Stitzel Weller– bourbon hype or hero

For those hardcore bourbon fanatics (like me), when I first heard about the infamous Stitzel Weller bourbon, I didn't know what the all the buzz was about. I remember attending a corporate sponsored family day at Kings Dominion here in VA and received a call from my brother who asked the question "ever heard about Stitzel Weller bourbon from Canada Dry?" My comment was that I had read something about Stitzel Weller and folks seemed to think it was good stuff. That's all I knew so of course my brother picked up some bottles, later finding out the juice inside wasn't SW bourbon but liquid crap with bourbon coloring.

Just my opinion but bourbon hype goes something like this.

Q: Hey, did you hear Bison Trail distillery is coming out with a super premium bourbon called "Bison Trail Select Reserve Presidential Heritage 400th Anniversary Single Barrel Uncut Uber Delicious Bourbon"?

A: Holy $*@#, I gotta get me some of that, it's gonna be faaaaaantastic! I'm gonna bunker me 80 bottles!

I'll be the first to admit that early on I was guilty of getting sucked into the marketing hype. But a lot of what we see today is of course current market offerings but there's a secondary market of out of production bourbons that get passed around and picked up during dusty hunting and much is made of this or that bourbon and how great it is (again, guilty as charged).

Back to Stitzel Weller bourbon and maybe a quick history. Stitzel Weller was formed as prohibition was ending in 1933 and in that same year purchased the Old Fitzgerald Distillery. The following year SW begins construction of its Shively location which opens on Derby day 1935. Up until his death in 1965, Pappy Van Winkle was key to the growth and success of Stitzel Weller. 7 years later in 1972, Stitzel Weller is sold to Norton Simon who then changes the name from Stitzel Weller to Old Fitzgerald. Fast forward a dozen years and Old Fitzgerald is sold yet again and then around 1992/93 the distillery closes down for good.

Pappy Van Winkle was serious about bourbon and not just bourbon but good bourbon. His motto "We make fine bourbon. At a profit if we can, at a loss if we must, but always fine Bourbon" goes to the heart of Pappy Van Winkles passion for quality bourbon. So does that passion translate into the best bourbon ever made? Is Stitzel Weller hype or are they the hero of bourbon goodness? For those that read the bourbon boards, there's always someone who is pining away about getting their hands on SW bourbon and will go to great lengths or expense to get it. Example:

As a practice, I don't sell my bourbon. It's for drinking and sharing with like-minded bourbon dorks. But, a couple years ago, as a test, I auctioned two 200ml bottles of Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond bourbon, both SW whiskey. I wanted to find out just how much hype surrounded SW bourbon and the result was those two bottles sold in quick fashion for $25 each. Just recently Buffalo Trace released the 23 year old Old Rip Van Winkle bourbon, only 1200 bottles produced. I have no doubt these will all be sold for the bargain price of $350 each. The market for SW bourbon is hot but how much of that is hype or is it really because that bourbon is simply one of the best bourbon's produced? As you know, SW bourbon used wheat as the flavoring grain whereas everyone else at the time used rye. Why not be just as happy with a current wheated bourbon like Old Weller Antique, Pappy 15, Old Rip Van Winkle or for that matter, the current Old Fitz BIB produced by Heaven Hill? To get you thinking, how and why do you think (if you do) it's better, worse or comparable to what's offered today?

As a side note, Sally Van Winkle Campbell wrote a very informative book called "But always fine bourbon" on the life of Pappy Van Winkle and Stitzel Weller (Old Fitzgerald). It's a pleasant read and is a nice addition to the bourbon library.

I'll wait for comments before giving my take on the issue. Let me know what you think.

Corn(y) history

For those not in the know, all bourbon must be at least 51% corn in the mashbill by legal definition plus corn plays a significant role in the flavor of bourbon. After corn, you have the flavor grain of Rye or Wheat to give the bourbon a spicy (rye) or sweet (wheat) flavor profile. For those starting out on their bourbon crusade, I like to suggest that in addition to picking up various bourbons, adding a corn whiskey and a wheat whiskey to the bar will help in picking out flavor nuances. For the purposes of this blog, I want to touch on corn not only because it plays a significant role on the flavor of bourbon but also because today's corn going into bourbon isn't the same corn used in your dear old Grandpappy's bourbon.

I've had numerous discussions with fellow enthusiasts about the differences of bourbon found today compared to those I find in my dusty hunting and one distinctive difference I notice in some older bourbons is the viscosity is more pronounced. When speaking of viscosity I'm referring to the thick oily nature of bourbon. If you swirl bourbon in a glass, notice how the bourbon clings to the sides and runs down the inside of the glass producing "legs". Now, I'm not a scientist nor do I play one on T.V. but viscosity is something I notice and that of course produced the question; why does my 1959 Old Forester cling to the inside of the glass, slowly producing evenly spaced legs yet my Very Old Barton does the same but at a faster pace? I think one reason is corn, or rather the properties of corn.

A friend of mine gave me a DVD called "King Corn" to watch which discussed in interesting fashion, the corn industry from planting to the numerous uses corn has in our countries food supply, which would include a distilleries mashbill. About 2/3 the way through the DVD, one person discussed the engineered changes to corn over the last 30 or 40 years from corn that contained a higher degree of protein than what is found today, almost all starch. This was an interesting factoid and one that brings up the question. Did corn from 30+ years ago, which contained more protein than found today, influence the viscosity and mouthfeel of bourbon distilled during that era, or for that matter, 100 years ago? I guess the other question would be, for those that have access to older bourbons (I'm thinking of you Stoops), do they feel more oily or have a thicker mouthfeel than today's offerings? I think it does and in conducting tastings of older bourbons with fellow enthusiasts, there's a general consensus that if not the corn, then something influenced the thicker attributes of bourbon back then. Do you agree or am I just being corny? (yah, I know, that was dumb).

A hunting we will go

Today I spent the day doing a little dusty hunting and thankfully I wasn't disappointed. A relative visiting from out of town wanted to do some hunting so we ventured out into the cold to see what we could find. While the pickings were a little slim, we did come across a couple nice treats. We of course found some Stitzel Weller Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond and Prime. The two 750ml Old Fitz BIB's are both Bernhiem whiskey bottled by Heaven Hill. The other Fitz's are all Stitzel Weller. The Old Charter 12 year is great bourbon using a high corn mashbill. I picked up some oddities; Bourbon deLuxe and Kentucky Gentlemen. We also found some JTS Brown, JW Dant BIB, Ten High and Wild Turkey in the hexagon shaped bottle. The bottles range in bottling date from 1982 to 2006. All in all, not a bad day of hunting.

Project Re-barrel VOB – Day 55

Here we are almost 2 months into the re-barrel and the changes are evident but slower now that the weather has turned below freezing at night. The color has stayed pretty consistent; still a shade darker than the reference sample. The nose has changed as has the taste. I mentioned in my previous post at Day 14 that there was a fruity quality to it. At this point of the project the oak and char is playing a more dominant role as well as leather popping through. At first taste, the rye is still apparent on the palate but now there's a bit more sweetness on the backend of the finish. I have some relatives visiting from the U.K. and I got the thumbs up from an impartial taster so it appears we're progressing nicely.

Because of the winter weather, updates on this project will probably come in at longer intervals as I expect the changes to be less dramatic until warmer weather settles in. I'll continue to dip into the barrel and if I find there's a change worth mentioning, I'll be sure to post my notes. If any of you are conducting a re-barrel project of your own, please post some comments on how you're progressing. Cheers.

I’m not dead yet….

Happy New Year all you bourbon dorks. Thanks for your patience but over the holiday's things were busy at work as well as busy with family visits and holiday events. That's all done now so back to bourbon. Thank you Don for checking in and making sure I was ok. Unfortunately by attention to the blog gets OBE (overtaken by events). So tonight I pulled a sample from my barrel and will posting a short blog on my impressions now that the VOB has been sitting in wood for 2 months now. I also mentioned that I would be participating in a whiskey throw down over the holidays, well, that didn't happen and we can thank the 24 inches of snow just days before the party. Most people were still digging out after three days. Last, I'll be getting together with a couple of friends to do an impromptu Wild Turkey tasting that will consist of various years and proofs. I'll post some comments on that event in the next week or two. Hope everyone had a great holiday and also hope you got some nice bourbon under the Christmas tree. I'm closing out this evening with a delicious 1978 Benchmark; another fine example of yesteryear.

Exam-o-Dram – Pappy Van Winkle 20 year

This is one of those uber-aged bourbons and it comes from Julian Van Winkle at Buffalo Trace. This is still (or at least should be) Stiztel Weller bourbon because at 20 years old, this particular bourbon would have been distilled in 1986, 6 years prior to the distillery closure. My first love of bourbon really gravitated toward the wheated variety early on in my bourbon experience; I had access to Stitzel Weller Old Fitz and loved the creamy, candied quality to this particular wheated bourbon. As I expanded my bourbon horizon I naturally gravitated towards wheated bourbons and most of those from Buffalo Trace. The Pappy Van Winkle line of bourbons are very good whiskey's and my personal order of preference starts with the 15 year, 20 year and then 23 year. The 20 year old Pappy is a bold bourbon even at 90.4 proof and provides a pleasant drinking experience.

The bottle is really a non-descript standard shape; nothing eye catching. The Label on the other hand has a nice picture of Pappy Van Winkle smoking his trademark stogie along with red lettering and gold accents. The bourbon comes in the standard 750ml size with a red foil top and can be found in a cheesy velvet bag on most occasions.

As I nose this bourbon, there's a fruity quality to it that at first I wouldn't expect as most wheated bourbons have a caramel, vanilla and brown sugar trait to it. The nose is soft and velvety with the alcohol sitting in the background not intruding on the experience. Moving my nose deeper into the glass and taking in a deeper whiff brings some of the alcohol to the foreground along with a hint of citrus.

The color is a soft golden hue and really is not very eye catching. Although it is extra aged which typically gives the bourbon a deeper color, cutting the proof to 90.4 lightens up the bourbon to an average depth and tone.

Now to the most appealing part of this bourbon and that's the taste. I heard some folks say that they feel this bourbon is too soft and they prefer something more "lively". While I would agree in part, I don't think that one dimensional. If I want something with moderate complexity, extra age and delicious, then I reach for Pappy 20. On entry there's an oily mouthfeel; a quality that I really like in bourbon. I pick up the fruit initially but then the transition to mid palate quickly exhibits flavors of vanilla, caramel, leather and some bold oak but not overstated for bourbon this aged. I pick up traces of smoke also but I have to dig for it. The finish is lengthy and appropriate for the proof.

This bourbon isn't cheap. The bottle I have bunkered I paid $85 for in 2007 but it now goes for around $120 and then some. The bourbon used for this review was a sample given to me by a friend and as I stated, was bottled in 2006. The whole Pappy Van Winkle line is good bourbon and always a good drinking experience. If you can handle the high price tag, pick up a bottle and enjoy on some special occasion.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…..NOT!

As a person who really dislikes snow, I'm sitting in a major storm right now. Started about midnight and it's now about noon and we have about 2 feet on the ground at a balmy 24 degrees. That's a lot of freakin white stuff. I began checking the reports 2 days ago and the snowfall projections started out at 5-8" but by yesterday afternoon, that had changed to 10-20" and the by later evening updated yet again to 15-25". Of course, those projections were for total snowfall over the course of midnight last night to early tomorrow morning. I can say (and as you can see by the nice pretty pictures), we have met and will exceed those numbers. I'm thrilled. I've been out twice and plowed the driveway with my trusty '74 Farmall 140 and if not for that old tractor, I'd be buried for a number of days. So, I'm thankful for tractors and of course I'm thankful for one other thing on a day like this; Bourbon. Thank you George T. Stagg and thank you Thomas H. Handy for your warming embrace and being my warm bourbon blanket. So, if you happen to be stuck in this wide band of snow, what's the bourbon you pour to stay warm?