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Pappy Van Winkle

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Wallins Creek cat

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Ok may not be right place but probably some will know.

Been a long time Burbon drinker. Mostly Woodford Reserve and Blanton's. Have tried Woodford reserve double oaked and all are very good.

Question is Pappy that much better or just the Burbon unicorn to most of us that can't obtain it ?

I know it's aged longer and should be better but I like some people that have tried it to elaborate please. And if anyone knows where t o get any without selling an organ to pay for it ? Wanted to celebrate birth of granddaughter.

Thanks.
 
B

Blue till I die

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Dec 20, 2004
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Just had some on Xmas, it is the best tasting smoothest bourbon i have tried. There really is no bite to it

I had Pappy 15 yr, it's 107 proof and almost tasted like it had no alcohol in it
 
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JohnKBA

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There's another thread on here that discusses this subject in depth.

To me it's not near worth it to drink any current or very recent VW product. Even if you get a bottle at retail you're sacrificing hundreds of dollars in opportunity cost if you drink it. So many better options.
 
B

BBUK_anon

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Wallins creek Cat said:
Ok may not be right place but probably some will know.

Been a long time Burbon drinker. Mostly Woodford Reserve and Blanton's. Have tried Woodford reserve double oaked and all are very good.

Question is Pappy that much better or just the Burbon unicorn to most of us that can't obtain it ?

I know it's aged longer and should be better but I like some people that have tried it to elaborate please. And if anyone knows where t o get any without selling an organ to pay for it ? Wanted to celebrate birth of granddaughter.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

I wish you luck and...congrats. (I never acquired a taste for the expensive stuff but I have had various shots of the good stuff. I still go back to 100 proof spiced rum. I will until I lose the desire for it though I have been alcohol-free for several months. No reason, just quit for a while but I feel the urge to grab a bottle again. I probably will soon....)
 
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Kaizer Sosay

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JohnKBA said:
There's another thread on here that discusses this subject in depth.

To me it's not near worth it to drink any current or very recent VW product. Even if you get a bottle at retail you're sacrificing hundreds of dollars in opportunity cost if you drink it. So many better options.
Click to expand...
 
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dgtatu01

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IMO of course, the smoothest bourbon out there is Evan Williams 10 Year Single Barrel. It's $23/bottle and can be found almost everywhere.
 
krd7_99

krd7_99

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Oct 1, 2005
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If you've been a long time bourbon drinker then you should probably know how to spell it.
 
D

downw/ball-lineD

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have to agree with cbrwalt here. I don't profess to having a sophisticated bourbon pallet by any means, but I will reiterate the comments of cbrwalt on this one. It clearly tastes different/better than any bourbon I have ever tasted. To be as smooth as it is really something to behold. Purists will tell you it is no longer from the same genetic chain as the original Stitzel/Weller strain since BT makes it all now. I dunno. The other folks here have listed some fine bourbons as well. To me, PVW is on another level though. Whether its worth the price difference----that is a whole different discussion.
 
B

BankerCat12

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Sep 21, 2012
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If you like Pappy, just go with Weller. Its the poor mans version and just as good. Pappy is good but not for what people are paying for it.

Just bought some Bib & Tucker. Smooth as ish.
 
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L Butler

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10.$300
12.$400
15. $7-800
20. $1500-1800
23. $1500-2400
Per Craigslist. If you get arrested blame CATS ILLUSTRATED.
 
O

Ollie.ksr

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I have never bought it, but I have drank 15 year old and 23 year old. I actually preferred the 15 to the 23, but that's just my taste.

I may buy a bottle one day, but I don't know if I would drink it or not, maybe for a special occasion such as a birth of a grandchild.

Bourbon is to each his own, if you can find it, get some W.L. Weller Special Reserve. It is hard to find but for the price, I've never had anything better.

Also, if you like the Woodford Double Oak, try the Jim Beam Double Oak, it is very good for the price I'm not a Jim Beam fan.
 
K

KentuckyStout

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The Paddock taught me that Pappy Van Winkle is the Mountain Dew of the bourbon world.

Can't believe I ever liked that stuff.
 
80 Proof

80 Proof

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I've had all the PVW vintages except for the 25 year they jyst released. The Stitzel-Weller stuff was the best, but they switched to Buffalo Trace as their distiller a few years ago and it's not the same.

For a good bourbon that you can walk into the store and buy, my favorite is probably Basil Haydon (I would say Blantons, but it's become hard to find).

My favorite value priced bourbon is Old Grand Dad Bonded.
 
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anthonys735

anthonys735

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Jan 29, 2004
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Had some Elijah Craig last night, very good. Blanton's has long been my favorite bourbon and it frustrates me that you can't really buy it.

All the Weller's are hard to find these days.
 
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wildcatdon

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I was able to get my hands on a bottle of Stagg Jr the other day. It is very good stuff. Rare too. George T Stagg is probably the only bourbon that i can say is as good or better than the older Van Winkles. It is usually 144 proof and when you get the right amount of water with it, it is incredible. The Stagg Jr. that i got the other day is 131 proof.
 
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Bill@ModernThirst

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Buying a bottle of Van Winkle is sort of like a Rite of Passage for bourbon geeks, so whether it's worth it or not is entirely subjective.

At one point, it was a pretty unique and amazing whiskey. When it became popular, there weren't a lot of longer aged bourbons on the market, and other than Maker's Mark and Old Fitzgerald, there weren't a lot of wheated-recipe bourbons either. Now there are plenty of wheaters, and plenty of older releases (though still few older wheated releases at the moment).

It's now produced at Buffalo Trace (probably my favorite overall distillery), and while I like it, it's literally a different whiskey than it was 10 years ago. Same grain recipe, but different water, different yeast, different barrel entry proof, different floors of different warehouses. The later "Stitzel-Weller" bottlings aren't 100% S-W either, though, as JVW sourced his whiskey from a number of places over the years, all of which were blended in at times.

Like most bourbon geeks, I prefer the older S-W bottlings. That was excellent through the 20 year. The Buffalo Trace stuff hasn't aged as well, which is probably typical of buffalo trace warehousing (versus brick-clad Stitzel-Weller warehouses or wherever JVW was storing it), so I'd say stop at the 15 year. For my money, I never enjoyed the 23 (bourbon shouldn't typically be aged that long...it's not scotch).

To be totally honest, the William LaRue Weller released annually (also by Buffalo Trace) from the same mashbill is better bourbon than any of the Van Winkle bottles. at around 15-18 years and barrel proof, it's just a better format for that whiskey. Granted, it's about as hard to find as the Van Winkle stuff anyway. As BBD wrote earlier, George T. Stagg is my favorite bourbon, though it's a totally different animal than Van Winkle.
 
G

Get Buckets

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ModernThirst_Bill said:
Buying a bottle of Van Winkle is sort of like a Rite of Passage for bourbon geeks, so whether it's worth it or not is entirely subjective.

At one point, it was a pretty unique and amazing whiskey. When it became popular, there weren't a lot of longer aged bourbons on the market, and other than Maker's Mark and Old Fitzgerald, there weren't a lot of wheated-recipe bourbons either. Now there are plenty of wheaters, and plenty of older releases (though still few older wheated releases at the moment).

It's now produced at Buffalo Trace (probably my favorite overall distillery), and while I like it, it's literally a different whiskey than it was 10 years ago. Same grain recipe, but different water, different yeast, different barrel entry proof, different floors of different warehouses. The later "Stitzel-Weller" bottlings aren't 100% S-W either, though, as JVW sourced his whiskey from a number of places over the years, all of which were blended in at times.

Like most bourbon geeks, I prefer the older S-W bottlings. That was excellent through the 20 year. The Buffalo Trace stuff hasn't aged as well, which is probably typical of buffalo trace warehousing (versus brick-clad Stitzel-Weller warehouses or wherever JVW was storing it), so I'd say stop at the 15 year. For my money, I never enjoyed the 23 (bourbon shouldn't typically be aged that long...it's not scotch).

To be totally honest, the William LaRue Weller released annually (also by Buffalo Trace) from the same mashbill is better bourbon than any of the Van Winkle bottles. at around 15-18 years and barrel proof, it's just a better format for that whiskey. Granted, it's about as hard to find as the Van Winkle stuff anyway. As BBD wrote earlier, George T. Stagg is my favorite bourbon, though it's a totally different animal than Van Winkle.
Click to expand...

Do you like Blantons?
 
B

Barleycorn

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ModernThirst_Bill said:
To be totally honest, the William LaRue Weller released annually (also by Buffalo Trace) from the same mashbill is better bourbon than any of the Van Winkle bottles. at around 15-18 years and barrel proof, it's just a better format for that whiskey. Granted, it's about as hard to find as the Van Winkle stuff anyway.
Click to expand...

This ^^^

The 2016 William Larue Weller is one of my all time favorites. The 2017 is good, but not quite up to last year.

GTS is usually great, but as someone said, it usually needs a little water to take the heat down and help it open up. After that, it’s usually spectacular.
 
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UnfrozenCatfanLawyer

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I really enjoy Rock Hill Farms Single Barrel (again, if you can find it).

I have a bottle of Weller 12-year and I'm afraid to drink the damn thing because it's so hard to find. Same with Elmer T. Lee.

Agree with 80 on Basil Hayden.
 
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Bill@ModernThirst

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UnfrozenCatfanLawyer said:
I really enjoy Rock Hill Farms Single Barrel (again, if you can find it).

I have a bottle of Weller 12-year and I'm afraid to drink the damn thing because it's so hard to find. Same with Elmer T. Lee.

Agree with 80 on Basil Hayden.
Click to expand...

W12 and ETL can be hard to replace, but they don't do much good sitting on a shelf unless you're using them as paperweights. Open 'em up! Enjoy! Solid whiskeys at very affordable retail prices.

Never cared too much for Basil Hayden. I'm still waiting on a limited release barrel proof version. Then I'm in. OGD114 is decent, but it needs a couple more years in the barrel.
 
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JohnKBA

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2011 WLW is my absolute favorite bourbon.

The WHH 144.6 proof in my profile pic is up there too.

Anyone else get a WFE 27 yr? $1200 at the gift shop! Drew is cleaning up while he can.
 
KINGBEAST

KINGBEAST

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Feb 4, 2003
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ModernThirst_Bill said:
Buying a bottle of Van Winkle is sort of like a Rite of Passage for bourbon geeks, so whether it's worth it or not is entirely subjective.

At one point, it was a pretty unique and amazing whiskey. When it became popular, there weren't a lot of longer aged bourbons on the market, and other than Maker's Mark and Old Fitzgerald, there weren't a lot of wheated-recipe bourbons either. Now there are plenty of wheaters, and plenty of older releases (though still few older wheated releases at the moment).

It's now produced at Buffalo Trace (probably my favorite overall distillery), and while I like it, it's literally a different whiskey than it was 10 years ago. Same grain recipe, but different water, different yeast, different barrel entry proof, different floors of different warehouses. The later "Stitzel-Weller" bottlings aren't 100% S-W either, though, as JVW sourced his whiskey from a number of places over the years, all of which were blended in at times.

Like most bourbon geeks, I prefer the older S-W bottlings. That was excellent through the 20 year. The Buffalo Trace stuff hasn't aged as well, which is probably typical of buffalo trace warehousing (versus brick-clad Stitzel-Weller warehouses or wherever JVW was storing it), so I'd say stop at the 15 year. For my money, I never enjoyed the 23 (bourbon shouldn't typically be aged that long...it's not scotch).

To be totally honest, the William LaRue Weller released annually (also by Buffalo Trace) from the same mashbill is better bourbon than any of the Van Winkle bottles. at around 15-18 years and barrel proof, it's just a better format for that whiskey. Granted, it's about as hard to find as the Van Winkle stuff anyway. As BBD wrote earlier, George T. Stagg is my favorite bourbon, though it's a totally different animal than Van Winkle.
Click to expand...
Bill- I absolutely love your site. I always go to your reviews before purchases and that says a lot because one of my best friends is Master Distiller, Dave Scheurich. Lol.
 
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Bill@ModernThirst

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KINGBEAST said:
Bill- I absolutely love your site. I always go to your reviews before purchases and that says a lot because one of my best friends is Master Distiller, Dave Scheurich. Lol.
Click to expand...
Thank you! Very much appreciated!

Edit: Dave Scheurich- Retired from Woodford, right? Is he back at it? I haven't met him, but isn't he the guy who re-invented Woodford along with Lincoln Henderson (I think Lincoln came up with the idea of the premium whiskey and Dave sort of made it happen, right?) That's pretty solid company, if so. Kind of a legend.
 
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KINGBEAST

KINGBEAST

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ModernThirst_Bill said:
Thank you! Very much appreciated!

Edit: Dave Scheurich- Retired from Woodford, right? Is he back at it? I haven't met him, but isn't he the guy who re-invented Woodford along with Lincoln Henderson (I think Lincoln came up with the idea of the premium whiskey and Dave sort of made it happen, right?) That's pretty solid company, if so. Kind of a legend.
Click to expand...
You are correct sir. I loved Lincoln and had a front row seat in the mid 90s as he and Dave help create a bourbon renaissance. Dave does work for me as a consultant and is the Master Distiller of Boondocks. He also won the Whiskey Advocate Lifetime Achievement award. Just one helluva guy.
 
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