Knob Creek 25th Anniversary is a series of single barrel Knob Creek releases being put out by Jim Beam to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the brand which was originally created by Fed Noe’s father Booker Noe. Each bottle of the Knob Creek 25th Anniversary is delivered at full cask strength and non-chill filtered which is as close to drinking in the rick house as we can get without going to KY.
In Jim Beam’s Words: Knob Creek 25th Anniversary
“To celebrate the staying power of hard-earned flavor, we’re bottling a limited edition, unfiltered* and cask strength single barrel bourbon. This bourbon is truly a high point in Knob Creek’s proud history. This is our first ever bourbon bottled at barrel strength. Now you can experience the exceptional flavor profile of these personally selected barrels as if you were at the warehouse in Clermont: uncut and unblended.”
I like that they’re doing the Knob Creek 25th Anniversary, I think it’s awesome to get a long-aged, single barrel, un-cut version of Jim Beam whiskey. This is a great project and my only wish is that they’d have put barrel numbers on the bottles. Since single barrels deliver different experiences it would have been nice to compare my notes against other people’s barrels and see how they compare and contrast.
Yes we can look at the barreled date and the proof to see if we have different casks, but it isn’t impossible that they pulled casks that were barreled on the same date and had the same proof when they were dumped. Which means you could have the stats but have slightly different experiences and not know if they’re different casks or just a different opinion. Anyways, on to the Knob Creek 25th Anniversary review!
Knob Creek 25th Anniversary Info
Region: Kentucky, USA
Distiller: Jim Beam
Mashbill: 77% Corn, 13% Rye, 10% Malted Barley
Cask: New Charred Oak
Age: 13 Years (barreled: 2-25-04)
ABV: 61.05%
Cask Strength | Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color
Price: $130
Knob Creek 25th Anniversary Review
EYE
RED caramel
NOSE
Candy coated oak; dark fruit, roasted peanuts, cinnamon, brown sugar and a bit of cucumber, nutmeg and mustiness. Yes I said it smells a bit like cucumber… and I like it.
PALATE
Oaky dark fruit; cinnamon oil, roasted peanut, clove, brown sugar, corn heavy grain and a touch of maple and mustiness. No cucumber.
FINISH
Long slow fade of oak, dark fruit, spice and brown sugar.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Decent balanced, full body and a soft full feel.
OVERALL
Knob Creek 25th Anniversary is a nice whiskey. Oak dominates this dram but doesn’t overwhelm and that lovely dark fruit and dark sweets character rolls through with balance and grace. I don’t find anything truly wrong with this dram but it’s missing some of the depth I enjoyed so much in the Knob Creek Vintage 2001 Batch 1. Comparing that release to this particular single barrel I liked the KC 2001 B1 a bit more.
Adding some water to the Knob Creek 25th Anniversary brings out a bit of peanut brittle across the senses and enhances the oak and dark fruit a bit more. It helps everything feel a bit more cohesive while simultaneously making it feel like a fuller deeper whiskey, but still like 2001 B1 more. That said I don’t have any actual complaints at all about the liquid that’s currently sitting in my glass.
SCORE: 90/100 (A-)
*Disclosure: This Knob Creek 25th Anniversary was graciously sent to me by the company for the purposes of this review. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.
