Booker’s is a cask strength bourbon from Jim Beam that is available year-round. Being a mix of different single casks, with no water added, different batches of Booker’s will taste differently since they’re not mixing barrels and water in the same way they do something like Jim Beam Black to try and keep a consistent flavor all the time. In addition to the normal batch releases there are also “special editions” of this that comes out called the Booker’s Roundtable.
For the roundtable releases Fred Noe (Booker’s son and current Jim Beam master distiller) gathers together a bunch of whiskey writers, experts and the like to taste through different barrels of JIm Beam and figure out which ones should go into that next batch. The first roundtable of 2015 happened earlier this year and who knows, maybe one day they might ask The Whiskey Jug to join them and I can give y’all the inside scoop on what’s it’s like to participate (a man can dream).
Here’s what we know about the 2015 Booker’s Roundtable so far:
- It’s being called “The Center Cut” and the label features a steak (see above).
- These barrels were taken from the 5th floor (center cut) which is apparently where Booker always picked his favorite barrels from.
- Booker also apparently aged his own meat and enjoyed the center cut (hence the image) there too.
- Proof: 127.2
- Age: 7 years, 2 months and 28 days
- Nose: Vanilla with oak
- Finish: Long, sweet finish
- MSRP: $55
Fred also has this to say about the first roundtable release of 2015.
“It was Dad’s tradition to gather friends around his kitchen table to taste and select the next batch of Booker’s Bourbon,” said Fred Noe in a statement, “and I’m proud to honor his legacy with this first Roundtable selection of 2015. This batch gives Booker’s Bourbon fans a look at the man behind the bourbon. A man who enjoyed the simple things in life, including a strong, robust bourbon, a juicy center cut of meat, and family and friends to enjoy it with.”
So what do you think? Will you be tracking down a bottle? I haven’t picked up a new bottle of Booker’s in a while and I think it might be about time.
Cheers!
