Buffalo Trace Honors E.H. Taylor With Charity Auction Sets of Some Top Whiskeys

‘Tis almost the season for giving, and Buffalo Trace is getting ahead of the game with a new charitable initiative, “100 Bourbon Sets for 100 Charities.” The philanthropic effort pays homage to Buffalo Trace founding father Colonel E.H. Taylor, Jr., who was an instrumental figure in the passage of the Bottled in Bond Act in 1897. Why honor that specific legacy, you may ask? Buffalo Trace says that Taylor’s support of the Bottled in Bond Act was fundamentally about bettering bourbon for everyone, from distillers to consumers to entire communities, by standardizing higher-quality whiskey. Its legacy actually goes far beyond whiskey—the Act is considered one of the laws that led to the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, which itself eventually resulted in the creation of the modern-day Food and Drug Administration. One of the requirements central to Bottled in Bond whiskey is that it be 100 proof; while not all the whiskeys in the bourbon sets will clock in at 100 proof, that’s where the program gets its name.

Around three bottles will be in each set, though some will have just two, and others as many as four. The lineups will include whiskeys from such cult Buffalo Trace brands as Blanton’s, Eagle Rare, Weller, and E.H. Taylor. There is but one basic criterion that any interested charitable organization must meet in order to apply (there is an application process, which can be found here): it must be a 501(c)(3) or similarly tax-exempt organization that’s in good standing under its state’s charity laws. Then, if selected, organizations must use their bourbon set for fundraising purposes before July 31, 2024, and report subsequent earnings by August 1, 2024.

Interested nonprofits have until January 4, 2024 to apply for 100 bourbon Sets for 100 Charities. Buffalo Trace will announce the chosen organizations on February 29, 2024, ahead of Bottled in Bond Day (Sunday, March 3), and bottle sets will be shipped within 30 days.