[Updated] How Buffalo Trace’s New Online Reservation System for Limited Bottles Works(ed)

Posted on by Bourbonselector.com

update: buffalo trace has made a statement that this process may continue in addition to random releases like before

Buffalo Trace Distillery rolled out a new online system Monday for purchasing limited release bottles from its gift shop. Instead of lining up early and hoping for the daily drop, the distillery introduced free online reservations for certain releases.

The first bottle offered through the new system was Stagg, one of Buffalo Trace’s most sought after bourbons.

Reservations appeared on the distillery’s website through the same page used to check tour availability, which quickly caused confusion. The listing for the bottle was mixed in with distillery tours, so at first glance it wasn’t obvious that it had nothing to do with booking a tour.

Buffalo Trace posted a reel about the new reservation system shortly before 10 a.m., and the reservation listing showed up on the website just minutes later. By the time many people refreshed the page, however, the reservations were already fully booked.

Throughout much of the morning, visitors said they kept running into error messages, including “404 Page Not Found.” Some people said they had been checking the page as early as 6 a.m. and saw nothing but the same error.

Once the reservation listing finally appeared, the page quickly became overwhelmed as people rushed to try to secure a spot.

The distillery had said more updates would be shared Monday, but many visitors said clear instructions on how to actually register never really appeared, leaving people to figure out the process as they went.

The reservation itself was free and appeared as a ticket style listing labeled “Limited Release Reservation – Stagg.”

From what people could tell, the system didn’t appear to be a lottery. Instead, it seemed to operate on a first come, first served basis. Because the reservations disappeared so quickly, some people speculated that automated bots may have been involved, although there has been no confirmation of that.

Buffalo Trace also never said how many reservations or bottles were available.

At one point a “sold out” message appeared on the page, and some people mentioned the possibility of a second round of reservations later in the day, though no official details were shared.

Anyone who did secure a reservation will have the chance to purchase the bottle later in the week at the distillery gift shop rather than buying it online. According to Buffalo Trace, reservation holders can pick up their bottle anytime Tuesday through Sunday of that week.

Each reservation allows the purchase of one bottle per guest, and reservations are limited to one per email address.

How the Buffalo Trace Limited Release Reservation System Works

Buffalo Trace has started offering online reservations for certain limited release bottles. The reservation appears through the distillery’s tour booking page.

Step 1
Go to the Buffalo Trace booking page

Reservations appear through the distillery’s page used to check tour availability at around 10:00 AM EST.

Open the reservation page

Step 2
Scroll through the available listings

Limited release reservations are listed alongside distillery tours and other events.

Step 3
Find the Limited Release Reservation

Look for a listing labeled something like Limited Release Reservation followed by the bottle name.

Step 4
Select the reservation

The reservation will appear similar to a tour ticket and will show a price of $0.00 because it is free to reserve.

Step 5
Add the reservation and continue

Add the reservation to your cart and continue through the checkout process.

Step 6
Enter your contact information

The reservation typically requires basic information such as your name, address and phone number.

Step 7
Complete the reservation

Once submitted, you will receive a confirmation similar to a ticket reservation.

Step 8
Purchase at the distillery later in the week

Reservation holders can purchase the bottle at the Buffalo Trace gift shop later that week. Payment happens in person when the bottle is picked up.

Please note the option to buy the limited release appears to be removed after being sold out.

The option is not listed when last checking.

Key Rules

• Reservations are free
• One reservation per email address
• Each reservation allows purchase of one bottle
• Bottles must be picked up in person at the distillery
• Reservations do not include a tour or tasting

11 thoughts on “[Updated] How Buffalo Trace’s New Online Reservation System for Limited Bottles Works(ed)”

  2. Let’s make this a little easier
    Step 1 Go to special release
    Step 2 enter your name and email
    Step 3 Submit entry

    Reply

  3. Ai and bots are gonna ruin this like any other online ticketing system, they’re trying to fix something that wasn’t broken 🤷‍♂️

    Reply

  5. Everyone take note that they said there gonna still do regular drops and nobody took note. “ Pausing before we do something like this again. “ Watch the statement they said on social media. Ridiculous and dumb for a Stagg release.

    Reply

  7. Alot Folks have or can make Multiple emails addresses 🤷‍♂️. Jus 1 per email.. can i use 5 emails ? Looks like it

    Reply

  9. I had an issue with it asking for a password.

    I emailed their email they mentioned on the social media videos. Said it’s a not normally offered tasting experience in a special tasting room with a few extra shopping perks.

    I guess it has started on the 12th and lasts until the 26th if you have the email they sent. Has anyone gone to offer any feedback on what it is?

    Reply

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