those around. That's how I drink everything. What are you talking? I drink hams that way. With a can of mustache wax and a cone. Don't forget the neckerchief. I try to make them with a fresh fruit juice. There's a variety of fruit juices and maybe a splash of an herbal liqueur. Works really great as a mezcal cocktail. I also really just like them neat on their own, just sipping on them on a hot day, which I would do with number eight, I think. I would suggest for any of our listeners who listen to the Ranch Water episode, we mixed up some TNTs with tequila and tonic. I think mezcal and tonic is another underappreciated, very simple cocktail that you can garnish with citrus if you're choosing, grapefruit is nice or use the grapefruit fever tree that we all love. Even ranch water with that one would be fine. It would be just fine. I mean that in the most positive way. Yeah. Just a fine afternoon. Yeah. Fine-ass drink. Yeah. I think I'm going to have to go with seven on this, regardless of what they cost. I like seven a lot better. Interesting. I like eight better. I think I'd find eight more tactilely pleasing on its own, so I want to pick it on its face merits. Actually, I don't like it a lot better. I like both of them. I don't know. What about you, Chris? This is a bit of a toss up for me too. I find seven to have a much more pronounced smoky nose, but it's a little fruitier. I think it's nice. I think it would make a really good cocktail. The number eight is very complex and weighty and very subtle wisp of smoke. It's really toned down, but it's not lacking in character anyway. I think eight maybe I would consider higher quality, I guess, but I like them both. It's a toss up for me. Since I probably will be making a cocktail, I might go with seven if it is the save version. Seven is the save. Number seven is Del Magge Vita, which is- That is so interesting. I was going to knock that one for being too smoky, but this just showed me it's perfectly fine. Yeah, it's like perfectly fine. It's 37.99. Right now, we got on sale for 35.99, a couple of bucks off. Better than I remember, or maybe I got better at tasting gross things. Maybe. It's a single village, 100 percent espadine, double distilled, so that's definitely a copper pot still. The other one is really interesting. This is from Mezcal Vago, and it is Ensemble Enbarro by Tio Rey. Tio Rey was a master mezcalero. Ensemble Enbarro is a blend of 80 percent espadine, 20 percent coyote agaves, and Enbarro means it was in fact distilled in the double clay pot traditional still. The Delmege is an artisanal style mezcal. This is ancestral style. So when the agaves are cooked underground in the pits, they're then put into a wooden trough, and sweaty dudes beat the shit out of them with wooden mallets in order to extract the liquid that then goes to the fermenter. It gets spontaneously fermented, usually just in like a pine wood or a cypress vat or something, and then it gets double distilled in this clay pot still. Very inefficient process. So the yield is incredibly small. Each batch might only yield 70 or 90 bottles total. This is a $100 mezcal. After hearing all about this, I mean, it becomes a little more clear what those clay pots bring. I mean, I think that there's a much richer mouthfeel and a lot more body. I mean, there's no doubt it's really good and really subtle and complex. But I still think that 7 is a good mixer, and I would spend more for that. Yeah, absolutely. Nothing's wrong with 7. Okay. So now, having to confront the absolute nihilism of comparing a sub $40 artisanal style mezcal with a $100 handcrafted masterpiece. Well, they're both handcrafted. Where two minutes ago, I could barely guess which one was probably more expensive. That even though I think that 8 is a delight to drink, I cannot splurge on this one. Roger wants to trade both mezcals back for another bourbon choice. You know what's funny is there's some real truth to that. You develop your palate depending on what you're used to drinking. This Del Mague is what I've always bought when it comes to mezcal. So I think maybe right out the gate, I'm just so used to how that tastes. If I bought a bottle of mezcal, it was Vita. So maybe that's kind of why I liked it more, but I totally get- Me too that one time. I totally get the complexity of the second one. I appreciate. I just, I don't know, I didn't really care for the sweetness and then the prices is a little hard to get past. But I'm just not into the category enough, I think. That's fair. I do think that Del Magay kind of hits the Mezcal archetype on the nose with its moderate smokiness and agave notes. I mean, it's what you expect. For sure. Yeah. Arguably, it's a category defining Mezcal. That is the entry level Mezcal for almost anybody in the industry. Yeah. In their cute little clay cups. You guys ever drink out of those? I've got a stack of them in the office. Really? Yeah, they give me a stack every time they come in and see us. Well, you have some more cups. Yeah. It's like cool. I need more to clutter my house. Give me a couple of those next time. All right. Fine. Looking for some detritus. Buddy, if you're looking for stuff to clutter things up, welcome to the Whiskey Hotline office. Come on by. Take all our stuff. One time I was in that office and I saw the floor. One time I was eating yogurt at this place, like homemade yogurt in India, and they serve it in locally made clay or earthenware bowls or glasses, but they're treated as disposable. All around the place, they're just smashed clay bowls everywhere. It's the weirdest thing ever. That's job creation. Well, it is. I mean, there's a tiny little village that made the little bowls, but everybody just smashes them when they're done. They're very crude. They have like, you know, going to some kind of handmade kiln and they're all burn marks on them and stuff. Very weird. I was kind of expecting you to say that they were all like joke cups with little dribble notches. They give them to the touristes. All right, did you guys learn something today? Yeah, especially the last category, I feel like, is it's enlightening. I think between us at least, I know Pat's drank tons of mezcal, but when you aren't as familiar with it, then the difference, you can't just write off the back, oh, this one's a more expensive one, like I can just tell. Yeah. I appreciated all of them. I thought they were all good. Even the McCallan. Yeah. McCallan's a great scotch. It's just now it's compared to what the price is now. McCallan, when I first bought a bottle of McCallan, it was 40 bucks. It also came in like a clay jug from the neighborhood grocer. Yeah, right. Yeah. Used to be able to buy a stamp for 23 cents. I mean, it is crazy the way we people tend to get stuck on certain brands. So that's one of the things that I've always just been the opposite way, and I just always want to try something new. But I think by doing these blinds like this, this can go to show you that maybe step out of your comfort zone every once in a while, even if you have a favorite that is always your go-to, you might be surprised. How did you come up? Save, save, splurge, splurge? Save, save? Splurge on the bourbon, save on the gin, splurge on the scotch, or no. Save on the scotch. Save on the scotch and save on the mezcal. I went save, save, save, splurge. I'm going to save on the bourbon, save on the scotch, save on the gin, splurge on the mezcal. Of course, you're going to splurge on the mezcal. Well, I'm saving on three others. Yeah. I think I went save, save, save, save. Which gin did I pick? You picked. No, I picked the Bombay. Yeah, you picked Bombay. I went save on all of them. I'm such a d*** bag. Yep. Chris, what did you end up with saving or splurging? I think I was save on bourbon. You were definitely save on scotch. Definitely save on scotch. Gin, I think I ended up on save too, even though I really liked the Nolet. I think I was save on everything. If I saved a bunch of money on the last three, can I go up and up my bourbon pick to the four of them? No. Greg does not want to be all safe. Well, it just goes to show you what kind of values out there. In most cases, the splurge, the quality was excellent, but depending on how you're going to use it. Pat handpicked all the saves, so there are cheaper liquors that are- Oh, yeah, for sure. But I didn't want to just throw in very old Barton, or throw in, we talk about New Amsterdam Gym a lot. We all appreciate New Amsterdam Gym for punching way above its weight class. But we talk about that a lot, so I want to do a different gym. Again, when I've done big staff trainings blind, it's always shown really well. Yeah. Thanks for picking no dogs. Yeah, really good picks. That's what I'm saving for the Celebrity Booze episode next week. Right. Yeah. Again, we've all thanked you, Pat, but let's just say once again, thank you for putting this together, and thanks for listening to another episode of Barrel to Bottle, The Binny's Podcast. Make sure to tell your friends about our podcast, tell your mom, download us wherever you download your podcast from, and if possible, please leave us a review. Also, send us your questions. If we select your question and answer it in a future podcast, we'll give you some Binny's bucks. Binny's bucks. You can apply them to a $100 bottle of Mezcal or whatever tickles your fancy. Or a Bombay Dry Gin. Until next week, I'm Roger. I'm Greg. I'm Chris. And I'm Pat. Save or splurge. And keep tasting.