The annual release of the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, which we covered recently when it was first announced for this year, is a highly awaited affair for drinkers and collectors alike. One nice thing about the distillery is they also always put forth a series of letters on their website tied to each bottling with much more in the way of technical details within for those wanting to know.
As it is always fascinating to know what exactly goes into said American whiskey releases from this collection year over year, we present to you below for your consideration some of those technical aspects, broken up by release.
As an aside we have received a sample size set of the Collection for review, so expect to see that posted shortly as well. In the meanwhile you can also read our reviews from last year’s Collection to compare to what’s in bottle this time around.
George T. Stagg
- Distiller: Buffalo Trace
- Year of Distillation: Spring of 2004
- Release: Fall of 2019
- Proof for release: 116.9 proof
- Recipe:
- Large Grain: Kentucky Corn; Distillers Grade #1 and #2
- Small Grain: Minnesota Rye
- Finish Grain: North Dakota Malted Barley
- Cooking/Fermentation:
- Milling Screen: #10
- Cook Temperature: 240 degrees Fahrenheit
- Water: Kentucky limestone with reverse osmosis
- Fermentation: Carbon steel/black iron fermenter
- Mash: Sour
- Distillation & Aging:
- Distillation: Double distilled; beer still and doubler
- Proof off still: 135 proof
- Barrel: New, white oak; #4 char, charred for 55 seconds
- Barrel Maker: Independent Stave
- Barrel Entry Proof: 125 proof
- Barrel Size: 53 liquid gallons; 66.25 original proof gallons
- Warehouse: Warehouses C, H, K, Q and I
- Floor: 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th
- Evaporation loss: 56% of the original whiskey lost to evaporation
- Filtration: None
- Product Age: 15 years and 3 months old at bottling
William Larue Weller
- Distiller: Buffalo Trace
- Year of Distillation: Winter of 2007
- Release: Fall of 2019
- Proof for release: 128 proof
- Recipe:
- Large Grain: Kentucky Corn; Distillers Grade #1 and #2
- Small Grain: North Dakota Wheat
- Finish Grain: North Dakota Malted Barley
- Cooking/Fermentation:
- Milling Screen: #10
- Cook Temperature: 240 degrees Fahrenheit
- Water: Kentucky limestone with reverse osmosis
- Fermentation: Carbon steel/black iron fermenter
- Mash: Sour
- Distillation & Aging:
- Distillation: Double distilled; beer still and doubler
- Proof off still: 130 proof
- Barrel: New, white oak; #4 char, charred for 55 seconds
- Barrel Maker: Independent Stave
- Barrel Entry Proof: 114 proof
- Barrel Size: 53 liquid gallons; 66.25 original proof gallons
- Warehouse: Warehouse I
- Floor: 2nd and 3rd
- Evaporation loss: 57% of the original whiskey lost to evaporation
- Filtration: None
- Product Age: 12 years and 6 months old at bottling
Eagle Rare 17 Year Old
- Distiller: Buffalo Trace
- Year of Distillation: Spring of 2002
- Release: Fall 2019
- Proof for release: 101 proof
- Recipe:
- Large Grain: Kentucky Corn; Distillers Grade #1 and #2
- Small Grain: Minnesota Rye
- Finish Grain: North Dakota Malted Barley
- Cooking/Fermentation:
- Milling Screen: #10
- Cook Temperature: 240 degrees Fahrenheit
- Water: Kentucky limestone with reverse osmosis
- Fermentation: Carbon steel/black iron fermenter
- Mash: Sour
- Distillation & Aging:
- Distillation: Double distilled; beer still and doubler
- Proof off still: 135 proof
- Barrel: New, white oak; #4 char, charred for 55 seconds
- Barrel Maker: Independent Stave
- Barrel Entry Proof: 125 proof
- Barrel Size: 53 liquid gallons; 66.25 original proof gallons
- Warehouse: Warehouse P
- Floor: 1st
- Evaporation loss: 66% of the original whiskey lost to evaporation
- Filtration: Chill
- Product Age: 17 years and 3 months old at bottling
Sazerac Rye 18 Year Old
- Distiller: Buffalo Trace
- Year of Distillation: Spring of 2001
- Release: Fall 2019
- Proof for release: 90 proof
- Recipe:
- Large Grain: Minnesota Rye
- Small Grain: Kentucky Corn; Distillers Grade #1 and #2
- Finish Grain: North Dakota Malted Barley
- Cooking/Fermentation:
- Milling Screen: #10
- Cook Temperature: 240 degrees Fahrenheit
- Water: Kentucky limestone with reverse osmosis
- Fermentation: Carbon steel/black iron fermenter
- Mash: Sour
- Distillation & Aging:
- Distillation: Double distilled; beer still and doubler
- Proof off still: 135 proof
- Barrel: New, white oak; #4 char, charred for 55 seconds
- Barrel Maker: Independent Stave
- Barrel Entry Proof: 125 proof
- Barrel Size: 53 liquid gallons; 66.25 original proof gallons
- Warehouse: Warehouses L and K
- Floor: 2nd
- Evaporation loss: 83.5% of the original whiskey lost to evaporation
- Filtration: Chill
- Product Age: 18 years and 4 months old at bottling
Thomas H. Handy Sazerac
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- Distiller: Buffalo Trace
- Year of Distillation: Spring of 2013
- Release: Fall 2019
- Proof for release: 125.7 proof
- Recipe:
- Large Grain: Minnesota Rye
- Small Grain: Kentucky Corn; Distillers Grade #1 and #2
- Finish Grain: North Dakota Malted Barley
- Cooking/Fermentation:
- Milling Screen: #10
- Cook Temperature: 240 degrees Fahrenheit
- Water: Kentucky limestone with reverse osmosis
- Fermentation: Carbon steel/black iron fermenter
- Mash: Sour
- Distillation & Aging:
- Distillation: Double distilled; beer still and doubler
- Proof off still: 135 proof
- Barrel: New, white oak; #4 char, charred for 55 seconds
- Barrel Maker: Independent Stave
- Barrel Entry Proof: 125 proof
- Barrel Size: 53 liquid gallons; 66.25 original proof gallons
- Warehouse: Warehouses N, M, K
- Floor: 3rd, 4th and 5th
- Evaporation loss: 26% of the original whiskey lost to evaporation
- Filtration: None
- Product Age: 6 years and 2 months old at bottling
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