Bourbon News

PAPPYLAND is Now in Paperback, Just in Time for Father’s Day

New York Times Bestseller “Pappyland” has just made its paperback debut, just in the nick of time for that Father’s Day gift you need.

Author and ESPN Senior Writer, Wright Thompson, spent an extensive amount of time with the Van Winkle family capturing their fascinating journey through American Whiskey history.

PURCHASE HERE

Below is exert from us when the book initially debuted. Cheers as we hope you give this book a read!

“We make fine Bourbon at a profit if we can, at a loss if we must, but always, Fine Bourbon“ – Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle Sr. (1874 – 1965)

Pappyland is not a “smooth” one dimensional sipper. It’s complex. It has layers. Just like a fine bourbon should, damnit.

Does it deep dive into Bourbon’s
fascinating history at large? Sure. Does
it use the scalpel for an in-depth look at the world’s most coveted Bourbon brand?
Of course. And hey, that alone is certainly
enough to keep eyes glued downward and pages turning rapidly as shots at a
college bar.

But perhaps the magic ingredient, what
makes this book truly stand out is NOT the glamour and allure of the
brand. Quite the opposite. It’s the
author’s sensational ability to remove the cape and capture the vulnerability
of one man’s struggle through a long Odyssey-esque epic journey to save his
family’s legacy. To convey the
importance of family. To know what struggle
is and to somehow come out on the other side and emerge victorious. To be human. This is the story of Julian Van Winkle III.

Julian Van Winkle III. Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery President.

The author, Wright Thompson, Senior writer for ESPN and southerner from Mississippi, “had” to spend part of three years studying, sipping, and learning from Julian Van Winkle III in preparation for the book. Tough life.

Julian VW III and Pappyland author Wright Thompson

Julian’s grandfather, Julian Sr. “Pappy”, opened the Stitzel-Weller Distillery in 1935 just outside of Louisville. On his passing in 1965, Julian Jr. took over but was forced to sell the distillery in 1972. When Julian Jr. passed in 1981, his son Julian III became president of the family brand during a time when likely the last thing you wanted to own was a Bourbon Company. The American Whiskey Industry had been on a traumatic downward spiral going back over a decade prior.