(Photos: Buffalo Trace)

In unexpected news, Kentucky whiskey producer Buffalo Trace on Friday announced the release of a peated bourbon.

Peating, or burning peat to imbue whisky with a unique, smoky flavor, is a method traditionally used in scotch whisky. Now, Buffalo Trace is applying the technique to bourbon.

Buffalo Trace Experimental Peated Bourbon is the 26th release in the Buffalo Trace Experimental Collection, which debuted in 2006.

“The Experimental Collection is not about breaking the rules of bourbon; in fact, 95% of our experiments stay within the confines of traditional methods of making whiskey. We conduct this research to better understand the variables that affect our final flavor profiles,” Buffalo Trace Master Distiller Harlen Wheatley said in a news release. “We were eager to experiment with peat to see how the grain influenced our mashbill from a recipe perspective. We anticipated it providing the perfect hint of smoke, just enough to compliment the sweet and spicy notes from the rye, and I’m happy to report our hypothesis was correct.”

This whiskey was distilled from Buffalo Trace’s rye bourbon mashbill and peated malt and aged for nine years and five months in new charred white oak casks. It spent time maturing on the first floor of Buffalo Trace’s Warehouse C and the second floor of Warehouse D before being bottled at 90 proof.

Six barrels of this bourbon were produced. It was distilled on Nov. 21, 2012, barreled on Nov. 24 and bottled on April 1, 2022.

Buffalo Trace Experimental Peated Bourbon will launch in May in limited quantities to select retailers and restaurants across the U.S. The experimental bourbon will be packaged exclusively in 375-milliliter bottles, which will each have a suggested retail price of $46.99.

Buffalo Trace Experimental Peated Bourbon Tasting Notes, Via the Brand

Nose: Smoky and nutty with hints of leather, mahogany and cacao beans

Taste: Light smoke, brown butter

Finish: Sweet Toffee

Last week, Buffalo Trace announced the latest release in its Old Charter Oak collection, Spanish Oak Bourbon.

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