Van Winkle's 15, worth the price?

My advice, lucadanna, is to try to taste a dram for yourself and judge your own pocketbook. This is the top quality drink. The Old Rip Van Winkle 10 yr, 90 proof is not remotely in the same league as the PVW 15. For me there are only two wheated bourbons at the top of the heap: William Larue Weller (from the Sazerac Antiquity Collection) and Pappy Van Winkle 15 yo. For me drinking Ardbeg Uigeadail is a transcendent experience. The same is true for me of drinking Pappy Van Winkle 15 yo. The two experiences are very different, though, as drinking cognac differs from drinking champagne.

@Victor I think you've got what I mean! I know how different scotch and bourbon are, I just wanted to know if VW 15 can be considered something similar to what Uigeadail or Corryvecran are when speaking of Islay malts...

and,...drinking Thomas H. Handy Rye is a transcendent experience of the rye type for me. But, drinking rye, Islay malt, and wheated bourbon are three different experiences. ((For me, at this point, in addition to the Uigeadail, the Pappy 15, and the T.H. Handy Rye, there are only three other 'transcendent' whiskies: George T. Stagg Bourbon (rye formula), William Larue Weller wheated bourbon (much more intense and heavier style than Pappy) and Old Potrero Rye, which is also a wildly flavourful and very unusual experience.)) I did also find transcendence once with a taste of the 1967 Duncan Taylor Springbank Malt, but the bottle would have cost $ 2,200-- so that is not within reasonable reach at the moment.

Lucadanna - Van Winkle 15 is not worth the price if you plan on drinking it regularly. However, for a special treat, it is worth every penny. It is very good with a super looooong finish. I agree with Victor on the William Larue Weller, George T Stagg, and Thomas Handy. However, I would also add Aberlour A'bunadh as a transcendent whisky for me. Love that sherry...

However, none of those are cheap (atleast in Dallas).

@Bigt I agree with you, I bought it some months ago and it is hidden in my cabinet for special occasions or very hard days...luckily people here don't seem to care about it, so the other bottle is still available in the shop for when I run out of mine! By the way, a'bunadh here is cheap, 34 pounds from MoM or TWE...

I'm not fan of wheated bourbon. Yeah, the wheat smoothes it out, but it loses so much sparkle and vibrancy that I just can't get excited about it. A few glorious bourbons IMO if you can find them in your location: Four Roses Small Batch; Wathen's'; Evan Williams Single Barrel; Blanton's. And Victor's correct about the virtues of rye...

If you find Woodford Reserve a bit too tame or too mellow, then you'll appreciate Van Winkle's 15. But if it's just right for your taste then the VW 15 might be a bit overpowering at first. But, even so, my guess is that you'll eventually enjoy it. It is really really nice (for special occasions).

YES