The Pappy VanWinkle is in

My observation has been that folks just kinda tend to call anything from the comes from Rip "Pappy". But you are absolutely correct. Can't say I ever found any of it that I didn't like...took a friend of mine a bottle of the 10 y.o. 107 proof this weekend and between the two of us we put a nice little hurting on it

BTW (and you probably already know this) but there isn't an actual Old Rip Van Winkle distillery (anymore)...it all comes out of the Buffalo Trace distillery in Frankfort. At least that's what they told us when we did the B.T. tour.

John Johnson up at the Wine Rack on Frankfort Ave. just got in his allotment of Pappy. He said the 15 year was already spoken for/sold but he still has the 10, 12, 20, 23 as well as the Rye.

Just to clarify the product line, as it seems to cause confusion.

The Old Rip Van Winkle distillery makes various products, not all which are Pappy Van Winkle. Pappy comes only in the 15, 20, and 23-year varieties, i.e., there is no such thing as a 10 Year or 12 Year Pappy.

Old Rip Van Winkle Handmade Bourbon 10 Year (107 proof)
Old Rip Van Winkle Handmade Bourbon 10 Year (90 proof)
Old Rip Van Winkle Limited Edition 23 Year (114 proof)

Pappy Van Winkle's Family Reserve 15 Year (107 proof)
Pappy Van Winkle's Family Reserve 20 Year (90.4 proof)
Pappy Van Winkle's Family Reserve 23 Year (95.6 proof)

Van Winkle Special Reserve 12 Year (90.4 proof)

Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye 13 Year (95.6 proof)

BTW (and you probably already know this) but there isn't an actual Old Rip Van Winkle distillery (anymore)...it all comes out of the Buffalo Trace distillery in Frankfort. At least that's what they told us when we did the B.T. tour.

Actually Jualian Van Winkle spoke quite extensively about this during the tasting we attended at Bourbons Bistro last month. The distillation is done at Buffalo Trace but is done to the recipe that Van Winkle supplies. Actually Van Winkle used to have their own distillery in Louisville but due to a family dispute it became the Weller distillery and Jualian's grandfather (or maybe his father I forget) went out on his own. Actually the recipe for Maker's Mark also came from the Van Winkle family. It's quite an interesting story.

BTW (and you probably already know this) but there isn't an actual Old Rip Van Winkle distillery (anymore)...it all comes out of the Buffalo Trace distillery in Frankfort. At least that's what they told us when we did the B.T. tour.

Actually Jualian Van Winkle spoke quite extensively about this during the tasting we attended at Bourbons Bistro last month. The distillation is done at Buffalo Trace but is done to the recipe that Van Winkle supplies. Actually Van Winkle used to have their own distillery in Louisville but due to a family dispute it became the Weller distillery and Jualian's grandfather (or maybe his father I forget) went out on his own. Actually the recipe for Maker's Mark also came from the Van Winkle family. It's quite an interesting story.

Thanks Mark. Wish I would have been there to hear those stories.

Yep, my understanding is that all of the Bourbons have their own little recipes but that only a handful of distilleries do the actual distilling anymore. Is this more or less correct ? I'm still in the Bourbon learning mode (but it's a quite enjoyable learning experience).

Adding to the confusion is all the "brands" that each distillery produces.

Ex. All made by Jim Beam

Booker's, Baker's, Basil Hayden's, Knob Creek

Adding to the confusion is all the "brands" that each distillery produces.

Ex. All made by Jim Beam

Booker's, Baker's, Basil Hayden's, Knob Creek

If you really want to get confused, check out all the brands that Sazarac makes. From the bottom feeders like Kentucky Tavern, up to the Van Winkles, they have quite a portfolio: http://www.sazerac.com/bourbon.aspx . Ironically, they only have three distilleries. Here are their brands: Buffalo Trace, Benchmark, Eagle Rare, 1792 Ridgemont Reserve, Ancient Age, The Antique Collection, A. Smith Bowman, Old Taylor, Elmer T. Lee, Very Old Barton, Van Winkle, Old Charter, Kentucky Tavern, Blanton's & W.L. Weller

Heaven Hill is another company that makes a ton of different bourbons. A lot of distilleries also use them to bottle their products, as its cheaper to lease time on their bottling line than it is to buy your own.

Yeah and we haven't even started to discuss what the "parent" companies own...

Brown-Forman owns a little of everything.

No Pappy, but just had a sample of the Woodford Masters Collection ( Maple Wood Finish ), not bad at all !
Retailing around $70.00