The Whiskey Reviewer A World of Whiskey, Poured Every Weekday
The year was 1993, and while “The X Files” debuted on national television and “Jurassic Park” broke box office records, Buffalo Trace Distillery quietly distilled and then laid away some of its bourbon to slumber, undisturbed, for 25 years, to be exact.
Now that bourbon has been bottled, and the result is the next offering of the O.F.C. Vintage Bourbon, set to release in December. Although limited, there are more bottles available of this 1993 vintage than the previous O.F.C. Vintage dated releases from 1985, 1989, and 1990.
Like its predecessors, the 1993 Vintage will arrive in a wooden display box containing a provenance card. Inside the wooden box lies a crystal bottle with real copper lettering in-laid in the bottle with a hand applied paper label. The label on the back of the bottle notes the milestones for the year 1993. The provenance card contains the same information found on the back label.
The O. F. C. vintage-dated bourbons has a name derived from this National Historic Landmark’s original moniker – the O.F.C. Distillery – renowned for producing top class whiskey during its tenure.
Tasting notes for this 25-year-old bourbon describe it as having a nose of dark cherry, honey, and smoked oak. On the palate, notes of caramel, toasted vanilla, and cocoa are found. For the finish, coffee, maple syrup and oak linger.
“It’s hard to believe that the same year this bourbon was made, in 1993, the world wide web was just becoming a ‘thing,’ and introduced to the public domain,” said Harlen Wheatley, master distiller. “Now when you think of how far everything has come, from a technology standpoint to bourbon’s popularity again, it’s mind blowing. What’s really amazing is how solid this bourbon is, and how the taste and integrity have held up. It’s a real tribute to Elmer and Gary Gayheart and the rest of the team at the Distillery for this vintage to have this consistency and taste this good after aging for 25 years.”
This 1993 Vintage is actually the third release of the O.F.C. Vintage whiskey, but the second offered for sale. In the fall of 2016 Buffalo Trace Distillery released three vintage-dated bourbons, exclusively to non-profit organizations at no charge to raise money for their causes. Those bottles, from 1980, 1982, and 1983 were auctioned at charity last spring, and raised nearly $1.2 million for a variety of causes such as cancer services, cystic fibrosis, leukemia and lymphoma, children’s rights, autism, military veterans, animal protection, arts foundations, and many more.
Suggested retail pricing for this collectable and very limited 1993 O.F.C. Vintage Bourbon is $2,500.
