2002 W.L. Weller 19 Year Old 90 Proof | Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey | 750ml

2002 W.L. Weller 19 Year Old Bourbon Description

2002 W.L. Weller 19 Year Old 750ml is an exceptionally rare vintage Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey and one of the earliest collectible releases associated with Buffalo Trace’s Antique Collection.

This historic wheated bourbon was distilled in Spring 1983 and bottled in Fall 2002 after approximately 19 years of maturation. It was released at 90 proof / 45% ABV, offering a very different style from the high-proof William Larue Weller releases that followed in later years.

The 2002 release is especially significant because it marked the final year of W.L. Weller 19 Year Old. Buffalo Trace announced in 2002 that its remaining stocks of this whiskey had been exhausted, making surviving bottles highly desirable among serious bourbon collectors.

2002 W.L. Weller 19 Year Old Key Features

• Producer: Buffalo Trace Distillery
• Brand: W.L. Weller
• Expression: 19 Year Old
• Release: 2002
• Type: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
• Style: Wheated Bourbon
• Age Statement: 19 Years
• Distilled: Spring 1983
• Bottled: Fall 2002
• Proof: 90 Proof
• ABV: 45%
• Bottle Size: 750ml
• Country: United States
• State: Kentucky
• Historic Significance: Final W.L. Weller 19 Year Old release
• Collector Appeal: Exceptional

Tasting Notes

Nose

Rich and mature with honeysuckle, gingerbread, pecan pie, chocolate-covered cherry, dark fruit, caramelized sweetness, and seasoned oak.

Palate

Layered and complex with blackberry, prune, cooked apple, raisin, clove-spiced honey, leather, earth, orange, mature oak, and gentle baking spice.

Finish

Soft and lingering with aged oak, dark fruit, leather, spice, caramel, and refined wheated bourbon sweetness.

A Historic Wheated Bourbon

W.L. Weller is closely associated with the use of wheat rather than rye as the secondary grain in bourbon. This creates a softer and rounder style than many traditional rye-based bourbon recipes.

After nineteen years in oak, the 2002 W.L. Weller develops considerably more mature wood, leather, dark fruit, and spice character than younger Weller expressions while retaining the softer profile associated with wheated bourbon.

The Final 19 Year Old Release

The 2002 W.L. Weller 19 Year Old holds particular historical significance because Buffalo Trace announced that it would be the final vintage of the 19-year expression.

The original Antique Collection began with long-aged releases including W.L. Weller 19 Year Old, Eagle Rare 17 Year Old, and Sazerac 18 Year Old. George T. Stagg joined the collection for the 2002 release.

Later Buffalo Trace Antique Collection releases would replace W.L. Weller 19 Year Old with William Larue Weller, a younger barrel-strength wheated bourbon. This makes the original 19 Year bottlings a distinctly different chapter in Weller history.

Why Collectors Want 2002 W.L. Weller 19 Year Old

2002 W.L. Weller 19 Year Old combines several characteristics prized by American whiskey collectors: significant age, vintage identity, wheated bourbon production, early Antique Collection history, low surviving availability, and status as the final release of the expression.

The bottle also predates the modern William Larue Weller format, making it particularly attractive to collectors building historic Weller, Buffalo Trace, or Antique Collection verticals.

This release is especially relevant for buyers searching for vintage Weller bourbon, Weller 19 Year, old Buffalo Trace bourbon, rare wheated whiskey, early Antique Collection bottles, and collectible Kentucky bourbon.

Serving Recommendation

Serve neat in a Glencairn or tulip-shaped whiskey glass. Allow the bourbon to rest for several minutes before tasting so the dark fruit, honey, leather, oak, spice, and mature sweetness can fully develop.

Because of its rarity and age, this bottle is also commonly acquired primarily for collecting rather than casual drinking.

Buyer Note

Because this is a vintage collectible bourbon, buyers should carefully review fill level, capsule condition, seal integrity, label condition, bottle condition, provenance, and overall presentation before purchase.