When assessing 2024’s American whiskey, I see so much growth from smaller distillers and non-distiller producers. This was clearly the year of independent spirit companies. While the larger companies certainly released some great products, the little guy’s quality has caught up to the big companies.
Whether from small independent blending houses or craft distillers, 14 of my Top 25 were from independent companies.
This is also the best year for American Single Malt on my list, with one cracking the Top 10 and two in the Top 30.
I do believe this is the most complete year of American whiskey in my two decade career, with the winner earning a spot on my list of Best Bourbons of the Century So Far (to be updated soon).
Each one of these products made the list for its own unique reasons (read about the criteria here), but the ranking is solely based on how it falls in a blind tasting.
As with last year, single barrels are not considered, and I blind tasted all 100, or this year 105, to determine the ranking. This year, however, I tasted them over the course of a week and published the results in Club Marzipan. The pouring team then tallied the results and placed my Top 25 on my YouTube livestream December 27. All brands and rankings were kept from me until after the stream. Throughout the blind tasting finale, I noted that the final rankings would not be published until I could confirm the bottles.
As they say in football, I reviewed the tape, caught an error and this list is the final ranking.

Fred Minnick’s 2024 Top 100

105: Ben Holladay Rickhouse Proof 6 Year Old Bourbon, 120.1 Proof, $66.99
104: Liberty Pole Peated Rye Batch 6, 111.4 Proof, $64
103: Woodinville Bourbon 8-Year, 100 Proof, $134.99
102: Pursuit United Double Oaked Rye, 108 proof, $69.99
101: Michter’s Toasted Barrel Finish, 91.4 Proof, $200
100: Pacific Coast Spirits 6 Year California Wheated Bourbon, 114 Proof, $90 Proof
99: Rabbit Hole Boxergrail 8 Year Cask Strength Rye, 103.8 Proof, $300
98: Kings County Bottled in Bond New York Bourbon, 100 Proof, $134.99
97: Lasso Motel Cognac Finish Bourbon, 100 Proof, $74.99
96: Green River Full Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 117.3 Proof, $49.99
95: 291 Colorado Whiskey Rye Finished Aspen Wood Staves, 101.7 Proof, $75
94: Lawrenceburg 10 Year Rye Whiskey Batch 1 (recently renamed distillery to Larrikin Bourbon Company), 122.3 Proof, $99.99
93: Savage + Cooke American Whiskey Finished in Zinfandel Barrels, 113 Proof, $44.99
92: Garrison Brothers 2024 Laguna Madre, 101 Proof, $399.99
91: Boulder Straight Bourbon Cask Strength, 128.4 Proof, $85
90: Whiskey Acres 7 Year Illinois Straight Bourbon, 107 Proof, $72.99
89: High West Bottled In Bond Rye, 100 Proof, $79.99
88: Hooten Young Rye, 93 Proof, $64.99
87: Preservation Pot Distilled Wheated Bourbon (Cask Strength and Unfiltered), 100 Proof, $149.99
86: James E Pepper Straight Bourbon Decanter, 105.4 Proof, $52.99
85: Penelope Bourbon 4 Grain Blend Batch 19, 114 proof, $64.99
84: Smoke Wagon Small Batch, 100 Proof, $40
83: Old Elk Wheated Bourbon 8 Years, 100 Proof, $96
82: Copper Fox Pot Distilled Chestnut American Whiskey, 96 Proof, $65
81: Michter’s Cask Strength Rye, 110.4 Proof, $90
80: Parkers Heritage Malt Cognac Finished Whiskey 14 Years Old, 107 Proof, $170
79: Smooth Ambler Contradiction Rye Batch No. 56, 105 Proof, $36
78: Old Pepper Bottled in Bond Rye, 100 Proof, $50
77: Forbidden Bourbon Batch 3, 96 Proof, $134.99
76: Cock of the Walk Proprietors Reserve Lot 3, 112.1 Proof, $150.99
75: Woodinville Founders Find from Bourbon Mash 12 Years, 107 Proof, $129.99
74: Lythgoe 9 Year 4 Grain Kentucky Straight Bourbon Founders Collection, 94 Proof, $89.99
73: Middle West Straight Wheat Whiskey Batch 1, 125.1 Proof, $49.99
72: New Riff Winter Whiskey Bottled in Bond (Malted Oat and Chocolate Malt), 100 proof, $74.99
71: Woodford Reserve, 90 Proof, $40
70: Nashville 8-Year Straight Rye Cask Strength, 112.96, $90
69: Bywater 4 Grain Louisiana Bourbon, 93 Proof, $48.99
68: Crater Lakes Reserve Straight Oregon Rye, 96 Proof, $45
67: Makers Mark Cellar Aged, 115.7 Proof, $229.99
66: Union Horse Bourbon Kansas Straight Bourbon Bottled in Bond, 100 Proof, $62
65: Old Stubborn Potstill Wheated Bourbon Batch 1, 123.8 Proof, $250
64: Bardstown Bourbon Rye Amrut Finished Bourbon, 110 proof, $159.99
63: Leopold Brothers 8 Year Bourbon, 110 Proof, $64.99
62: Epoch Reserve Maryland Straight Rye (100% rye), 100 Proof, $45.99
61: Doc Swinson’s Alter Ego, Sherry and Cognac Finish, 95.8 Proof, $80
60: Keepers Heart Irish + American Whiskey, 110 Proof, $28.99
59: Barrell Bourbon Batch 36, 114.44 Proof, $79.99
58: New Riff 8 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 100 proof, $86.99
57: Bomberger’s Bourbon 2024, 108 Proof, $134.99
56: Chattanooga Whiskey Founders Blend, 100 Proof, $55.99
55: Brothers Bond Bourbon Cask Strength, 115.1 Proof, $75
54: Jefferson’s Ocean Double Barrel Rye, 96 proof, $79
53: K.Luke Blended Bourbon Batch 10, 120.2 Proof, $109.99
52: The Magi Blended Rye, $149.99
51: Wild Turkey 8 Year “Jimmy Anniversary,” 101 Proof, $45.99
50: Bulleit Rye 10 Year Old, 91.2 Proof, $48.99
49: Angel’s Envy Bourbon Cask Strength 2024, 124.6 Proof, $279.99
48: Booker’s Bourbon 2024-3, 131 Proof, $99.99
47: Remus Repeal Reserve Bourbon Batch 8, 101 Proof, $119.99
46: Lost Lantern Far Flung Bourbon, 126.6 Proof, $100
45: Hard Truth Sweet Mash Rye Sherry Finish (dumped on 7-18-2023), 113.1 Proof, $89.99
44: Milam & Greene Triple Cask A Blend of Straight Bourbon Whiskies, 94 Proof, $54.98 
43: Brothers Bond Bourbon Regenerative Grain, 95 Proof, $59.99
42: Willett Bourbon 8 Year Wheated Bourbon, 108 Proof, $259.99
41: New Riff 8 Year Old Kentucky Straight Rye, 100 Proof, $86.99
40: Kentucky Peerless Rye, 107.6 Proof, $109.99
39: 2XO The Sneakerhead Blend, 104 Proof, $99.99
38: Heaven Hill Grain to Glass Rye, 123.2 Proof, $99.99
37: Kentucky Peerless Double Oak Batch 18, 108.7 Proof, $88.99
36: Cedar Ridge Distillery ‘The QuintEssential’ Special Release – Portside Single Malt, 92 Proof, $56.99
35: Ponfeigh Westsylvania Rye, 117 Proof, $85
34: Sazerac Straight Rye 18 Years Old, 90 Proof, $124.97
33: Bardstown Bourbon Co. Whiskey “Bourbon Lore” Collab, 112.5 proof, $169.99
32: Tumblin Dice 8 Year Curated Small Batch Barrel Proof, 116.4 Proof, $80
31: Bluegrass Elkwood Reserve 9 Year, 120 Proof, $149.99
30: Knob Creek Small Batch 18 Year, 100 Proof, $159.99
29: Booker’s Bourbon 2024-4, 125.8 Proof, $99.99
28: Nashville Barrel Company 7 Year Straight Bourbon, 115.62 Proof, $64.99
27: Stranahan’s 12 Year Single Malt Aged in Port Wine Casks, 94.6 Proof, $144.99
26: Woodford Reserve Batch Proof, 119.5 Proof, $164.99
25: Barrell Mizunara 6 Years (blend of Straight Whiskeys) First Edition, 116.42 Proof, $96.99
24: J. Mattingly 6-Year Kentucky Bourbon Double Staved Batch 1, 119 Proof, $120
23: Remus Gatsby Reserve 15-Year-Old Straight Bourbon, 104.9 Proof, $279.99
22: Middle West Straight Wheated Bourbon “Michelone Reserve” Batch 1, 122.2 Proof, $46.99
21: Starlight Bottled in Bond Indiana Straight Bourbon Batch 2, 100 Proof, $44.99
20: Larceny Barrel Proof Wheated Bourbon A124, 124.2 Proof, $79.99
19: Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch 2024 Release, 108.2 Proof, $220
18: Smokeye Hill Blue Corn Barrel Proof Straight Bourbon, 131.4 Proof, $62.99
17: Rare Perfection 8 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 129 Proof, $199.99
16: Still Austin Tanager Texas Bourbon “Cigar Blend” 5 Years Old, 98.4 Proof, $149.99
15: Elijah Craig Barrel Proof A124, 119 Proof, $79.99
14: Very Olde St. Nick “Straight Outta Bardstown” 10 Years Old Bourbon, 131.6 Proof, $200
13: Pappy Van Winkle 15 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 107 Proof, $500+
12: Pinhook Straight Bourbon Vertical Series 2024 Release (unfiltered) 9 Years Old, 114.3 Proof, $99.99
11: Brothers of the Leaf Bourbon Finished in Toasted French Oak Batch 2, 116.2 Proof, $95.99
10: Old Rip Van Winkle 10 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 107 Proof, $200+
9: OH Ingram River Aged Kentucky Straight Bourbon (2024 Flagship), 117.7 Proof, $83.99
8: Old Line American Single Malt Double Oak Series: Sherry Cask (bottled February 2024), 100 Proof, $65
7: Larceny Barrel Proof C924 Wheated Bourbon, 125.1 Proof, $69.99
6: Weller Millennium, 99 Proof, $7,500
5: Little Book “The Infinite” Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 119.3 Proof, $249.99
4: Nashtucky “Nashville’s Connected Spirits Small Batch Bourbon,” 120.4 Proof, $69.99
3: George T. Stagg, 136.1 Proof, $149.99
2: Nashtucky “Nashville’s Connected Spirits Small Batch Rye,” 112.4 Proof, $69.99
1: Russell’s Reserve 15 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 117.2 Proof, $250

Read more: 2024 Top 100 American Whiskeys Unranked

Read disclosures

Note: Heaven’s Door Homesick Blues, Minnesota Wheated Bourbon Whiskey was on the unranked Top 100 list, but was not poured for the ranking rounds.