All Buffalo Trace Brands

This is a very rare bottling of a single barrel pappy van winkle 15 year selected and bottled for Civic Center Liquor in San Francisco back in 2004.  Unlike the current releases of pappy van winkle 15 year which contain a wheated bourbon recipe distilled by Buffalo Trace, this limited bottling was from a hand selected private cask of the legendary Stitzel-Weller wheated bourbon, aged at least 15 years and bottled at 107pf.

The ultimate Mother's Day or birthday gift. An inviting and rustic custom handcrafted wooden gift box with a brass nameplate with the engraving "World's Best Mom" that teases the fact that someone special is about to open something equally special. As you open the antique latch, it reveals a felt top that has been covering 2 hand-blown glasses and a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon Aged 20 Years laying gently and securely in a batch of hypoallergenic antique packing straw. The exterior dimensions of this one of a kind gift box are 14.75″W x 10.75″D x 5.75″H. Because each box is handmade, quantities are limited and delivery is expected in 10 business days.

The ultimate Mother's Day or birthday gift. An inviting and rustic custom handcrafted wooden gift box with a brass nameplate with the engraving "World's Best Mom" that teases the fact that someone special is about to open something equally special. As you open the antique latch, it reveals a felt top that has been covering 2 hand-blown glasses and a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon Aged 15 Years laying gently and securely in a batch of hypoallergenic antique packing straw. The exterior dimensions of this one of a kind gift box are 14.75″W x 10.75″D x 5.75″H. Because each box is handmade, quantities are limited and delivery is expected in 10 business days.

The ultimate Mother's Day or birthday gift. An inviting and rustic custom handcrafted wooden gift box with a brass nameplate with the engraving "World's Best Mom" that teases the fact that someone special is about to open something equally special. As you open the antique latch, it reveals a felt top that has been covering 2 hand-blown glasses and a bottle of Van Winkle Special Reserve Bourbon Aged 12 Years laying gently and securely in a batch of hypoallergenic antique packing straw. The exterior dimensions of this one of a kind gift box are 14.75″W x 10.75″D x 5.75″H. Because each box is handmade, quantities are limited and please inquire for expedited shipping.

A true collectors Rye with an intricate and storied past! The Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye is age stated as 13 years old, but is in fact 19 years old. It's the Pappy of ryes, or so the story goes. In fact, Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye was not actually distilled at Stitzel-Weller. The distillery from which the 2008 rye comes is the Medley distillery in Owensboro. However in 2004, when the rye was moved to stainless steel tanks, it was blended with rye distilled at Cream of Kentucky (Old Bernheim). The 2008 is particularly sought after as it is rumored that in 2012, 4 years later, Buffalo Trace began added their own rye to the blend, making the 2008 an example of a pure Medley/Bernheim Rye. Lastly, The move to stainless steel tanks was done to arrest the aging process which actually makes the 2008 vintage a 19 year rye even thought it is labeled as a 13 year.

A true collectors Rye with an intricate and storied past! The Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye is age stated as 13 years old, but is in fact 19 years old. It's the Pappy of ryes, or so the story goes. In fact, Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye was not actually distilled at Stitzel-Weller. The distillery from which the 2008 rye comes is the Medley distillery in Owensboro. However in 2004, when the rye was moved to stainless steel tanks, it was blended with rye distilled at Cream of Kentucky (Old Bernheim). The 2008 is particularly sought after as it is rumored that in 2012, 4 years later, Buffalo Trace began added their own rye to the blend, making the 2008 an example of a pure Medley/Bernheim Rye. Lastly, The move to stainless steel tanks was done to arrest the aging process which actually makes the 2008 vintage a 19 year rye even thought it is labeled as a 13 year.

In 1893, when he was 18 years old, Julian "Pappy" Van Winkle Sr. began working as a salesman for the liquor wholesaler, W.L. Weller & Sons. Fifteen years later, he and another Weller salesman bought the firm. In 1910 they acquired the A. Ph. Stitzel Distillery in Louisville, Kentucky, which had started as a sour mash whiskey distillery in 1872.

The Stitzel Distillery supplied much of the whiskey sold by the Weller wholesale firm. The consolidation coincided with prohibition, during which time the Stitzel-Weller firm was licensed by the government to produce whiskey for medicinal purposes. One of their labels that was introduced on the market just before prohibition was Old Rip Van Winkle. After prohibition, the brand was not reintroduced until after 1972 when the Stitzel-Weller distillery and its current brand names (including W. L. Weller, Old Fitzgerald, Rebel Yell, and Cabin Still) were sold to other companies.The only brand name the Van Winkle family had kept the rights to was the pre-prohibition brand Old Rip Van Winkle.

The Stitzel-Weller Distillery was opened on the day of the Kentucky Derby in 1935, just outside Louisville in Shively, Kentucky. At the time of his death in 1965 at the age of 89, Pappy Van Winkle was the oldest active distiller in the nation. A photo of him lighting a cigar graces the bottle's label.

Sometime after the Stitzel-Weller distillery was sold in 1972, Julian Van Winkle, Jr. resurrected the pre-prohibition Old Rip Van Winkle brand and initially used old whiskey stocks from the distillery for its bottlings. Julian Jr. died in 1981 and Julian Van Winkle, III (Pappy's grandson) took over the Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery company.

After the initial sale in 1972, the Stitzel-Weller distillery was eventually closed completely in 1991.

Since 2002, the Van Winkle brands have been distilled and bottled by the Sazerac Company at the Buffalo Trace Distillery as a joint venture with the Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery company.

In 2013, Julian Preston Van Winkle III, said the 2013 bottlings of the 23-year brand expression "may be the last of its kind", since at that point there was very little left of the aging stock from the Stitzel-Weller distillery (although he said the brand would not be discontinued). The makers say that they do not want to boost production, as there is considerable long-term risk, and they do not want to be left holding copious quantities of unsaleable bourbon should tastes, fashions or circumstances change.

An incredibly rare offering from the Van Winkle family reserve. This was bottled in 1991 by Julian Van Winkle III. His father, Julian II, had retained an office at the old Stitzel-Weller distillery following his forced sale of it in the 1970s, but this hospitality was not extended to his son, who had to buy Hoffman distillery in 1983, re-naming it Old Commonwealth. There he bottled much of the best-regarded whiskey in America, including Nathan Stone's, Very Olde St. Nick, the A.H. Hirsch Reserve, and this, the Van Winkle Family Reserve. It is believed this Van Winkle family reserve bourbon was sourced from Boone distillery, where it was barreled in 1974. It was bottled twice: this one in 1991, and first at 16 years old in 1990. Both were intended for the Japanese market, who were at the time more willing to pay premium prices for well-aged bourbon. Van Winkle III continued to bottle at Old Commonwealth until 2002, when thinning stocks necessitated an agreement with the Sazerac company, who warehoused his remaining barrels, and produced limited quantities of Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve on an annual basis until it finally ran out. It is now distilled at Buffalo Trace using Pappy's old recipe. These original bottles of Boone distilled Van Winkle reserves are incredibly rare and sought after in equal measure. Fun fact: Van Winkle has stated that he "got away" with using red wax here as Maker's Mark only held the trademark in the US.

Fall 2013 release of Sazerac 18 Year from the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection

Fall 2012 release of Sazerac 18 Year from the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection

Fall 2011 release of Sazerac 18 Year from the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection

Buffalo Trace Antique Collection Eagle Rare 17 - Fall 2005

From Buffalo Trace: 

For Immediate Release

Buffalo Trace Distillery Announces the Winning
Single Oak Project Bourbon
The Holy Grail Project yields invaluable research results

FRANKFORT, FRANKLIN COUNTY, KY (June 18, 2015) – The public has
spoken and Single Oak Project Barrel #80 has been chosen as their favorite bourbon,
while Buffalo Trace Distillery has gained a wealth of information through this research,
such as how entry proof, wood grain, and even the cut of the tree can affect the taste of
bourbon.
Over the past four years, Buffalo Trace Distillery has been incrementally
releasing 192 different bottlings of the Single Oak Project Bourbon and asking whiskey
enthusiasts to vote on their favorite at www.singleoakproject.com. The ambitious goal of
this research was to create the perfect bourbon, based on feedback from bourbon
drinkers. In total, 5,645 people participated in the Single Oak Project which collected
5,086 unique whiskey reviews. On average, each of the 192 whiskies was evaluated 26.2
times.
The Single Oak Project is part of an intensive research project Buffalo Trace
Distillery started back in 1999 by hand-picking and harvesting 96 individual oak trees
with varying wood grains. Each tree would yield two barrels, one from the top half of the
tree and one from the bottom, 192 unique barrels in total.

Seven different variables were studied over the course of the project: recipe
(wheat or rye); entry proof (105 proof or 125 proof); stave seasoning (six months or 12
months); grain size (tight, average, or coarse grains); warehouse (concrete floor or
wooden rick floor); char level (number three or number four char); and tree cut (top or
bottom half of the tree).
The winning bourbon from Barrel #80 was a rye recipe bourbon, entered into a
barrel made from oak harvested from the bottom half of the tree with staves seasoned for
12 months. The grain size of the wood was considered average and the barrel received a
number four char inside. The whiskey entered the barrel at 125 proof and was aged in a
concrete floor warehouse. All of the Single Oak Project bourbons were aged for eight
years.
Along with helping to select the perfect bourbon, the online reviews provided
invaluable whiskey research. For example, bourbons that produced the best aroma were
made with a wheat recipe, entered at 105 proof, and aged in barrels whose staves
seasoned for six months, in wood made from the bottom half of the tree. If flavor is your
most important factor when picking a bourbon, then the research shows barrels made
from the bottom half of the tree were a safer bet. And for those looking for the smoothest
finish, a bourbon aged in barrels from (again!) the bottom half of the tree, but with a
number three char and 9 tree growth rings per inch scored the highest. It is important to
note these results are not intended to speak for the industry and only pertain to Buffalo
Trace Distillery’s whiskeys.
“The knowledge gained from conducting this research experiment is priceless,”
stated Mark Brown, president and chief executive officer of Buffalo Trace Distillery.
“We can now compare and confirm how each of these variables in the bourbon making
process affects the finished product, which will only refine our experimental program and
help us create even better whiskeys in the future.”
Buffalo Trace Distillery is now making plans to start producing the winning
formula from Barrel #80, for future batches of Single Oak Bourbon. Only one frustration
remains, this can’t happen overnight. The oak must be harvested, staves dried for 12
months, and then the bourbon must be aged for eight years. Mark your calendars for the
year 2025! 
“We are flattered and thankful that so many whiskey connoisseurs took the time
to participate in this experiment,” said Bourbon Marketing Director Kris Comstock.
“Although we’re not quite sure how the tree loggers plan to harvest wood solely from the
bottom half of the trees, we’re eager to get more barrels and start producing more of the
winning Single Oak Project bourbon!”

This very limited 20-year-old bourbon whiskey lives up to its name, maturing twice as long as the standard Eagle Rare 10-year-old bourbon and featuring two beautifully-sculpted crystal glass eagles in the Double Eagle decanter.

A true collectors’ item, Double Eagle Very Rare is presented in a luxurious silver box and crystal decanter. Very few bottles were produced, with an individually-numbered letter of authenticity included with each.

Aged twelve years at Buffalo Trace Distillery, this bourbon is rich and sweet, drawing its character from barrels made of French Oak. An oak that has long been used for aging the world’s finest wine, the tighter grain of French Oak impart more subtle flavors and a silkier texture than its American counterpart. Harvested from the forests of France, the oak barrels that aged this unique bourbon whiskey are honored with each sip. So enjoy this tribute to the French Oak and raise a glass to its storied journey from the forest, to the barrel, to bourbon.

Spring 2016

This rare bourbon ages in oak barrels for nearly two decades and is only available in small quantities once a year, every fall. Sip this polished, well-aged whiskey to appreciate why patience is such a virtue. The fragrant aroma has almost a wine-like character with hints of almond, cigar boxes and cinnamon. The delicate and dry mid-palate tastes of leather, vanilla and tobacco. This bourbon lingers, finishing with hint of leather and toffee.