Updated September 2026 by Lydia Martin
The best bourbon for eggnog is 100 proof with real rye in the mash bill, and it should be one of the cheapest bottles on your shelf.
Both halves of that matter, and the second half is where most guides go wrong.
Why eggnog destroys good bourbon
Eggnog is cream, egg yolk, and sugar. It is one of the richest, fattiest, sweetest mixers in the entire drinks canon.
Fat coats the palate. Sugar masks. Together they flatten nuance completely. An expensive bourbon's subtlety — the reason it costs what it does — is precisely what disappears first when you pour it into a cup of thickened, sweetened cream.
That has two consequences:
Proof is the only thing that survives. At 80 proof, bourbon in eggnog reads as a faint warmth and nothing more. At 100 proof, you can actually taste it. This is the same physics as a Manhattan, only more extreme, because eggnog is richer than vermouth.
Spending money here is waste. A $60 bourbon and a $22 bourbon at the same proof will taste nearly identical through eggnog. Buy the $22 one. Save the good bottle for after.
The rule
A bourbon works in eggnog if it clears both:
- Proof: 100 or higher. Below 90, it disappears.
- Flavoring grain: rye, ideally in double digits. Rye's pepper and dry spice is what cuts through the fat. Wheated bourbons go soft against dairy and vanish.
The bottles
The value picks — buy one of these
- Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond, 100 proof. Bottled-in-bond means 100 proof by law, from a single distillation season and single distiller, aged at least four years in a federally supervised warehouse. The statute guarantees exactly the variable eggnog demands. Few bottles deliver more per dollar in any application, and this is the best of them.
- Old Grand-Dad Bonded, 100 proof. Roughly 27% rye, and the most rye-forward mainstream bourbon widely available. If you want the spice to genuinely cut, this is the bottle.
- Jim Beam Bottled-in-Bond, 100 proof. Same statutory guarantee, different house character.
A step up, if you're serving it as the centerpiece
- Wild Turkey 101, 101 proof. Assertive and slightly funky. Impossible to lose in anything, including this.
- Knob Creek 9 Year, 100 proof. More oak, which reads as warmth and spice against cream.
Cask strength, for a different drink entirely
- Anything at 110+ proof turns eggnog into something considerably more adult. Reduce the pour by about a third and let the eggnog rise to meet it.
What not to use. Wheated bourbons — Maker's Mark, Weller — go soft and lose against dairy. Allocated bottles, for all the reasons above. Flavored whiskeys, since eggnog is already sweet enough.
Match the ratio to your proof
| Bourbon proof | Bourbon per cup of nog | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 80–86 | 2 oz | Barely present |
| 90–100 | 1½ oz | The standard build. Start here. |
| 101–107 | 1¼ oz | Spirit-forward and structured |
| 110+ | 1 oz | Strong, and genuinely good |
The instinct is to add more bourbon when it tastes weak. The better fix is a higher-proof bottle at a smaller pour — you get more flavor and less alcohol in the glass.
But should it be bourbon at all?
Worth knowing: brandy is the traditional eggnog spirit, not bourbon. The drink descends from British posset, made with sherry or brandy, and colonial America substituted rum and later whiskey largely because they were cheaper and more available than imported brandy.
Many of the best eggnog recipes use two spirits. A classic split is brandy and rum, or bourbon and dark rum. If you're making it from scratch, try 1 oz bourbon plus ½ oz aged rum per cup — the rum adds molasses depth that bourbon alone doesn't provide.
About the bottled stuff
Evan Williams Original Southern Egg Nog is a ready-to-serve bourbon-cream product. Its label reads 30 proof, which is 15% ABV. Note that some retailer listings state 19% ABV — that contradicts the 30-proof designation printed on the bottle, and the label is the authority. It's a genuine convenience product and a decent one; it is not a substitute for made-from-scratch nog.
If you're using a store-bought dairy eggnog as a base and adding your own bourbon, you are getting most of the way there for a fraction of the effort, and the proof rule above still applies exactly.
A bourbon eggnog worth making
Serves 6
- 4 egg yolks
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 cups whole milk
- 6 oz bourbon, 100 proof
- 2 oz aged rum (optional but recommended)
- Fresh nutmeg, grated over the top
Whisk yolks and sugar until pale and thick. Whisk in cream and milk. Stir in the spirits. Chill at least four hours; overnight is better.
Grate the nutmeg fresh. Pre-ground nutmeg is the difference between eggnog that tastes homemade and eggnog that tastes like a carton.
On aging: traditional aged eggnog rests refrigerated for weeks or months, and the alcohol is what makes that safe. If you are not following an established aged-nog recipe with sufficient alcohol content, drink it within a few days and use pasteurized eggs.
More in our Bourbon Guide.
Frequently asked questions
What bourbon is best for eggnog?
A 100-proof bottled-in-bond bourbon with rye in the mash bill. Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond and Old Grand-Dad Bonded are the two best-value options.
How much bourbon per cup of eggnog?
About 1½ oz for a 100-proof bourbon. Less as the proof climbs.
Is rum or bourbon better in eggnog?
Rum is closer to the historical drink and brings molasses depth; bourbon brings vanilla and oak. Using both is better than either alone.
Can you use cheap bourbon in eggnog?
You should. Cream and sugar flatten nuance, so an inexpensive 100-proof bourbon performs as well as an expensive one.
Does bourbon eggnog need to be aged?
No. Aged eggnog is a tradition, not a requirement, and it needs an established recipe with sufficient alcohol to be done safely.
What proof bourbon for eggnog?
100 proof or higher. Below 90 the bourbon disappears into the dairy.
For a full whiskey-style comparison — rye, Scotch, Irish — see the best whiskey for eggnog guide.
Sources and method
Proofs are the standard US bottling strengths as printed on current labels. Bottled-in-bond requirements reflect US federal labeling standards. Evan Williams Original Southern Egg Nog is labeled 30 proof (15% ABV); conflicting retailer listings of 19% ABV are inconsistent with the label. No prices or ratings are invented on this page.