Bourbon (750 ml)

Jim Beam's master distiller Booker Noe created Knob Creek in 1992 as a deliberate counter-move against the low-proof, heavily filtered bourbons dominating the market — his stated goal was to resurrect pre-Prohibition bourbon character, which meant higher proof, longer aging, and nothing stripped out. The name references Abraham Lincoln's childhood home on Knob Creek farm in LaRue County, anchoring the brand in Kentucky's deepest historical soil.

Distilled at the Clermont, Kentucky facility in the Bluegrass region, the mashbill leans corn-forward with rye as the secondary grain, drawing on the region's iron-free limestone-filtered water — a geological advantage that removes sulfur compounds and allows clean fermentation. The relatively flat, temperature-variable Kentucky warehouse environment drives deep seasonal barrel penetration.

Aged a minimum of 9 years in new, heavily charred (#4 char) American white oak barrels, then bottled at 100 proof (50% ABV) without chill-filtration, preserving the full spectrum of barrel-extracted congeners. Small-batch blending draws from a select group of barrels rather than a single cask or mass-tank blend.

The 100-proof, non-chill-filtered specification is the defining break from category norms at this price tier — most mass-market bourbons are cut to 80 proof and filtered. The result is a texture and intensity that reads closer to barrel-proof expressions. Drink now through the next several years; the proof holds up well with a few drops of water.