How Close is OWA 107 to ORVW 107?

[sutton]

You often hear reference to the barrel contributing a very high proportion of the final flavor, so I suppose that makes sense. Wood policy, location and age determine the sticker, so if the VW's are doing something particular with barrel specs maybe it makes sense.

Edited November 18, 2013 by sutton
correct spelling!

[squire]

Mark I don't think BT is doing anything at all different with the barrels that will be chosen for VW brands, other than careful selection to protect the franchise.

[sutton]

I suppose you are right Squire. Which makes honey barrels just a statistical anomaly - which might explain why BT undertook the Single Oak Project in the first place. If you can unlock that mystery, you have the whiskey equivalent of a de Beers diamond monopoly.

[squire]

Are the Van Winkle selections honey barrels? Or just those that match the established flavor profile.

[portwood]

... which might explain why BT undertook the Single Oak Project in the first place. If you can unlock that mystery, you have the whiskey equivalent of a de Beers diamond monopoly.

I don't think experiments are unique to BT - other distilleries have equally inquisitive employees with capable scientific minds. The difference is that BT has chosen to sell samples of their experiments to the public. Other distilleries (in America and elsewhere) have many experimental barrels* sitting in their warehouses waiting for the appropriate moment to find the light of day.

*the ones deemed failures will be dumped in the large vats to be diluted away into mainstream expressions.

[squire]

Yes, doesn't Heaven Hill have something like 1500 experimental barrels aging? Someone correct my figure if it's incorrect, my memory batteries are running a bit low.

[sutton]

Are the Van Winkle selections honey barrels? Or just those that match the established flavor profile.

Sure, yes, I only meant to say if they understood exactly how to produce VW, BTAC, or even resurrect a VVOF ... you'd do it - but likely still keep supply tight to keep it a luxury item.

[sutton]

I don't think experiments are unique to BT - other distilleries have equally inquisitive employees with capable scientific minds. The difference is that BT has chosen to sell samples of their experiments to the public. Other distilleries (in America and elsewhere) have many experimental barrels* sitting in their warehouses waiting for the appropriate moment to find the light of day.

Certainly, and I didn't mean to imply they were unique to BT - but they are the ones that right now hold the rights to produce the Holy Grail of Bourbondom -

[sailor22]

*the ones deemed failures will be dumped in the large vats to be diluted away into mainstream expressions.

Or sold to NDP's.

[squire]

Where they will be recasked into small barrels for the special treatment that triples the price.

[WsmataU]

I'm going to have to do a SxS with these because I don't really like the ORVW and OWA is my daily pour. I was surprised to read all te similarity comments. I've got one of each open right now (the ORVW has been sitting there a while)but it will have to wait until tonight.

[MtnDew]

Are the store selected barrels any different then regular OWA? I have some from hitime that was a barrel pick, does that mean they got an older barrel or just got a "regular" barrel that they tasted and picked? This was mentioned in the thread but it seems like there may be multiple versions of barrel selection with older selections being able to grab 9 year old barrels? I ask because this was the base I used for my SB blend with some W12 and have been enjoying. I was assuming I could just get some more regular from the local store and it would be the same.

Thanks!

[luther.r]

Are the store selected barrels any different then regular OWA? I have some from hitime that was a barrel pick, does that mean they got an older barrel or just got a "regular" barrel that they tasted and picked? This was mentioned in the thread but it seems like there may be multiple versions of barrel selection with older selections being able to grab 9 year old barrels? I ask because this was the base I used for my SB blend with some W12 and have been enjoying. I was assuming I could just get some more regular from the local store and it would be the same.

A year or so ago, you could find OWA barrel picks that were 8 or 9 years old. Lately I've heard that the barrels they're allowed to pick from are in the 6-7 year range. Some retailers denote the age of the whiskey for their picks, others don't.

[MtnDew]

A year or so ago, you could find OWA barrel picks that were 8 or 9 years old. Lately I've heard that the barrels they're allowed to pick from are in the 6-7 year range. Some retailers denote the age of the whiskey for their picks, others don't.

The one I have does not denote age. Will it still be much different from the normal bottle which is what, 5-6 years old? I guess I could always just buy a bottle and see for myself

[WsmataU]

So I finally got around to a SxS with three very comparable bottles. # 1 was an ORVW10/107 (from '10), #2 was PVW15/107 from '09 and #3 was OWA NAS. All three have been open on my bar for over a year.

I do see the similarity (now) that others above have mentioned. I did this blind with my wife's help. The PVW (no surprise) was darker and had longer legs than the other two. It also had more going on both in aroma and flavors.

However the real kicker is that reinforced my original statements. I preferred the OWA to the ORVW. For some reason this bottle of ORVW shows up very hot. All three were 107 pf. Admittedly, I only paid ~40 for that ORV, but I'd rather have 2 OWAs any day.

[Dolph Lundgren]

I think this years ORVW 107 is comprised of honey barrels and a great whiskey. I've had real good OWAs (alleged 8 years, too), but none that have impressed me as much as this years ORVW 107. I haven't done a side-by-side, so I'm going off memory and gut here. The baseline profile is definitely there for both, but the this years ORVW wins in a landslide.

[GaryT]

I wonder if their decision to nix the ORVW 10/90 allowed them to be more choosy with what was made available?

[Restaurant man]

I wonder if their decision to nix the ORVW 10/90 allowed them to be more choosy with what was made available?

[squire]

Seems to be the way of things, first age statements are dropped yet there seems to be a supply of aged stuff for the higher priced label.

[Restaurant man]

Seems to be the way of things, first age statements are dropped yet there seems to be a supply of aged stuff for the higher priced label.

So long as they don't discontinue the higher proof offerings to support the lower proof ones. That'd piss me off big time :laugh: :cry:

[Dolph Lundgren]

So long as they don't discontinue the higher proof offerings to support the lower proof ones. That'd piss me off big time :laugh: :cry:

Ditto.

Also, if you get the 10/107 at retail, the damage really isn't that bad at +- $40.00.

[Crowes]

I love OWA, it's my favorite regular pour. I had a few pours of this years ORVW last night and I really enjoyed it, as always. For me, the extra few years on the ORVW really gives the sweetness an added balance and depth that you just don't get in the OWA. There's the added oak, leather, and tobacco spice that I love. The other big difference for me is mouthfeel. OWA can be pretty thin, but this ORVW had a much nicer chewiness to it, coating the palate. But at the same time, they are close enough to where I don't find myself fretting over ORVW's lack of availability. I'm just as happy knowing I can get OWA whenever I want it, for half the price.