Booker’s bourbon batches are a barrel strength bourbon made by the Jim Beam distillery. It is uncut and unfiltered. It’s generally aged 6 to 8 years with a proof upwards of 121. This is Booker Noe’s bourbon, the famous master distiller of Jim Beam in the 80s.

The brand was started by Booker Noe, the late distiller emeritus, who would often choose the best barrels as a gift for friends and families. It was only launched to the public in 1988 under 1,000 cases. Booker’s Small Batch Bourbon was originally released for $59.99, the price increased in 2017 during the bourbon boom to $74.99, and the price has increased again in 2020 to $99.99.

Start shopping for bourbon clothing and accessories for your journey. The Bard’s Shop has custom tees and hoodies, books, barrels, and more.

List of Booker’s Batches

List of New Booker’s Batches (2013-present)

Booker’s Bourbon Batches from 1979 to 2007 had markings on the label for the barreled date. Starting in 2013 the Booker’s Bourbon Batches displayed the dump date. Look for Booker’s reviews. Click on the link in the table for a review of that batch.

New Booker’s Proof Variation Compared Year Over Year

In the graphic below, we compare the new Booker’s proof variation year over year with some interesting results

Takeaways:

• It’s amazing how little proof variation there is year over year.
• The biggest variation was with Booker’s Rye release (an outlier possibly because of the mashbill difference).
• For being the OG barrel proof on the market, Booker also doesn’t have any hazmat batches (140 proof plus).

List of Old Booker’s Batches (1979-2007)

List of Booker’s Roundtable Batches

Also, Chuck Cowdery gives a little insight into Booker’s Roundtable and how those batches (which were well received) started what we now as Booker’s Small Batch Bourbon:

These Roundtable batches have apparently been well-received because Beam-Suntory has just announced that 2015 will see a series of specially-labeled batches. The first, Booker’s Bourbon Batch 2015-1, named “Big Man, Small Batch,” features a custom label inspired by the iconic image of Booker sipping bourbon in his rocking chair with his dog Dot by his side. According to the press release, the batch’s name “honors Booker’s role in the creation of small batch bourbons and the larger-than-life personality for which he was known.”

Personality aside, Booker was a big man, as am I. He once said to me, “Chuck, we’re full-growed men.” I’ve never heard it put better.

According to Adventures in Whiskey, a participant in the 2017 roundtable:

How does the Booker’s Roundtable work? Those selected will meet in person in Kentucky or via a conference call. The latter is the case for this particular Roundtable selection. The distillery usually sends three samples to each participant. The samples are different batches of Booker’s, each with slight differences. Fred leads a tasting and shares some production notes. Our job is to taste each sample and pick the one we believe tastes most like Booker’s. The batch with the most votes then gets bottled and goes to market.

The Booker’s roundtable batches were originally selected by Booker Noe and a panel of whiskey writers and experts, and now Fred Noe is leading the charge:

List of Booker’s Limited Edition Releases

Booker’s Bourbon Batches: Frequently Asked Questions

You may have had these questions about Bookers:

What are the best Booker’s bourbon batches?

You’re in luck we’ve ranked all the batches for every year since 2015.

• Booker’s Bourbon Batches 2021 Ranked
• Booker’s Bourbon Batches 2020 Ranked
• Booker’s Bourbon Batches 2019 Ranked
• Booker’s Bourbon Batches 2018 Ranked
• Booker’s Bourbon Batches 2017 Ranked
• Booker’s Bourbon Batches 2016 Ranked
• Booker’s Bourbon Batches 2015 Ranked

Is Booker’s bourbon rare?

It is a small batch bourbon and as you can see from the release below the bourbon boom affected Booker’s as well, but generally, if you’re willing to hunt in your area you can find the four annual releases easily.

Now, the limited releases . . . that’s another story. Those are rare and hard to come by depending on relationships with local retailers.

How much is a bottle of Booker’s bourbon?

Booker’s price was original $59.99 and there were often up to 6 batches per year. In 2017, that changed. Beam Suntory stated:

As we’ve previously shared, Booker’s Bourbon will experience supply constraints this year. As a result, we must reduce our batch releases to four per year. We apologize to anyone who is unable to locate the product in the future. Because of the rarity and high quality of this liquid, and our need to maintain our supply without sacrificing any production standards, we have decided to increase the price of Booker’s. We’ll be implementing the previously announced price increase over time, and in 2017 you can expect to see Booker’s on shelf for $69.99-$74.99.

We would like to thank our friends and fans for their ongoing support, and we promise to maintain the same quality standards that Booker demanded of his namesake bourbon despite our supply challenges.

How do you drink Bookers Bourbon?

According to Booker and Fred, any damn way you want:

Who owns Booker’s Bourbon?

Booker’s is owned by Beam Suntory, and currently, Fred Noe is the master distillery (see the video below where he talks about his father’s legacy and starting Booker’s brand.

When did Booker Noe die?

As reported by the New York Times:

Frederick Booker Noe II, former master distiller of Jim Beam and the sixth generation of the Beam family to make bourbon, died on Feb. 24[, 2004] at his home in Bardstown, Ky. He was 74.

Is Booker’s a wheated bourbon?

No, it is not. Booker’s uses corn, rye, and barley mash bill. No wheat to be found. There has been one limited edition of Booker’s Rye.

Start shopping for bourbon clothing and accessories for your journey. The Bard’s Shop has custom tees and hoodies, books, barrels, and more.