Stagg began as Stagg Jr. in 2013 and dropped the "Jr." with Batch 18 in 2022; Buffalo Trace now issues two to three batches a year, each marked by the two-digit year plus a letter, and each varies in proof and profile. Batch 25C is the third of the 2025 run, and the outlier on strength: at 125.6 proof it sits well below its 129-plus-proof siblings, which is why it is often called the "Goldilocks" batch — rich and deep, but more composed. It is released in limited, allocated quantities, and it is worth remembering that this is the Stagg line, not the once-a-year George T. Stagg of the Antique Collection. For anyone tracking Stagg batch by batch, the lower-proof 25C is a useful, collectible point of comparison against the hotter releases around it.

Pour it neat in a Glencairn and give it a minute to open; a few drops of water draw out the caramel and dark fruit. Because 25C runs lower in proof than its siblings, it is the more forgiving of the recent batches to drink neat, and it also holds up well in a bourbon-forward Old Fashioned if you would rather build a cocktail around it.

Batch 25C is built on Buffalo Trace's Mash Bill #1, the distillery's low-rye recipe also used for George T. Stagg and Eagle Rare (exact grain percentages are not published — and note this is a low-rye, not a high-rye, mash bill). The whiskey is aged in new charred American oak and reported at roughly 8 to 9 years; it carries no official age statement. It is bottled uncut at 125.6 proof (62.8% ABV) and non-chill-filtered, so the natural barrel oils and esters remain. The lower bottling strength relative to the other recent batches is what gives 25C its more balanced, composed character while keeping the concentrated caramel, dark-chocolate, and dark-fruit depth.

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How does Stagg Batch 25C compare to other batches?

Batch 25C is bottled at 125.6 proof (62.8% ABV) — lower than several recent Stagg batches — which makes it one of the more balanced, approachable entries in the series while keeping the line's barrel-proof depth. It is the third of Buffalo Trace's four 2025 batches (25A through 25D), released in winter 2025, and like the rest it is uncut and unfiltered.

Is Stagg the same as George T. Stagg?

No. Stagg is Buffalo Trace's younger, barrel-proof bourbon — formerly called Stagg Jr. — and is not part of the Antique Collection. George T. Stagg is the older, roughly 15-year bottling released once a year in that collection. The two share Buffalo Trace's low-rye Mash Bill #1, but Stagg is younger and comes out in several batches a year.