EH Taylor Barrel Proof Batch 14b, 127.3

Colonel E.H. Taylor, Jr. Barrel Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey — Batch 16, 127.3 Proof

Price

$259.95

✔ Authenticated by the house — seal, fill level, and label inspected before release
✔ Documented provenance on every bottle
✔ Climate-safe, collector-grade packaging

Age: NAS (Non-Age Stated) | Region: Frankfort, Kentucky, USA | Proof: 127.3

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Vault-to-door shipping

Adult signature (21+) at delivery

127.3

Proof

63.65%

ABV

None

Age

2025

Year

750 mL

Format

L25

Code

Colonel E.H. Taylor, Jr. Barrel Proof Batch 14b is the middle of three bottlings Buffalo Trace released under Batch 14 in 2025, at 127.3 proof, 63.65% ABV, uncut and unfiltered. It is the hardest bottle in the line to identify from a listing: 127.3 is the most repeated figure in the range, its own year produced three bottlings within two-tenths of a point, and the trade numbers it inconsistently.

Nº 01

The Elemental Distinction

127.3 proof, 63.65% ABV — the third release at that figure, and the only one issued as a sub-batch.

The middle sub-batch of three released under Batch 14 in 2025.

The third release to carry 127.3, after 2021 and 2024.

Sits 0.1 proof above the 127.2 sub-batch and 0.1 below the 127.4 — the tightest spacing the line has produced.

Widely sold as "Batch 16". Buffalo Trace issued no such batch.

Four separate reasons a listing for this bottle cannot be trusted. The laser code is not one of them.

Nº 02

Barrel Proof, Explained

Barrel Proof Batch 14b

There is a paper trail for the split even though Buffalo Trace published no explanation. Alcohol content is a mandatory element on a US spirits label, and every distinct label requires its own approval from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau before the bottle can ship. Three proofs therefore meant three separate label approvals for what the distillery treated as one batch — a documentable trace of a decision announced nowhere else. It is the same registry that surfaces forthcoming releases before distilleries confirm them. What the filings cannot tell you is why: whether more qualifying stock was ready than one bottling could absorb, whether the barrels resolved into three distinct profiles worth keeping apart, or whether it was a distribution decision. Buffalo Trace has said nothing, and publishes no outturn for any of the three.

Nº 03

The Identifiers

What separates this release

Strength

Barrel proof

Uncut, not proofed down

Filtration

Non-chill filtered

Proof shared with

Batch 10

(2021) and Batch 13 (2024), both also 127.3

Batch numeral on label

None

Colonel E.H. Taylor labels carry no batch number.

Nº 04

Sensory Profile & Strategy

Distiller notes & position

Sensory Profile

Spacing, not strength: One-tenth of a proof point separates this from the sub-batch either side of it. Nothing in the line has ever been bottled this close together, and a 0.05% ABV gap is not something a palate resolves.
Three at one figure: This is the third release at 127.3 in five years, after 2021 and 2024. No other proof in the line has been used more than twice.
What is documented: 127.3 proof, a 2025 bottling, hand-selected barrels, no water added, no chill filtration.

Strategic Position

Every other release in this line can be pinned down by a proof figure and a year. This one cannot be pinned down by anything printed on the front of the bottle. Its proof belongs to two earlier releases; its year produced two siblings a tenth of a point away; its label carries no batch numeral; and the number the trade uses for it refers to a batch the distillery never issued. That is not a reason to avoid it — it is the ordinary consequence of Buffalo Trace splitting a release three ways without numbering the results — but it does mean this is the one bottling in the range where you buy the code rather than the description. It sits among every barrel-proof release we carry, below the 127.4 sub-batch above it.

Nº 05

Collector Note & Index

Vault provenance

→

Collector Note

Two checks, in order, and skip the batch number entirely. First the proof: 127.3. Second the laser code: L25. Together those identify this bottling and nothing else. 127.3 with L21 is the 2021 release, which carries a premium earned from the cancelled George T. Stagg that year; 127.3 with L24 is the 2024, the last of the annual bottlings. Both are different whiskies at different prices, and neither is this. As for the batch number, ignore it — this bottle is sold as Batch 16 by many retailers, as Batch 14 by some, and Buffalo Trace issued neither designation on the label. A listing that gives a batch number and no proof is telling you nothing at all. The 2024 bottling at the identical 127.3 is the one most often confused with it.

→

How to Taste It

Do not try to taste the difference from its siblings. One-tenth of a proof point is not a perceptible distinction, and if you set this against the 127.2 or the 127.4 expecting strength to separate them you will find something because you are looking for it. The honest expectation is that you will not tell them apart, and that is the useful result — it puts the emphasis back on the barrel selection, which is the only real variable across the 2025 trio. If you want a comparison that actually pays off, reach past the siblings to the 2021 or 2024 at the same proof: five years of different barrels, identical strength, and nothing else in the way.

Collector IndexMW VAULT

Distillery: Buffalo Trace Distillery, Frankfort, Kentucky
Class: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Batch: Batch 14b
Release year: 2025
Proof: 127.3
ABV: 63.65%
Age statement: None

Nº 06

Technical Specifications

Specification	Detail
Class	Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Batch	Batch 14b — middle of three 2025 sub-batches
Commonly listed as	"Batch 16" — a trade designation. Buffalo Trace issued no Batch 16.
Release year	2025
Proof	127.3
ABV	63.65%
Strength	Barrel proof — uncut, not proofed down
Filtration	Non-chill filtered
Laser code	L25
Sibling bottlings	Batch 14a at 127.2 and Batch 14c at 127.4, same year, same batch number
Proof shared with	Batch 10 (2021) and Batch 13 (2024), both also 127.3
Batch numeral on label	None. Colonel E.H. Taylor labels carry no batch number.
Age statement	None. Buffalo Trace publishes no age for this line.
Mash bill	Not disclosed. Buffalo Trace does not publish mash bills for its brands.
Region	Kentucky
Distillery	Buffalo Trace Distillery, Frankfort, Kentucky
Brand owner	Sazerac Company
Format	750 mL

Nº 07

Records & Assurance

Authentication & Vault Preservation

Every bottle sold through Midnight Whiskey is sourced as an authentic, sealed product and inspected before it ships. Orders are packed with padded, glass-rated handling and require an adult signature (21+) on delivery; we do not ship to anyone unable to verify legal drinking age. For our full sourcing and handling protocols, see our editorial and authentication standards.

Frequently Asked Questions

What proof is E.H. Taylor Barrel Proof Batch 14b?

127.3 proof, or 63.65% ABV, bottled uncut and unfiltered. It is the middle of three bottlings released under Batch 14 in 2025, sitting one-tenth of a proof point above the 127.2 and one-tenth below the 127.4.

Is this Batch 16?

No. Buffalo Trace released all three 2025 bottlings under Batch 14 and printed no batch numeral on any label, so this is properly Batch 14b. "Batch 16" is a trade designation applied after the fact, and it is used inconsistently — some retailers apply it to this 127.3 bottling, others use different numbers. The proof and the L25 laser code are the reliable identifiers.

How do I tell this from the 2021 and 2024 releases at 127.3?

By the laser code etched into the glass, which is the only reliable marker. Three releases carry 127.3 proof: L21 is the 2021 Batch 10, L24 is the 2024 Batch 13, and L25 is this 2025 Batch 14b. Colonel E.H. Taylor labels carry no batch numeral, so the proof alone narrows a bottle to one of three and no further.

Midnight Whiskey · The Vault Barrel Proof Batch 14b

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E.H. Taylor, Jr.

The Elemental Distinction

Barrel Proof, Explained