Review #524 - Van Winkle Special Reserve 12 Year Lot "B"

Written By Me, My Wife & Whisky

Like the other members of the Van Winkle bourbon series, include the famous Pappy 15 year, 20 year, and 23 year versions, this 12 year old Lot "B" uses Buffalo Trace's wheated bourbon mashbill - the same that is used to make the Weller range. Because of that, it's easy to make a comparison to Weller 12 Year, as they carry the same age statement and are very similar in strength.

We were lucky to find this bourbon available in a flight (along with Old Rip Van Winkle 10 Year and the Van Winkle 13 Year Rye) for a reasonable price; because of the ridiculously small amount of this bourbon that's released in comparison to the demand, we're unlikely to ever get the chance to own our own bottle. So, how does this member of the Van Winkle range stand up to its hyped reputation and secondary price?

Van Winkle Special Reserve 12 Year Lot "B"

USA - Bourbon

MSRP: USD 150 (2024)

Available Price: USD 650 (2025, based on recent auction results)

Age Statement: 12 Years

Strength: 45.2% ABV

Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 1 time; bottle 30% fill level at time of review. Tasted in a nosing glass, rested 15+ minutes

Nose: Delicate, with rich oak - barbecued oak, even a bit savory. Sweet red fruit arrives, like cherry, and there's some vanilla icing and sugar along with it. A mellow cigar smoke wafts in, and in the background, there are more delicate notes: linen, an orchard fruit like tart apple.

Palate: The mouthfeel has a medium thickness. The oak is stronger and more drying on the palate, slightly smoky... that's accented by soft cigar smoke, too. The complexion isn't as dark as the nose suggested, though, and we get some sharp orange peel; the texture is soft.

Finish: A decent amount of oak still fills the palate, borderline bitter at times. More tart orange - orange oil, this time, and we get dry leather and some tannins. It's a medium-long finish.

Final Note: A fantastic nose, but the palate is good... just good. The quality of the barrels going into this batch seems to be very good, but this bourbon is really let down by the lower bottling strength, both in terms of texture and complexity. The nose offered a nice balance of sweet and aged notes, but the palate leaned much more toward the dry side of the scale; it was simpler, too.

All of that said, this is still a very good bourbon - probably the best we've tasted around the 90 proof point. In terms of a comparison to Weller 12 Year - we do think this Van Winkle Lot "B" is a step above, especially on the nose, but neither bottle is outstanding.

It's hardly worth talking about the value of these whiskies at their suggested retail pricing, since very few of us will ever have the opportunity to buy it at all, let alone for a reasonable price; still, at MSRP, value is okay. We don't really think any of these Van Winkle bourbons (or any other whisky, for that matter) are worth their secondary price tag, and in our minds, this specific bottle would be one of the worst offenders.

Our Average Rating: 8.0 / 10

In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.

Value Rating (MSRP): 6.02

Value Rating (Available Price): 3.69

About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.

Me, My Wife & Whisky
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