pick of the litter

Idioms  

1. The best of a group, as in He was first in the ticket line so he had the pick of the litter. This term, alluding to the most desirable one from a litter of puppies or kittens, supplanted such earlier variants as pick of the market, pick of the parish, and pick of the basket. [Early 1900s]

---

Example Sentences

If Messi is going to come to MLS and he is going to essentially get the pick of the litter of which former team-mates he wants to bring over here, let's be honest, it's essentially a super team - even if they are on their last legs.

From BBC

When McConnell stepped down as leader, he had pick of the litter over committee assignments.

From Slate

And at the end of each weekend, I had the pick of the litter with jerseys.

From Los Angeles Times

The pick of the litter is probably the problematic Seamus, who despairs at how terms like “witness and legacy of violence and valid” transform class into “a tribunal for war crimes.”

From New York Times

Feline fans have their pick of the litter when it comes to helping out at this no-kill cat shelter in Gaithersburg.

From Washington Post