Hazmat bourbon is pretty rare, and 31-year-old bourbon is even rarer, but this new bottle from Stitzel-Weller Distillery is both of those things.
Aged for more than three decades and bottled at a massive 163.2 proof, Stitzel Reserve 31-Year Bourbon is unlike anything else we’ve ever seen on the market.
Focusing on just the age, this expression is surprisingly the third time we’ve seen a blend of 30+ year-old bourbon from the Stitzel-Weller Distillery, with last year’s I.W. Harper 34-Year Bourbon and Blade and Bow 30-Year Bourbon paving the way.
I.W. Harper 34-Year Bourbon made headlines despite producing only 11 bottles, with nearly half sold at Sotheby’s auction house for north of $10,000. In its wake, the brand released Blade and Bow 30-Year Bourbon. With an undisclosed bottle count, that offering was unique because the 42 barrels that made up the blend were consolidated at around the 15-year mark, meaning the whiskey was combined right in the cask to counteract the effects of aging.
Now, thanks to the fortuitous discovery of several unique, hyper-aged casks, Master Blender Nicole Austin crafted this brand-new expression. Drawn from 13 barrels that were distilled in Kentucky and matured on-site at the Stitzel-Weller Distillery for more than 30 years, the newest member of the Stitzel Reserve lineup offers an intriguing glimpse into the effects of ultra-aging. Unlike last year’s Blade and Bow 30, the new Stitzel Reserve 31-Year Bourbon utilizes barrels that were never consolidated, and thus spent the entirety of their 3+ decades resting in its original barrels.
I should add that I was lucky enough to try all three of these expressions, and they’re all wildly different. The I.W. Harper 34-Year Bourbon is intriguing, albeit incredibly over-oaked, making it more of a novelty and coveted collector’s item than anything, given its limited availability. The younger (that feels surreal to say) Blade and Bow 30-Year Bourbon is quite the opposite, a silky and decadent pour that landed near the top of the UPROXX list of 2025’s absolute best bourbons.
While the new Stitzel Reserve 31-Year Bourbon falls within a comparable age range to its two most immediate predecessors, this blend was bottled nearly 40 proof points higher. Instances of bourbon reaching 160+ proof and hitting the market are nearly impossible to find. For reference, the highest-proof bottling of George T. Stagg Bourbon (famously praised for its bold, elevated ABV) clocked in at only 144.8 proof. Jack Daniel’s beloved Coy Hill Single Barrel releases topped out at 155 proof.
So, as you see, Stitzel Reserve 31-Year Bourbon combines two utterly rare qualities in American whiskey in a single expression. Ultimately, though, is it an unnecessary oddity or an atypical triumph?
Let’s find out.
Stitzel Reserve 31-Year Bourbon Review
ABV: 81.6%
Average Price: $3,000 (Exclusively at Stitzel-Weller Distillery)
The Whiskey:
Aged for more than 30 years at the Stitzel-Weller Distillery, this exclusive bourbon comes from a mere 13 barrels and was blended to taste and bottled at cask strength
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose on this bourbon is laden with cherry cordials, plums, coffee beans, and dark chocolate up front. A second pass provides further rich aromas of smoked honey, sweet leather, pipe tobacco, and vanilla. With a few waves of the hand, you begin to pick up a bit more smokiness and the undergirding presence of mature oak — robust, but not overdone.
Palate: Flavorful chunks of dark chocolate get out ahead of the pack on the palate with a hefty punch before oak, vanilla, and rich black cherry notes come marching in. The vanilla comes in a second wave at midpalate, like ice cream with leather, orange marmalade, and black pepper. From there, it’s damp tobacco’s turn, with bright bits of candied green apples. This is an incredibly layered and complex pour, but the alcohol punch grows heavier with every sip, even after starting very strong.
Finish: This whiskey’s final act follows its original track of flavors with dark cherry and dark chocolate notes up front that soon cede ground to black pepper, salted toffee, and leather for an insanely long finish that rips and roars for minutes after. I think it was still going even as I was leaving the distillery.
Bottom Line:
You’d be hard-pressed to find a bourbon that can match the richness of Stitzel Reserve 31-Year Bourbon, but we have to talk about the proof.
My first time trying this whiskey was mid-evening, and my palate was primed with a starter pour. It floored me in the best way possible. On my second occasion with the whiskey, it was just before 10 a.m. and my first pour of the day. It left me on the floor, trying to recover. That context matters because, while I was able to record some great notes, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I did the first time, and that’s solely due to the time of day, palate preparation, and proof.
Of course, I don’t expect anyone else who tries this bourbon to do so shortly after breakfast, but it underscores the point that sometimes there’s such a thing as too much proof. As much as I love the flavor of hazmat bourbon, that high-octane ABV can certainly be a distraction. While that’s applicable here, I simply can’t dock it many points. Ultimately, this is an incredible feat.
We deserve the existence of bourbon like this, and enjoyed in the proper setting, it is sublime — that’s the key takeaway.
Bottles of this expression are exclusively available at the Stitzel-Weller Distillery for a suggested retail price of $3,000.
