Knob Creek
Type: Brand made at a named distillery
Knob Creek is a Kentucky straight bourbon and rye brand associated with the James B. Beam Distilling Co. in Clermont, Kentucky, where it has been made and aged.[2] Bourbon distillation at Clermont was paused for 2026; the source of Knob Creek during the pause is not reliably established.[12] Launched in 1992 as part of Booker Noe’s Small Batch Collection, the brand was designed around a longer aged, pre-Prohibition style, with the original bourbon aged nine years and bottled at 50% ABV (100 US proof).[2]
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Home | James B. Beam Distilling Co., Clermont, Kentucky.[2] |
| Brand owner | Exact legal entity and effective date not reliably established. Before 2014, the brand belonged to Beam Inc. Suntory Holdings completed its acquisition of Beam Inc. in May 2014; Beam Suntory was renamed Suntory Global Spirits in 2024.[11] |
| Launched | 1992, alongside Basil Hayden, Booker’s and Baker’s in Booker Noe’s Small Batch Collection.[2][3] |
| Main styles | Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey and rye whiskey.[2] |
| Established bourbon expressions | 9 Year, 12 Year and Single Barrel Reserve, the last aged at least nine years.[2] |
| Established rye expressions | 7 Year Old Rye, 10 Year Old Rye and Rye Single Barrel.[1][2][7] |
| Bourbon casks | New, charred American white oak barrels with a level 4 “alligator” char, according to the producer.[2] |
What Knob Creek is known for
Booker Noe wanted a bourbon that recalled the longer ageing and bottling strength he associated with whiskey before Prohibition. The nine-year age statement and 50% ABV (100 US proof) strength were central to the original design.[2]
Noe was Jim Beam’s grandson and a longtime master distiller at the company. Knob Creek is a brand, not a separate distillery called Knob Creek; the related Jim Beam article covers the Beam name.[2]
The producer says the original bottling strength honours the standards of the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897. That is its explanation of the choice, rather than a separate certification claimed here for the range.[2]
Today, the name covers older bourbon expressions, single barrel releases, rye whiskey and a disclosed bourbon and rye blend.[1][2] Small batch has no legal definition, and barrel counts vary between brands.[9]
Booker Noe’s founding idea
Story box
| Field | Record |
|---|---|
| Story title | Booker Noe’s nine-year starting point |
| Founding story | Knob Creek launched in 1992 as part of Booker Noe’s Small Batch Collection, with Basil Hayden, Booker’s and Baker’s. The producer describes its purpose as reviving a longer-aged, higher-proof pre-Prohibition style. Producer’s account |
| Turning point | In late 2016, tight mature inventory led Beam to remove the nine-year age statement. Fred Noe explained that including some slightly younger barrels allowed him to maintain the flavour. Producer’s account |
| Documented record | The record establishes the 1992 launch and original nine-year, 50% ABV (100 US proof) design. Producer’s account |
| Sources and claim mapping | Launch, collection membership, intended style and inventory explanation: James B. Beam Distilling Co.. |
| Last checked | November 2026. |
Verdict badge
Claim: Booker Noe created Knob Creek in 1992 to revive a longer-aged, higher-proof pre-Prohibition style.
Verdict: Documented
What the record shows: The producer’s accounts identify the launch, collection and intended style.[2][3]
Evidence against or gap: The historical style description is the producer’s account, not a reconstruction of every pre-Prohibition bourbon.
Earliest known source: Not established by the supplied record.
Sources: James B. Beam Distilling Co.; Suntory Global Spirits.
Last checked: November 2026.
The creek behind the name
The name points to Abraham Lincoln’s childhood, not to the place where the whiskey is distilled. Trade reporting identifies the Kentucky creek at Lincoln’s childhood home as the source of the brand name; Knob Creek whiskey has never been made at that farm.[4][9]
The National Park Service records that the Lincoln family moved to a farm on Knob Creek in 1811, about 16 kilometres (10 miles) northeast of Sinking Spring Farm. They left Kentucky for Indiana in late 1816, and the Lincoln Boyhood Home at Knob Creek became a unit of the national historic site in 2001.[10]
The Lincoln connection explains the name, while Clermont supplies the whiskey-making connection: these are two different places with different roles in the story.[2][4][10]
Understanding the Knob Creek range
The clearest way into the range is to separate bourbon from rye, then distinguish age-stated expressions from single-barrel releases. The table records expressions described in the producer material, checked in November 2026.[1][2][7]
| Expression | Age statement | Bottling strength |
|---|---|---|
| Knob Creek 9 Year bourbon | 9 years | 50% ABV (100 US proof).[2] |
| Knob Creek 12 Year bourbon | 12 years | 50% ABV (100 US proof).[2] |
| Single Barrel Reserve bourbon | At least 9 years | 60% ABV (120 US proof).[2] |
| Knob Creek 7 Year Old Rye | 7 years | 50% ABV (100 US proof).[1][7] |
| Knob Creek 10 Year Old Rye | 10 years | 50% ABV (100 US proof).[2] |
| Knob Creek Rye Single Barrel | No age statement | 57.5% ABV (115 US proof).[2] |
Knob Creek 12 Year debuted in 2019 and became a permanent expression. The producer also identifies 15 Year, 18 Year and 21 Year bourbons as limited, periodic releases.[2]
The rye arrived in 2012, timed to the bourbon’s twentieth anniversary. It was crafted by master distiller Fred Noe and bottled at 50% ABV (100 US proof); the flagship now carries a seven-year age statement.[7][8]
Knob Creek Bourbon x Rye makes its composition explicit: 30% nine-year-old bourbon and 70% seven-year-old rye, bottled at 56.5% ABV (113 US proof). Those proportions describe the finished whiskey blend, not the grain recipe used before fermentation.[1]
The nine-year age statement
The removal of the nine-year statement in late 2016 was an inventory decision, according to the producer. Mature stocks were too tight to guarantee that every barrel had reached nine years, and Fred Noe explained that some slightly younger whiskey could be included to keep the flavour consistent.[2]
The nine-year statement subsequently returned to labels, but the date is disputed. The producer says 2020; a trade source citing Whisky Advocate says 2021.[2][9]
Verdict: Disputed
What the record shows: Both accounts report the statement’s return, but give different years.[2][9]
Evidence against or gap: The year has not been reliably established from the supplied sources.
Earliest known source: Not established from the sources checked.
Sources: James B. Beam Distilling Co. [2] and Tasting Table [9], checked November 2026.
Last checked: November 2026.
An age statement identifies the youngest whiskey in the bottle; a nine-year bottling can also contain older whiskey.[2]
The distinction is between the expression and its packaging history. A reference to Knob Creek without an age statement may concern the period after the 2016 change, while the current nine-year expression again makes that age central to its identity.[2]
Single barrels and anniversary releases
Single Barrel Reserve launched in 2011, extending the brand beyond its original bourbon. The producer describes it as at least nine years old, bottled at 60% ABV (120 US proof).[2][8]
For the twenty-fifth anniversary in 2017, Knob Creek released its first cask-strength bourbon, at roughly 62.5% ABV (125 US proof). Trade reporting records that the barrels had been laid down in 2004, the year Booker Noe died, and that his son Fred selected about 300 barrels.[6]
A different age milestone followed on 28 October 2025 with Knob Creek 21 Year Old, bottled at 50% ABV (100 US proof). The James B. Beam Distilling Co. described it as the oldest whiskey released from the distillery.[7]
New expressions in 2026
March 2026 brought Blender’s Edition 01, reported as at least ten years old and bottled at 53% ABV (106 US proof). In June, the 9 Year Old Independence Edition introduced a blue wax seal for America’s 250th anniversary and the company’s claimed 230 years of whiskey heritage.[4][5]
The Independence Edition was the first change to the wax seal’s colour in the brand’s history, according to trade reporting.[4]
On 16 September, Knob Creek released 12 Year Old Cask Strength at 60.6% ABV (121.2 US proof). The producer said it selected the whiskey from ten distinct lots in its Clermont rickhouses, the warehouses where barrels mature.[3]
Clermont’s 2026 distilling pause
From 1 January 2026, Jim Beam paused bourbon distillation at its flagship Clermont distillery for the year, while continuing to distil at two other Kentucky sites, according to NPR.[12]
The report does not establish which distillery supplied Knob Creek during the pause.[12]
Sources
- Knob Creek. Bourbon, Knob Creek Bourbon Whiskey. Producer’s account, website edition supplied in the fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://www.knobcreek.com/
- James B. Beam Distilling Co. How Long Is Knob Creek Aged? Every Age Statement Explained. Producer’s account, website edition supplied in the fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://www.beamdistilling.com/articles/knob-creek-aging-explained/
- Suntory Global Spirits via PR Newswire. Knob Creek Releases 12 Year Old Cask Strength. Producer’s announcement, 16 September 2026. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/knob-creek-releases-12-year-old-cask-strength-a-bold-expression-of-time-patience-and-full-flavor-302879786.html
- Fred Minnick. Knob Creek Rolls Out Independence Edition with Blue Wax Seal. Trade report, 26 June 2026. https://www.fredminnick.com/2026/06/26/knob-creek-rolls-out-independence-edition-with-blue-wax-seal/
- Fred Minnick. Knob Creek Introduces New Blender’s Edition. Trade report, 31 March 2026. https://www.fredminnick.com/2026/03/31/knob-creek-introduces-new-blenders-edition/
- Robb Report. Knob Creek’s New Bourbon Commemorates Its 25th Anniversary. Trade report, 2017. https://robbreport.com/food-drink/spirits/knob-creeks-bourbon-25th-anniversary-2723331/
- James B. Beam Distilling Co. via Breaking Bourbon. The James B. Beam Distilling Co. Introduces Knob Creek 21 Year Old. Producer’s press release, 28 October 2025. https://breakingbourbon.com/bourbon-whiskey-press-releases/the-james-b-beam-distilling-co-introduces-knob-creek-r-21-year-old-the-oldest-expression-in-distillery-history
- The Spirits Business. Beam revisits pre-Prohibition with Knob Creek Rye. Trade report, August 2012. https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2012/08/beam-revisits-pre-prohibition-with-knob-creek-rye/
- Tasting Table. 7 Facts To Know If You Enjoy Knob Creek Bourbon Whiskey. Trade feature, edition supplied in the fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://www.tastingtable.com/2167329/knob-creek-bourbon-whiskey-facts
- US National Park Service. Park Brochure, Abraham Lincoln Birthplace NHP. Website edition supplied in the fact sheet, checked November 2026. https://home.nps.gov/places/park-brochure-abraham-lincoln-birthplace-nhp.htm
- The Spirits Business. Beam Suntory unveils new name. Trade report, 2024, checked November 2026. https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2024/05/beam-suntory-unveils-new-name/
- NPR. Jim Beam to pause production at its main plant in 2026. News report, 1 January 2026. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/01/nx-s1-5662610/jim-beam-to-pause-production-at-its-main-plant-in-2026
This article was prepared as desk research from fact sheet TOP-A294, distinguishing producer accounts, trade reporting and the National Park Service record.
Last checked: November 2026