A little background

Pappy Van Winkle 23 Year. A wheated bourbon that’s considered by many to be the best bottle of bourbon that money can buy. With four generations of distilling history, the Van Winkle’s got their start in the 1800’s with Julian P. “Pappy” Van Winkle. Prior to entering into a joint venture with Buffalo Trace Distillery where the Old Rip Van Winkle line is produced today, it was produced by the Stitzel-Weller Distillery. The Stitzel-Weller Distillery was located in South Louisville. There they produced the Old Rip Van Winkle line, as well as their other notable brands, such as W.L. Weller, Old Fitzgerald, Rebel Yell, and Cabin Still. Pappy Van Winkle 23 Year has a suggested retail price of $299, however, bottles are often seen at nearly ten times that price. The bottled used for this review was part of the 2019 release.

(Tasted neat from a Glencairn Glass)

Color

Dark Golden Orange

Nose

There was little alcohol to be found on the nose, allowing for rich complex notes to pour up and out of the glass. Burnt marshmallow, caramel, golden egg yolk, custard, vanilla ice cream. The aromas on the nose are “thick”, and it’s amazing! More subtle hints of orange, cherry, yeast, walnuts, and raisins are present as well.

Palate

It’s quickly recognizable that more alcohol is present on the palate than the nose. Cherry, orange marmalade, oak, spice, and dry cinnamon notes are most dominant, with a more subtle nut bread quality.

Finish

The dry cinnamon and spice from the palate carries over onto a decently long finish, along with orange, golden raisins, walnuts, and oak.

In closing

There you have it, folks. Our review Pappy Van Winkle 23 Year, the best bourbon in the world! Okay, let’s back up a little bit. It’s important to note that this bottle was purchased for the retail price of $299 by a lucky friend of ours who was selected in the annual Ohio bottle lottery to purchase a bottle. He was very (very) generous to invite some of us bourbon friends over for a Pappy Van Winkle 23 Year bottle opening and tasting. We also thank him for generously sending us home with a sample for us to review! Okay, back to the bourbon. Without question, the nose was the most impressive aspect of Pappy 23, the delicious notes just poured out of the glass. The palate and finish were impressive, but certainly not “best bourbon in the world” impressive. There was a prominent oak and dry cinnamon taste that was hard to ignore, which lasted the entirety of the tasting experience. Something that really stood out was how disappointing the overall finish was, as that’s something I find to be so impressive on both Pappy Van Winkle 20 Year and Pappy Van Winkle 15 Year. Without question, we’re going to chalk this up as a bucket list opportunity and would highly encourage you to give this bourbon a try if the opportunity presents itself at a realistic price.