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New Riff Bottled-in-Bond vs Booker’s
New Riff Bottled-in-Bond and Booker’s sit on opposite sides of a familiar divide: a new-wave, rye-forward craft style versus an uncut, rye-forward heavyweight.
Key Specifications
| Feature | New Riff Bottled-in-Bond | Booker’s |
|---|---|---|
| Type / Style | High-Rye Bourbon | High-Rye Bourbon, Barrel Proof |
| Mash Bill 1 | 65% corn, 30% rye, 5% malted barley | 75% corn, 13% rye, 12% malted barley |
| Age | 4 years | 7 years +3 yr |
| Proof | 100 proof (50% ABV) | 125 proof (62.5% ABV) +25 proof |
| Approx. Price 2 | ~$38 – $45 ~$56 less | ~$85 – $110 |
| Availability | Widely available easier to find | Limited |
- Booker’s does 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
New Riff Bottled-in-Bond
Not rated yetNo notes yet.
Booker’s
Not rated yetNo notes yet.
Flavor Profile
New Riff Bottled-in-Bond Booker’s
Axis by axis, biggest gap first
nuttiness 3/8 nuttiness: New Riff Bottled-in-Bond 3 out of 10, Booker’s 8 out of 10
heat 6/10 heat: New Riff Bottled-in-Bond 6 out of 10, Booker’s 10 out of 10
sweetness 4/7 sweetness: New Riff Bottled-in-Bond 4 out of 10, Booker’s 7 out of 10
oak 5/8 oak: New Riff Bottled-in-Bond 5 out of 10, Booker’s 8 out of 10
spice 9/7 spice: New Riff Bottled-in-Bond 9 out of 10, Booker’s 7 out of 10
fruit 5/4 fruit: New Riff Bottled-in-Bond 5 out of 10, Booker’s 4 out of 10
Flavor Profile Differences
The house grain character is what splits these.
- New Riff Bottled-in-Bond: At 30% rye this is about as spice-forward as bourbon gets before becoming rye whiskey. Peppery and herbal with mint and dill, non-chill-filtered for texture, and noticeably dry rather than sweet.
- Booker’s: Uncut, unfiltered Beam at batch strength, and the most concentrated expression of the house peanut-and-oak character. Enormous and hot, with a finish that goes on well past where you expect it to stop.
Which One Should You Choose?
- Go with New Riff Bottled-in-Bond if you want aggressive rye spice and a dry, herbal profile from a modern craft distillery at a significantly lower price point.
- Go with Booker’s if you want the Beam house style at full power and you have water on the table with significantly more proof behind it and with an older age statement.
Best enjoyed neat, old-fashioned, cocktails (New Riff Bottled-in-Bond); neat (Booker’s).