Pappy van Winkle bourbon

Anyone know of somewhere in the area that carries this brand of bourbon? To call it top-shelf is likely a gross understatement. I haven't found it at my local stores and would like to pick up a bottle. Thanks...

iPhone-imal ✉
Apr '11

Thx, Calico. Yeah, I looked and they didn't have any in the "lock and key" shelf. I can probably get them to order me a bottle though. Thanks again.

iPhone-imal ✉
Apr '11

There's an ad for Pappy Van Winkle bourbon right at the top of the forum. 82% off!

maja ✉
Apr '11

I'm on the "waiting list" at Bourbon Street. PVW is made in extremely small batches and sells out faster than Bruce Springsteen, from what I've been told. They only bottle something like 70,000 cases per year, which is a lot less than it may sound like.

iPhone-imal ✉
Apr '11

Believe me, GC... once I get the home-brewed beer down pat, I'm investing in a Portuguese copper still and white oak barrels (-;

iPhone-imal ✉
Apr '11

Charred white oak barrels, yes. Then when we're done with them, the Scots take our "sloppy seconds" and produce their second-rate whiskey (-;

iPhone-imal ✉
Apr '11

ian - Scots can actually keep their hands off the contents to let it age. I'm sure they'll be happy to buy more Spanish casks just to make you happy. By the way, I guess you have no disappointment now that you've blown your chance at some of that 30 year old Highland Park swill.

GC ✉
Apr '11

GC, PvW *is* aged... it comes in 15-, 20- and 23-year old varieties. A 750mL bottle of the 15-year old retails for $70 or so, but due to its scarcity many retailers will put a $150 price tag on it and have no trouble clearing his inventory. You can pick up a bottle of 15 on ebay right now for $125. (I might actually do it, lol). The 23-year old will set you back close to $200 for 750 mL, retail.
 
I never said scotch was swill; I said it was second-rate. It's certainly much better (IMO) than any other whiskey aside from bourbon. The best bourbons have a range of buttery like vanilla, in the top and finish notes and light fruit notes.  They are all going to have a faint trace of the charcoal but it should come across as a roasted flavor and not "burnt". One of the reasons I prefer it over Scotch is that to me the main notes in Scotch are the charcoal and the corresponding smoky, burnt flavors. I suppose it is a matter of preference but Bourbon just offers more in my opinion. Your bottle of 30-year old Highland Park would likely be wasted on me anyway (-;
 
Lady Jayne, according to the Jack Daniel distillery, your friend isn't drinking bourbon; he's drinking "Tennessee Whiskey"... although it meets the regulatory requirements for straight bourbon. Gentleman Jack is very good, although I prefer the Single Barrel Jack. But, no, there isn't a JD label that can hold a candle to PvW or any of the other small-batch aged bourbons out there... again, IMO.

iPhone-imal ✉
Apr '11

ian - First you know I'm totally yanking your chain. All I can say if you haven't found the right Scotch is that you're drinking the wrong whisky. (and yes, I'm spelling that correctly) There is such a variety that you could find what you like. The buttery vanilla comes from the aging of the oak so a longer aged Scotch that doesn't have all the peat in it and not too much aged in sherry casks could work for you. The best thing about Scotch is that the range of taste is so much wider than whiskey with Island types, sherry heavy ones, peaty as well as the vanilla. Your only problem is that the style you want in a Scotch is not popular at the moment.

The one thing we can agree on is 30 yo HP is wasted on you. ;-)


You can smell the honey bees, taste the heather, and hear the barley - all without having to travel to Orkney...

GC ✉
Apr '11

Hey I-phone, there is a waiting list for Pappy at Bottle King, as I am on it. In the meantime, I'm making do with Baker's and Maker's 46. Not too shabby in their own rite!

JR ✉
Apr '11

When I was shopping for a gift for a client, I believe I saw some in the locked display case at Shoprite Liquor on Stiger St. That was between Christmas and New Years so it may be gone. But it might be worth a try.

GC ✉
Feb '12

"I have a bottle of 12 year. How much would you offer?"

As little as I had to? I'd be real comfortable at $100.

ianimal ✉
Jan '13

These are my second cousins. Product isn't here in Jersey yet, but when it gets here please try it.

http://www.greenbrierdistillery.com/nelsons_green_brier_history.html

JrzyGirl88 ✉
Jan '13

I'm not sure what you mean by "no spot on the shelf". It was in the locked display case where just about all of the single malt is. There aren't always tags in front let alone a spot for it in there. They're all one bottle at a time which is why I was there looking for my client's present.

It was at the very, very top as well which makes it darn hard for guys our height. But then again that was between Christmas and New Year's so you never know if it was bought.

GC ✉
Jan '13

ian - "a whisker under 6 feet". We've never met in person but not at all what I was told by other list members. I have problems with shelves every day. ;-)

GC ✉
Jan '13

The Duke wants to be added to the membership list of "Society of Shelf Problem People"

joyful ✉
Jan '13

"besmirching my verticality" - Consider yourself lucky and in good company if you were one of us.

joyful - I think he's been a member since birth, I know I have been. It's sort of how you gain membership. ;-)

GC ✉
Jan '13

Almost 2 years later... the Grail is finally mine.

Found it at Little Brothers in Flemington. Cost a buck and a half, so I don't think I'll be chugging it after work or anything, lol...

ianimal ✉
Feb '13

I like the Ole Smokey moonshine-soaked cherries. I bet they'd be good in Manhattans, but I don't like sweet vermouth, so I guess I'll never know (-;

As far as moonshine goes, my wife and I just happened to go to Mount Vernon less than a week after this year's batch of George Washington's unaged Rye went on sale, so I was able to score a 375 mL bottle for $95. It's legal, but it's clear like 'shine. It also made me feel like I was getting a bargain when I bought the 15 y.o Pappy's, lol.

http://www.mountvernon.org/calendar/view/2012-11-28/6427

ianimal ✉
Feb '13

MeisterNJ - Just before you get a lot of ideas, and legalities aside, making a batch is not as easy as it sounds. With home brewing becoming more popular the mash bill is quite a bit easier to produce because of extracts. But you've got a whole second world to go through after the beer is made to get to the finish line. Even if you manage to get anything, figure a bunch of the first runs will be crap. And if you don't have a least one fire you're just not doing it right. ;-)

GC ✉
Feb '13

MeisterNJ - I was nearly a ChemE before switching, make Chemical software for plants, and did "distillation" in a lab. I'm just saying not to get over confident. All it takes is a stop valve that's stopping a bit too much when the condenser doesn't have enough cool water. And it's too hot to quick take the top off - you either get burnt hands from trying or a bit of a bang. More can go wrong than right, and it happens pretty quick. They have their share of incidents on that show, and they've all been doing it for years. Certainly you can eventually get to producing good product with your background and some experimentation on taste. But be careful along the way, no one needs an accident.

GC ✉
Feb '13

err. Vapors.

MeisterNJ ✉
Feb '13

I wonder if any of the 42% ABV Maker's Mark will hit the local shelves... I have to think it will be relatively valuable in the future as a rare novelty item.

ianimal ✉
Feb '13

"I can't imagine anyone buying it just to have it sit on the shelf forever, particularly anything so mass produced."

What, like Star Wars action figures? I wish I would have kept them sitting on the shelf forever, lol.

ianimal ✉
Feb '13

Not yet...

ianimal ✉
Oct '13

however, those in the know, know Woodford is the best.

Gen3Townie ✉
Oct '13