8 Best American Whiskeys to Gift for Valentine’s Day in 2024
Valentine’s Day is almost here, and if you’re stuck wondering what to get the whiskey lover in your life, we’ve got some great suggestions for you.
We’ve got some great options for both bourbons and rye whiskeys. Let’s get into the list!
Four Roses Single Barrel
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This is a pretty obvious one; Valentine’s Day is closely associated with roses. So is Four Roses, for obvious reasons.
Not only is Four Roses Single Barrel Bourbon an excellent whiskey, it’s widely available and fairly affordable, usually found for around $40.
Four Roses Single Barrel Bourbon delivers a splendid balance of sweet, floral and spicy, with tasting notes of vanilla, butter, sugar, caramel, cloves and maple.
If your Valentine is more of a cocktail person, Four Roses also has its “Match Made in Manhattan Bundle” — composed of a bottle of Four Roses Single Barrel and Carpano Antica Formula — available here.
Woodford Reserve Double Oaked Bourbon and Compartés Limited Edition Chocolate Collection Bundle
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Kentucky bourbon meets Los Angeles chocolate in this partnership between Woodford Reserve and Compartés. This limited-edition bundle comprises a full-sized bottle of Woodford Reserve Double Oaked — which is a great bourbon — and a set of four chocolates meant to be paired with the whiskey. The four chocolate flavors are Butterscotch, Pear Nutmeg, Oak Smoked Salt Caramel and Maple Pecan.
The bundle is available from ReserveBar from $87.99. Be sure to use code “WOODFORD” at checkout for free shipping.
Widow Jane Decadence
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Between love, chocolates and other candy, Valentine’s Day is a holiday associated with sweetness — and this bourbon from the New York-based Widow Jane has sweetness in droves. That’s thanks to the fact that after being aged in new oak barrels, Decadence was transferred to casks that were previously used to age maple syrup.
Bearing an impressive 10-year age statement, Widow Jane Decadence has plenty of oak to balance out the maple character, making this a delightful, sweet-but-not-cloying sipping bourbon.
Decadence has notes of heavy baking spice on the nose with oak, toffee, maple and raisin bread. The maple influence sets in on the palate with an exquisite balance of maple, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg and toffee.
The maple syrup appears most heavily on the finish, which is long and sweet but still retains spice notes to balance out the sweetness.
At 91 proof, this bourbon won’t blow your head off with heat and ethanol and is instead a smooth, delicate, sweet sipper.
Widow Jane Decadence has a suggested retail price of $100.
Larceny Barrel Proof Bourbon
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If sweet sounds great, but you’re looking for something a little proofier than Decadence, look no further than the beloved Larceny Barrel Proof. This series releases thrice annually from Heaven Hill and is always great. Larceny is distilled from a mashbill composed of 20% wheat, which adds a soft, sweet character that’s welcome alongside the heat of barrel proof.
The latest batch of Larceny Barrel Proof Bourbon was released in January, and we found it to be a touch heavier on the cinnamon than previous LBP bottlings. It’s still plenty sweet, and the incorporation of spice is a fun, unexpected twist.
Green River Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey
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Bourbon is great, but some whiskey drinkers have more of a spicy tooth than a sweet one. Of course, we’re referring to rye lovers.
A brand-new release, Green River’s rye whiskey debuted in January and has immediately cemented itself as one of the best value whiskeys on the market. Available for around $35, this is a superb, accessible 95-proof rye. If you’re looking for a Valentine’s Day gift for a rye whiskey fan, look no further than this bottling. It checks all of the boxes: delicious, complex, affordable, new and exciting.
On the nose, Green River Rye is sweet and bright with tons of spice, apples, cinnamon, brown sugar and honey. On the palate, this easy-drinking rye bears notes of toffee, honey, rye spice and apple, concluding with more spice, orange peel, apple butter, honey and clove.
At this price point, this rye is truly tough to beat.
Ben Holladay Soft Red Wheat 6 Year Old Bottled-In-Bond Bourbon
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Back to bourbon, this comes from Holladay in Missouri — our pick for the best up-and-coming whiskey brand of 2023. This is a cask-strength version of the brand’s 6-year-old Soft Red Wheat bourbon.
Not only is this bourbon a total delight for anyone who enjoys high-proof whiskey, its red labeling will fit right in with your Valentine’s Day decor.
Holladay exploded in popularity this year and is truly on the up and up. The brand makes terrific bourbon and is still growing; it has tremendous potential.
Bottled at 120.1 proof, this bourbon is distilled from a mashbill of 75% corn, 15% wheat and 12% malted barley. The nose is rich and sweet with tons of cream, plus plum, honey, confectioners sugar and brown butter. The rich mouthfeel presents notes of sweet toffee, crème brûlée and a hint of banana. The finish is long and heavy on banana bread, toffee and crème brûlée with a bit of cocoa and oak.
Penelope Rosé Cask Finish
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Rosé is a popular choice of beverage for Valentine’s Day, thanks to its pink hue and sweet flavor profile. Many whiskey drinkers won’t be fans of rosé, but they’ll certainly love this bourbon finished in rosé casks. This fun whiskey comes to us from Penelope Bourbon in New Jersey.
The first installment in Penelope’s Cooper Series, this bourbon is finished in Rosé wine casks from the Southern Rhône region of France.
The result is a light, delicate, complex expression. Bottled at 47% ABV, Penelope Rosé Cask Finish expertly balances juicy wine notes with fresh berries, cinnamon sugar, vanilla and some oak.
Penelope Rosé Cask has a suggested retail price of $65.
Frey Ranch Straight Rye Whiskey
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Before we let you go, we wanted to throw one more option out there for the rye lovers in the back, since this list is mostly made up of bourbons.
Frey Ranch is a farm-to-glass distillery in Nevada, and its rye whiskey is one of the best, most underrated on the market. This Bottled-in-Bond whiskey is aged at least five years and bottled at 100 proof.
This is an intene rye whiskey with notes of honey, candied ginger, brown sugar and cracked pepper on the nose; bold rye spice, cola, caramel candies, vanilla bean, tobacco, raisin and oak on the palate; and honey, sweet oak, ginger and caramel on a long finish.
Available from the Frey Ranch website for $62.99, this rye is absolutely packed with flavor, and we can’t recommend it enough.
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