Is a Held-Back Single Barrel Worth Four Times the Blend? — The Cut — S02E136

Garrison Brothers took eight barrels from an identical French Limousin finishing program. Seven went into the standard Laguna Madre blend. The eighth was bottled alone at full cask strength for roughly four times as much. Same wood, same years, same distillery — one path costs a quarter of the other. John argues the premium buys scarcity, not a different whiskey, though the proof gap is real. The retail detail — the where, the when and the numbers — isn't in this episode. Platform rules for alcohol content don't allow it here. All of it is in the American Whiskey Industry Brief, free every morning at chasingtheunicornpodcast.com.