Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon is the flagship of the Frankfort distillery that shares its name the everyday pour from the house behind some of the most hunted bottles in America. It comes off a low-rye mash bill and rests in new charred oak long enough to earn real depth: vanilla and molasses up front, brown sugar and baking spice through the middle, a finish that stays sweet without going thin. At 90 proof it holds up neat, takes ice gracefully, and anchors an Old Fashioned as well as anything twice its price. If the allocated releases are the trophy case, this is the bottle the distillery actually drinks. Pour it on weeknights and save the hunt for weekends.