I entered and won a contest to purchase one of the Bourbon’s from below. I’m leaning towards the Van Winkle 12 but for anyone that’s had multiple, what should I go for or what’s the hardest/most expensive to source. Cheers!
WLW for sure, prob worth 2x the others.
Agree 100%.
There is a Beer & Spirits forum for all things whisk(e)y related…
I’d buy the Wink 12 because that was my first and only Bourbon love. I used to buy it readily available for $40 and had no idea it’d ever be scarce until it was. I pretty much stopped drinking Bourbon after that because I could never find anything I liked that much. It’s made by Buffalo Trace now but I hear that profile is similar.
It was a strange deal when it was suddenly just no more and I had to get on list and contact shady stores for a chance to buy it.
WLW hardest to source w/o a doubt and some consider the best. It’s a good bit higher proof that the RVW 12 and is a good bit better. It’s worth significantly more than your purchase price.
In this order:
William Laure Weller
Old Rip Van Winkle 12 yr
George T. Stagg
Weller 12 is almost identical to lot B.
did a blind tasting a few years ago. while the weller 12 was a LOT better than the Lot B (unanimous among the 5 of us), they were very different indeed.
WLW or GTS are both much better than all the others listed. Im not a huge wheat fan so GTS is my preference.
I mean I’m not sure how homogeneous the whiskies are and it depends probably on the specific barrel they come from. I have both lot b and w12 open right now, should do a side by side.
yeah, i’d be surprised if you found them almost identical. i believe this nonsense with weller 12 started when julian (?) made some comment about “if you like pappy, go buy weller as it’s the same mashbill” and the rest is history.
This. WLW and GTS are easily the best on that list if you just want the best whiskey. IMO, WLW transcends whether or not you are a “wheater” enthusiast. It’s amazing, and so is the GTS. I haven’t had recent releases, but they have been consistently good for a long time.
If you plan to drink it, buy the WLW
If you plan to sell it, buy the WLW
If you plan to trade it, buy the WLW
If you plan to send to me because you’re a very generous WB’er, buy the WLW
You can delete, but we all know the gist. 
WLW, then Handy, then Stagg. PVW 12 if you are reselling it.
Amazing.
It posted while I was still typing. And, yes…
Can I paraphrase? Bourbon sucks, buy scotch?
This was going to be my (jokey) response, but then I said to myself, “Nah, I don’t know everyone well enough yet…”