The finest bourbon I have tasted. Yet.

[Cruiser]

Drink it

[evasive_MT]

Same. Drink it with friends.

[Brownski]

I would get a pro to estimate its value before I cracked it. Might be worth more than you think.

[John_B]

I'd rather a couple thousand bucks of heli time than a pint of whiskey.

[allmountainsnowskating]

Sell it and go on a trip of a lifetime

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[JimmyCarter]

Mix it with Diet Coke and drink it

[bagtagley]

Gotta drink it.

[Meadow Skipper]

Mix it with Diet Coke and drink it

Heh, sometimes when I order some way rare top shelf bourbon or rye at a bar, I’ll tell the barkeep to mix it with Diet Pepsi. Then tell them j/k while they’re staring at me incredulously, though a couple have shrugged and reached for the hose before I yell “No! Kidding!”

Drink it for the experience of a lifetime.

Fixed.

[Flounder]

Wow. I think we are leaning towards drinking it. Sent pics to a couple of places for appraisal, including the L.A Whiskey Society that Meadow Skipper linked to. I guess what it really comes down to is if it’s still going to taste good after all these years. If it’s well past it’s prime and only good for collectors I’ll part with it. If it’s going to taste half way decent, we are both planning to retire in about 3 years and that seems like a good way to kick off a life of leisure.

Cantdog, I’ll pm for recommendation. If we decide to sell I’ll give you first dibs.

[Woodsy]

Drink it
Invite. Friends

Hi I'm Woodsy, friendly AF...

Enjoy Bourbon trail
Need to go, broke down in Bardstown once, but have a hotel in Lville now.....

[ghosthop]

I asked a friend who collects those bottles, he said definitely drink it. The usual concern is with oxidation from a bad cork, he said your bottle looks perfect for the age with little evaporation.

He said notes will be predominant caramel, almost like kettle corn with some pepper. Also that the oak notes are incredibly nuanced compared to modern whiskeys because the barrels used were 120+ years old at the time.

He said soak the cork before opening by turning the bottle upside down.

And that you have a true unicorn on your hands. Most likely less than a thousand bottles of those left in the wild.

Hope that helps.

ETA He reminded me that I've had the four year 86 proof from the same era. My biggest memory of that tasting is that is was like tasting really great Burgundy; nuance that doesn't mean as much if you're not prepared for it. Which means you should drink a lot of great whiskey over the next three years for comparison.

[L8APX]

Question for the collective. We are heading out on a road trip that will include the bouton trail in Kentucky. As we were booking tours I noticed one of the brands at Heavens Hill is Old Fitzgerald. That triggered a memory of a bottle I got from my grandparents. Dug it out this afternoon and did some research online.

It’s a half pint 8 year old Very Old Fitzgerald made in 64 and bottled in 72. Didn’t realize it was made by Pappy Van Winkle when he was running Stitzel-Weller. 72 is when they broke things up and sold everything off. Seems like it’s a collectors item. What should I do with it?

1. Crack it open and drink it. Grandparents had 2 bottles, I got one and my brother got one. He drank his a few years ago and said it wasn’t that good. He doesn’t like wheated bourbons though so not sure I trust his assessment. Likely the only time I’ll ever taste something made by Pappy.

b. Sell it. Might get a few hundred to a couple of grand. Use proceeds to by good bourbon on our trip.

iii. Keep it as a cool item. Don’t really have a place to display but I’ll still have it and it’ll remind me of my grandparents.

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If you wanted to sell it call Justin at Justin’s House of Bourbon in Louisville. He is licensed to purchase and sell out of circ bottles. He could appraise it and probably would offer wholesale and add it to his massive Old Fitz collection. Anything corked from DSP KY16 is going to bring good money. Inflated sites online would try to sell it for $4-5K. I’d say realistically you have a $2-2,500 bottle in todays market.

https://thehouseofbourbon.com/shop

[CantDog]

The Justin’s locations were raided earlier this year because of issues surrounding fraud and something to do with interstate selling. Place has always been way overpriced—I don’t think I’d trust them for an appraisal.

In a bottle that good of shape with the box you’re looking at several thousand easy. Market has cooled slightly, but that’s a unicorn.

It’s been several years since I’ve had any old stitzel weller bourbon but I’ve never had a bad one that came from a bottle with a decent fill level(I think I had one that probably was in a flooded basement that was….not good). In the glut days I would also mix it in cocktails from time to time, ha. Makes a great manhattan!


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[L8APX]

The Justin’s locations were raided earlier this year because of issues surrounding fraud and something to do with interstate selling. Place has always been way overpriced—I don’t think I’d trust them for an appraisal.

In a bottle that good of shape with the box you’re looking at several thousand easy. Market has cooled slightly, but that’s a unicorn.

It’s been several years since I’ve had any old stitzel weller bourbon but I’ve never had a bad one that came from a bottle with a decent fill level(I think I had one that probably was in a flooded basement that was….not good). In the glut days I would also mix it in cocktails from time to time, ha. Makes a great manhattan!

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I just saw the raid news deal. Shady people doing shady things. Scratch the Justin’s suggestion. I did sell 5 bottles to him in 2021. Didn’t seem shady and I walked away happy with a legit check.

[Flounder]

Thanks Ghost for the background and tips. It’s going to be kept for drinking. Talked with my brother today and he drank his at deer camp a few years ago. Said the cork was shot, so thanks for the tip about soaking it. He thought it was good but nothing special. One of the places I sent photos to responded within an hour offering $500 for the bottle so I know it’s worth quite a bit more than that.

Hoping to get a few good bottles while we are in Kentucky. Planning to hit the major places with tours booked at Angels Envy, Beam, Heaven Hill, Four Roses, and my free ambassador for life Makers Mark tour. Probably stop by Woodford and Buffalo Trace as well. We should come away with some good knowledge and bourbon to train our palette before we crack this bottle.

May not wait until retirement to drink, we have a total solar eclipse coming directly over the house next year. That would be two once in a life time events at once.

[gravitylover]

Happy National Bourbon Day

[Woodsy]

Happy National Bourbon Day

Not made to far from here but...

Vanilla? no
nor cherry, nor cinnamon. Bourbon should taste like bourbon.

[gravitylover]

Meh, I really like this one. Also sorta local.
If wheated Bourbons were more common I'd be happy.

[Flounder]

Thanks for the reminder. Had an excellent trip to Kentucky a few weeks ago. What to try tonight? So many choices now.

[Cruiser]

Not sure if it counts for much but I vote for tucking into that heaven hill!

[gravitylover]

Thanks for the reminder. Had an excellent trip to Kentucky a few weeks ago. What to try tonight? So many choices now.

A little of each

[MontuckyFried]

Thanks for the reminder. Had an excellent trip to Kentucky a few weeks ago. What to try tonight? So many choices now.

Geez! You win, man. That collection is outstanding.

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[Flounder]

Not sure if it counts for much but I vote for tucking into that heaven hill!

That’s for sure one of the better bottles that we picked up. High proof but so smooooth.

Ended up with a Woodford single barrel for tonight. Not in the pic as that was the hotel on our last night. Hit Woodford on our way home. It was well worth the long drive to be able to bring back a few years worth of really good bourbon.

[JimmyCarter]

Father’s Day gift for dad that he’s nice enough to share.

[gravitylover]

This is damn good for $40 I think I did pretty well