Yeah, living in a major market in the Southeast, acquiring Pappy used to not be a problem. Then, about 6 or 7 years ago, you had to be on a waiting list to get it, which still wasn't a problem. Then the allotments got so small that the waiting list was reserved for high rollers, politicians and the store employees. There are 2-3 restaurant bars in town that usually have at least a bottle of 12 year, sometimes a 15 year and occasionally even a 23 year, but you're looking to pay $50 for a glass. I have a friend whose family are the PVW distillers. He opted out of the family business (I still think he was crazy not to go into it) and even he, a direct family member, can seldom get his hands on a bottle. As mentioned above, there are certain benefits to the "bourbon boom like being able to get a respectable glass of bourbon in most any part of the country, but, much like sheep hunting, you can't help but resent those who are responsible for inflating the price.
My home state of Tennessee was a bit late to show up to the whiskey trend. Until just a few years ago, no new distilleries could be opened in Tennessee so Jack Daniels and George Dickel were the only game in town with JD dominating the market share with their over marketed and highly over rated product. Dickel no 12 is pretty good as is Dickel Barrel Select and Dickel Rye. I'm not a fan of the black label, though, which is the most commonly available GD product. Since they changed the laws, some new Tennessee Whisky distillers have jumped in the game, but none of the new ones are very good and Jack Daniels lobbied hard to prevent any new competition. Its tough business model to get into. Where do you find a Tennessee Whisky master distiller? You'd have to hire a underling away from JD or GD. Then, after perfecting a recipe, you're looking at a minimum of 4 years before you have a product on the shelf and that assumes you have enough money to keep production going, market your new product and find proper distribution.
