Bourbon Hunters, Rejoice: Buffalo Trace Just Dropped Eagle Rare 12 Year

(Photo: Buffalo Trace)

On Monday, Buffalo Trace announced it is expanding its critically acclaimed bourbon catalog with a permanent offering sure to be snatched up by collectors within days.

The Frankfort, Kentucky-based distillery has unveiled Eagle Rare 12, the latest addition to a lineup that includes myriad “unicorn” bourbons including Eagle Rare 10, Eagle Rare 25 and Double Eagle Very Rare. Distilled from Buffalo Trace’s Mashbill #1 (widely believed to contain roughly 90% corn), the new age statement is said to boast a sweet almond aroma alongside flavors of vanilla, toasted oak and warm toffee.

The expression is bottled at 47.5% ABV and hosts a suggested retail price of $49.99 — a figure that will likely double once the bourbon finds its way to retailers.

“This whiskey represents more than just time in the barrel—it’s the result of years of dedication, innovation, and an unwavering commitment from our entire team,” Buffalo Trace Master Distiller Harlen Wheatley remarked in a news release. “The investments we’ve made – in time, resources and effort – have allowed us to explore new possibilities in aging and flavor, and this release is a proud reflection of that journey.”

Buffalo Trace says that its recently completed $1.2 billion expansion project was “pivotal” in bringing Eagle Rare 12 to life, though it didn’t add many more details beyond that. The expansion, which has been over a decade in the making, reportedly added additional fermenters, 11 new warehouses and a 40-foot-tall still capable of producing 60,000 gallons a day. The distillery announced in early 2023 that it would soon be able to double its annual whiskey capacity thanks to the revamp. Eagle Rare 12 appears to be one of the first fruits of that labor.

It’s the latest in a string of unexpected news from America’s oldest distillery. Last month, Buffalo Trace announced that it was shaking up its annual Antique Collection with the addition of E.H. Taylor Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon. The collection — which includes Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye Whiskey, George T. Stagg, Sazerac 18-Year-Old, William Larue Weller and Eagle Rare 17-Year-Old — had remained otherwise unchanged since 2006.

Eagle Rare 12 is slated to release at select bars, restaurants and retailers across the United States beginning June 2025, which additional markets to follow in Fall 2025.

“At Buffalo Trace Distillery, we believe there are no shortcuts to create outstanding whiskey – there is no substitute for quality time spent in the barrel. With Eagle Rare, we are always striving but never satisfied, constantly experimenting to enable better-tasting age stated bourbons,” Buffalo Trace Distillery Global Brand Director Andrew Duncan added. “When it was introduced, Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey brought higher quality standards to whiskey around the world; now, Eagle Rare pushes the bounds of age stating excellence in Bourbon.”