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Named for legendary Jim Beam company master distiller Booker Noe (1960-1992), Booker's "Apprentice Batch" was the second release of 2023. The label and name pay homage to Booker Noe's early career working under his cousin Carl Beam. The batch also honors Charlie Hutchens who developed the distinctive wooden boxes in which Booker's ships to this day.
The Booker's Brand started as a pet project of Noe for friends and family in the late 1980s, first releasing to the public in 1992 as the first in Jim Beam's "Small Batch Bourbon Collection". I've heard people credit Booker Noe with the creation of the term "Small Batch" which to this day holds no regulatory meaning in spite of it sounding so good.
Jim beam drops a number of releases under the Booker's brand every year, and each will vary in terms of flavor, sometimes significantly. Each blended batch is sourced primarily from barrels in the "center cut" of each warehouse, often credited as being the most balanced in terms of aging, though as you'll note with this batch there are sometimes high floor barrels thrown in as well. Barrels are specifically selected and blended to fit the theme of the release. Batch to batch, one this is for sure: Booker's is always uncut and unfiltered. Nothing but wood and and distillate all the way to the bottle.
🛒Sourced: Unknown - Gifted by a Colleague after an absolute grueler of a project. Commonly $90-$100 these days. This is my first Booker's bottle in probably eight years and I'm very excited to get into it. Finally got around to cracking it open on my 2nd Father's day.
🧪Proof: 125.5 proof, 62.75% ABV - Booker's releases are typically in the 120-130 range.
🎨Color: Y5 - more yellow than yet and deep in color, Booker's are always leggo IMO
🥔Mash Bill: 77% Corn, 13% Rye, 10% Malted Barley.
Distillation proof is 125 (lower than Knob Creek at 130 and Jim Beam at 135) and it is barreled at the same, no water needed. Aged for 7 years 1 Month and 2 Days, very specific! Note that this would be age of the YOUNGEST liquid in the bottle. Non chill filtered.
It contains liquid from barrels in the following locations and percentages.
- 7% came from the 7th floor of 9-story warehouse H
- 9% came from the 4th floor of 7-story warehouse W
- 11% came from the 4th floor of 7-story warehouse 1
- 18% came from the 4th floor of 7-story warehouse O
- 19% came from the 4th floor of 9-story warehouse G
- 36% came from the 4th floor of 7-story warehouse Z
👃Nose: Actually pretty approachable with a bit of peanut shell, fresh hay, sweet biscuit, and perhaps some mint.
😜Palate: Old old predominates with musty leather at first, graham cracker and tea cookie in the mid palate, and a little bit of library funk in transition to the finish. Not initially that hot, it does a sort of slow crescendo into what is just one bell short of a five alarm fire. Good body and a somewhat tannic mouthfeel are a bit buried by the heat.
💦Finish: More of the herbaceous baking notes, Panettone and ginger cookie. Mildly sweet and very long.
🏆 Overall: 5.5/10 - Good - I remember reviews at the time of release being somewhat polarizing. Bookers "The Apprentice Batch" does seem to stray from the tasting notes of other releases around the same time, but that shouldn't be held against it. For me, main the thing holding it back is sheer tannic heat. The baking sweets and herb combo works pretty darn well, I do struggle a bit to get through a large pour and am considering dumping in an ice cube to balance.
Booker's holds a special place in my heart as being the first barrel proof whiskey I ever tried. My first boss at PwC was a big fan and pours in a nearby hotel bar were priced to move. This was before the peak bourbon boom when we could find Booker's reliably on shelves for around $75. Many a successful project were celebrated by cracking open an endearingly wood-boxed drinking buddy.
💵Would buy again? This batch? Probably not. The fun with Booker's is trying the new ones! Unfortunately, there isn't much in this bottle that backs up the price tag, and I think that is becoming the consensus on the series. $100 is pretty steep when there is well aged and high proof whiskey for a hair more than half that.
⚖️Rating Scale:
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume it by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws | Struggle to get through the bottle
4 | Serviceable | Mixing or ice recommended.
5 | Good | Drinkable Neat | An agreeable dram indeed.
6 | Very Good | Any flaws offset by interesting flavors | A cut above.
7 | Great | You find yourself reaching for this one often | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Serve to Impress Guests | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite | You guard this bottle jealously.