Bailey Loosemore

Louisville Courier Journal

If members of the Van Winkle family have their way, 28 bottles of stolen Pappy Van Winkle bourbon will be destroyed — not sold.

On Tuesday, Franklin County Sheriff Pat Melton said he spoke with Julian Van Winkle, president of the Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery, who asked that all bottles and barrels involved in a well-publicized racketeering case not be auctioned off for charity, as Melton had previously suggested to BourbonBlog.com.

"They're afraid someone could have contaminated it," Melton said. "It's been out of their control."

A judge with Franklin Circuit Court will make the final call on what happens to the items, but Melton said he hopes the county can still make use of them. If the bottles and barrels are to be destroyed, he said, he'd like to give them to the fire department to use for training on alcohol-related fires.

Pappy Van Winkle theft may be tied to syndicate

"We want to see some good come out of it at the end of the day, no matter what it is," Melton said.

The bottles and barrels have been used as evidence in a case against an alleged organized crime ring — led by Gilbert "Toby" Curtsinger — that investigators say sold bourbons and trafficked steroids since 2008.

The case was broken open in April after a grand jury indicted nine people in connection to the whiskey thefts. A second case charged Curtsinger and his wife Julie Curtsinger with steroid-related offenses. Both have pleaded not guilty in both cases.

Reach reporter Bailey Loosemore at 502-582-4646 or bloosemore@courier-journal.com.