Buffalo Trace Distillery celebrates filling 9 millionth barrel of bourbon
FRANKFORT, Ky. – Buffalo Trace Distillery is celebrating tradition and growth with the filling of its nine millionth barrel of bourbon since Prohibition.
According to a release by the company, Buffalo Trace Distillery just completed a decade long, $1.2 billion expansion project earlier this year.
“The filling of our nine millionth barrel represents a historic chapter in the distillery’s story, which began more than two centuries ago and is still being written today,” said Harlen Wheatley, Buffalo Trace Distillery master distiller. “This milestone is exciting not just because we are producing more whiskey than ever before, but because every barrel filled ensures that generations to come will be able to enjoy the same quality and craftsmanship that has defined the distillery since the 1850s.”
The company says bourbon distilling at its site dates back to the 1770s, with formal operations beginning in the 1850s.
During Prohibition, the George T. Stagg Distillery remained one of the few allowed to produce whiskey for medicinal purposes, however, official barrel counting began in 1933, the release states.
Since then, millionth barrel milestones for the distillery were celebrated in 1942, 1953, 1961, 1971, 1981, 2008, 2018, 2022 and 2025.
In 2015, Sazerac initiated a $1.2 billion expansion project that touched almost every part of operations, according to the release.
Completed in January 2025, the release states the project has increased the distillery’s production capacity by 150%.
Buffalo Trace says the nine millionth barrel will be signed by team members and placed inside Buffalo Trace Distillery’s Warehouse V, where it will age until the filling of the 10 millionth barrel.
Distillery visitors are invited to view the barrel inside the warehouse during regular business hours and take photos.
On Sept. 29, the historic milestone was celebrated alongside Kentucky Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman, Franklin County judge executive Michael Mueller, Frankfort mayor Layne Wilkerson and Buffalo Trace Distillery officials.
