It’s that time of year when the biggest whiskeys are released — just in time for gift-giving, partying, and a little extra gluttony. The biggest American whiskeys of the year drop right now, including the beloved, possibly overhyped, and damn near mythical Pappy Van Winkle expressions.
Every year, the Sazerac Company releases a new set of Pappy bottles from their iconic Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky. The whiskeys quietly drop in the late fall so that they can hit shelves just in time for very lucky holiday shoppers and drinkers. But most of these bottles will not see the light of day until early 2024 in various liquor store lotteries. That said, they’ve been shipped and the new 2023 Pappy Van Winkle whiskeys ~are in the wind.~
Since we are talking about such elusive whiskeys (five wheated bourbons and one rye whiskey), I thought I’d give y’all a head start on which bottles you should be dreaming about buying right now. Because, well, all things are not equal when talking about the different expressions of Pappy. Some are always better, sharper, and just more enjoyable than others, and every year there are small nuances that push some bottles higher in the rankings and some lower.
Before we dive in and I rank these beautiful whiskeys, let’s get the painful stuff out of the way:
- You’re literally going to have to win the lottery to buy these bottles at MSRP.
- Those prices range from $69 to $299 depending on age.
- The vast majority of us will have to pay a retail premium that will range from $600 to $5,000.
- You will be able to find these pours in very elite bars and restaurants. Expect to pay $100-$250 per ounce/pour in that case.
Look, I get it. It’s a ludicrous amount to pay for a mere whiskey. The thing is, this isn’t just “mere” whiskey. This is a super elite and super rare product that’s released once a year in small quantities. Taking a 20,000-foot view of this, it’s really no different than spending on elite Rolexes, Air Jordans, or sports cars. Unfettered capitalism is always going to do its thing, and bourbon isn’t magically protected from it.
So… knowing full well that some of us might be priced out of this convo… Let’s talk about what’s in those bottles!
6. Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 23 Years Old
ABV: 47.8%
Average Price: $5,937
The Whiskey:
This expression spends 23 years resting in new American oak, partially at the Stitzel-Weller Distillery and partially at Buffalo Trace. Not every one of those Stitzel-Weller barrels makes the final cut but most do. Only the “honey barrels” — the best of the best — are selected for marrying, proofing, and bottling for this very limited release.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens in a fresh apple orchard on a sunny day fall with tart apples handing low and taking on a hint of fermentation next to a jar of dark cherry spiced with cinnamon bark and cedar, old sheets of leather, and a hint of vanilla pudding powder mixed with dark and waxy cacao nibs.
Palate: The palate leans into the bitterness and waxiness of those cacao nibs while layering old and dry tobacco leaves, shards of nut brittle, woody cinnamon sticks soaked in apple cider, and a mix of dried cherries, figs, and dated mashed into tobacco and cedar bark and buried in rich black potting soil.
Finish: The end leans into that old leather, musty wood, and dirt with a sense of old cellars and cobwebs cinnamon bark, and, well, dirt.
Bottom Line:
This is the most “acquired taste” Pappy in the lineup. I don’t really have anything against this one but none of us can deny that it’s not very oaked, dry, and earthy (leaning musty/dirty). It feels tight. It needs water and relaxation. Hence, I like this over a big rock but would never actually choose to drink it if I had my choice of Pappy pours.
5. Van Winkle Special Reserve 12 Years Old Lot “B” Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 45.2%
Average Price: $1,204
The Whiskey:
This is an interesting wheated bourbon. The “Lot B” moniker means that these barrels were tested at 12 years and marked for “Van Winkle” batching, which means they weren’t going in the right direction to be batched into the “Pappy Van Winkle” line with more aging (which is 15 years and older). In this case, instead of aging further, the barrels are set aside, batched, and cut with that soft Kentucky limestone water to bring them down to a manageable 90.4 proof, then bottled.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a throughline of a caramel apple with a slightly tart edge, sourdough apple malt doughnuts dusted with cinnamon and brown sugar, and a braid of old dry sweetgrass, cedar bark, worn leather, and dry tobacco leaves.
Palate: The palate adds some walnuts to apple pie filling with a hint of rum-raisin sneaking next to vanilla malts, salted caramel, and a dash of eggnog spice.
Finish: The end leans into the dried fruit and spent vanilla pods with a sweet sense of cinnamon and apple-spiced tobacco leaves folded up with old leather and cedar with a whisper of dark chocolate bitterness behind it all.
Bottom Line:
This is a perfectly nice pour of very tasty bourbon. It’s dialed and classic. You really can’t ask for more. That all said, blow your friends’ minds and make 12 old fashioneds with this bottle. They’ll be some of the best cocktails money can buy.
4. Old Rip Van Winkle 10 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 53.5%
Average Price: $1,109
The Whiskey:
This is Pappy at 10 years old, but not “technically” Pappy (this is still a “Van Winkle” expression, which is the minor end of the line). Semantics aside, this is the same wheated bourbon as the rest that hits its prime at 10 years old, instead of 12 or 15 or 20. The main difference here — besides the younger age — is the proof. This goes into the bottle with only a touch of water, keeping it far closer to barrel-proof at 107 proof.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a sense of rum-raisin folded into a honey-nut creamy fudge cluster with pecans and walnuts and dusted with powdered sugar, sweet cinnamon, and orange zest.
Palate: The palate leans into salted caramel with vanilla cream next to stewed apples with maple doughnut frosting and a twinge of old dates soaked in black tea.
Finish: The end has a moment of black pepperiness before heading toward woody winter spices, old piles of orchard wood with a hint of black mold, and soft leaves of chewy tobacco laced with dark chocolate, salted caramel, and marzipan.
Bottom Line:
This is shockingly sippable, especially given that this is considered the bottom of the Pappy pack. I’d argue that this is far more accessible than the 23-year and goes that little bit deeper than the “Lot B” to help make it pop on the senses. Long story short, don’t sleep on Old Rip 10!
3. Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 20 Years Old
ABV: 45.2%
Average Price: $3,389
The Whiskey:
This is the Pappy that made “Pappy” what it is today. The wheated bourbon rests for 20 long years in Buffalo Trace warehouses without any meddling. The barrels that actually make it to the 20-year mark are batched and that juice is then proofed down before bottling.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Moist and spicy Christmas cake brims with walnuts and pecans, dried fruit and candied fruits, and dark molasses sweetness next to woody cinnamon bark, clove berries, star anise, and a hint of salted black licorice as soft woody maple syrup hint at a sourdough pancake griddled with brown butter on the nose.
Palate: The palate adds a sweet sense of vanilla creaminess with soft apple pie filling before heavily roasted chocolate-covered espresso beans pop in with a touch of bitter orange.
Finish: The end combines all of that toward an old tobacco pipe that’s burnt a century’s worth of rich tobacco flavored with all of the above before a layer of warming oak and cellar floor sneaks in, creating a dynamic layer of age and wood.
Bottom Line:
Okay, this is where we get into the splitting hairs section of the ranking. You 100% feel the woody age on this — especially at the end — but it’s layered well with everything that makes this a classic American whiskey (sweetness, fruits, spice, nutty chocolate, etc.).
This is an essential neat pour bourbon. Still (I can’t help myself), if you want a crazy good Manhattan, use this.
2. Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye 13 Years Old Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey
ABV: 47.8%
Average Price: $1,999
The Whiskey:
This is the only non-bourbon whiskey in the Van Winkle line. While we don’t know the exact mash bill, Buffalo Trace does use a rye mash bill that’s very low-rye (how low we’ll never know, but it’s way closer to 51% … I heard somewhere). Either way, the whiskey is then barreled and allowed to mellow for 13 years before batching, proofing, and bottling.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Imagine old rye crusts with a hint of caraway spiked with red peppercorns next to rich salted caramel apples and plenty of Christmas spices layered into a sticky toffee pudding all wrapped up in old worn leather with hints of fatty nuts and dried fruits on the nose.
Palate: The pepperiness mellows quickly as powdery white pepper leads to a soft vanilla cream pie cut with bitter orange zest, dark chocolate flakes, and a hint of salted black licorice.
Finish: The end pops with sharp anise and clove next to a fleeting sense of mint chocolate chip tobacco folded up with that old leather and plenty of soft cedar.
Bottom Line:
This stuff is magical. It’s like taking a walk through an old-world bakery that’s been turning out rye bread every morning for centuries and then distilling that down into sweet Kentucky whiskey. This is truly on the the best Kentucky rye whiskeys out there. It also makes a killer Sazerac. Just sayin’.
1. Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 15 Years Old
ABV: 53.5%
Average Price: $3,295
The Whiskey:
This is where the “Pappy Van Winkle” line peaks. The wheated bourbon in this expression is pulled from barrels that are at least 15 years old. Once batched, the whiskey is just touched with water to bring it down to a sturdy 107-proof.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with freshly fried sourdough fritters dusted with ground almonds, sharp cinnamon, cloves, orange zest, burnt sugars, and maple frosting with a hint of old vanilla pods next to soft figs.
Palate: The palate leans into rich toffee with a sense of minced meat pies covered in powdered sugar frosting right next to sticky toffee pudding with salted caramel, orange zest, and tons of brown wintry spice countered by a moment of sour mulled red wine cut with dark maple syrup.
Finish: The end has a soft cedar vibe that leads to vanilla and dark cherry tobacco leaves and a hint of pine next to old white moss.
Bottom Line:
This is perfectly balanced Kentucky bourbon. It’s amazingly sippable, rewarding, and never feels like homework (looking at you Pappy 23). Even in a long year of amazing bourbon releases, this stands out as a truly amazing bottle of bourbon. It’s 100% worth the hype.
