W.L. Weller's Cabin Still 6 Year Old Bourbon Quart 1971 / Stitzel-Weller

Bottled in 1971, this is the sought-after version of the Cabin Still brand that contains whiskey distilled at Stitzel-Weller. 

The Stitzel-Weller company was officially established in 1933 at the repeal of National Prohibition in the US. It was the result of a merger between the A. Ph. Stitzel distillery and its biggest customer, W.L. Weller & Sons. The Stitzel-Weller distillery opened on Kentucky Derby day in 1935, and quickly developed a reputation for its high quality wheated bourbon, and its main brands were Old Weller, Old Fitzgerald and Cabin Still. The original ownership was shared between Alex T. Farnsley, Arthur Philip Stitzel and Julian Van Winkle. The former passed-away in 1941 and 1947, respectively, leaving the Van Winkle family as the sole heirs to the business. 'Pappy' died in 1965, having handed the reigns to his son, Julian II the year prior, who ran it until 1972 when the board of directors forced him to sell it to the Norton-Simon subsidiary, Somerset Imports. When they were bought over by the American arm of Scottish distillers, DCL, its subsequent iteration invested heavily in bourbon. So much so in fact, that their newly rebuilt Bernheim distillery had such capacity that Stitzel-Weller was rendered surplus to requirements. It was shut down in 1992. Still part of the Diageo portfolio, it has never re-opened and instead now houses the visitor experience for their Bulleit brand.

Cabin still was actually the catalyst for Somerset Imports' purchase of the distillery, and they used the brand to bottle their vast supply of ageing stocks from other distilleries. Cabin Still remains available today, produced by Luxco who had acquired it from Heaven Hill following their purchase of it from the closing Stitzel-Weller in 1992. This Van Winkle era Stitzel-Weller distilled version is a truly rare opportunity to own an example of the brand in its prime.