WhiskeyBourbon

Single Barrel Bourbon

Blanton's, released in 1984 by master distiller Elmer T. Lee at Buffalo Trace (then Ancient Age), is credited as the first commercially marketed single barrel bourbon. Lee selected barrels from Warehouse H — a metal-clad warehouse that produced particularly intense temperature swings. The concept proved that individual bourbon barrels could command premium prices, launching the entire premium bourbon category and eventually the allocation culture that defines modern bourbon collecting.

Flavor Profile

Varies barrel to barrel — that's the point. Each bottle is a snapshot of one barrel's journey. Common characteristics: more pronounced oak and wood influence than blended expressions, often bolder and more angular. Top-floor barrels tend toward more caramel and char. Lower floors retain more grain character and softer tannins. The experience of buying the same single barrel expression twice and getting noticeably different flavors is part of the category's appeal.

Key Producers

Call

Eagle Rare 10 Year

$35 retail / $60+ secondary

technically single barrel (though Buffalo Trace is cagey about the designation), allocated

Evan Williams Single Barrel

$28-32

vintage-dated, excellent value entry to the category

Premium

Blanton's Original

$65 retail / $150+ secondary

the category originator, distinctive grenade-shaped bottle with horse-and-jockey stopper

Four Roses Single Barrel

$45-55

one of their 10 recipes selected per barrel, each bottle identifies the recipe code (OBSV, OESQ, etc.)

Knob Creek Single Barrel

$45-55

9 years, 120 proof, retailer barrel picks widely available

Henry McKenna 10 Year BiB

$40-50

single barrel AND bottled-in-bond, the double designation

Top Shelf

Colonel E.H. Taylor Single Barrel

$70 retail / $200+ secondary

bottled-in-bond, heavily allocated

No separate federal definition. 'Single barrel' indicates the bourbon in the bottle comes from one individual barrel rather than a blend of multiple barrels. The term is self-regulated by producers. TTB labeling guidelines require that single barrel claims be truthful, but no formal certification process exists. Some producers allow barrel selection by retailers — the store picks a barrel, and every bottle from that barrel carries the store's name.