Virginia ABC announces next Pappy lotteries

The Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority is again seeking to slake customers’ thirst for Pappy Van Winkle whiskeys by holding online lotteries for several varieties in February and March.

Virginia ABC customers can enter online for the chance to purchase several varieties of the prized whiskeys, including one bottle of Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 23 Year, which is produced at parent company Sazerac Co. Inc.’s Buffalo Trace Distillery in Kentucky. The authority has held annual lotteries for the Kentucky bourbons, which are notoriously difficult to find due to low production, for nearly a decade.

Online entry forms will be available for five days, and Virginia residents ages 21 and up are eligible. Winners will be selected in a random drawing.

Virginia ABC held a separate lottery for establishments with mixed beverage licenses. Since licensee sales typically comprise about 20% of ABC’s business, the authority set aside a proportional number of bottles for the separate lottery, according to a Wednesday news release.

The dates for each online lottery, number of bottles available and product prices are:

• Feb. 15-19
  • Old Rip Van Winkle Bourbon 10 Year ($79.99) – 298 bottles available
  • Van Winkle Special Reserve Bourbon 12 Year ($89.99) – 1,010 bottles available
  • Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye 13 Year ($129.99) – 96 bottles available
• March 8-12
  • Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 15 Year ($139.99) – 74 bottles available
  • Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 20 Year ($229.99) – 146 bottles available
  • Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 23 Year ($329.99) – 1 bottle available

The authority will notify winners of the first lottery by March 13 and winners of the second by April 3. More details are available on the Virginia ABC site.