84
Score
Pappy Van Winkle 23 year old Family Reserve, 47.8%
Price: ● Issue: Winter 2005 ● Reviewer: John Hansell ● Category: Bourbon/Tennessee Whiskey
Broodingly thick and syrupy in texture, and quite dry-especially on the finish. Twenty-three years is a long time for bourbon to spend in oak, and this one shows its age. The flavors and complexity of its younger two siblings is evident until mid-palate, but then dwindles slightly as the whisky progresses, replaced by dry, spicy, leathery, sooty-charcoal, tobacco notes.