Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon theft was “inside job”

More than US$26,000 worth of Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon has been stolen from the Buffalo Trace Distillery in a theft believed to be an inside job.

The theft of US$26,000 wrth of Pappy Van Winkle is thought to have been an inside job

The theft was discovered on Wednesday after distillery workers noticed a palette of Pappy Van Winkle had been “hollowed out”, with a total of 65 cases missing.

Authorities and Buffalo Trace Distillery believe the cases – each of which contained three bottles of whiskey – were lifted by someone close to the distillery over several months.

Drew Mayville, master blender at Buffalo Trace Distillery, said: “The palettes had been hollowed out and so nobody noticed immediately. It looks like an inside job.”

Pappy Van Winkle has been distilled and bottled at the Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky since 2002, in partnership with the Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery.

The limited edition 20-year-old Bourbon retails for around US$130 a bottle.