Followers of Knob Creek’s single barrel bourbons and ryes are in for a deal with: Knob Creek proprietor The James B. Beam Distilling Co. has created the Beam Non-public Barrel Membership, which is able to permit them to pick out, purchase, and bottle whiskey from their very personal barrel of Knob Creek, proper on the distillery. This system launches in January and is a primary for Beam, which beforehand has provided this service solely to retailers, eating places, bars, and different members of the spirits commerce.
The Knob Creek single barrel bourbons are aged for no less than 9 years, whereas the Knob Creek single barrel ryes are aged at the least 7 years. Solely barrels that cross Beam’s personal assessment {qualifications} will probably be made out there. For now Knob Creek would be the solely Beam label on supply, although the corporate mentioned it will likely be evaluating the potential for including a few of its different whiskeys, which embody Jim Beam, Basil Hayden, Booker’s, Little Guide, Baker’s, and Outdated Grand-Dad.
Shopping for a whole barrel of whiskey is a reasonably costly enterprise, as a typical barrel yields wherever from 100 to 175 bottles every. Beam plans to cost $60 a bottle of Knob Creek, or $6,000 to $10,500 for the complete barrel’s lot. However the value comes with perks that embody a behind-the-scenes distillery tour, a tasting of a number of barrel choices for bourbon and rye, and an opportunity to personalize the labels in your barrel’s bottles. Barrels will probably be out there for people, whiskey golf equipment, households, and good friend teams, with a most of eight folks per shopping for group accommodated for the choice course of.
Friends who’re can begin by reserving on-line by way of Beam’s Non-public Barrel Membership for a price of $1,000, which will probably be credited towards the ultimate price of the barrel. From there, a Beam Legacy ambassador will attain out to verify the small print for a go to to the distillery and to schedule the barrel sampling. All of this takes place at The James B. Beam Distilling Co. campus in Clermont, Kentucky. The corporate’s Legacy ambassadors, who’ve helped retail and bar accounts select personal barrels of whiskey for years, will lead this system. However Beam added that its grasp distillers Fred and Freddie Noe simply may pop in for shock visits in the course of the barrel choice course of.
The expertise begins with a guided tour of the Beam facility, together with a cease on the Fred B. Noe Distillery the place Knob Creek’s Single Barrel Reserve whiskey is bottled, and a go to to Beam’s Warehouse Okay. This a part of the Beam campus is offered just for curated excursions and never open to most of the people. After the tour, barrel patrons will go to a rickhouse and style by way of a number of Knob Creek single barrel bourbons and ryes to search out their favourite. The chosen barrel will probably be pulled apart for bottling, and patrons can personalize the labels for every bottle of their personal barrel choice. Following the tour and barrel choice, patrons will take pleasure in lunch at Beam’s The Kitchen Desk restaurant on the distillery campus. Bottling a whole barrel of whiskey takes wherever from one to 4 months, and patrons will decide up their completed merchandise at Beam’s American Outpost in Clermont, Kentucky.
The launch of Beam’s Non-public Barrel Membership coincides with the 230th anniversary of the Beam household promoting its first barrel of whiskey. Farmer and founder Jacob Beam offered his first barrel of whiskey in 1795. Since then, eight generations have led the distillery.
