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It appears that the VW Rye story ( and maybe all VW bottling???) is a bit confusing. I found this chart and another article that tries to explain some of the history of VW Family Rye. But what little I got from the following articles it seems that Medley Family and Bernheim had something to do with PVW FR and later on, BT. Not sure if this Bernheim is the same HH Bernheim of today? Plus the Old Commonwealth Distillery had their hands in PVW as well which changed hands and names over many yrs ( or was that the Hoffman Distillery???). Including Juian VW. O the hell with it, I just wanna try PVW FR. Lol Thank you for your reply. Now i have some homework to do in trying to understand this bit of whiskey history. I am definitely going to need a drink or 2 to get through this. https://www.bourbonex.com/forums/topic/395/van-winkle-family-reserve-rye-vwfrr-release-age-distillate https://thebourbonculture.com/whiskey-reviews/old-commonwealth-10-year-cask-strength-kentucky-straight-bourbon-2024-review/ THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR REPLY.

Don't have a picture, but did a little hunting in South Louisiana last week on my way to a work trip. Blanton's Gold Eagle Rare (early Christmas gift for my cousin, I get him one every year) Knob Creek Select store pick (at 125.9 proof, not the standard 120) Redwood Empire Devil's Tower Four Roses OESO red label

The "B" batch had a higher mix of 19y Medley Rye and 19y Cream of Kentucky Rye then Batch "F", until it got to Batch "Z". The reason for this was Julian Van Winkle had a contract with BT and he was slowly adding BT Rye into each Batch so there would not be such a drastic change in taste.

My sentiments exactly.

I had a nice pour of MM earlier this evening. It was good. I followed that up later with a pour of MM 101. It was more gooder.

Glad you enjoyed it! I've found the standard small Batch options to be fair, but the One Barrel picks to be top notch, assuming the barrel is picked by a talented palate. With the distillery 15 min away, the barrel picks tend to be plentiful in my neck-of-the-woods.

This is one of my favorite bottles I have open right now. Although tonight it’s got this smoky banana thing going on. 86 proof to finish the weekend feels about right.

Thanks! It's an old Ethan Allen dry bar that we found at a yard sale, years ago that we had refinished. You can't see it in the pic I posted, but the bottles on the right are in a copper tray. The cabinet underneath has some bottles, and the drawers hold barware, glasses, etc. We have a small house, so we need to utilize space as efficiently as possible.

Those look GREAT! Nice job! Your dresser (or commode maybe?) loox much like my own, except that mine is much wider. C'nardly see the top for all the bottles! If I had the first clue how to take a digital pic and post it, I show ya'. ...That's a lie; I'd have my wife take a pic. ...Then, I'd show ya'.

Nothing for me, today is 30 days into 60 days of no booze - trying to lose some weight

What does the significance of the B and F? I have not had the opportunity to try the VW rye.

I made dinner at my parent's house tonight. Ribeye with a quail egg romulade, and veggies with a duck and white Bordeaux demi place. Of course there was bread as well.

One down, one to go!

Celebrating successfully putting up a couple barrel stave shelves with some WT101 8YR. If you knew how difficult it is to hang anything on the walls in this old house, you'd know why this is cause for celebration

That’s a bad beat. A whiskey made, when it tasted good and was priced even better. Unlikely to see those days again. Cheers

I only have 2 VWRyes left, one is B from 2011 and F from 2015. A friend of mine had never tried the VWRys, so what better reason to open up both bottles. its been a long time since I’ve had a glass of it. Damn, they are so good. I’m glad I opened them up.

This turned out to be as refreshing as I had hoped, after the first day of garage cleaning yesterday, and finishing up on time for some Braves on the radio. Our garage faces West, so it gets blown up in the heat, plus the breezes blue in all kinds of crap. Put in a fourth shelving unit, so once I have some big items thrown out, I believe I’ll get the other car in there! After 25 years…

Conjecture would seem to indicate that just like the HH BiB 6y, They had several good products that were arguably under priced for the market. I think we all know how well received just raising the price goes on the same product, so I think their only option was to try to recreate the branding and try to make it new again. Generally speaking, this has worked as the only people still sour about it are us old school guys who remember. The new release of Old Fitz 7yr BiB has essences of the old product (it’s better than larceny), but It doesn’t fully replace what the old product is/was.

Sorry to hear that. Working in that field, I know what you’re going through. Wishing you all the best with your treatments and recovery.

They had it priced <$20 (the same as Old Forester 86). The last time the same store had it, it was $29.99. It's crazy. Always check the receipt before leaving the store too.

My prayers for you and your family. It sounds like the doctors know what the issues are and have a plan. That's good. You just keep on keeping on. And I'll have a pour of the good stuff later and toast your health.

I'm still mad HH discontinued that - and for what, Larceny.

This bottle came to me via @gurgalunas in my SB FF winnings. Enjoyed the first pour! Sweet caramel, brown sugar, and vanilla buttercream up front, a little cinnamon on the finish. 121.1 proof so added a couple ice chips after the first sip. A very nice dessert pour I'm thinking!

This is the first time I've ever seen one. I paid $69.00, which is the most that I've ever paid for Bulleit. I've never been a big fan until I tried the BiB...which I believe is 100% their own distillate. This SiB is crazy good...I wish I had bought a couple. The guy who owns the LS does, and takes part in, some phenomenal picks and is the only person I trust enough to buy without trying first. I met him through a mutual friend who hosted a whiskey tasting. A bunch of whiskey enthusiasts brought bottles for the tasting, and he guided us through it. It was fun and veryeducational. I was humbled by his knowledge and learned more in one night, then I could've in years on my own. He's been around for years and has great relationships with a lot of distilleries which gets him access to some really great barrels. Technically, I could try them at the store, which is only an hour away, but DC traffic & parking sucks. It's cheaper to overpay for shipping, than the hassle of driving and paying for parking.

Continuing with the draining of some sample bottles. A bit of backstory here: In the past I'd take a sample of any 'special' (LE's, Private Pix, BTAC, Pappy, some extra-nice Bookers, OFBB, 4-R SmBLE, etc.) bottles I acquired. Usually a couple ounces or so; occasionally a 4-ounce bottle. It was my intention to compare more recent iterations of the brands (or similar ones from the same distillery) to these 'old' samples to see what if any changes had seeped in over time. I did do a fair amount of that; but, in the last 5-or-6-years I haven't done much of it, not chasing those 'special' bottles any longer, therefore nothing to compare. So I decided to just start drinking 'em! Why not, right? Anyway, I killed off a couple more yesterday. ...2014 PVWFR 20-year & a 4-R private pick from 2012 OBSK (124-proof!). Both were really nice (and VERY Different!) pours. A bit sad that they're gone and cannot be replaced; but, they were always intended for drinking and enjoyment, and now they've fulfilled their destiny. Slainte'