Old Forester Birthday Bourbon 2022

Not being an Old Forester fan at all i wasn't sure what to expect and really didn't want to like it. The local bar in my neighborhood has the entire lineup of OF product and this year they got two bottles of the birthday bourbon 2021 and 2022. I tried the 2022 and paid what i thought was a pretty fair price of $30 a pour since i've literally never seen this anywhere-especially not the bar that is walking distance of my house. :-) So with my expectations set low i took a sniff and was impressed at first sniff. I thought to myself damn this smells nothing like their other stuff. Sweet aroma caramel & sugar cookies. At this point I'm pretty impressed but will it taste as good as the smell? I've been fooled before. Taking a sip was probably one of the easiest drinking sweet tasting bourbons i've had touch my mouth. I'm genuinely blown away by how good this is. Luckily the girl who's bartending knows us from being up there almost every day for the last 7 years so she doesn't pour 2 oz pours when we come in and man i'm glad because this stuff is liquid gold. I'm sure anyone reading this is like yea sure it can't be that good. Trust me it is. Just when i thought I'd tasted almost everything and had begun getting bored with bourbon i taste this and man it reinvigorated my senses to taste something so good. If you can find this for a decent price, buy it. I still don't justify any liquor being purchased at secondary values but I'd pay double retail for this just not 10x. 2/14/23

Tasting: 2 oz, neat, Glen cairn. No water added. Nose- Perhaps one of the best noses on a Birthday Bourbon yet. This is a cornucopia of fruit. Berries abound with some smoke, brown sugar, and maple. Very enticing! Taste- the mouthfeel is buttery and elegant upon entry. Oak makes its appearance subtly, followed by those delicious wild berries and a hint of honey golden graham cracker. This is a whiskey you will enjoy to chew on for a bit. Finish- the finish is medium, not much warming here, but the age shows through to reveal a bit more of that barrel. There is one flavor way at the end that is just a bit off and slightly floral. I don't hate it, but I don't love it either. Just kind of there perhaps where it shouldn't be. Overall- Birthday Bourbon is an annual indulgence for me and my friends to share. I have found from 2015 on they can be hit or miss. This one for me is a bit of a hit. Love the fruitiness and could nose it forever. The finish was just a bit underwhelming, but everything in between was pure bliss. It doesn't beat out 2019 for me, BUT it takes the cake as compared to the last two. Cheers!

So excited to finally open this bottle and… my bday month is coming up so, why not!? Tried neat. To the nares it’s floral and fruity with notes of cocoa, wood, toast, vanilla, caramel, fruit cobbler, orange, cheesecake, crème brûlée, candied apple, sweetarts, pixie dust. On the palate it’s initially dry then toasty with notes of wood oak, pecan, & char. This is a complex and delicious bourbon. I do however, get much more complexity to the nose vs palate. I plan to add a couple drops of water next tasting to open it up and see what new notes I get… exciting times ahead! P.s. Wow.. the legs on this bourbon are sexy.

Fruit loops! An amazing combination of red fruits and barrel char. Lingers heavily and brings you back in. Not many bourbons can quite evoke the “feel” of a rickhouse with a burning flame as barrels roll through to be stored and cobwebs string about with the aroma of aged wood. And there you are just sitting in it all, laying softly about, with a glass of this in your hand. A quite special bourbon. If not simply, for the amount of flavors it beckons the drinker towards recognizing. My highest recommendation if you have the chance to try some.

Nose: Marzipan, creamy vanilla, toffee Palate: Hints of warm caramel and apple that transitions to baking spices Finish: Medium finish that continues the baking spices through and through. A medium bodied pour that has rich sweetness on the nose, a nice finish that offers a little complexity, a good but not great pour. I foind that the palate doesn’t deliver on the nose.

Oily, lovely on the tongue. On the nose it's a loaf of banana bread coming out of the oven... The finish is quite muted without any water. This is a MUST add a few drops of water bourbon. Spice emerges as does a decent, but not awesome finish. Spearmint and menthol late. Very good, but short of great, let alone epic