Old Forester Birthday Bourbon 2017

As I said in my two previous reviews (Old Forester Birthday 2015 and 2016), I just had a flight of these three bourbons. My excitement beforehand, and my disappointment afterward, could not have been more polar opposites. Sadly, the newest Birthday release is not the Cordelia to 2015’s Goneril or 2016’s Regan. There just is something about this line that does not sit well with me. Where are all the incredible flavors bursting out of the no-age-statement Old Forester 1920, which may be my favorite regular release bourbon? Perhaps there is something about Brown-Forman’s juice that just does not benefit from aging up to the tween years, as Old Forester 1920 is probably a blend of product in the 4-8-year range and is amazing. 2017 actually takes a step in the wrong direction on the nose, with similar aromas to 2015 but with a slightly artificial caramel and glue melange that’s messing with my senses. The palate is another wallop of oak and another desperate search for sweet notes. If anything, bitter flavors of resin, tobacco, and shoe polish grow in strength through yet another dry finish. I saw this at my local liquor store for $130 and am so grateful I didn’t grab it. I just purchased two Four Roses Private Selections for less than that while in Indianapolis, which is indicative of the incredibly bad value that Birthday Bourbon has become in the current climate.

So I sampled this side by side with 2019 BB in what I called the "Battle of the Birthday Bourbons" after Thanksgiving Dinner. Where 2019 had cherry and vanilla on the nose, a spicy finish, and a welcomed bit of heat, 2017 was a bit of a polar opposite. I found the nose to have caramel and classic Old Forester green banana on the nose. It was a bit hard for me to find but I got there. The palate had vanilla caramels and a graham cracker crust. I like that alot. It was very traditional. The finish got a bit bitter after giving some oakiness and was short......not my cup of tea for a premium once per year release. Although some parts of this taste were really good, it fell short on others. I actually enjoyed 1920 better than 2017 BB. My guess is that the lack of abv robbed some of the richness. Overall: I prefered the 2019 over the 2017. The 2017 had no edge, where the 2019 was interesting and more complex, 2017 was Old Forester Birthday light in my opinion.

Nose- caramelized bananas; dark chocolate; vanilla; buttered shortbread; touch of rye spice Palate- initial wave of floral spice; milk chocolate; almond paste; macadamia nuts; banana bread; vanilla Finish- Long, drying and creamy finish; macadamia nuts; cocoa powder; bananas; sweet vanilla bean Wow. So unique. An amazing bourbon. The nose is balanced, has a ton of the quintessential banana brown-forman note, along with vanilla, dark chocolate and shortbread cookies. The palate is where this takes off though... an unmistakable note of macadamia nuts and almond croissants throughout the palate and lingering on to the finish. Wonderful vanilla and floral notes are intermingled, along with just a touch of spice. The finish is long, just the right amount of drying, and filled with more unique macadamia nut and almond notes. Fantastic.

So happy to have had the opportunity to try four different versions of Birthday Bourbon. Here I can taste the Brown Forman classic taste, but not as much banana. Less sweet than the 3 others I tried. While awesome, this was the 4th place for me. Again, really special.

Maybe it will open up on third try. So far, first two times it is more hot than taste. I love a bold bourbon, Bookers, Stagg, or Weller are my go tops. This one I was hoping to like, but none of the rewards of the others so far. No nuance, nothing more than heat.

Tons of fruit and floral notes on the nose. Big hints of alcohol as well. Floral notes coming through on the palate, sweet at first even the nice alcohol burn on the finish. For the rarity and price this isn’t really anything I’d go running after again