Old Rip Van Winkle Handmade 10 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Old Rip Van Winkle Handmade 10-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a powerful expression of the Van Winkle family's historic wheated bourbon style, matured for a full decade and bottled at 107 proof. Made with wheat rather than rye as the flavoring grain, it combines rich caramel, vanilla, toasted nuts, dried fruit, and mature oak with the softer grain character associated with the Van Winkle recipe. Only a small addition of Kentucky limestone well water is made when the barrels are emptied for bottling, preserving considerable concentration and structure while maintaining the balance that has defined the family's approach to bourbon across generations.

Product Details:

• President: Julian P. Van Winkle III
• Master Distiller: Harlen Wheatley, Buffalo Trace Distillery
• Mash: Wheated bourbon mash
• Age: 10 Years
• Proof: 107
• ABV: 53.5%
• Water: Kentucky limestone well water used for final proof adjustment
• Production: Aged for 10 years and bottled close to barrel proof, with only a small addition of Kentucky limestone well water when the barrels are emptied for bottling

Sensory Description:

Old Rip Van Winkle 10 Year shows a rich copper color and opens with sweet vanilla, caramel, pecan, toasted nuts, and mature oak, layered with dried fruit and warm brown spice. The palate is medium- to full-bodied and concentrated, with robust wheat character framing cherry, caramel, dried fruit, toasted nuts, and charred oak. Its 107 proof gives the whiskey substantial weight and warmth without obscuring the underlying fruit and grain. The finish is exceptionally persistent, carrying smoky wheat, peppery spice, floral honey, dried fruit, charred barrel, and firm oak tannins.

Awards & Accolades:

• 95 Points, Exceptional: Beverage Testing Institute

Distiller's Background:

The Van Winkle family's bourbon history reaches back to 1893, when Julian P. "Pappy" Van Winkle Sr. began working as a salesman for W.L. Weller & Sons. He and Alex Farnsley later acquired the Weller business and A. Ph. Stitzel Distillery, ultimately establishing Stitzel-Weller, whose new Louisville distillery opened in 1935. Wheated bourbon became central to the family's identity, replacing rye with wheat as the secondary grain to create a softer style capable of extended maturation. After Stitzel-Weller was sold in 1972, Julian Van Winkle Jr. revived the family's pre-Prohibition Old Rip Van Winkle label. His son, Julian P. Van Winkle III, joined him in 1977 and assumed leadership in 1981, later joined by his son Preston in 2001. In 2002, the Van Winkle family entered a production partnership with Buffalo Trace Distillery. Current Van Winkle whiskey is distilled at Buffalo Trace under the family's established guidelines and wheated mash bill tradition, with Julian Van Winkle III serving as President of Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery and Harlen Wheatley overseeing Buffalo Trace's distilling program as Master Distiller.

Serving Suggestions:

Serve neat at approximately 60 to 65°F in a Glencairn, copita, or other tulip-shaped whiskey glass to concentrate its vanilla, caramel, nut, dried-fruit, and oak aromas. A few drops of water can soften the 107-proof intensity and reveal additional fruit, wheat, and spice, while a single large cube provides a slower dilution for a cooler presentation. Its concentrated profile also pairs well with roasted pecans, aged hard cheeses, dark chocolate, smoked meats, and desserts built around caramel or toasted nuts.