About All Things Pappy/VanWinkle

[jvd99]

So...there are 9 guys standing outside of of a liquor store... (this isn't really a joke, but kinda is). I roll up on my local Binny's at 8:55 this morning because...wait for it...it's Pappy day!!!. There's already 9 guys standing outside the door. I sidle up and just listen out of curiosity. One dude has asserted himself as the expert of the group and is asking all sorts of questions like "what are you looking to get?" Another guy answers that he wants the 23 because he loves the peat...I'm thinking WTF?!?. No one really says anything. Then another guy chimes in that he wants the 15 because he likes his single malts young. Well...OK...why not the 10 or 12 then? Probably because he doesn't know there's a 10 or 12 and that 15 years in the bourbon world does not equate to a 15 year single malt. The ringleader changes subject and says that Pappy is easy to get in KY where he's from b/c they make it there, but not so much around Chicago. Really? Good job on where its made Mr. Know It All. Now the manager cracks the door, sticks his head out and tells everyone that Pappy hasn't been delivered yet and to come back around lunch time. Undeterred, the herd moves into the store when the doors open and descends on the customer service desk and appear determined to wait it out. I follow because I'm a sheep (not really). I make a bee-line for a trusted employee and chat him up for awhile and to get some intel on whether its on the truck in the loading dock. He says that he doesn't recognize one person except me and didn't recall any of them ever shopping at his store. Meanwhile, ringleader guy (the one who allegedly easily finds Pappy in KY) is walking up the aisle with a couple real sheep in tow. He proclaims that if they like Pappy, they'll love Larceny. Well, none of them ever heard of Larceny based on their curious reactions. Ringleader wonders aloud whether Binny's carries Larceny. Seriously? its f***ing Binny's, they have everything! Now I'm wondering if this joker is really from KY and has never actually been to a Binny's. So, long story short, I ended up getting a 15 for a fellow SBer. The lesson here is that we are competing for Pappy with a significant contingent of fools that have no idea what they're attempting buy, know little or nothing about bourbon, and never shopped at the local store you've attempted to build up a relationship with. So it goes...

PS. The employee I was chatting with said a lady came in earlier in the week and wanted to know if she could buy the entire store's Pappy allotment so she could flip it on the secondary market. He politely told her to come back after Thanksgiving. A very nice and misdirecting response IMO. The madness is never ending.

[HD 335]

I believe it has come and gone in Michigan although my local guy did not get any this week. He said his driver told him he did not deliver to anyone else so he believes he will get it next week. I am thinking he is not going to get any after buying 5 barrels of other BT stuff this year.

We shall see.

Best regards, Tony

Your retailer should have bought 20 barrels of flavored vodka. Wait, do they even have those?

[HP12]

Your retailer should have bought 20 barrels of flavored vodka. Wait, do they even have those?

That is without a doubt disgusting! Yuck!!

[flahute]

So...there are 9 guys standing outside of of a liquor store... (this isn't really a joke, but kinda is). I roll up on my local Binny's at 8:55 this morning because...wait for it...it's Pappy day!!!. There's already 9 guys standing outside the door. I sidle up and just listen out of curiosity. One dude has asserted himself as the expert of the group and is asking all sorts of questions like "what are you looking to get?" Another guy answers that he wants the 23 because he loves the peat...I'm thinking WTF?!?. No one really says anything. Then another guy chimes in that he wants the 15 because he likes his single malts young. Well...OK...why not the 10 or 12 then? Probably because he doesn't know there's a 10 or 12 and that 15 years in the bourbon world does not equate to a 15 year single malt. The ringleader changes subject and says that Pappy is easy to get in KY where he's from b/c they make it there, but not so much around Chicago. Really? Good job on where its made Mr. Know It All. Now the manager cracks the door, sticks his head out and tells everyone that Pappy hasn't been delivered yet and to come back around lunch time. Undeterred, the herd moves into the store when the doors open and descends on the customer service desk and appear determined to wait it out. I follow because I'm a sheep (not really). I make a bee-line for a trusted employee and chat him up for awhile and to get some intel on whether its on the truck in the loading dock. He says that he doesn't recognize one person except me and didn't recall any of them ever shopping at his store. Meanwhile, ringleader guy (the one who allegedly easily finds Pappy in KY) is walking up the aisle with a couple real sheep in tow. He proclaims that if they like Pappy, they'll love Larceny. Well, none of them ever heard of Larceny based on their curious reactions. Ringleader wonders aloud whether Binny's carries Larceny. Seriously? its f***ing Binny's, they have everything! Now I'm wondering if this joker is really from KY and has never actually been to a Binny's. So, long story short, I ended up getting a 15 for a fellow SBer. The lesson here is that we are competing for Pappy with a significant contingent of fools that have no idea what they're attempting buy, know little or nothing about bourbon, and never shopped at the local store you've attempted to build up a relationship with. So it goes...

PS. The employee I was chatting with said a lady came in earlier in the week and wanted to know if she could buy the entire store's Pappy allotment so she could flip it on the secondary market. He politely told her to come back after Thanksgiving. A very nice and misdirecting response IMO. The madness is never ending.

Wow.........that is some hilarious but at the same time irritating stuff right there. I complain about Washington State and our small allotments and high taxes, but I can say that the people I've spent time standing in line with have by and large been pretty knowledgable whiskey drinkers and not flippers.

[nd2005]

I believe it has come and gone in Michigan although my local guy did not get any this week. He said his driver told him he did not deliver to anyone else so he believes he will get it next week. I am thinking he is not going to get any after buying 5 barrels of other BT stuff this year.

We shall see.

Best regards, Tony

AA got it Tuesday. Didn't come on the normal delivery trucks

[The Black Tot]

Well, it looks like I got my "haul" for this year.

One 23yr and two 10/107s. It wasn't exactly fun and games - The stores overcharged Mrs Tot and I didn't pay the retail I was gunning for. $399 for the 23 and 150 for a Stagg.

That's what happens when you're stuck offshore during BTAC/Pappy season.

Not a great season for me, due to the gouging involved. That's not going to be happening again. Lesson learned. Time to let the memories of the pricing start to fade away and start enjoying some drinking when I get home.

I'm thinking sometime in the next few years when there's no more vaguery about any reasonable possibility of remaining SW stocks we might get a retroactive answer on when the final drops came out of the SW reserves into the 23. That will be interesting when it comes out.

[sutton]

PS. The employee I was chatting with said a lady came in earlier in the week and wanted to know if she could buy the entire store's Pappy allotment so she could flip it on the secondary market. He politely told her to come back after Thanksgiving.

As funny as your post was, this last part made me laugh out loud. I can see him doing that with a straight face. When she comes back he should tell her it was hers if she had only arrived 10 minutes earlier, then sell her a case of Larceny to flip.

[Lost Pollito]

You all would be amazed at how many people I've had call me for Pappy, with no clue as to what years they have. I've received requests for Pappy 25, 24, 22, 21 19, 18, 17, 16, 13, and 11.

[danz]

You all would be amazed at how many people I've had call me for Pappy, with no clue as to what years they have. I've received requests for Pappy 25, 24, 22, 21 19, 18, 17, 16, 13, and 11.

That's funny. I wonder if these people would even really like the stuff, or if they are just chasing something they were told is the latest "best" thing to have.

[amg]

Struck out at another lottery today. No big deal, though.

[nd2005]

The lesson here is that we are competing for Pappy with a significant contingent of fools that have no idea what they're attempting buy, know little or nothing about bourbon, and never shopped at the local store you've attempted to build up a relationship with. So it goes...

Yup. This led one of my local stores to completely change the way they handle the Pappy release.

In previous years they sent out an email and it was first come first serve, one bottle per person.

This year they've been getting on average 40-50 calls per day asking about it since early October. For the week before the release, there were apparently four or five guys sitting in their cars in the parking lot every day, who would come inside whenever a delivery truck arrived. The owner had never seen them before that week.

All of this nonsense convinced them to just hold their allocation for their regular customers.

But...despite telling these guys he was reserving the limited bourbons for his regulars, they came back every day. I suspect they planned to approach people in the parking lot to try and buy bottles off of them as they exited the store.

[T Comp]

You all would be amazed at how many people I've had call me for Pappy, with no clue as to what years they have. I've received requests for Pappy 25, 24, 22, 21 19, 18, 17, 16, 13, and 11.

HeeHee :grin:. But before too many stones are cast...here is some interesting research on how common this phenomena is and and that we are all confident idiots: http://www.psmag.com/navigation/health-and-behavior/confident-idiots-92793/

[The Good Sir]

bourbonr blog said it hit Macon. Nothing in Atlanta yet and maybe your neck of the woods too.

It's definitely hit ATL. Not all stores, but some.

[pmirish]

Struck out at another lottery today. No big deal, though.

Same here brother. Came away with some nice parting gifts though.

[flaminiom]

I believe it has come and gone in Michigan although my local guy did not get any this week. He said his driver told him he did not deliver to anyone else so he believes he will get it next week. I am thinking he is not going to get any after buying 5 barrels of other BT stuff this year.

We shall see.

Best regards, Tony

A couple stores I shop are still waiting. So, seems it's still rolling out, assuming what they've been told are true.

[mosugoji64]

I also struck out at a raffle today. Not really disappointed since I still came away with a CEHT BP.

[HOF44]

I also struck out at a raffle today. Not really disappointed since I still came away with a CEHT BP.

If it's the 129 proof one I bet you'll like it better than the Pappys anyway!

[Lost Pollito]

If anybody would like to figure who is flipping these bottles in Chicago, I'd love to have the names of the flippers. I'm building a wall of shame, hoping to weed out as many of these these people as possible. Thanks.

[Frodo]

If anybody would like to figure who is flipping these bottles in Chicago, I'd love to have the names of the flippers. I'm building a wall of shame, hoping to weed out as many of these these people as possible. Thanks.

Here's the thing.

The difference between supply & demand create these shortages that are exploited by profiteers. This market will get serviced regardless of what the product is. Unless the producers raise prices, we have to deal with this reality. New sign of the times I guess...

[Lost Pollito]

Here's the thing.

The difference between supply & demand create these shortages that are exploited by profiteers. This market will get serviced regardless of what the product is. Unless the producers raise prices, we have to deal with this reality. New sign of the times I guess...

That's fine. I'd rather not get bottles into the hands of the flippers. Might as well try.

[Lepisto]

I'm not sure I mind the flippers. If somebody has the means to pay $1,000 for a bottle, who am I to judge? Will they enjoy it as much as someone who is really into bourbon? Maybe. They may not taste all of the complexities that an experienced taster would, but if they finish the bottle and determine that they enjoyed it, and got their money's worth, more power to them. I realize these flippers keep it out of the hands of people who really enjoy it, but how is that different from someone stocking a bunker, ensuring that they have their favorite bourbon for a long time after it is discontinued, when others would have loved for it to stay on the shelves a little longer so they could have tried it? PVW can be found at at least one bar in every major metropolitan area. If someone really wants their fix or to taste what all the excitement is about, they can go to that bar with friends and have the same experience that they might have drinking my PVW at my house. But it will cost them... I've read about bars charging $75/pour. 1/2 oz "tastes" for $20 so that that PVW is more accessible to everyone. How noble... and even more profitable. How is that different from flippers? Bars are exploiting the situation the same way a flipper is, but even more so. Empty bottles of PVW going for $100 on eBay? Knowing this why would anyone go to a bar and buy a pour of PVW? Who knows what's in it. Crazy times for sure. I've been an adult for to see a few economic bubbles burst... dot coms, housing, etc. This craze has many of the same markers... speculation and greed. I feel like it will come to end eventually. Until then I'll just make some popcorn and enjoy the show, sipping on one of my new favorites... Ancient Age 90. Ironically I tried it for the first time, waiting overnight in the cold for the Pappy release. Bought a 200 ml bottle for $3 just to try it out... time to start filling the bunker just in case!

[Old Dusty]

Struck out at another lottery today. No big deal, though.

Was there with you brother. I rolled craps as well, but a fellow SBer got a GTS so it was worthwhile.

[Old Dusty]

You all would be amazed at how many people I've had call me for Pappy, with no clue as to what years they have. I've received requests for Pappy 25, 24, 22, 21 19, 18, 17, 16, 13, and 11.

So similar experience. I'm at a tailgate last weekend with a mixed crew of folks. A guy in his mid 50's with a flipped collar and moccasins(no socks and it's REALLY cold) chimes in to the bourbon discussion and in hushed tones tells us it's been a great year because he and his buddies scored not one but THREE bottles of Pappy 27. It's the best!

[Old Dusty]

You all would be amazed at how many people I've had call me for Pappy, with no clue as to what years they have. I've received requests for Pappy 25, 24, 22, 21 19, 18, 17, 16, 13, and 11.

Joe, anyone offer a bounty/tip/bribe to your employees? I was in a store that I frequent and actually watched a guy cruise up to the cashier and ask for Pappy. When he got the brush off he asked when "the trucks" would get there. When rebuffed again he leaned in w a business card and said "I'll give you $100 if you find me some Pappy" and walked out. The kicker is that not four feet behind the poor lady at the register were five Van Winkles sitting in the open w names on them waiting to be picked up by regulars. The Bounty Hunter somehow missed them.

[mbroo5880i]

Was there with you brother. I rolled craps as well, but a fellow SBer got a GTS so it was worthwhile.

That's cool! It was interesting reading some of the comments on Facebook reading up to the event! I ended up not going since we got a late start. So, no Pappy this year. Not that I would have gotten any by attending the event. I ended up have a fun day with the wife and enjoying a few pours with a few friends.