Stagg began life as Stagg Jr. in 2013 and is the younger sibling of George T. Stagg, the roughly 15-year bottling in Buffalo Trace's Antique Collection. Both share the distillery's low-rye Mash Bill #1; the difference is age and release rhythm. Where George T. Stagg arrives once a year, Stagg is issued in two to three batches annually, each identified by the two-digit year plus a letter — so Batch 26A is the first of the 2026 run, bottled uncut at 129.3 proof. It is not diluted to a standard strength, and it is not chill-filtered, which is why the texture is so dense and the dark-cherry note so concentrated. As an allocated Buffalo Trace release, each batch is a finite, collectible pour that batch-to-batch comparisons are built around.

Pour it neat in a whiskey glass and give it a few minutes to open. At 129.3 proof it rewards patience: a few drops of water soften the heat and bring out more of the sweetness, fruit, and spice. A large ice cube works for a slower pour, but this is built to be taken close to neat.

Batch 26A is built on Buffalo Trace's Mash Bill #1, a low-rye recipe shared with the flagship Buffalo Trace bourbon (the distillery does not publish exact grain percentages). The barrels are reported at roughly 8 to 9 years, matured in the historic Kentucky rickhouses; time on the warmer, more humid middle floors pulls heavy vanillins and concentrates the spirit. It is bottled uncut at 129.3 proof (64.65% ABV) and non-chill-filtered, so the natural barrel oils and esters remain. There is no official age statement on the label. The bottle itself is thick, wide-shouldered glass with the clean "STAGG" antler artwork and a deep amber liquid.

Midnight Whiskey is an authorized retailer; every bottle is sold in its original packaging and inspected before it ships. Orders are double-boxed with protective padding and dispatched with temperature-aware handling. Delivery requires an adult signature: the recipient must be 21 or older and present valid government-issued photo ID. For how we verify and grade what we sell, see our authentication standards; for white-glove acquisition and storage, see the Vault Concierge; and for how we source and vet listings, see our editorial sourcing standards.

What is Stagg Batch 26A?

It is a barrel-proof Kentucky straight bourbon from Buffalo Trace Distillery, bottled uncut and unfiltered at 129.3 proof (64.65% ABV) in a 750 mL bottle. Stagg is released in small batches a few times a year; Batch 26A is a Spring 2026 release and a limited, allocated bourbon.

How old is Stagg bourbon and what is the mash bill?

Stagg carries no official age statement; for Batch 26A the barrels are reported at roughly 8 to 9 years, matured in Buffalo Trace's Kentucky rickhouses. It uses the distillery's low-rye Mash Bill #1, the same recipe behind Eagle Rare and Buffalo Trace, and Stagg is the younger, barrel-proof counterpart to the older George T. Stagg.