What we’re drinking: Knob Creek 21, Booker’s The Reserves 2025, Booker’s 2025-04 Phantom Pipes Batch, Baker’s High-Rye 7-Year-Old Single Barrel Bourbon, Little Book The Infinite: Edition II, Hardin’s Creek The Warehouse Series
Where it’s from: Located in Clermont, KY, the James B. Beam Distilling Co. portfolio includes all of the above releases, as well as Jim Beam, Basil Hayden, Old Overholt, Old Grand-Dad and more. Fred Noe is Jim Beam’s seventh-generation master distiller, and Freddie Noe is Jim Beam’s eighth-generation master distiller.
Why we’re drinking these: It took me a few years to truly understand all the whiskey releases from Beam, particularly the ones that aren’t called Jim Beam. I created an explainer last year, but with several new iterations of these brands emerging in the past few months, I figured an update and expansion of that story were overdue.
Review: Baker’s, Booker’s and Little Book Bourbons, Explained
Tasting the new small-batch releases from James B. Beam Distilling Co., and a revived Knob Creek as wellIn place of our usual review format, I’m going to include both the brand explainer and tasting notes below and rank the six bottles (well, technically eight: see Hardin’s Creek). I’m also giving these expressions the made-up title of “special releases” because technically they’re not all part of the Jim Beam Small Batch collection. Finally, I’d say there are two standouts, two solid picks and a couple that are more for the adventurous bourbon drinker.
As for buying them, check the links below for more info and consult our spirits buying guide here.
Booker’s: The Reserves 2025
Bourbon | 61.65% ABV | Aged 8 Years
Booker’s only releases barrel-strength bourbon and puts as much emphasis on the location of the barrels in their warehouses as anything else. The Reserves, launched last year, is an annual, limited-release series by Freddie Noe to commemorate his grandfather, sixth-generation master distiller Booker Noe (the son of Jim Beam’s daughter, Margaret Noe, who actually coined the term “small batch”). What’s unique about the 2025 batch is the extra barrel maturation from casks that previously held both Booker’s 30th anniversary release and El Tesoro’s 85th anniversary tequila. There is a nice hint of cooked agave, along with notes of cinnamon, brown sugar, caramel and oak spice.
Booker’s Batch 2025-04: Phantom Pipes
Bourbon | 63.2% ABV | Aged 7 Years
There’s a family story behind every Booker’s release. Batch four’s nickname references a maze of pipes discovered in the rafters of the Boston, KY, distillery that led to nowhere, part of Booker Noe’s tinkering process. Phantom Pipes is made up of barrels from five different production dates housed in five different warehouses. It’s full of oak spice, butterscotch, vanilla and baking spices and is a balanced sipper, even given the high proof.
Little Book The Infinite: Edition II
Bourbon | 60.4 % ABV | Aged 7+ Years
Little Book is an annual, limited-release series overseen by Freddie Noe. Last year saw the release of “Infinite,” the first-ever brand extension from Little Book, featuring whiskey laid down by three generations of Noe family master distillers (Booker Noe, Fred Noe and Freddie Noe). This is all about blending — Booker’s component is a 22-year-old bourbon, Fred’s a 10-year-old bourbon, Freddie’s is a seven-year bourbon with “extended fermentation” and there’s a bit of the first Infinite release in there as well. Given the blend, it’s a brighter bourbon, with warm hints of caramel, vanilla, a gentle oak spice, cherry and a bit of apple.
Baker’s High-Rye 7-Year-Old Single Barrel Bourbon
Bourbon | 53.5% ABV | Aged 7 Years
Baker’s is named after Jim Beam’s grand-nephew Edward “Baker” Beam — when the sixth-generation distiller retired, his cousin Booker Noe created Baker’s Bourbon in his honor. His namesake release is all about the single barrel, and the bourbons are aged a minimum of seven years and come in at 107 proof. This limited-edition re-release features a recipe that has two-times the standard amount of rye in Baker’s. I picked up dried cherries, rye toast, caramel, a hint of mint and vanilla. As I said last year, I’d consider this more a bourbon for rye fans than the other way around, but it’s a good, spicy sipper.
Knob Creek 21
Bourbon | 50% ABV | Aged 21 Years
Knob Creek was created in 1992 by Booker Noe as a part of the Small Batch Bourbon Collection. It was inspired by the Bottled-in-Bond Act to “represent the high quality and full flavor of pre-Prohibition-style whiskey” and usually comes in at 100 proof. The 21-year-old expression is the oldest release in both the brand’s and the distillery’s history. The barrel takes center stage here, both on the nose and palate, with charred oak and tobacco dominating. Hints of vanilla, stone fruit and caramel come out with a few drops of water. I love Knob Creek, but as an everyday sipper, I’d stick with 12 or 15. But if you’re a fan of extra-aged bourbons and the barrel influence, you’ll dig this.
Hardin’s Creek: The Warehouse Series
Bourbon | 55% ABV | Aged 11 Years
This is an ongoing series of annual releases that feature some of James B. Beam Distilling Co.’s “rarest and most unique liquids.” These three bottles use an identical mash bill, were each aged for more than 11 years and come in at 110 proof. The only difference is they were aged in different warehouses on the Beam family’s Clarmont campus. “Mushroom” aged in Warehouse R, close to the ground and with no windows, offering a cooler atmosphere. “Beaver” was matured in the midst of the humid, five-floor Warehouse W. And “Owl” aged in the nine-floor Warehouse G, a rare height for a rickhouse. It’s an interesting experiment, and the three do offer modestly different taste profiles, though none truly stand out. Beaver has a bit of a sweeter profile, Mushroom is heavy on the barrel char and Owl has a nice, rounder mouthfeel. Overall, these are barrel-forward expressions that aren’t for more mainstream tastes. (That said, a blend of these that highlights the positives of each expression? I’d be down for that.)
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