Stagg Jr. Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Stagg Jr. · Buffalo Trace Distillery
Stagg Jr. delivers barrel-proof intensity without losing its composure. This is a bourbon that rewards patience — a splash of water opens a secondary layer of vanilla and corn sweetness. It belongs in the conversation with whiskeys twice its price.
Nose
An avalanche of dark cherry and charred oak hits first, followed by waves of brown sugar and leather. Beneath the initial intensity, roasted pecans and a thread of dark chocolate emerge with patience.
Palate
Full-bodied and unapologetically bold. Butterscotch and tobacco intertwine with ripe cherry and espresso-dark caramel. Despite the proof, there is a surprising evenness — the sweetness and spice negotiate rather than fight.
Finish
Long and warming, with charred oak, dark cocoa, and lingering cherry. The tobacco note persists well after the glass is empty.
- Mash Bill
- Mashbill #1: Corn, Rye, Malted Barley (exact percentages undisclosed)
- Barrel Type
- New charred American oak
- Bottled in Bond
- No
- Single Barrel
- No
- Wheated
- No
Cocktail Suggestion
Black Walnut Old Fashioned — 2 oz Stagg Jr. · 0.25 oz black walnut liqueur · 2 dashes Angostura bitters · 1 dash orange bitters · Stir over a large ice cube, express an orange peel over the surface.
Food Pairing
Smoked beef short ribs with a coffee-ancho chile rub
Distilled at the storied Buffalo Trace facility in Frankfort, Kentucky, Stagg Jr. carries the DNA of the legendary George T. Stagg — uncut, unfiltered, and pulled from barrels aged in the center-cut of Warehouse C.
Be the first to comment.
Leave a comment
Rhum J.M 10 Year Old Rhum Agricole Vieux
Rhum J.M
Distillerie J.M sits on the volcanic slopes of Mont Pelée where sugarcane is pressed fresh and fermented with wild yeasts. At ten years, the raw agricole power has been tempered by tropical aging into something poised and layered — a rhum that never forgets its cane origins but has learned patience.
Chattanooga Whiskey Cask 111 High Malt Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Chattanooga Whiskey
Chattanooga Whiskey has built its identity around experimental mash bills, and Cask 111 is the proof of concept distilled to its essence. The high malt proportion delivers a texture and sweetness profile unlike traditional bourbons, rewarding drinkers who want something genuinely different without sacrificing depth.
Glendronach 21 Year Old Parliament
GlenDronach
Parliament earns its name through the gravity and deliberation of two decades in oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks. This is GlenDronach at its most authoritative — sherry-forward without sweetness fatigue, and layered enough to reward an hour of slow sipping.
Capreolus Damson Eau de Vie Gin
Capreolus
Barney Wilczak's one-man distillery applies the logic of eau de vie — capture fruit in its purest form — to gin production. The result is a gin with unusual depth and texture, where the base spirit is a feature, not an afterthought. Distinctive without being eccentric.
Chattanooga Whiskey Cask 111 High Malt Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Chattanooga Whiskey
Chattanooga Whiskey has built its identity around experimental mash bills, and Cask 111 is the proof of concept distilled to its essence. The high malt proportion delivers a texture and sweetness profile unlike traditional bourbons, rewarding drinkers who want something genuinely different without sacrificing depth.
Michter's US*1 Kentucky Straight Bourbon
Michter's
Michter's US*1 Kentucky Straight delivers the kind of polished warmth that rewards attention without demanding it. The heavy char influence gives it a toasted backbone, but the blend is balanced enough to stay accessible. A benchmark for what well-managed heat can do inside a barrel.
Kentucky Peerless Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey
Peerless
Kentucky Peerless represents what happens when a young distillery takes no shortcuts — sweet mash, no chill filtration, barrel proof. The result is a bourbon that's simultaneously bold and disciplined, with enough negative space between its flavors for each to land clearly.
Woodford Reserve Wheat Whiskey
Woodford Reserve
This is bourbon's quieter cousin — a wheat whiskey that trades punch for poise. It rewards slow sipping and proves that restraint can carry as much complexity as cask strength bravado. An excellent entry point into wheat whiskeys for bourbon drinkers ready to explore.