Distilled 1974. Bottled 1990. Perfect wax seal. A.H. Hirsch Reserve Pot Still 15 Year Old Gold Wax one of the most celebrated and historically significant American rye whiskeys ever produced, distilled at the Michter’s Pot Still Distillery in Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania before its closure and now available in what collectors consider the finest surviving physical condition: a Perfect Wax example.

The A.H. Hirsch Reserve is the product of Adolph Hirsch, a former Seagram’s executive who in 1974 commissioned a run of Pennsylvania pot still rye whiskey at the Michter’s Stiegel-era distillery in Schaefferstown one of the oldest distillery sites in America, with distilling roots tracing to before the Revolution. The whiskey was distilled from a rye-heavy mash in genuine copper pot stills, laid down by Hirsch in barrels, and then largely forgotten as Michter’s fell into financial difficulty. When the distillery finally closed in 1989, the surviving barrels were acquired and bottled as the A.H. Hirsch Reserve preserved exactly as Hirsch had laid them down 15 years earlier.

The result is a whiskey without commercial parallel a genuine pot still American rye from 1974, from a distillery whose pre-Prohibition-era copper pot still tradition had essentially died everywhere else in the country by that point. Distiller Julian Van Winkle III (of the Van Winkle bourbon dynasty) played a role in the preservation and distribution of the Hirsch Reserve, further connecting this bottle to American whiskey’s most celebrated lineage. The Gold Wax variant in a 700ml European export format represents the Continental distribution of this historic liquid. “Perfect Wax” is the collector’s designation for bottles whose wax seal is intact and undamaged, the highest physical condition grade in the Hirsch collector hierarchy.

Specs

• Distillery: Michter’s Pot Still Distillery, Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania (closed 1989)
• Style: Pennsylvania Pot Still Rye Whiskey
• Distilled: 1974
• Bottled: 1990
• Age: 15 years
• Seal: Gold Wax Perfect Wax (intact seal)
• Size: 700ml (European export format)

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Frequently Asked Questions

• Why is the A.H. Hirsch Reserve considered the most celebrated American rye whiskey? The Hirsch Reserve is American whiskey’s Rosetta Stone the last commercially bottled example of genuine Pennsylvania pot still rye from a pre-Prohibition-era distillery, distilled in 1974 from a tradition that had essentially died everywhere else. It bridges American whiskey’s founding heritage and the modern era in a single bottle that cannot be reproduced under any circumstances: the distillery is closed, the equipment is gone, and the 1974 barrels are exhausted.
• What is Perfect Wax and why does it matter to collectors? The A.H. Hirsch Reserve was bottled with distinctive wax seals. Perfect Wax designates a bottle whose wax seal is completely intact and undamaged the highest physical condition grade in the Hirsch collector hierarchy. Wax integrity is a key factor in both provenance documentation and collector premium.
• How does the 700ml Gold Wax differ from the domestic US format? The 700ml format is the European export specification, slightly smaller than the domestic 750ml bottle. The Gold Wax designation identifies this specific wax color variant within the Hirsch Reserve bottling program.
• Is the A.H. Hirsch Reserve 15 Year Gold Wax still available? Yes one Perfect Wax bottle in current stock. Among the most historically significant American whiskey bottles in the Wooden Cork catalog.

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