Old Rip Van Winkle 10 Year is the youngest bourbon in the Van Winkle family, a wheated Kentucky straight bourbon bottled at 107 proof. This bottle is from the 2015 release, made at Buffalo Trace under the family's partnership with the distillery.
About This Bourbon
The 10 Year is aged a full decade in new charred oak and brought down only slightly with water to 107 proof, close to barrel strength. By 2015 the whiskey came from Buffalo Trace's own wheated distillate rather than old Stitzel-Weller stock. Releases go out once a year in autumn, so the year on this listing marks the release rather than a change of recipe.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Vanilla, pecan and caramel, with warm oak and orange.
- Palate: Full and round: toffee, dried cherry, soft wheat bread and a peppery lift from the strength.
- Finish: Long and warming, with brown spice, honey and toasted barrel.
Serving & Food
Serve neat in a Glencairn, adding a little still water if the heat masks the fruit. Good partners are candied walnuts, a ribeye with a pepper crust or sticky toffee pudding.
How to Enjoy
Wheated bourbon lovers and anyone starting a Van Winkle collection at its entry point.
Product Details
Brand: Old Rip Van Winkle
Age: 10 years old
Proof: 107 / 53.5% ABV
Style: Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey (wheated)
Release: 2015
Distillery: Buffalo Trace, Frankfort, Kentucky
Origin: USA
Region: Kentucky
Volume: 750mL
About the Distillery
The family story begins with Julian "Pappy" Van Winkle Sr., hired as a travelling salesman for W.L. Weller & Sons in 1893. He and fellow salesman Alex Farnsley bought into the firm, and after Prohibition they joined Arthur Stitzel to open the Stitzel-Weller Distillery in Shively, Louisville, in 1935.
Pappy made his whiskey with wheat instead of rye as the second grain, which gives a softer and rounder spirit that can take long ageing. A sign at Stitzel-Weller summed up his view: fine bourbon, at a profit if possible, at a loss if necessary. That wheated style is what the Van Winkle bottles still follow.