The Bottom Shelfers hit the road to Louisville! Thomas, Mark, Matt & Josh joined Rick & Todd for in-depth research in the heart of bourbon country. More on the trip coming in the next few episodes.

Shrotly after arrival, we headed out to Angel's Envy following a quick stop in the hotel's watering hole. The Bottled In Bond was the consensus favorite. Dinner at Doc Cro's was amazing. Get the mac & cheese!

Back at the ranch that evening, we opened up some Monk's Road and Daviess County Straight Bourbon Whiskey. Ummmm..... Not great choices - earning a consensus 1 & 2 rating respectively.

Bourbon bus tomorrow morning!

This time we tried something we never tried before, a wheat whiskey! The 51% wheat really came through. A very low-key, easy-sipping experience. I say, "Drink it neat!" Also... Do NOT forget to grab a bottle of the BlueNote Crossroads. Great stuff!

A step up for the boys this time. Penelope Wheated & 1792 Bottled In Bond. Both are winners! Stock up for your Holdiay guests! The 1792 BIB struck us both as an especially good choice.

Woodinville is a great everyday bourbon choice. Solid sipper both neat on a rock. The Benchmark Full Proof might be better used as a stain remover or paint thinner. WAY to hot! ...even on ice.

We had high hopes for Benchmark Top Floor, but... We both went with 1.5 and were maybe a bit generous. The Yellowstone is pretty good! One caveat though... Rick got it for $30 which makes it a good buy. For Todd at $37, not such a bargain.

Neither of us had heard of these two before... The Kentucky Vintage, well... sadly, it's going under the sink. The Remus wasn't too bad at all, but not a big favorite. We took one for the team on this one!

Heading to a lower shelf set of bourbons this time... Old Bardstown 90 Proof vs. Benchmark Bonded. While the Benchmark #8 did not impress, some of the other expressions - like this one - are pretty good!

Got a pair of 90-proofers this time around. LOTS of similarities between these two... The biggest difference is the rye spice in Bowmans. We both called these "classic mid-tier" bourbons. Both have a great mouth feel with the edge going to Eagle Rare. We recommend the Bowmans neat and the Eagle with a big cube. Two winners here!

The Bottom Shelfers have a theory... Using a smoker (from Smokeshow) it is possible to turn mediocre - or even bad - whiskey into something quite palatable. Rick has been a fan for quite some time. FINALLY, Todd gives it a try!

An Independence Day special!!! Woodson, a 6-month "accelerated-aged" Kentucky Bourbon was... eh..., but the 13th Colony was quite a pleasant surprise. Not exactly true bottom shelf picks, but the GA product is a winner in any case.