Pappy 15 yr Thinking of taking the plunge

[Mike]

The Pappy 15 YO and 20 YO whiskies are available now in limited quantities in Conyers. Asking price is $129 for the 15 YO and $149 for the 20 YO, both beyond what I am willing to pay. I still have of both in my stock, but will need to ration them. I suspect the reason it is so high lies with the distributors........ but I will be in downtown Atlanta tomorrow and will check prices there.

[vince]

The Pappy 15 YO and 20 YO whiskies are available now in limited quantities in Conyers. Asking price is $129 for the 15 YO and $149 for the 20 YO, both beyond what I am willing to pay. I still have of both in my stock, but will need to ration them. I suspect the reason it is so high lies with the distributors........ but I will be in downtown Atlanta tomorrow and will check prices there.

WOW, those prices are absurd Mike. I dont blame you for not paying them

[Mike]

I checked two stores in Atlanta. The first had no Pappy on hand and had a waiting list of (so they said) 200 folks. Their bourbon buy was not there so they did not know the price. Another liquor store received a case (12) bottles of 15 YO Pappy and had already sold 10 of them at $69 to customers on a waiting list. I am on the waiting list for one of the last two bottles. The Pappy 20 YO at this last store was selling for $119. I did not offer to buy it. I will go back to 'my' liquor and find out why their prices are so high and if there is a mistake.

[RobotAZ]

Just eBayed PVW and WOW! What a joke?!?! I guess if you can't find it, you may want to pay it, but there's no way I could bring myself to buy up a stash and rape people on eBay. That is a load of crap. 12 yr Lot B for $150? That's deserving of an ass beating.

This stuff is worth more than gold. What is BT working on?

[Wasatch]

This is not available in Utah, but a buddy is heading to Vegas next month, hopefully he can find me a bottle, looking for the 12 or 15.

Cheers!

[Vital]

Never had Pappy but all this talk makes me wanna get find it. There's a specialty whiskey shop not too far away from me that sells nothing but whiskey, i'm sure they'll have at least one of Pappy's drinks.

question - Does Pappy get better with age (and increased price) or are there certain ages that concider to not be as good as thier yonger versions?

[jcg9779]

Never had Pappy but all this talk makes me wanna get find it. There's a specialty whiskey shop not too far away from me that sells nothing but whiskey, i'm sure they'll have at least one of Pappy's drinks.

question - Does Pappy get better with age (and increased price) or are there certain ages that concider to not be as good as thier yonger versions?

It just depends on what you're looking for, Vital. Most people tend to gravitate to the PVW 15 (myself included). 15 years is a good amount of age and I like the higher proof. There are times when the 15 year doesn't taste right to me, and the 20 year really hits the spot. It's a lower proof and more age, which make it a complex, easy sipper. I think the 23 year is a little overaged, but if you like a lot of wood in your bourbon, this might be a great one for you (and only you can determine if it is worth the high price).

The other thing that makes the Pappy line so sought after is its heritage. This was originally bourbon from the Stitzel-Weller distillery, which shut down in 1992. Often regarded as some of the best bourbon ever made, the old SW whiskey is very sought after, and the Pappy Van Winkle line is some of the last SW bourbon around.

(The following is subject to dispute, but from what Julian Van Winkle has said on other sites and interviews this seems to be the situation.)
Julian Van Winkle bottled a bunch of the 15 year bourbon a few years ago to stop it from aging, and has been releasing it in limited amounts. This fall release is the first time that Buffalo Trace bourbon (most likely the same as the WLW line) has been blended with old SW/Bernheim whiskey for the PVW 15, and early reviews suggest that it is still very good, but not at the same level as the stuff bottled in 2009. It supposedly has a younger WLW profile than the older PVW 15 profile (I have not done a side by side personally, so this is just what I've heard from others).

Here is the assumed source of the whiskey:

ORVW 10/90 - BT wheated mashbill
ORVW 10/107 - BT wheated mashbill
Van Winkle Lot B - BT wheated mashbill
Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye - tanked Medley rye (someone please correct me if I'm wrong here)
PVW 15 - SW/Bernheim/BT wheated mashbill
PVW 20 - SW (blended with Bernheim?)
PVW 23 - SW

Please correct me if I'm wrong on any of this. As I mentioned, a lot of this has been pieced together, but there are conflicting reports and different thoughts on the sources. Someone please step in if they think something different.

[jcg9779]

I checked two stores in Atlanta. The first had no Pappy on hand and had a waiting list of (so they said) 200 folks. Their bourbon buy was not there so they did not know the price. Another liquor store received a case (12) bottles of 15 YO Pappy and had already sold 10 of them at $69 to customers on a waiting list. I am on the waiting list for one of the last two bottles. The Pappy 20 YO at this last store was selling for $119. I did not offer to buy it. I will go back to 'my' liquor and find out why their prices are so high and if there is a mistake.

Empire and Georgia Crown do gouge people in Georgia when it comes to Van Winkle products. ORVW 10/90 for $45 and ORVW 10/107 for $50 is a joke....other parts of the country are regularly $15 less. Even in New York City, where EVERYTHING is more expensive than in Atlanta, I bought an ORVW 10/107 for $35 and a PVW 20 for $99.

[silverfish]

Never had Pappy but all this talk makes me wanna get find it. There's a specialty whiskey shop not too far away from me that sells nothing but whiskey, i'm sure they'll have at least one of Pappy's drinks.

Many folks who were "sure" of a source have come away empty handed.
You might wanna visit sooner rather than later and if you do score a
bottle or two, please share your impressions.

[Vital]

Never had Pappy but all this talk makes me wanna get find it. There's a specialty whiskey shop not too far away from me that sells nothing but whiskey, i'm sure they'll have at least one of Pappy's drinks.

Many folks who were "sure" of a source have come away empty handed.
You might wanna visit sooner rather than later and if you do score a
bottle or two, please share your impressions.

Good thing i called them yesterday. They are all out of Pappy but expecting to get some by the end of the month. Price is unknown for now.

[jcg9779]

Never had Pappy but all this talk makes me wanna get find it. There's a specialty whiskey shop not too far away from me that sells nothing but whiskey, i'm sure they'll have at least one of Pappy's drinks.

Many folks who were "sure" of a source have come away empty handed.
You might wanna visit sooner rather than later and if you do score a
bottle or two, please share your impressions.

Good thing i called them yesterday. They are all out of Pappy but expecting to get some by the end of the month. Price is unknown for now.

Definitely get your name any list that they might be keeping, but I'd be very surprised if they receive some this month. Keep your fingers crossed though! Usually there are two releases a year - the Spring release (around April) and the Fall release (October or November).

[silverfish]

Definitely get your name any list that they might be keeping, but I'd be very surprised if they receive some this month. Keep your fingers crossed though! Usually there are two releases a year - the Spring release (around April) and the Fall release (October or November).

Another suggestion is to follow the VW Facebook page.
There are often posts when each states' orders have shipped.