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PLCB Opens Entry for Limited-Release Lotteries Featuring Highly Sought Products

by Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB)

Nov 16, 2022

The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB), through its Limited-Release Lotteries, will award lottery registrants the opportunity to purchase 1,590 bottles of rare whiskeys, including 1,440 bottles of the highly sought Van Winkle products.

Pennsylvania residents and licensees will have until 5:00 PM Friday, Nov. 18, to opt in to one or more of the drawings for each of two lotteries by visiting the Limited-Release Lottery web page at FWGS.com.

The Van Winkle Lottery

These Kentucky whiskeys, produced by Pappy Van Winkle’s grandson using recipes dating back four generations, are among the most sought after in the world. Since 2002, the Van Winkle bourbons have been produced at the Buffalo Trace distillery, enabling the Old Rip Van Winkle distillery the ability to increase production while still ensuring strict standards for quality. Wine Enthusiast magazine and the World Spirits Championship have rated the 20-year-old bourbon 99 out of 100.

Separate drawings will be conducted for each of these limited-release whiskeys, and lottery participants may opt in to one, several, or all drawings. The right to purchase is limited to one bottle per participant for this lottery. If a participant wins the right to purchase a bottle in a drawing within this lottery, they will be removed from subsequent drawings in this lottery.

Drawings will be held, in the following order, to award the right to purchase individual bottles as follows:

  • Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve Straight Bourbon 23 Year Old 95 Proof, $399.99 each – 27 bottles for individual consumers, nine bottles for licensees
  • Van Winkle Family Reserve Straight Rye Whiskey 13 Year Old, $159.99 each – 52 bottles for individual consumers, 17 bottles for licensees
  • Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve Straight Bourbon 20 Year Old 90 Proof, $249.99 each – 81 bottles for individual consumers, 27 bottles for licensees
  • Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve Straight Bourbon 15 Year Old 107 Proof, $149.99 each – 86 bottles for individual consumers, 28 bottles for licensees
  • Old Rip Van Winkle Handmade Straight Bourbon 10 Year Old 107 Proof, $89.99 each – 237 bottles for individual consumers, 78 bottles for licensees
  • Van Winkle Special Reserve Straight Bourbon 12 Year Old 90 Proof, $99.99 each – 599 bottles for individual consumers, 199 bottles for licensees

Additional Whiskey Lottery

There will also be one separate lottery for an additional limited release product. Participants can enter both the Van Winkle and this lottery, and it is possible that winners can win the right to purchase one Van Winkle product and this product (for a maximum of two bottles).

This lottery features:

  • Old Forester Birthday Straight Bourbon 2022, $159.99 each – 90 bottles for individual consumers, 60 bottles for licensees

Individual consumers and licensees interested in entering one or more lotteries or drawings must have an active account with FWGS.com with billing information on file. Each participant is encouraged to verify that accurate, up-to-date billing information is associated with his or her customer account, to prevent transaction delays or cancellations.

Store delivery of Limited-Release Lottery products is required; failure to identify a valid store for delivery may result in the loss of the right to purchase that product. Every winner will be required to show valid photo identification at the store to claim the product.

In light of attempts by previous lottery winners to illegally resell products obtained through Limited-Release Lotteries, the lottery Terms and Conditions remind residents that the sale of alcoholic beverages without a license is strictly prohibited under Pennsylvania law. When entering a Limited-Release Lottery, a participant will be asked to acknowledge that he or she has read and understands these terms and conditions.

Limited-Release Lotteries are open to Pennsylvania residents and licensees age 21 or older who provide both a verifiable Pennsylvania billing address and a Fine Wine & Good Spirits store address at registration. Any registrant with a billing address that cannot be verified as a Pennsylvania address will be removed from the lottery. Entries will be vetted for duplicative names, addresses, and other information, and duplicates will be deleted from the lottery pool.

Lottery drawings will be witnessed by an independent third party. Winners will be selected at random by computer program. Participants will be notified by email when the lottery process is complete.

The PLCB regulates the distribution of beverage alcohol in Pennsylvania, operates 600 wine and spirits stores statewide, and licenses 20,000 alcohol producers, retailers, and handlers. The PLCB also works to reduce and prevent dangerous and underage drinking through partnerships with schools, community groups, and licensees. Taxes and store profits – totaling nearly $19.5 billion since the agency’s inception – are returned to Pennsylvania’s General Fund, which finances Pennsylvania’s schools, health and human services programs, law enforcement, and public safety initiatives, among other important public services. The PLCB also provides financial support for the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement, the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, other state agencies, and local municipalities across the state. For more information about the PLCB, visit lcb.pa.gov.

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