Let's be honest: between the grocery hauls and the $100 gas station visits, the "luxury" bourbon market is getting a bit crowded with $100–$120 bottles. At Liberty & Plenty, we think you should be able to pour a glass of something exceptional without checking your savings account first.

Two new releases rooted in North Carolina and priced for the people who actually open the bottle. Bronze Bull Straight Bourbon (46% ABV, $39.95) is everything you want in a classic: vanilla, caramel, toasted oak, and butterscotch on the nose, with caramel, baking spice, vanilla custard, and cornbread in the glass. Neat or with a single slow-melting cube, it delivers every time.

Bronze Bull Blend of Straight Bourbon Whiskeys (43% ABV, $37.95) goes somewhere more interesting. Two distinct straight bourbons blended into a profile that shifts with every sip: graham cracker, dried apricot, orange zest, vanilla custard, and baking spice, with quiet hints of oak smoke and leather underneath.

Exceptional bourbon shouldn't be a financial milestone. Find both at the distillery in Durham or at select NC ABC stores.