Pappy Van Winkle 23 Year Old

Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle Sr. began his career in 1893 as a traveling bourbon salesman for W.L. Weller & Sons. By the early 1900s, he had risen to a leadership role in the company, and in 1935 he merged W.L. Weller & Sons with the Stitzel Distillery to form the iconic Stitzel-Weller Distillery.

From the beginning, Pappy’s mantra was simple: quality over quantity - still the over-arching philosophy of the brand to this day.

The family retained control of Stitzel-Weller until 1972, when the distillery was sold. Even after the sale, the Van Winkles continued bottling limited stocks of well-aged bourbon under the Old Rip Van Winkle label. Distilling at Stitzel-Weller ceased entirely in 1992, marking the end of an era.

In 2002, the Van Winkle family entered into a partnership with Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, which has overseen production ever since. Today, Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve is a cult favourite among collectors and enthusiasts alike.

At 23 years old, the oldest expression of the brand, this is one of those try-before-you-die moments.

Bottle size: 75cl

Alcohol: 47.8%

Shipped weight: 2kg