Buffalo Trace Prohibition Collection (2023) Review

Buffalo Trace Prohibition Collection (2023) Review

Buffalo Trace Distillery is beefing up their already esteemed (and highly sought-after) limited releases. In addition to the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection and the Pappy Van Winkle lineup, the distillery recently announced the Prohibition Collection, an annual release of whiskeys honoring brands from a bygone age. This first release features a set of five 375ml bottles and has a suggested retail of $1000.

During American Prohibition, George T. Stagg Distillery — the predecessor to Buffalo Trace — was granted one of six licenses to bottle medicinal whiskey. The first Prohibition Collection release resurrects five brands produced on site at that time.

• Walnut Hill, a 90-proof high-rye bourbon
• Three Feathers, a Bottled-in-Bond whiskey
• Golden Wedding, a 107-proof rye whiskey
• George T. Stagg Spiritus Frumenti, a 110-proof wheated bourbon
• Old Stagg, a barrel proof (in this case 132.4 proof) uncut, unfiltered whiskey

The distillery has not released any additional information on each expression’s mash bill, blend, or age.

Harlen Wheatley, Buffalo Trace’s Master Distiller, tells VinePair the Prohibition Collection is the result of a multi-decade planning effort. “There were decades of research, ideation, and planning before we began production, and then several years for aging and storage for each of the expressions after distillation.”

According to Wheatley, none of the whiskey in this collection came from barrels originally designated for 2021 George T. Stagg (a release which famously was withheld due to what Buffalo Trace said were quality standard issues).

While the Prohibition Collection is a planned annual release, Buffalo Trace Archaeologist Nick Laracuente told me the distillery is looking to bring back more Prohibition-era brands down the road.

“We have many more records of brands that passed through our distillery during Prohibition. As long as there are no unsurmountable trademark hurdles, we plan on telling some of these stories in the future.”

Buffalo Trace’s Prohibition Collection has already made waves for its price tag, market positioning as a box set, and some mystery regarding the components of each expression. Let’s dive in and see how they actually taste.

Buffalo Trace Prohibition Collection: Stats and Availability

Buffalo Trace’s 2023 release of the Prohibition Collection has a suggested retail price of $999.99 for the set and display case of five 375ml bottles. Because this release is the first of its kind, it’s tough to tell exactly what sort of premium the collection may command over retail. Given the frequent markups on limited release Buffalo Trace products — along with the fact that such a box set has an added collectability factor — I wouldn’t be surprised to see this on shelves for significantly higher. Whether or not consumers actually buy it for an unknown quantity is another question.

According to Buffalo Trace, this collection will be distributed in “limited quantities” to select retailers, bars, and restaurants across the United States. But there’s at least one state where we won’t see this on shelves. While Buffalo Trace declined to disclose exactly which areas would receive the product, states that have a restriction on selling combo packs of alcohol will be excluded. That includes New York.

Buffalo Trace also declined to disclose additional information regarding bottle count or release size.

Buffalo Trace Prohibition Collection Review

Below are notes and ratings for each of the five whiskeys in this year’s Prohibition Collection release; they were tasted and reviewed in order of increasing proof. As with all of VinePair’s whiskey reviews, these were tasted in a Glencairn glass and rested for at least five minutes.

Walnut Hill Bourbon Review

This 90-proof expression likely comes from Buffalo Trace’s higher-rye bourbon mash bill, though that’s technically unconfirmed.

Nose

There’s an immediate burst of medicinal orange, followed by cherry cough drops, making this a pharmacist’s one-two punch. (In reality more enticing than it sounds!) That’s followed by an undercurrent of corn pudding, which lingers through the rest of the nose. Shortly after appear some oaky notes that lean on the greener, younger side, with the wood showing through without a particularly heavy char influence.

Taste

Light peach and plum kick off a very fruity palate, fresher than the nose suggests. It’s lightly sweet without a lot of noticeable rye spice.

Walnut Hill features a surprisingly thin mouthfeel that carries a little heat and a touch of rye spice — cinnamon, mostly — but this whiskey doesn’t stick around on the tongue long enough for those notes to have a huge impact.

Finish

The finish is smokier than expected, like a small campfire; it’s not quite peat but certainly not sweet barbecue. And at the very end, we get a return of that medicinal cherry cough drop.

Walnut Hill Bourbon Rating

87/100

Three Feathers Whiskey Review

This is simply labeled a “Bottled-in-Bond Whiskey,” which implies it could be a blend of different whiskeys: bourbon, rye, and potentially even some whiskey aged in used cooperage. It’s easy to speculate but impossible to nail down unless esteemed blender Drew Mayville discloses his exact blend. (Unlikely!)

Nose

Wowza, that’s rich, and no single note sticks out above the crowd at first sniff. While Walnut Hill didn’t bring a ton of barrel influence, char and oak sugars make their presence known, along with scraped vanilla bean, cardamom, and a remarkable (but not overpowering) amount of anise. Great blended whiskeys start with balance on the nose, and Drew Mayville’s concoction is off to a good start.

Taste

Drinking well below its 100 proof, Three Feathers leads with butterscotch and malted milk balls. Dried apricot comes in across the midpalate, along with pecan flavoring one might use to punch up a batch of sugar cookies.

The brand tasting notes highlight “light tropical fruit,” but while there’s some fruitiness here, I don’t get the beachfront cornucopia that might imply.

Finish

A long finish — it really does keep going — builds on the malted milk ball and light chocolate notes, and it’s here I finally sense anything close to 100 proof as far as alcohol content. I’m impressed with how this sticks around, gradually transitioning from sweet chocolate into a semi-sweet, dark chocolate finish.

Three Feathers Whiskey Rating

92/100

Golden Wedding Rye Review

Again, we don’t have an age statement or much more info here beyond the fact this is a rye bottled at 107 proof.

Nose

The nose is one of the most herbal I’ve ever smelled from Buffalo Trace; you might be able to talk me into thinking this was MGP. Both fresh mint and spearmint are backed by baked cloves, toasted almonds, and banana bread. There’s a tiny (tiny!) bit of green onion here, and I’m quite intrigued. Overall the nose is fresh and green, not quite cut grass but certainly in the ballpark with enough time.

Taste

Those herbal notes transition to dill at first sip, and it’s carried by a thick mouthfeel that fully coats the tongue. That leads to long, lingering notes, and the dill transitions into sweeter characteristics, including a fairly unmistakeable pink bubblegum. This is definitely rye showing its strength as a whiskey with a broad range of potential flavors in each pour.

Finish

As the dill dissipates, some fruity notes develop in the transition from back of the palate to the finish. Cooked fruit — baked pears — and cinnamon linger here, and mint makes its way back into the fray.

Golden Wedding Rye Rating

93/100

George T. Stagg Distillery Spiritus Frumenti

A wheated George T. Stagg? I never thought we’d see the day. And at 110 proof, I’m hoping it holds up to the punchiness we’ve come to expect from others in the modern Stagg line.

Nose

Maybe I’m biased by the backstory, but the nose is forward with medicinal cherry, not unlike some more recent releases of William Larue Weller. (That would make sense given the wheated mash bill!) Dark fruits, including blackcurrants and crushed blackberries, pair with a nostril-clearing amount of ground black pepper. There’s some rich tannic influence, and while we don’t have anything close to age statements for these expressions, this noses the oldest of the bunch thus far.

Taste

It’s peppery on the nose with a smooth transition to black cherry on the tongue. Orange zest, lemon, and even grapefruit march in after with a procession of citrus. There’s pepper as well, but it’s lighter and of the finely ground white variety. Oak and fruit are the predominant flavors here, and again I can’t help but thinking of some more recent William Larue releases — a welcome comparison to one of Buffalo Trace’s best annual products. At 110 proof, the ABV is decidedly lower, but with a similar impact of flavor.

Finish

A mid-length finish stretches out those citrus notes paired with increasing citrus, and this turns into lingering lemon cake with vanilla frosting. Tasty indeed. After 15 seconds, though, it may trend just a touch sour. That’s a mild criticism for a very, very good pour.

Spiritus Frumenti Rating

95/100

Old Stagg

At 132.4 proof, this is the only cask strength whiskey in the set. And it’s worth noting the brand didn’t specify which type of whiskey here, implying it’s likely not a straight bourbon or rye. (Again, unconfirmed.)

Nose

For a 130+ proof whiskey, the nose isn’t punching very hard in the Glencairn glass. It’s a bit subdued, actually, and takes its time to open up. Once it does, it’s like a who’s who of traditional bourbon notes: caramel (I’d argue more praline), vanilla, oak, and (lightly) cooked banana.

Fortunately, after lengthy minutes, we have something else! The most interesting, oddball note is that of red bell pepper, which adds a welcome crispness.

Taste

Instantly leathery and a bit drying, the whiskey makes you work for that caramel sweetness, though it eventually blossoms toward the back of the palate. There’s much more fruit here than the nose implied, but of the dark and dried variety, including cherry, raisins, and figs.

This drinks way below its 132.4 proof. I had to recheck the sample bottle’s label three or four times.

Finish

This modern iteration of Old Stagg has one of the smoothest (am I allowed to use that term?) finishes I’ve tried on a 130+ proof brown spirit. It’s crème brûlée and vanilla macarons all the way down, with an extraordinarily light but present hug down the throat. Old Stagg takes its time to introduce itself, but it ends that introduction on a very high note.

Old Stagg Rating

92/100

Buffalo Trace Prohibition Collection Rating

• Walnut Hill, 87/100
• Three Feathers, 92/100
• Golden Wedding, 93/100
• George T. Stagg Spiritus Frumenti, 95/100
• Old Stagg, 92/100

Buffalo Trace Prohibition Collection Recap

With their first-ever Prohibition Collection release, Buffalo Trace has rolled out five expressions that stand apart as individual whiskeys; there’s a great variety of flavor here. I do wish we had more information regarding the actual liquid in each bottle, and it will be up to consumers whether they want to take the $1000+ plunge for five whiskeys without any age statement.

There’s also a high level of collectability, and while this lineup was extraordinarily fun to taste, it’s an awfully expensive exercise with a collection that varies in quality from one to the next. My hope is that enough of these make it into the hands of bars and restaurants willing to charge reasonable prices so that fans can actually experience the lineup themselves. And hopefully some generous individual consumers will crack and share with their friends!

If you’re going to spring for a tasting of the Buffalo Trace Prohibition Collection, I’d highly (highly!) recommend tasting them all side-by-side. Comparing and contrasting — especially with other folks — is going to be half the fun here.