Compare
Knob Creek 12 Year vs Old Grand-Dad Bonded
Knob Creek 12 Year and Old Grand-Dad Bonded are cut from similar cloth: two takes on high-rye bourbons, where the real difference is age (12 years vs. 4 years).
Key Specifications
| Feature | Knob Creek 12 Year | Old Grand-Dad Bonded |
|---|---|---|
| Type / Style | High-Rye Bourbon | High-Rye Bourbon |
| Mash Bill 1 | 75% corn, 13% rye, 12% malted barley | 63% corn, 27% rye, 10% malted barley |
| Age | 12 years +8 yr | 4 years |
| Proof | 100 proof (50% ABV) | 100 proof (50% ABV) |
| Approx. Price 2 | ~$55 – $70 | ~$24 – $30 ~$36 less |
- Knob Creek 12 Year and Old Grand-Dad Bonded do not publish an official mash bill.
- US shelf prices as of 2026-08; they vary widely by market.
AG’s Rating and AG’s Notes
Knob Creek 12 Year
Not rated yetNo notes yet.
Old Grand-Dad Bonded
Not rated yetNo notes yet.
Flavor Profile
Knob Creek 12 Year Old Grand-Dad Bonded
Axis by axis, biggest gap first
oak 9/5 oak: Knob Creek 12 Year 9 out of 10, Old Grand-Dad Bonded 5 out of 10
spice 6/8 spice: Knob Creek 12 Year 6 out of 10, Old Grand-Dad Bonded 8 out of 10
nuttiness 7/5 nuttiness: Knob Creek 12 Year 7 out of 10, Old Grand-Dad Bonded 5 out of 10
sweetness 6/5 sweetness: Knob Creek 12 Year 6 out of 10, Old Grand-Dad Bonded 5 out of 10
fruit 3/4 fruit: Knob Creek 12 Year 3 out of 10, Old Grand-Dad Bonded 4 out of 10
heat 5/6 heat: Knob Creek 12 Year 5 out of 10, Old Grand-Dad Bonded 6 out of 10
Flavor Profile Differences
Oak is doing most of the differentiating here.
- Knob Creek 12 Year: Three more years in the barrel than the standard Knob Creek, and the wood does all the talking. Deep oak and leather over the familiar Beam peanut note, drying toward genuinely tannic on the finish.
- Old Grand-Dad Bonded: A bonded 100-proof high-rye bourbon for the price of a mixer, and one of the great bargains on the shelf. Cleaner and less overwhelming than the 114 while keeping the peppery rye backbone.
Which One Should You Choose?
- Go with Knob Creek 12 Year if you want the Beam house profile pushed as far into oak as it goes while staying balanced with an older age statement.
- Go with Old Grand-Dad Bonded if you want a bonded, high-rye workhorse at mixer money.
Best enjoyed neat, rocks (Knob Creek 12 Year); neat, old-fashioned, cocktails (Old Grand-Dad Bonded).