2020 Buffalo Trace Antique Collection Review
It’s time, folks - time to taste through the big boys of the hunting season: the 2020 Buffalo Trace Antique Collection (BTAC). This annual release of 5 whiskies is probably the top prize of the season, equal or greater to the Pappy craze. We have:
George T. Stagg (GTS)
William Larue Weller (WLW)
Eagle Rare 17 YO (ER17)
Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye (THH)
Sazerac 18 YO Rye (Saz18)
The Buffalo Trace Antique Collection. Photo lovingly taken from Distillery Trail
Before 2020, I had only ever tried one BTAC - the 2019 George T. Stagg (GTS) - and god was it delicious. Pure, raw bourbon power, brown sugar, heat, black pepper, oak, just beautiful.
This year, I got to try all five.
In the end, my favorites were clear, and I’ve got a bottle of each to prove it. A few caveats: I didn’t taste blind, as I was familiar enough with the styles that I could either pick out a type or an age, and frankly if you’re tasting all five of these I don’t think there’s really a point to blinding (that being said - if you’re trying different years of the same line, blinding is fantastic).
Let’s see how they ranked…
George T. Stagg 2020 Release
The perennial powerhouse of the BTAC line, GTS came back to its 130+ proof roots after a dip to 116 in 2019. I loved the 2019 and didn’t care about the proof. Now, having tasted the 2020, I see why a higher proof with this line can make all the difference.
Read the Full George T. Stagg Review!
William Larue weller 2020 Release
The wheater to end all wheaters - WLW is regularly the most coveted BTAC line. Buffalo Trace did not release actual bottle totals this year, following their procedure in 2019. It’s unlikely we’ll see numbers from them again, but it was clear this year WLW was even rarer than usual.
Read the Full William Larue Weller Review!
Sazerac 18 YO 2020
The Saz 18 is the granddaddy of the BTAC line, being the highest in age (18YO) and, oddly, the lowest in proof (90º). Was this an oak bomb? a watery mess? Or a syrupy rye that fans foam at the mouth for?
Read the Full Sazerac 18 Year Old Review!
Eagle Rare 17 YO 2020 Release
Most of my fears about the Saz 18 also apply to the ER 17. Oaky? watery? Delicious? This is the bottle that goes for the most on secondary markets - Did this live up to the price or the hype?
Read the Full Eagle Rare 17 Review!
Thomas H. Handy Rye 2020 Release
The youngin’ in the BTAC lineup, THH registers at only six years old! Hardly antique, but that’s a different story. This is the polar opposite of its Saz 18 cousin - high proof, low(er) age, higher placement in the warehouses (rumors only on the latter). This was probably the one I knew least about but looked forward to most after the top two - I love a good, hot rye, and this didn’t disappoint.
Read the Full Thomas Handy Sazerac Review!
Final Rankings and thoughts:
George T. Stagg and William Larue Weller, tied at 10.0/10
Thomas H. Handy Rye, 6.8/10
Sazerac 18 YO Rye, 6.5/10
Eagle Rare 17 YO, 5.4/10
Buffalo Trace Antique Collection Analysis:
Look, I’m a proof hound and I know it, so the George T. Stagg and William Larue Weller might have an edge (the THH too, for that matter). But there’s no denying that this year Buffalo Trace put out a double whopper with those two - I tried them both multiple times and couldn’t score any time below a 9.8 for either, leading me to a perfect 10.0 score. I searched both for flaws - maybe there are some, but for me, these two were just perfect hits and everything I want a bourbon to be.
The THH similarly benefits from my proof preference, but make no mistake - it holds its own quite well. It’s a serious, punchy rye with complexity and character. When I drank it, it felt like a statement piece, that a relatively young rye could stand among these over-aged whiskies and fit right in. I might not hunt this as hard as the GTS or WLW, but I would happily have this on my bar any day.
The biggest disappointment? The Eagle Rare 17 YO. Just oaky, watery, and lacking anything more than “meh”. The Sazerac at least has some flavor to back it up, albeit a weakened one-note flavor. But if I wanted oak water, I’d make some myself. I’ll admit, I don’t particularly like the regular Eagle Rare 10 YO, so maybe there’s something about that line that doesn’t agree with my palate. Either way, I’m awarding the ER 17 my low score for this year.
