Sips & Sites & Bites

If there’s one thing bourbon lovers know about Old Fitzgerald’s Very Very Special (VVS) line, it’s that you don’t come across it every day. Or every year, for that matter. The newest addition, the Old Fitzgerald Bottled-in-Bond 11-Year-Old VVS 2025, is only the fourth in this rare series, and it’s the kind of release that stops collectors, connoisseurs, and casual sippers in their tracks.

The stats are impressive right off the bat. It’s 100-proof, bottled-in-bond, and made from Old Fitz’s signature wheated mashbill … 68% corn, 20% wheat, 12% malted barley. But numbers only tell part of the story. This 11-year-old bourbon is deep amber in the bottle and delivers a nose that feels like a quiet fall morning: toasted bread, stewed apples, and just enough richness to pull you in. On the palate, the honeyed sweetness and gentle baking spice remind you why this brand has a following that borders on the devotional.

Master Distiller Conor O’Driscoll has once again done what he does best … listen to the whiskey. According to him, the barrels earmarked for VVS status essentially choose themselves. “We always let our whiskey tell us when it’s ready,” he says. And for this release, the magic number was 11 years … no more, no less.

This one arrives with a bit of extra weight on its shoulders. The 2024 VVS release was crowned “Best Bourbon in the World” at the World Whiskies Awards earlier this year, so expectations are, to put it mildly, high. But if the early tasting notes and the pedigree of its selection process are any indication, 2025’s VVS is more than up to the task.

Old Fitzgerald’s Decanter Series has always been about celebrating the marriage of patience and craft, and this release is no exception. Each bottle bears its distilling and bottling season right on the label, a nod to the transparency built into the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897. And that maroon label? For Old Fitz fans, it’s as good as a secret handshake … a sign you’ve found something special.

The catch, of course, is getting your hands on one. This 11-year-old VVS is only available at the Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience in Bardstown, Kentucky, and a handful of select Kentucky retailers, priced at $169.99. If you’re lucky enough to snag one, the hardest part might be deciding whether to open it now… or save it for a moment worthy of its name.