Knob Creek 12 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Knob Creek · Jim Beam Distillery (Beam Suntory)
Twelve years in the Kentucky rickhouse gave this bourbon a heft and depth that its younger siblings can only aspire to. It's not a sipper that flatters — it challenges, rewards patience, and demands your attention. A textbook example of what extended aging does to a high-rye mash bill.
Nose
Dense caramel and toasted oak lead, followed by dried cherry and a whiff of old leather. There's a pronounced nuttiness underneath, almost pecan brittle, with a backdrop of dark cocoa.
Palate
Full-bodied and unapologetically woody. Charred oak dominates at first, then gives way to butterscotch and baking spices — cinnamon stick, clove. A mid-palate surge of dark fruit and tobacco keeps it dynamic.
Finish
Long and warming, with lingering charred oak, leather, and a final note of maple sweetness that fades slowly.
- Mash Bill
- 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Malted Barley
- Barrel Type
- New charred American oak (Level 4 char)
- Bottled in Bond
- No
- Single Barrel
- No
- Wheated
- No
Cocktail Suggestion
Old Timber Old Fashioned — 2 oz Knob Creek 12 Year · 1 barspoon demerara syrup · 3 dashes Angostura bitters · Stir over a large ice cube, express an orange peel and discard.
Food Pairing
Smoked brisket with a black pepper bark
Born from the legacy of Booker Noe's pre-Prohibition vision, Knob Creek's 12-year expression rests in the highest reaches of Beam's Clermont rickhouses, where temperature swings push deep oak extraction into every barrel.
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