Eagle Rare Aged 12 Years Bourbon Review

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After months of cryptic hints from retailers, distributors and social media leaks, Buffalo Trace officially confirmed what some enthusiasts had been speculating on for a while: a 12-year-old version of Eagle Rare would be released in the summer of 2025, and for a *holds in laughter* surprisingly approachable MSRP.

Eagle Rare 12 Year – the next iteration in a long history

Over the decades, Eagle Rare has evolved not only by which distillery distilled it (Four Roses/Old Prentice to Heaven Hill to Buffalo Trace) but with shifting age statements, proof and single-barrel designations coming and going. Buffalo Trace’s parent company Sazerac realized how much of a hit they had on their hands since around 2016. That’s when its popularity blew up and finding it on the shelf (especially at MSRP) has been increasingly difficult.

This hasn’t stopped Buffalo Trace from branching out the historic nameplate even more over the past few years. On top of the standard 10-year-old single barrel and 17-year-old BTAC version, we now have the ultra-exclusive Double Eagle Very Rare and – more recently – a ridiculous 25-year-old version. Those last two won’t get into the hands (or glasses) of most enthusiasts, so Buffalo Trace went back to the drawing board on how to improve upon the 10-year-old version while also utilizing available stocks. A 12-year version was their solution.

What is Eagle Rare 12?

Obviously the label tells us that this is 2 years old and 5 proof points higher than the 10 year version. But one of the most significant changes – in my opinion – comes with the fact that it’s not a single barrel. It’s batched now. This is fine by me because I sometimes find Eagle Rare single barrels lacking in one or two flavor profiles that I’ve experienced in other single barrels. A batched product should ensure a very well-rounded bourbon that contains all of the very best traits of that label. And to prove that I’m usually on board with batched products over single barrels, I feel this way about Weller Full Proof as well.

The barrels used to make Eagle Rare contain (apparently) Buffalo Trace Mash Bill #1 Bourbon. I say “apparently” because many barrel pick groups have reported over the years that they selected an Eagle Rare barrel that was marked as Buffalo Trace Mash Bill #2 Bourbon. For the uninitiated, that is the bourbon typically reserved for Blanton’s, Elmer T Lee, Hancock’s Reserve, Rock Hill Farms and Ancient/Ancient Ancient Age Bourbon.

The standard Buffalo Trace response of how that happens is “we use bourbon depending on the final profile when it matures, not the exact mash bill it carries.” So I guess my question is – did any MB #2 barrels end up in this blend?

But I thought there was a shortage of Eagle Rare?

Enthusiasts’ number one gripe with Buffalo Trace – and perhaps bourbon in general – is how demand for an existing product is never met before a new version of that product comes out. Case-and-point: There isn’t enough Eagle Rare 10 Year to satisfy demand just yet, so why are they releasing a new version?

I will toss Buffalo Trace a bone and say that their production is catching up with demand at an incredible pace over the last 12 months. Their upgraded stills and new campus full of giant rickhouses has finally provided the forecast necessary to believe they aren’t that far from achieving some sort of supply/demand equilibrium with most of their products.

I personally believe that if they were to solve the Eagle Rare SiB problem in a month by shipping out 100 cases to every store in America (an unreal expectation, but go with me for a minute), that it would lose all of its star power and people would stop chasing it. We’re finding this to be the case with lots of Buffalo Trace products whereby the crowds aren’t as big as they used to be now that the gift shop routinely has large amounts of Blanton’s, EH Taylor, Eagle Rare and so on.

So will Eagle Rare 12 become a permanent addition to the BT lineup? I think so. But we’ll wait to see how the year wraps up and if there is more availability or not. In the meantime, let’s see how this first release shapes up. Thanks to my friend James, I get a chance to try it. Here’s my thoughts. I sampled this neat in a glencairn.

Tasting Notes

Nose: The wood notes on the nose are the first thing that draws me in. Obviously there is a nice amount of sweet oak and seasoned oak, but I’m also finding cedar cigar box scents. This smells very similar to a Weller 12 (which I am a fan of and don’t give a lot of hate to). The caramel and vanilla bean notes combine to create the scent of Flan. Another sweet note I can smell is almost like a molasses. The theme, I guess, is that the sweets on the nose smell heavier and darker than a normal Eagle Rare. Fruit notes are also darker and more concentrated with cherry being the most obvious. Baking spices join in the fun and I’m getting a good amount of cinnamon and allspice. I think the nose is just as good as the palate.

Palate: The tannic notes on the nose are just as intense on the tongue. The oak has an old – almost varnish-like – taste to it that mingles with leather and char. The Flan note on the nose turns into toffee. But where I think this bottle really gets its sweetness from is the fruit. There is a nice dark fruit compote taste (blackberry? fig?). It’s almost like a syrup. Speaking of syrup, I can find a little bit of grape cough syrup that would be indicative of both Eagle Rare’s fascinating grape note and the its almost “high rye” taste profile. Baking spices further hammer home the point with cinnamon, clove, a touch of anise. This is a really nice taste profile that I can tell are like 3/4 the way there to the spectacular Eagle Rare 17 releases I’ve had.

Finish: Long, warming, and balanced. Vanilla and toffee linger with oak tannins. Everything is very sweet. There is a bit of pop and heat on the finish with cinnamon, tingly chili and cherry cough syrup. Whatever it is, it’s really enjoyable. Grape and cocoa powder trails off slowly, leaving a sort of dry/fruity/sweet state of equilibrium that invites another sip.

Score: 8.2/10

UNFORTUNATELY Buffalo Trace did a really good job with this Eagle Rare release. The 12 years in a barrel added more depth than the 10 without drowning in oak. The proof feels dialed for approachability. I would want it to match the 101 of ER17, but I understand that Buffalo Trace doesn’t do this because they don’t want to have the BTAC version lose its street cred. But wow, does it come close. If I could find this at the suggested $50 price point, I’d drink this every day. I hate that I just typed that

Final Thoughts

I promise I’m not a Buffalo Trace fanboy. I try to hate them as much as possible, but dammit, Eagle Rare 12 is really good. Of course people know this and are ready to prey on people like me with the secondary market not really budging off of the $200 price. So aside from availability and maybe a little bit more proof, there are really no faults to find on this release. If they ever make this at least as available as ER10, the world would be a better place to live in. But for now, I will have to savor the few drops I have remaining in the hopes that I can land my own bottle in the future.

In summary, if you’re a fan of ER10 and wanted just a bit more maturity and proof without stepping into BTAC territory, this is your pour. Personally, I appreciate that it drinks like a well-produced, age-stated daily sipper (laughs) rather than a trophy bottle you can’t open.

Epilogue

Hey Buffalo Trace, if you’re listening, I’m offering you this idea for the next iteration of Eagle Rare (or any Buffalo Trace single barrel) – give us a warehouse identifier on the label for them! I think it would be a hit and is already a growing trend in the bourbon landscape (Russell’s Reserve Single Rickhouse, Four Roses Barrel Strength Single Barrels, Old Forester 117 Series Warehouse __ Barrels, etc). I’ll even volunteer to taste them all – strictly for research.