Woodford Reserve Distiller's Select is one of those bourbons that keeps showing up in my bar recommendations for a reason. At £38.50, it sits in that sweet spot where you're paying for genuine craft without the premium markup that's crept into so much of the bourbon market lately. Bottled at 43.2% ABV — or 86.4 proof if you prefer the American convention — it's a Kentucky Straight Bourbon that does exactly what it promises, and does it well.
What makes Woodford Reserve interesting from a production standpoint is the category it occupies. This is a bourbon built on consistency. The Distiller's Select label tells you this is the flagship — the expression the distillery wants you to judge them by. There's no age statement here, which in bourbon terms simply means the blend is optimised for flavour profile rather than a number on the label. Every batch has to hit that house style, and frankly, they nail it. I've gone through more bottles of this than I'd care to admit over the years, and the quality doesn't waver.
At 43.2% ABV, it's bottled just above the legal minimum of 40% for bourbon, which gives it enough weight to carry flavour without burning through your palate. That's a deliberate choice — this isn't a barrel-proof bruiser. It's a bourbon that wants to be approachable, and it succeeds. The mouthfeel is rich for the proof, with a body that suggests careful cuts and good barrel selection.
Tasting Notes
I'd encourage you to pour this neat first and give it five minutes in the glass before nosing. What you can expect from a bourbon in this style is a profile leaning into dried fruit, baking spice, and that classic Kentucky grain sweetness. The 43.2% strength means nothing is fighting you — it opens up easily and rewards patience. If you're new to sipping bourbon neat, this is genuinely one of the best places to start.
The Verdict
Woodford Reserve Distiller's Select earns a 7.6 out of 10 from me, and that's a score I feel good about. It's not trying to be the most complex bourbon on your shelf — it's trying to be the most reliable, and reliability in whiskey is worth more than people give it credit for. At under £40, you're getting a well-made Kentucky Straight Bourbon that works across every scenario: neat, on ice, or in cocktails. The consistency alone puts it ahead of a lot of competitors at this price point. It's not going to rewrite your understanding of bourbon, but it will remind you why you fell for the category in the first place. A genuine workhorse bottle that deserves its reputation.
Best Served
This bourbon was practically born for an Old Fashioned. Two ounces of Woodford Reserve, a barspoon of rich demerara syrup, two dashes of Angostura bitters, stirred over a large ice cube with an expressed orange peel. The bourbon's natural sweetness and spice character stand up beautifully to the bitters without getting lost. I made hundreds of these during my years behind the bar, and Woodford was always in the rotation for good reason — it's got enough backbone for the cocktail but enough polish to keep things elegant. If you prefer it simple, a single large ice cube and nothing else lets it open up nicely over ten minutes.
