PRICE: $100-150 is the “retail” price. Secondary market pricing is $700-1000. INFO: This is a 12 year old wheated Kentucky Bourbon distilled and bottled by Buffalo Trace. The mashbill is approximately 70% corn, 16% wheat, and 14% malted barley. The 2017 edition is bottled at 64.1% ABV. NOSE: 95/100. It’s a boulangery! So rich and decadent. Cherries, chocolate syrup, cake, cake, cake… caramel. Some leather and tobacco notes balances out the sweetness. PALATE: 93/100. I think this needs quite a bit of water. It’s so-hot-it-hurts when had neat, and it’s quite closed off. It’s a cinnamon bomb. It’s cinnamon out of a volcano. You can easily add about 20-30% water without losing anything. The spices become more complex, and you get cloves, black pepper, maybe some black cardamom or star anise. The sweetness is dense with flavors of caramel, cherries, plums, and soft sweet oak. This is noticeably better than Pappy Van Winkle because the distillery character is still vibrant in WLW. FINISH: 93/100. A nice linger of tannins, cinnamon, nutmeg, and dark fruits. Finish is fuller and more saline than last years… or maybe I’m learning to appreciate bourbon more. OVERALL: Comparing whiskey to women, because that’s what men do… George T. Stagg is like a woman who orders a strap-on from Amazon.com. WLW is like a woman who wears a strap-on and lives in the Amazon. These two bourbons are clearly the best from this year’s BTAC releases, and both are out to fuck you. But WLW is the close winner because it is a little less straightforward and a little more brutal. MARK: 94/100. VALUE FOR MONEY: This is the only Buffalo Trace product I would pay higher than retail for. Not >$500, but I can see myself purchasing this without guilt for $200-300. I don’t expect I’ll ever find that deal, as I’m not a “whiskey hunter.” However, the VFM pour of the year for me was when I got a 2oz. pour of this very whiskey for $28. Tip your bartenders well!