If you have stopped by this blog, odds are you have read my top performing post.

21 Years of Bourbon – My Quest To Build My Son’s Bourbon Collection

In this post, I walk through my quest to collect 21 bottles of bourbon for my son by his 21st birthday. Readers have given their two cents – Some think this is amazing idea. Some gave me some suggestions on which bourbons to pick up for my son’s 3rd birthday. Some people told me that I was making my son an alcoholic and that I was being selfish for buying my son these bottles. I had to take a laugh when I read that comment:

This is very selfish on the father’s behalf. What if your son doesn’t want to drink? Isn’t there a better way to invest that time and money into something that isn’t booze? Setting the kid up to be an alcoholic.

PETER

Yes. Unopened bottles of bourbon that a dad buys for his child is going to cause him to become an alcoholic. My response was:

If my son doesn’t want to drink it, I’m going to have a great time enjoying it myself. And he will have a very nice college fund covered as well. This is just one of the investments we have for our amazing child.

Chris

Joking aside, it’s been entertaining to read the comments and I figured I would update the blog on what I decided to purchase for my son’s 3rd birthday bottle.

The Motivation

I posted my article in a few different Facebook groups and I had one comment that stood out to me:

When you see the right bottle, you will know.

A Random Guy on Facebook

I have been struggling since my son’s birthday to choose the bourbon I wanted to add to the collection. I wanted something special and meaningful. I wanted something that wasn’t going to break the bank. I want something that wouldn’t be around in 18 years.

And yet, I had no idea what I really wanted.

Finally on last Friday, I walked into my in-laws house and my father-in-law said: Do you want your birthday present?

Since my birthday was multiple months away, I was curious and I said heck yes. And he pulled out a bottle of OCD #5. One of my top 5 bourbons of all time. He had taken a trip down to Kentucky and stopped and picked me up a bottle. He was so excited to give it to me and I was beyond excited to receive it. I cracked it open that night and I look forward to having a put of it tomorrow.

So it got me thinking. If I got that excited receiving a bottle of Glenn’s Creek OCD #5, wouldn’t that be an awesome bottle for my son’s collection?

The Email

And like someone was reading my mind, I received the following email from Glenn’s Creek the next day (I had never received an email from them before in my life that I remember):

A few unique, LIMITED products in the GCD Vault/Premium OCD #5 update

A little update on a few unique products available in the GCD Vault.

Cafe Ole Bourbon 115 Proof ONLY 6 Bottles Ever

Hand Filtered Cafe Ole Bourbon 115 Proof ONLY 18 Bottles

A few bottles remain of the FIRST barrel of R.W. Robinson Infinity Whiskey

Possibly the last barrel of Single Malt Whiskey from GCD, not because it’s not delicious, but fermenting Single Malt is a completely different process than fermenting Bourbons. We currently do not have the space to process both products. So, the third barrel of Millville Malt has a few Hand Filtered and a few regular filtered bottles remaining.

Millville Malt

Hand Filtered Millville Malt

Check out the full line up in the GCD Vault!

News update on OCD #5 PREMIUM – Looks like Mid to Late Summer 2023 on the next delicious barrel of OCD #5 PREMIUM. It is tasting good but, not yet to PREMIUM standards. 

You will be the first to know it is in the bottle.

Thank you for supporting our passion! Thanks for reading.

John T. Kemper, III

Obsessive Compulsive Distiller/Engineering Manager

Glenns Creek Distilling, LLC.

“A little different. A lot better.”

The Pick

If you just read that email, you might have seen a few possibilities of items to add to my son’s collection. The Cafe Ole has only 6 bottles ever. The single malt is never coming back. The OCD #5 Premium is coming soon and I could wait and pick him up the high class version of my favorite.

But one thing caught my eye more than the rest.

A few bottles remain of the FIRST barrel of R.W. Robinson Infinity Whiskey

I clicked on the list and read this description:

R. W. Robinson’s Legacy – Infinity Whiskey

I first met R.W. Robinson (he introduced himself as Bob) in 2014 at the old distillery. When he told me he had been the Superintendent I was excited to be able to ask questions of someone who actually worked here. At the end of our conversation, I thought it was a great experience, and that I would not see Bob again. Thankfully, I was wrong, and Bob comes to visit us on a regular basis.

It has been a privilege to learn from Bob’s 40 years of experience in the world of bourbon. Things in the industry have certainly changed since Bob’s tenure. We owe a debt of gratitude to R. W. Robinson and with every sip his Legacy will continue.

David Meier Owner/Head Distiller Glenns Creek Distilling

R. W. Robinson’s Legacy Infinity Whiskey is created by comingling the various bourbon mash bills in single ONCE in a lifetime combination. Each once used bourbon barrel’s mash bill is unique, never to be duplicated.

750ml bottles available through the GCD Vault.

Distilled, Aged and Bottled by Glenns Creek Distillery.

I was looking for something special to me. I was looking for something that wouldn’t be around 18 years from now. I was looking for something that I could share with my son.

And then it literally landed in my pocket.

I’ve never had the R. W. Robinson’s Legacy – Infinity Whiskey and not many people will ever have the opportunity. And this is exactly what I was looking for to add to my son’s collection.

The Why

When picking the bottles to add to my son’s collection, I want the following:

1. Something with a story – Just buying a bottle of bourbon isn’t enough. I want to have a story to tell about purchasing the bottle.
2. Something that isn’t normal – Sure, I could drive down to Buffalo Trace and grab a bottle of the stuff they have on the shelf that day. But that’s what all bourbon hunters want. And I want my son to know that you don’t have to be the typical person. It’s ok to be different and to stand out. And that’s what I want my picks to be. This is different than when I started and I imagine my perspective will change many times, but I don’t want the stuff everyone wants.
3. Something personal – I want to leave a part of me in the collection. I am planning on being there when my son turns 21, but I can’t predict life. I want the collection to be a gift that is a part of me for my son, so it only makes sense to pick one of my favorite distilleries. And it gives me something amazing to look forward to in 18 years. Worst case, I have a great bottle for me to drink (here’s looking at you PETER).
4. The whole idea of an infinity bottle really made me think deep (or meta as the kids now say – and I imagine I used that in the wrong context). The barrel never ends, but nothing is ever the same. Just like life. Life is always going and yet nothing is ever the same.
5. The legacy of R.W. Robinson lives on. I’ve never personally met Bob, but I imagine it would be a great conversation (if the guys from Glenn’s Creek like him, he must be a good time). It’s kinda cool to think that I’m going to introduce my son to R.W. Robinson who had 40 years of experience in the bourbon world. And by the time my son drinks this bottle, it might be 60 years since Bob helped created bourbon for the world, but his legacy remains. And that is something that all of us can hope we can do one day.

Conclusion

It was quite the challenge this year to pick my son’s next bottle, but it’s a challenge I enjoy and look forward to each year. And I think it’s a nice time to reflect on myself and my son each year. And I landed with a bottle that should be a perfect fit into my collection and my story.

Side note: I’m also excited to have an excuse to drive down to Frankfort, Kentucky to pick up this bottle. I’m never mad to travel to Bourbon Country.

If you are following this journey, I hope this was enlightening with my next choice and the rationale behind it.

If you are PETER, I hope this post makes your realize I’m not making my son an alcoholic. I’m building a collection (that I will drink no matter what) that I can share with my son. And you should not be reading a bourbon blog if you are going to be a Debbie Downer.

Cheers!