TB

The Bourbon Historian

@bourbonhistorian

Whiskey writer and archivist digging through 200 years of American distilling. I pick bottles the way I pick stories — for what they tell you about where bourbon came from and where it's going.

11
Bottles on the shelf

“Every bottle here earned its place in the story of American whiskey. Some started revolutions, some survived Prohibition, and one of them invented a category.”

— The Bourbon Historian, on The History Shelf
The History Shelf

The History Shelf

04

Michters US 1 American Whiskey 750 ml

American Whiskey
Why it's here“A resurrection rather than a survival. The Pennsylvania distillery that carried the Michter's name — Bomberger's, in Schaefferstown — went bankrupt and fell silent in 1989....”
$42.99 Add to cart
05

Old Forester 86 Proof 750 ml

Whisky
Why it's here“In 1870 George Garvin Brown started selling whiskey only in sealed glass bottles, with his signature on the label, because barrel whiskey was routinely watered down...”
$22.99 Add to cart
06

Makers Mark Bourbon 750ml

Bourbon
Why it's here“Bill Samuels Sr. reportedly burned the family recipe and started over, swapping rye for red winter wheat in 1953. He also stopped chasing proof and age...”
$25.99 Add to cart
09

Wild Turkey 101 Rye 750 ml

Rye
Why it's here“There was a long stretch — most of the 1970s through the 90s — when rye was a dead category and distilleries quietly stopped making it....”
$29.99 Add to cart
11

Four Roses Single Barrel 750ml

Bourbon
Why it's here“For decades Four Roses bourbon wasn't sold in America at all — the brand was owned abroad and the name was slapped on cheap blended whiskey...”
$47.99 Sold out