All your Van Winkle questions answered

[sob0728]

Thanks to John and Chuck. Interesting and informative.

http://www.whiskyadvocateblog.com/20...winkle-anyway/

These statements seem to mesh with everything the Van Winkles and Harlan Wheatley have said. Even admitting that the 20/23 have BT juice in them. And the 15 will have some amount (likely small, I would guess) of S-W juice, which was unexpected information (at least to me).

[p_elliott]

Here we go again .............

[TradingBoiler]

I agree! This post completely caught me off guard but kudos to John Hansell, Chuck Cowdery, and the Whiskey Advocate guys for hopefully putting all the finger pointing to rest. All that matters is it's damn fine bourbon that is meant to be enjoyed!

[sob0728]

Here we go again .............

I knew this topic would draw some ire from a lot of people around here, but I thought it was interesting information.

[LostBottle]

So it would seem that Fall 2011 or Spring 2012 was the last release where Pappy 20 & 23 were all SW whiskey (remember, Julian confirmed 2011 20 & 23 were 100% Stitzel-Weller). With the distillery closing in 1992 and BT and Bernheim not making those wheaters until '91 and '92, this makes perfect sense for the 20 - they must be light on 23 barrels.

[jbutler]

I knew this topic would draw some ire from a lot of people around here, but I thought it was interesting information.

It's pretty simple really. If this one blows up like the last one, then some folks are going to find themselves without posting privileges.

[Brisko]

Thanks to John and Chuck. Interesting and informative.

http://www.whiskyadvocateblog.com/20...winkle-anyway/

These statements seem to mesh with everything the Van Winkles and Harlan Wheatley have said. Even admitting that the 20/23 have BT juice in them. And the 15 will have some amount (likely small, I would guess) of S-W juice, which was unexpected information (at least to me).

Except for the rye...

[clingman71]

Thank you. I am in no way informed beyond what we've all already read. But my opinion mixed with what I believe to be common sense was that there would be years of "mixed" bottles. It's the only thing that makes sense to keep a profile consistent and ease the transition. The 15 being a mix of all 3 now, then Bernheim/BT before 100% BT is what I assumed was the case, just not knowing the timing ('09,'11, or '12) that it would happen. It does seem strange that the 20 and 23 are a mix of SW/BT w/o Bernheim, but maybe the amount and age of their Bernheim stock didn't fit the bill. I still like knowing the source for my.own.personal knowledge, but in the end it doesn't change my opinion of the product. I've never had a bad bottle of Van Winkle. I am a big fan of Weller, but there is some inconsistency , it seems like VW is the Weller insurance policy so to speak, best of a good brand.

The surprise in this to me is that the12 isn't 100% BT. And as I've said before, I understand their marketing plan to keep their product low supply/high demand, but I don't think bumping ORVW some would hurt the lot B and Pappy image.

[MacinJosh]

I applaud John and Chuck for contacting Julian and advocating for open transparency. I know it can get a bit complicated for Independent Bottlers in terms of relationships with the distillers and whatnot, but I'm always in favor of full disclosure. As an enthusiast, I appreciate the effort.

Good article. Thank you gentlemen.

[White Dog]

I really didn't wanna post on this thread, but I can't help myself.

According to the article, this fall's 23yr will be a mixture of BT and S-W. The article also states that BT started making wheated Bourbon in 1991. So the BT component in the 23 is NOT 23 years old. Maybe this years release will be the Old no.23 Brand.

I really don't give a rats ass, as I have no plans on buying it, but I'm just saying...