“From the get-go, this has been a collaboration between Chris and our entire team at Buffalo Trace, drawing on our technical expertise and Chris’s love for great whiskey to make something truly special,” Harlen Wheatley tells Maxim. “We worked together through the entire process.”
We’re discussing Traveller, the new blended whiskey crafted by the talented Buffalo Trace Master Distiller in collaboration with none other than Chris Stapleton—one of the premier talents not just in country music, but across all musical genres. Turns out the 10time Grammy winner, 11-time Academy of Country Music Awards winner, and 15-time Country Music Association winner is a huge Buffalo Trace fan, whose love affair started with an early sipping of E.H. Taylor.
“The first glass of E.H. Taylor, Jr. I ever had was in the studio,” Stapleton shared of his origin story with all things Buffalo Trace. “Vance Powell, engineer of both music and good times, brought a bottle to the session for inspiration. That week we recorded an entire album, and that album was Traveller. We’ve made it a point to keep a bottle around ever since.”
That early dalliance blossomed into a relationship in 2021 when Stapleton and E.H. Taylor collaborated on a single barrel release. Each bottle of the Chris Stapleton Single Barrel Bourbon came autographed by the country legend, all to raise money for Stapleton’s Outlaw State of Kind charity aiding disaster relief for Texas and Kentucky. The twin forces repeated that collab in 2022, this time to celebrate the 125th passing of the Bottled in Bond Act.
Now that relationship has graduated into a committed marriage, with Stapleton releasing his very own label under the Buffalo Trace umbrella. As an homage to that aforementioned debut album, Stapleton’s new Traveller whiskey is an endeavor born of mutual love and admiration.
“Chris has been a longtime fan of Buffalo Trace Distillery, and his support has always meant a lot,” admits Wheatley. “His appreciation for the craftsmanship, heritage, complexities and storytelling that go into making whiskey is something that always made the idea of working with him truly exciting. He is also a genuinely down-to-earth and gracious man. It’s been a real pleasure.”
The decorated whiskey maker goes on to detail how deeply Chris was involved with every step of the way, pitching in with bottle design, picking the labels and even writing the specific language on the bottle.
Stapleton’s virtuosity at spinning a good yarn is well documented—hell, he’s written songs for everyone from Adele to George Strait, from Kenny Chesney to Kelly Clarkson, even claiming ACM’s “Artist-Songwriter of the Decade.” So the ability to write copy doesn’t come as shock—even if it is unusual for a a superstar of his caliber to dedicate that much time and effort into a limited-edition bottle.
Given his most popular song—the 14x certified platinum hit single cover of “Tennessee Whiskey,” streamed more than a billion times on Spotify alone—one wonders if there was any temptation of doing, well, a Tennessee whiskey instead. But Wheatley shares that Chris was actually born in nearby Lexington, and he grew up just down the road from the Buffalo Trace Distillery.
“So while a Tennessee whiskey may seem like the obvious choice, Kentucky is his home, so this meant a lot for everyone involved.”
As for the process of how the the creative team came up with the actual profile, Wheatley explains that once they determined how they wanted the whiskey to taste, they set out on a journey to find the perfect blend of whiskeys that satisfied everyone involved. In the end they narrowed it down from over 50 options, finally whittling it down to blend No. 40.
“We both wanted to create an easy-sipping whiskey that could be enjoyed by everyone, whether you’re just discovering whiskey or consider yourself an expert,” continues the four-time James Beard Award nominee. “We spent countless hours testing and tasting different blends until we decided that blend No. 40 was the one.
“It’s a whiskey that stands up on its own as smooth and sippable, or equally, works great in a cocktail… Chris’s team agreed. We had a winner.”
Of course, the idea of a “celebrity spirit” is nothing new. In fact, there’s been such a deluge in the market, one could say there’s grown a significant pushback from true aficionados, some who see the trend as little more than a money grab for celebrities… and their contract distillers. And this pushback is arguably strongest in the tequila/agave world, where it’s been most prevalent, and the whiskey/bourbon world, where fans are rabidly protective of authenticity.
As the “World’s Most Award-Winning Distillery,” Buffalo Trace has a celestial reputation to maintain. As Traveller is their first collaboration with a musician/artist/celebrity, we were curious if there was there any hesitation from the Buffalo Trace brain trust in wading into the “celebrity whiskey” waters.
“Not at all; Chris has been a true fan of ours for years. Bottles from our distillery having been enjoyed by Chris and his band for a long time, so it couldn’t have felt more natural and authentic,” answers Wheatley.
“Chris was first introduced to our bourbons by tasting E.H. Taylor. He has been a longtime fan of ours and we have long supported Chris and his charity, Outlaw State of Kind, via barrel donations and other support,” continues the Master Distiller.
“This partnership has been a natural step in a long-term relationship going back a decade, and we cannot think of a stronger partner for this venture. It has been an honor to partner with Chris Stapleton, whose artistry can be felt in the music he writes and the whiskey he crafts.”
So what exactly were Stapleton and Wheatley looking for in their highly anticipated collaboration? Wheatley points out notes of oak, sweet maple, tart currant, leather and toasted nut in his blend No. 40, with aromas of vanilla, aged fruit and buttery shortbread. Traveller Whiskey comes bottled at 90 proof. $30
Follow Deputy Editor Nicolas Stecher on Instagram at @nickstecher and @boozeoftheday.