Japser Russo, the marketing director at Sigel’s, is a tireless promoter. This morning he sends this note:
“Saw a post on Pappy van Winkle Bourbon. Impossible to get. This is as close as most folks will get to acquiring a bottle. Red wine aged exclusively in Pappy van Winkle Barrels.”
Briefly, the story goes: American importer Dan Philips does dinner with Julian Van Winkle, pres of Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery, at a Southern Foodways Alliance meeting. Philips floats the idea of aging wine in Van Winkle’s used bourbon barrels. Philips calls winemaker Chris Ringland, who makes vino in Australia and Spain. According to Russo the “three ubermensches combined their talents to produce a singular expression that pushes the envelope on Syrah and Mourvedre from Spain.” He ends the story with his trademark: Available only at Sigel’s.
