ORVW 23 Year Old 114 Proof

[Vange]

I am assuming many of you got the same email I did about an upcoming release of ORVW 23 barrelproof bourbon in December?

I am very excited, but the $350 pricetag is the scary part.

[OscarV]

No I did not get that email.

Is it ORVW or PappyVW?

Any other details?

[Vange]

from BT:

Limited Edition Old Rip Van Winkle

Bourbon Whiskey to be released

FRANKLIN COUNTY , KY— The Van Winkle family is pleased to announce the release of a very limited Old Rip Van Winkle Family Selection 23 year-old bourbon whiskey decanter. Every barrel of whiskey was chosen from the lower, cooler floors of the aging warehouse, allowing this wheated-recipe bourbon to age more gracefully.

Julian and Preston Van Winkle hand-picked these select barrels which were filled in April of 1986. This bourbon will not be chill-filtered, leaving in all the flavor and complexity of the whiskey. Each decanter will be bottled at the original barrel entry proof of 114.

“This is some of our best whiskey,†commented Julian Van Winkle . “I’m thrilled to offer this new expression of Old Rip. Hopefully whiskey aficionados will appreciate the rich taste of this bourbon as much as I do.â€

There will only be 1,200 of these unique decanters available. Each bottle was produced by the award-winning Glencairn Crystal of Scotland and is hand-engraved and numbered to commemorate the exclusive bottling. Every decanter will be packaged in a beautiful solid wood, leather-lined box along with a crystal stopper and two crystal glasses.

This special release will be available in stores late November and is expected to sell for $350. For more information on the Van Winkle family of bourbon please visit www.oldripvanwinkle.com.

[OscarV]

from BT:

This bourbon will not be chill-filtered, leaving in all the flavor and complexity of the whiskey. Each decanter will be bottled at the original barrel entry proof of 114.

If I am reading this right it is not barrel proof, it sounds like they cut it down to 114 proof.

[Vange]

from BT:

Each decanter will be bottled at the original barrel entry proof of 114.

.

Up for interpretation I guess.

[OscarV]

After 23 years I'm sure that whiskey came out of the barrel at least 145 proof, minimum.

The notice said they bottled it at barrel entry proof of 114 so they added at least 27% water and bottled that.

One more thing, I can't wait until late November, I want some now!:grin:

[Vange]

Oscar, you are right, its cut to 114, but unfiltered.

[Vange]

Can an admin change the title of this thread please to just ORVW 23?

There, how about ORVW 23 year old 114 Proof ....?

[cowdery]

There are a couple of things about this that are interesting.

First, the use of the Old Rip Van Winkle brand, which has always been the bottom of the Van Winkle line. Admittedly, the bottom of the Van Winkle line has always been above the top of every other line, but it's interesting that this is Old Rip and not Pappy or Family Reserve.

Second, there is no mention in the press release of where this whiskey was distilled, which I am sure was very deliberate. They say it's a wheater and one is certainly free to guess that it is Stitzel-Weller juice, but my suspicion is that it is not. There is nothing to prevent Buffalo Trace from saying it is Stitzel-Weller if it is, so their silence leads me to conclude that it is not. The most likely source is Buffalo Trace, as we know they made wheated bourbon from time to time over the years.

[OscarV]

The most likely source is Buffalo Trace, as we know they made wheated bourbon from time to time over the years.

When did BT get the WLWeller labels?

If it was after 1986 then what did BT do with the wheated bourbon they made?

[doubleblank]

What was barrel entry proof at SW Chuck? I know BT did (or owns) some wheated whiskey barreled at 114 proof that isn't SW. See this year's W Larue Weller for example. Just a coincidence?

Randy

[barturtle]

When did BT get the WLWeller labels?

If it was after 1986 then what did BT do with the wheated bourbon they made?

At one time (until 1983) what is now Buffalo Trace and Stitzel-Weller were owned by the same company. It is likely they were doing some contract distilling stiil, possibly until 86 when DLC joined with Guinness

[OscarV]

Here's a pic, click below.

[Virus_Of_Life]

Here's a pic, click below.

[sgtgto]

Is this going to be like a Kiss LAST TOUR I PROMISE FOR REAL THIS TIME Tour? Will they have another release like this next year? Or will it be a once offered something to cherish for life kind of thing?

[cowdery]

What was barrel entry proof at SW Chuck? I know BT did (or owns) some wheated whiskey barreled at 114 proof that isn't SW. See this year's W Larue Weller for example. Just a coincidence?

Randy

I have notes that say Stitzel-Weller's entry proof at the end of its run was 112. I can't speak for earlier. I wouldn't make anything of a 1% difference, though.

BT obtained the Weller label in 1999, but we have been told ever since the first Antique Collection (Weller 14) that BT made wheated bourbon from time to time before it acquired the Weller brand.

Until the Stitzel-Weller portfolio was broken up in 1999, the only wheated bourbons on the market were the Stitzel-Weller brands and Maker's Mark, or so we assume. Were there perhaps others? A bourbon producer who uses wheat is under no obligation to disclose that fact.

Put another way, who was making wheated bourbon in 1986? We know Stitzel-Weller did and we know Maker's Mark did, but that doesn't mean someone else didn't too.

During the 1980s, distilleries that were still technically open might not run a batch for a year or more. Let's say you're Stitzel-Weller and you're in one of those long dark periods when projections say you need a few hundred more newly filled barrels than you have. What makes more sense? Start your own distillery to run one batch? Or hire someone who is active to do one batch of wheated bourbon for you?

Maker's Mark will, of course, swear on a stack of Bibles that no drop of whiskey not made at the distillery in Loretto has ever entered a Maker's Mark bottle. I have no reason to doubt them, I'm just saying...

But, yes, logic requires that if Buffalo Trace was making wheated bourbon, there was a market for it. They weren't making it on the if-come and they sure weren't making it because they had decided to create a 14-year-old wheated bourbon 14 years in the future. They were either selling it to another producer or using it in some products of their own. Maybe some blended whiskey recipes use wheated bourbon. Maybe Canadian producers buy it. Maybe other non-U.S. producers buy it for something.

In terms of what they would have left over to extra-age, there never has been very much of the Weller Antique Collection bottlings.

[p_elliott]

It could be barrel proof they said it was aged on bottom tier of the warehouse. Barrels on the bottom tier of the warehouse do not increase in proof they can actually decrease. It's the ones on the top tiers that increase. I would love to have some of this but I can't afford this, I hope someone buys it and tells us all about it.

[Virus_Of_Life]

BT obtained the Weller label in 1999, but we have been told ever since the first Antique Collection (Weller 14) that BT made wheated bourbon from time to time before it acquired the Weller brand.

But, yes, logic requires that if Buffalo Trace was making wheated bourbon, there was a market for it. They weren't making it on the if-come and they sure weren't making it because they had decided to create a 14-year-old wheated bourbon 14 years in the future.

What is the reference to 14 year? And are you referring to the Weller 19 that was part of the BTAC 2000-2002?

[dgonano]

And wasn't Weller 19 a S-W distilled bourbon?

Another thought....maybe the Van Winkles recently purchased some old S-W whiskey from Diageo...seems like other producers are currently bottling S-W.

[cowdery]

Yeah, I meant Weller 19. Memory never has been great. Anyway, at the time BT said the Weller 19 was made at BT for SW during the Schenley period.

[Virus_Of_Life]

... at the time BT said the Weller 19 was made at BT for SW during the Schenley period.

[Virus_Of_Life]

... at the time BT said the Weller 19 was made at BT for SW during the Schenley period.

[cowdery]

Don't want to run off topic with this thread, but that is the first I recall ever hearing of that. I was under a pretty clear understanding that the 19s were SW beyond a shadow of a doubt. :skep:

You made me look it up. My mistake. In the words of Mark Brown: "Weller 19 was part of the stock of old Stitzel-Weller inventory that came along with the Weller purchase."

However, in the same interview, he said: "We actually distilled some Weller and Charter for UD in the late 80s, early 90s and have been aging them at the Trace since then." He added that there was a lot of "shared knowledge" between the two distilleries when both were owned by Schenley. He said they had invested one million dollars to "ensure that the Charter and Weller we are making and selling remain true to the original taste profiles." (2003)

[Virus_Of_Life]

However, in the same interview, he said: "We actually distilled some Weller and Charter for UD in the late 80s, early 90s and have been aging them at the Trace since then."

^ Thanks Chuck! Good info.

Lets see 2009-23years = 1986. Sounds like someone up the thread was right and we have a very possible source for this Old Rip 23.

[Vange]

I am being told it was distilled at SW. I received a bigger image of the bottle and it is indeed a beautiful bottle! I tried to attach it here, but having some issues. Ill try later.