Appreciating Van Winkle

[Sijan]

The Bernheim Lot B was bottled for the first time in July of 2005.

So July 2005 was just the bottling date? Hmmm, somehow I had the impression that it had entered distribution in July 2005.

I bought a bottle last summer in Virginia, don't recall exactly when, though it was probably the first half of the summer. I was considering going through my receipts to see if I could figure out exactly when I bought it to see if I could verify that it was S-W Lot B. But it sounds like that may be unnecessary if the new stuff didn't really enter distribution until the fall.

When I picked up that bottle, incidentally, there were at least a dozen more with it and I briefly considered buying a case, but figured there seemed to be so much available that there was no need to hoard. Am kicking myself now over that.

Of course, I haven't had the new stuff yet, so I don't know if it's any better, worse, or different. And, unfortunately, I'm not sure how I can buy a bottle off a store shelf now and know whether it's new or old for taste-testing purposes.

I do have an open pre-July 2005 bottle that I bought a couple years ago, so I could try to taste test to determine new/old, but that's not really an efficient way to do things (not learning what you bought until afterwards, when you've opened it).

[BourbonJoe]

I do have an open pre-July 2005 bottle that I bought a couple years ago, so I could try to taste test to determine new/old, but that's not really an efficient way to do things (not learning what you bought until afterwards, when you've opened it).

Dan,

Then how are you going to tell? Julian Van Winkle told me that there is a difference in profile between the two but the new stuff was still "damn fine whiskey". I know that I personally have a case of the old SW whiskey, based on when I bought it.

Joe :usflag:

[jburlowski]

Dan,

Julian Van Winkle told me ... the new stuff was still "damn fine whiskey". Joe :usflag:

good enough for me.

[Sijan]

Dan,

Then how are you going to tell?

Joe :usflag:

Joe, I imagine it would be efficient if I just bought one bottle, but what if I want to get several, or what if I want to be sure I have one version or the other before I buy it? How do I ensure that I am getting a new bottle before I open it?

If a customer determines that they prefer one version to the other, it's difficult for them to bear the burden of buying random bottles, tasting them, and regretting the purchase of some of them.