In this era of Whiskey, some bottles have become rather unattainable. About 10 years ago you used to be able to walk into a liquor store and grab a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle off the shelf.
More than a few of my friends did just this. As this bottle became more and more unattainable people started to look for creative ways to mimic the profile of this special Whiskey. What did they do to accomplish this? They looked for a similar whiskey profile and then blended their bourbons together. This recipe is known as Poor Man's Pappy. 
What you do is you mix roughly 60% of the Weller 12 with 40% of the Weller Antique 107. Some people will slightly temper this with water but personally I do not feel that this is necessary. With this said this recipe is supposed to be a Poor Man's Pappy drink, and sadly Weller is no longer attainable or reasonably priced.
So lets talk about another option that make a similar mash bill and similar proof. Makers Mark is known as a wheated Whiskey as is Pappy Van Winkle. So this second recipe will utilize some bottles that are more attainable and much easier on the wallet. This recipe has been called a few different names such as "Poorer Man's Pappy, Very Poor Man's Pappy, and Broke Grandad (my favorite).
My take on this combination is its enjoyable, but it does lack a complexity. To fix this issue I like to put my blend together and add some toasted White oak cubes or chips to the blend and age it for a week or longer. Be careful to not add to much wood because a little can go a long way. The recipe is 65% Makers Mark Cask Strength and 35% Larceny.
These tend to be some fun experiments that help people to figure out what specifically they enjoy about their drinks. Where I tend to blend my Whiskeys is when I find a bottle that does not particularly hit my pallet the way I was expecting, I may take that bottle and blend it with something else that will complement its profile. I do believe that there is not bad whiskey, it may just not be my taste preference.
Have you tried blending Whiskey? What are some recipes that you may suggest?
I have been trying to get my hands on some Weller for a while now. I was in Ohio about six months ago and I went to a bar where they had bottles and bottles of the barrel strength stuff on their shelves. I had a dram of it and it was pretty good. I am not sure it is worth the premium price people are charging now. I love Larceny. I have two different bottles of it on my shelf as we speak. I think the barrel strength Larceny won a pretty prestigious award a year or two ago. I have been kicking around the idea of starting an infinity bottle, but I haven't pulled the trigger on it yet.
Awesome post!
This really is a fun thing to do. I would like to do a infinity with a few friends and do a blend we all start with, but then 6 months down the road get together and see who's got better over the time and who's didn't.
As for the Wellers they really are great for the retail prices but the prices I see them going for in California it leave my head scratching. As for finding one in the wild its mostly being at the right place at the right time.
That would be a fun thing to do! I don't think I could pay a cray price for the Weller. My guy who owns a party store keeps trying to get a bottle for me, but so far no luck. I would be okay with the special reserve even. I heard Eagle Rare is starting to be harder to find now and Ohio was talking about starting a lottery for it. In Michigan there are some places that have it, but they are over $100. I think I paid $30 a piece for my two bottles.
Never heard of this brand before but I appreciate a good whiskey post.
Thanks for reading. These are American bourbons. So many people may not be familiar with them, but the principles apply to if you find something that isn’t your favorite try blending them to see if you can make it enjoyable.
My neighbour was given some bottles of Van Winkle and later found out they were selling for silly money. I have tasted some and enjoyed it. I think he still has a bottle. He would rather enjoy it than sell it.
I also have tried it a few times, and I think it is great. The issue I have is when it becomes such a high priced bottle where does the value/ hype take over. I have some friends that play a game, they say money is no object what bottle do you drink? These are really some great whiskeys but tend to not live up to the value and hype is all.