The best bourbon you will ever drink.

I was in Chicago drinking, trying unsuccessfully to avoid the second hand cigar smoke thoroughly permeating my clothes and every pore of my body. A losing battle, I concentrated instead on the cut crystal glass in my hand, swirling the dark, amber colored liquid an inch from the bottom.

At a private club after a sumptuous meal with the guys, the member, a close friend, had invited us for a nightcap plucked from his private stash locked away in the bowels of the establishment.

A Scotch guy myself, with an occasional gin martini thrown in, I’ve never really been taken by bourbon, but that was what was offered, and I was pleasantly surprised, sipping the best bourbon I had ever tasted.

Waiting for an Uber, our conversation turned to the great night we had had, my friends commenting on the God awful expensive postprandial bottle of bourbon we had enjoyed, me none the wiser as to what it was. Now paying serious attention, I began to realize that I had done my part in killing a more than $1,000 dollar bottle of 15 year old Pappy Van Winkle. Thankfully, I hadn’t asked for ice.

If you’re a bourbon drinker, you are probably familiar with the brand, but if you are just getting started in the brown stuff and want to indulge, grab a bottle of Pappy.

Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle Sr., started the whole thing, beginning as a traveling salesman for W.L. Weller & Sons, later acquiring his own distillery in1910, later merging with Weller in 1935.

Pappy focused on both quality and a unique “wheated” bourbon recipe that few other distillers were utilizing. It was, and still is, a unique formula and to this day, remains a defining characteristic of its taste, and Pappy Van Winkle’s secret contribution to the amazing liquid that bears his name.

Pappy Van Winkle’s “wheated” process means the bourbon is made using wheat instead of rye as the secondary grain in the mash bill, alongside corn and barley. This gives the whiskey a softer, sweeter, and fruitier flavor profile compared to rye-based bourbons, which tend to have more spice and a bolder taste.

Pappy Van Winkle bourbon is exclusive, highly sought after, and justifiably expensive.

Pappy died in 1962, things changed hands, money forced a sale, but the famous brand has been in limited production since 2002. Pappy’s grandson took over the business, continued the craftsmanship, and championed this wonderful whiskey.

Rare, unique, truly a brand apart, a rare indulgence, and best sipped slowly with friends. Very slowly.