Buffalo Trace Single Oak Project Bourbon & Rye

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The Buffalo Trace Single Oak Project is an experimental bourbon series produced at Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, in which every variable of production - grain recipe, entry proof, warehouse location, barrel char level, and the specific tree each stave originated from - was isolated and tracked across 192 individual barrels. Each numbered release, from barrel #11 through #145, represents a distinct combination of those variables, making direct comparison between expressions a window into how a single factor shifts flavor from caramel-forward to woodspice-driven. The 375ml format was chosen deliberately to encourage side-by-side tasting, where a lower-numbered barrel like #11 may read entirely differently from #142 despite sharing the same base distillate.
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    Buffalo Trace Single Oak #163 375ml A- - Flask Fine Wine & Whisky
    Buffalo Trace Single Oak #163 375ml A-
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    Buffalo Trace Single Oak #51 375ml - Flask Fine Wine & Whisky
    Buffalo Trace Single Oak Project #51 375ml
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    Description

    The Buffalo Trace Single Oak Project is an experimental bourbon series produced at Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, in which every variable of production - grain recipe, entry proof, warehouse location, barrel char level, and the specific tree each stave originated from - was isolated and tracked across 192 individual barrels. Each numbered release, from barrel #11 through #145, represents a distinct combination of those variables, making direct comparison between expressions a window into how a single factor shifts flavor from caramel-forward to woodspice-driven. The 375ml format was chosen deliberately to encourage side-by-side tasting, where a lower-numbered barrel like #11 may read entirely differently from #142 despite sharing the same base distillate.

    Frequently asked questions

    What is the Buffalo Trace Single Oak Project?

    One of the most ambitious experiments in whiskey history. Buffalo Trace selected 96 individual oak trees, split each into top and bottom halves, and made a barrel from every section, 192 unique barrels, systematically varying factors like mashbill, entry proof, char level, stave seasoning, and warehouse. Each numbered 375ml bottle represents one specific barrel and recipe combination.

    What was the point of the Single Oak Project?

    Buffalo Trace wanted to isolate exactly which variables create great bourbon. Between 2011 and 2015 thousands of drinkers rated the releases, and the data crowned a single winning recipe from Barrel #80, whose formula the distillery committed to recreating. It's whiskey's most famous citizen-science experiment, and the bottles are its artifacts.

    Why are Single Oak Project bottles collectible?

    The releases ended in 2015 and every barrel's bottling is finite and individually numbered, so complete sets and specific barrel numbers, especially the winning #80 and its relatives, are genuine rarities. For Buffalo Trace collectors it's one of the few closed, completable sets from the modern era.

    What's inside a Single Oak Project bottle: bourbon or rye?

    Both exist. The experiment used wheat and rye recipe bourbons across its variables, so bottles differ meaningfully in mashbill as well as barrel treatment, and each release documents its exact recipe parameters. Our listings identify barrel number and known variables, letting collectors target precise combinations.

    Should I open a Single Oak Project bottle or keep it sealed?

    Collectors prize sealed, numbered bottles, and complete or thematic sets carry the strongest premiums, but tasting one is drinking a data point from a landmark experiment, which is its own pleasure. With 375ml bottles, many buyers acquire pairs: one to taste, one to keep sealed alongside the number they're building toward.