Buffalo Trace Antique Collection to Hit Stores Soon

On September 19, Buffalo Trace Distillery announced the release of its 2017 Antique Collection.

Master Distiller Harlen Wheatley said this:

"the collection showed very well. I was particularly excited about the William Larue Weller with its extra richness, and the Eagle Rare 17 seemed more rounded and full of flavor. None of these disappointed.”

So Bourbon hunters get ready, these will not be easy to find. A few stores may put them on the shelves, but others will have lotteries or drawings, or announce a day when customers can line up to secure the bottles.

The suggested retail is $90 per bottle, but some stores will charge more. And there is likely to be some customers who buy and then turnaround and sell the bottles on the secondary market.

Here's a breakdown of details of each bottle from Whiskey Advocate:

George T. Stagg
Style: Bourbon
Age: 15 years old
Proof: 64.6% ABV
Price: $90
Number of barrels: 309

This batch is slightly larger than last year’s—309 barrels were bottled from warehouses C, K, M, and Q.

William Larue Weller
Style: Straight bourbon
Age: 12 years old
Proof: 64.1% ABV
Price: $90
Number of barrels: 155

This whiskey was distilled in winter 2005 and aged in warehouses D, I, and P.

Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye
Style: Straight rye
Age: 6 years old
Proof: 63.6% ABV
Price: $90
Number of barrels: 72

Distilled in spring 2011, the barrels were aged on the third, fourth, and fifth floors of the K, L, and Q warehouses.

Eagle Rare 17 Year Old
Style: Straight bourbon
Age: 17 years old
Proof: 45% ABV
Price: $90
Number of barrels: 36

This whiskey’s barrels matured on the first, second, and third floors of warehouses C, K, and P.

Sazerac Rye 18 Year Old
Style: Straight rye
Age: 18 years old
Proof: 45% ABV
Price: $90
Number of barrels: 25

This whiskey was distilled in the spring of 1998 and spent 18 years aging in new charred oak barrels. In 2016 the barrels were emptied into a stainless steel tank to prevent further maturation and evaporation.

Good luck and may the Bourbon gods be with you!