Freddie Noe’s annual experimental blend, and Chapter 9 might be the most ambitious yet. It combines five distinct whiskeysincluding an 11-year bourbon, an 8-year rye, and a bourbon made with brown rice in the mash bill (producing butterscotch and stone fruit notes unavailable in standard grain recipes). Another component underwent extended five-day fermentation (versus Beam’s standard three), adding apple-like aromatics. At 121.8 proof, this is a masterclass in how fermentation science and unconventional grains can push bourbon in new directions.