Jim Beam‘s flagship barrel-proof bourbon brand, Booker’s, is back with its second batch for 2026. This new release is called “Milkshake Batch” as a tribute to the late, legendary master distiller Booker Noe’s fondness for those particular sweet treats, especially when they had a splash of Kentucky bourbon added to them. As usual, this new expression is slightly different from past releases, and we have the details to share.

Booker’s was created in the late 1980s by Booker Noe, the father of current master distiller Fred Noe and grandfather of his son, also a master distiller, Freddie Noe. The whiskey is made at the James B. Beam Distilling Co. as part of the Jim Beam Small Batch Collection, which also includes Knob Creek, Baker’s, and Basil Hayden. As whiskey fans already know, Booker’s stands out as being an uncut, unfiltered bourbon, and while the specifics change from batch to batch, there are some constants—the whiskey is usually six to eight years old and between 120 and 130 proof. Milkshake Batch is exactly 7 years, six months, and 12 days old, and bottled right in the midrange at 124.4 proof. If you really want to get into the weeds and find out which warehouses the barrels used for this batch came from, you can find that information on the Booker’s website. (sSpoiler alert: the majority came from the fifth floor of warehouse G at waterfall, a seven-story building.)

The stories behind each batch of Booker’s range from nebulous to dubious to some semblance of credibility. But look, we get it, it’s all part of the fun and the brand has to find some way to differentiate each release. As mentioned earlier, according to Fred Noe his father Booker was a fan of milkshakes, particularly malted chocolate flavor, and he used to buy them a couple on the way home from fishing trips.

“One day, Dad tried out mixing some Jim Beam into his own shake, and a tradition was born,” he said in a statement. “By the time Freddie came along, Dad figured out how to make them from scratch. When we lived next door, Dad would have Freddie go over to his house whenever he got a craving for that chocolate malted milkshake. He’d whip some up for himself, Freddie, and me—and today, whenever we get the same hankering, we use the family recipe that Booker invented for us all those years ago.” And of course this is an easy one to make at home—all you need to do is add a healthy pour of Booker’s into the mix.

Booker’s “Milkshake Batch” will be available starting this month (SRP $100) at retailers around the country, and you can still find older batches available to purchase if you’d like to try a few side by side to compare.