Whiskey lovers take note: This Saturday, Molly’s Spirits is hosting a Kentucky Derby-themed live auction with five bottles of ultra-rare Pappy Van Winkle bourbon up for grabs. If you’ve been looking to score a bottle for your collection (or to stock your liquor cabinet for this year’s upcoming Derby Day), you won’t want to miss this event.

This rare, Kentucky-made bourbon from Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery is one of the most highly sought after bottles of whiskey in the world. Each year, only about 7,000 bottles are released—and immediately sold. Lucky for us, Molly’s Spirits has hoarded five bottles of the good stuff (10-year, 12-year, 12-year, 13-year, 15-year, and 20-year), and this Saturday, you have the chance to take one home with you. Fair warning: These bottles won’t go cheap. Molly’s Spirits marketing coordinator Jaylee Adams has seen empty bottles sell for $300 on eBay, and this week on the e-commerce website, a Pappy barrel head was going for $550. Molly’s live auction will also feature seven other hard-to-find brands, including Orphan Barrel Barterhouse (20-year) and Yellowstone Limited Edition.

The auction is more than just a chance to score coveted tipples, however. It’s also a Kentucky Derby-themed bash to celebrate the beloved Southern tradition (happening the following week on May 6 and 7). As it turns out, Pappy’s roots tie into the Kentucky Derby, as the distillery’s doors opened on Derby Day in 1935. Don your biggest, floppiest hat and head to the Lakeside liquor store for appetizers and tastes of Fort Collins-based Feisty Spirits Distillery‘s unique libations (including quinoa whiskey). And if you’re weary of dropping a ton of cash on a bottle of bourbon, know this: Proceeds from Molly’s Spirits’ auction benefit the Denver Dumb Friends League animal shelter.

The festivities start on Saturday, April 30 at 2 p.m., and the live auction begins at 3 p.m.


Molly’s Spirits, 5809 W. 44th Ave., 303-955-5174