Bourbon Old Forester: history, review of taste and types

In the assortment of American spirits, the Old Forester line occupies a somewhat isolated position. For unknown reasons, the brand is undeservedly forgotten and does not enjoy exceptional popularity.

And this is strange, because this is one of the oldest brands, originating from the very beginnings of American distilling, rightfully ranked among the classics of local bourbons. In addition, the brand line is so wide that any connoisseur of alcohol will be able to choose a bourbon to your taste and budget.

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The story of bourbon Old Forester

A small business, JTS Brown & Bro, which later grew into the Brown-Forman Corporation, was opened in Kentucky in 1870.

The founder of the family company was a young pharmacist George Garvin Brown, who felt that the US alcohol market lacked high-quality whiskey.

The fact is that most American distillers in the XNUMXth century did not particularly bother with the quality of the produced alcohol. Whiskey was sweetened with syrup and sugar, tinted with tobacco and other not-so-healthy ingredients.

George decided to fix the situation. Combining his own savings with his brother’s, he opened a distillery in Louisville and began distilling. Unlike other manufacturers, the novice businessman not only adhered to natural recipes, but also supplemented the whiskey-making process with aging in oak barrels. For American distilling, this was an innovation.

An innovation was the bottling of bourbon in sealed glass bottles, which acted as a guarantee of authenticity and high quality.

The drink, called “Old Forester”, was strikingly different from all types of whiskey that were on sale before. Connoisseurs of the brand explain the original choice of the name in different ways.

Someone believes that the variety was named after the doctor who treated the founder of the company, George Brown.

Someone refers to military history and claims that the name of bourbon was given by a general from the army of the southerners.

According to the third version, the unusual name was chosen to form an attractive image among potential consumers – local lumberjacks (in English, “forester” means “forester”).

It is possible that the memorable name was born as a result of mixing three premises at once, and initially it contained two letters “r”.

One way or another, Old Forester turned out to be the only bourbon that was distilled and sold by the Brown family continuously: from the moment the company was founded to the present day. During Prohibition, the product was manufactured for medicinal purposes under an exclusive federal license.

Features of the production of Old Forester bourbon

Bourbon is made from a mixture of corn, rye and barley malt. The grains are crushed and kneaded, after which they are fermented for 5-7 days. At this stage, a branded yeast strain is used, which is grown daily in our own distillery.

The long fermentation process provides the drinks with an unsurpassed depth and complexity of the bouquet. After double distillation, the bourbon is placed in new American oak casks made in-house cooperage, where it matures and acquires a harmonious bouquet.

To create exclusive drinks, the masters of the distillery manually select oak containers from the warmest corners of the warehouse. The heat allows the bourbon to reveal its character to the maximum. The result is a special blend, bright, powerful, perfectly balanced.

Types of Old Forester bourbon

The “Old Forester” line includes 11 drinks, among which there are traditional, made according to the old recipe of the XIX-XX centuries, and very young blends, recently introduced to the consumer. The collection includes:

Rye Whisky Old Forester

A unique drink with a “jolly” character is produced according to the technology of 1940.

The composition includes 65% rye, 20% barley malt and 15% corn.

The aroma of rye whiskey is dominated by accents of brown sugar and magnolia flowers with a touch of sassafras and lemon.

The taste pleases with hints of spices: the sharpness of black pepper and the spicy softness of cinnamon are replaced by notes of dried dill and baked apple. Finishes the drink with pine, anise and citrus tones.

Bourbon is good both in pure form and in cocktails.

1910 Old Fine Whisky Old Forester

One of the oldest drinks in the brand’s line, for the creation of which two types of barrels are used.

The aroma of bourbon combines shades of butter cream, toffee, cedar and apricot.

In a smooth, rounded taste, notes of sweet oatmeal cookies with raisins, flavored with milk chocolate, caramel and spices are guessed.

The bouquet ends with an exquisite finish of charred oak and spices.

The President’s Choice Old Forester

Limited edition created with the participation of the current president of the company.

By tradition, each representative of the Brown family, standing at the helm of the company, selects several barrels to create a special drink. It goes on sale after reaching the maximum degree of maturity.

You can buy “presidential” bourbon only in Kentucky.

Classic 86 Proof Old Forester

“Living Classic”: the winner of numerous awards, the same drink, created in 1870, survived the days of “prohibition” with the company.

An outstanding bourbon has a smooth, even character and a rich bouquet, equally bright in its pure form, in the company of ice or water, in cocktails.

Nose: sharp, sweet, with a strong floral accent, complemented by hints of mint, tobacco leaves, vanilla and pine.

Palate: Initially spicy, but quickly mellows with grainy, spicy and oaky notes.

Bourbon finishes with a soft, warming, slightly sweet aftertaste.

Signature 100 Proof Old Forester

Hand-picked from the finest casks, the drink has a rich, complex character that makes it especially loved by bartenders.

Spicy, strong, with aromas of coffee, chocolate, toffee and liquorice.

On the palate, you can feel the tones of ripe fruit, confectionery spices and toasted wood. The finish is sweet, light, with the presence of apples and oak.

Mint Julep Old Forester

Bourbon, recognized as the official drink of the Kentucky Derby, was created in honor of the local tradition of adding Old Forester to the famous cocktail.

It is the perfect balance of classic old grain whiskey and fresh garden mint.

1870 Original Batch Old Forester

A drink that imitates the original 1870 version of bourbon. To accurately recreate the taste, the blend includes spirits selected from three independent barrels, distilled and aged in different periods.

The drink is subjected to minimal filtration to accurately simulate the bouquet.

The aroma contains notes of cloves and citrus, softened by a delicate, sweet, floral hint of honeysuckle.

The taste is soft, spicy-fruity with confectionery and orange tones.

1897 Bottled in Bond Old Forester

A drink created in honor of the federal law of 1897, which regulates the rules for the manufacture, aging and bottling of bourbon.

Aroma: bright, intense, with notes of caramel, vanilla, roasted coffee and mature oak.

Taste: sweet, deep, with accents of fruits, spices, woody and confectionery hints.

1920 Prohibition Style Old Forester

Extraordinary bourbon, dedicated to the period of “prohibition”, during which “Old Forester” did not lose its position and continued to be produced.

The bright bouquet of the drink pleases with accents of cherry jam, soft caramel, dark chocolate, nuts and thick maple syrup.

A festive riot of confectionery shades is seasoned with soft wood spice and warm spices, in which cedar, coriander, green pepper are guessed.

The aftertaste is tart and smoky with notes of apples, marshmallows and sweet crackers.

Single Barrel Old Forester

A special strong drink made according to an old recipe from the contents of a certain barrel.

Depending on the loss during aging (“angel’s share”), from 200 to 240 bottles of the final product are obtained from one container.

The taste of each batch is unique.

Birthday Bourbon Old Forester

This name unites a whole series of vintage bourbons produced in an exclusive designer bottle.

Every year, a new version of the drink is produced, created from a mixture of spirits aged in different conditions. The number of barrels involved in creating a blend can exceed a hundred.

Tastes vary by year.

Statesman Old Forester

One of the company’s new products, created in 2017 and promising to push the “dinosaurs” of the brand. The drink already has several major awards at prestigious competitions.

The distillery specialists were inspired to create a special bourbon by the spy thriller Kingsman: The Golden Circle. Introducing the new product, the company’s president stated that it was completely unlike any previous American whiskey and had an exceptional “balance of warmth and spice”.

The aroma combines accents of chocolate, cloves, vanilla and oak. The palate is dominated by peppery-cinnamon notes with a sharp hint of citrus peel. Intense oily aftertaste surprises with richness of tones: eucalyptus, spices, orange cream and caramel.

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Relevance: 20.03.2019

Metki: Whiskey and bourbon, Marki bourbon