Utah to create new program for distributing Pappy Van Winkle, other ‘unicorn’ liquor

(Tribune file photo) Pappy Van Winkle bourbonThe Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has come up with a plan that it says will ensure that rare, high-demand liquor products are distributed in a “fair and equitable” way.

It will be presented Tuesday at 10 a.m. during the liquor commission’s monthly meeting at its headquarters, 1625 S. 900 West, Salt Lake City.

The state agency has been criticized in recent years for the way it handles these “unicorn” products — namely high-end bourbons such as Pappy Van Winkle and Old Forester — which are released only once a year in limited quantities and, at least in Utah, at a great price.

Each year, for example, the Pappy Van Winkle distillery…