You'll Occasionally Find This Highly Sought-After Bourbon At Costco

If you're shopping for bourbon at Costco, you may be focused on finding a good value. In the process, you might spot something surprising: Blanton's Single Barrel Bourbon. This highly sought-after bourbon is celebrated on social media – especially when a bottle is found at Costco. The warehouse retailer sells it for $56 to $70, while customers report on Reddit that they've seen it priced anywhere from $100 to $220 at liquor stores and on the secondary market. The chain's inventory varies by warehouse, and bottles can sell out quickly, making this one of the expensive bourbons at Costco you should always look for.

To understand how hard it can be to get your hands on a bottle, a Reddit user on a r/Costco thread explained, "I don't live too far from the distillery. Blanton's is super hard to find at any liquor store here, even difficult to find at the distillery. If you are lucky enough to get one, they will only allow you to buy one, and then you can't buy another one for three months (they record your ID)." If, like one Redditor, you'd feel compelled to "buy a whole case at that price," know that Costco also has a limit of one per membership.

Blanton's is regarded as the brand that started the single-barrel trend, as it was one of the first commercially available single-barrel bourbons on the market. Today, there is a far greater demand for it than what is produced, adding to its coveted status. Yet customer perceptions, particularly on social media platforms like Reddit, suggest that it can be overhyped.

Even at Costco's lower price, some feel that Blanton's is still too expensive and have a general sense of disappointment around the bottle. An original poster on r/bourbon, who ranked the bourbon "good" at 5 out of 10, stated, "Overall a decent drinking bourbon neat, but kinda boring." A number of Reddit users shared a similar sentiment.

Another commenter on the subreddit felt that the bourbon's disadvantage was being single-barrel: "Blanton's suffers where all SiB products do ... consistency. I've had some killer bottles I would rank 7-8, but most I've had fall 5-6." Others agreed that it depends on the bottle: "I was lucky, and my first bottle was incredible. Made me love it and want more." 

Buffalo Trace Distillery originally crafted Blanton's as a bourbon that only the Blanton family, their special guests, and important figures had access to. Many bourbons blend whiskey from multiple barrels to create a consistent flavor, but every bottle of Blanton's comes from a single barrel. This results in slight variations in batches, but the bourbon is generally known for notes of caramel, vanilla, citrus, and baking spices. The bottle itself is a beauty, with faceted edges and a horse-and-jockey bottle stopper.

Blanton's is not at every Costco, all the time. It will pop up randomly, and customers have reported seeing it in the San Francisco Bay Area, Burbank, California, Los Angeles, and Detroit. Reddit is a great place to get a heads-up about rare bourbon at Costco – users have also posted about elusive finds like Weller Special Reserve.

If you get your hands on this pricier single-barrel bourbon, commenters on Reddit have several recommendations to improve upon the drinking experience. One suggested, "I find an ice cube or a little water makes a world of difference with Blanton's," and multiple users agreed that letting the bourbon breathe improved the flavor. Adding a few drops of water can help open up complex aromas, while a large ice cube can mellow the harsher alcohol flavor without diluting the whiskey too much.