Old Forester 1920

Back to Bourbon reviews! Damn, it’s been a while. I’ve done a blind review of 21 of my bottles, so those will be my next 21 reviews. I bottled up 21 bourbons in sample bottles, and gave them IDs. On subsequent nights I poured trios of 3 bourbons with the ID covered, and gave them a new ID which the review was marked with. Once all the bourbons were tasted, I matched all the IDs up. Easier than trying to coach my girlfriend to try and find the ones that are bourbons (and not ryes, rum, scotch or brandy). In theory this would mean I only had 21 bottles to guess between when making my blind guess, except I totally forgot which whiskies I had chosen, making for some pretty spectacular misses down the line.

Old Forester 1920 is NAS bourbon from Brown Forman, made with their standard 72/18/10 bourbon mashbill, then bottled at the hearty proof of 115 (57.5%). It’s reasonably accessible, and that along with the high proof and the general quality has made it a cult favourite bourbon. Lets see how it stacks up when I have no idea I’m drinking it.

---

Distiller: Brown Forman
ABV: 57.5%
Age: NAS
Setting: Blind, in a blind trio with Four Roses SmBLE 2017 and Four Roses SiB OESK

---

Nose: Toffee apple, grainy corn, some dusty nuttiness, based on a good helping of oak. A hint of candied banana at the edges.
Palate: Higher proof, but super easy drinking. It’s light at the start and the heat builds as a distraction while it sneaks around the back and coats your mouth entirely. Some stewed fruit notes here.
Finish: Toffee apple makes its return, dried apricot. A hint of rye spice here. Friendly. Fizzles into a pleasant burn.
Overall: Really nice! A higher proof friendly bourbon with some enjoyable fruitiness and spice on the finish. On the other hand, kind of unremarkable. Either way, this is something I would be very happy to have as a daily drinker if the price is right.
Guess: I am guessing this is a higher proof Beam product, I’m going to go with Old Grand-Dad BiB or 114. On the other hand, the palate makes me second guess that—and that hint of banana brings to mind Jack Daniels BiB, but I have to think there would be more banana if it were that.
Rank: 5
Reveal: Well, shit. I wasn’t wrong about the proof, but I was completely wrong about the bottle. Probably not surprising, I am not at all familiar with Brown Forman. But, sipping this again now writing up the review, I think my rating was accurate. Happy with how this one shook out.