Beam Toasts its 90th Anniversary with Added Attractions at Clermont Campus

To honor the 90^th anniversary of bourbon making at its distillery in Clermont, Kentucky this month, The James B. Beam Distilling Co. has created several new tasting experiences for visitors and added events to its bourbon-themed calendar. Guests at the Clermont campus now have access to the Fred B. Noe Distillery—where several of the company’s small batch labels are produced—and can also sample a variety of whiskeys in new tasting lineups.

The Fred B. Noe Distillery, named for Beam’s seventh-generation master distiller, opened in 2021 as a hub for the Beam family’s super-premium whiskeys, including Booker’s, Baker’s, Legent, and the Little Book series, which was created by Fred’s son and eighth-generation distiller Freddie Noe. The facility opened to the public for the first time this past March and began hosting a series of “Behind The Beam” events in the spring, including new tours and tasting options for guests.

Behind The Beam ($350 per person) gives visitors a personalized tour of the distillery led by either Fred or Freddie Noe. Those who participate get an inside look at Beam’s whiskey production methods, watch the bottling process for Knob Creek Single Barrel Reserve, sample Beam whiskeys, and enjoy lunch at the property’s Kentucky-inspired eatery The Kitchen Table. There are three themed Behind The Beam tours available: Maturation Matters, which takes guests through a Beam warehouse and provides information on whiskey aging; Little Book + Country Ham, which explores how Freddie makes Little Book; and Crafting Cocktails, a mixology session. Each experience spans roughly four hours, including lunch at The Kitchen Table.

For a quicker visit, guests can participate in a variety of new whiskey tastings. The 8 Generations Experience ($40) offers a 45-minute guided sampling of seven James B. Beam labels from pre-Prohibition to now, while the Knob Creek Tasting ($25) and Jim Beam Tasting ($20) each include a 30-minute guided tasting of four whiskeys from each brand portfolio, with insights into the history and production of the spirits. These new opportunities join already existing tours and tastings at the James B. Beam Distilling Co. campus, such as the Basil Hayden Culinary Tasting Experience ($65) and the Beam Made Bourbon Distillery Tour & Tasting ($30). The distillery has also extended its Clermont Supper Club program ($275), which allows guests to taste new whiskey releases at The Kitchen Table restaurant while eating bourbon-friendly fare with Fred and Freddie Noe. Reservations are now available through the end of 2024.

Beam’s visitor experiences aim to help guests feel like they’re part of the Beam family. As the self-proclaimed “first family of bourbon,” the Beam family has been involved in whiskey making since 1795. Its James B. Beam Distilling Co. campus opened in 1934 in Clermont and was renovated and revamped just a couple of years ago. The property gets an estimated 200,000 visitors a year.

While the family has been making whiskey for eight generations, the fact that father and son Fred and Freddie Noe are distilling spirits alongside each keeps the family tradition going, as Fred worked at Beam when his father, the legendary Booker Noe, was master distiller. Fred currently oversees the company’s well-known brands Jim Beam, Basil Hayden, and Knob Creek, while Freddie manages innovation with Little Book and leads The Fred B. Noe Distillery.