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A couple months ago, my friend Mike over at Mostly Peaceful Bourbon gave me a unexpected gift – a bottle of Old Forester Single Barrel wearing a shiny gold label. He said he couldn’t resist after our spate of Gold Label products we’ve enjoyed together over the past few months (Seelbach’s 15, Wild Turkey Cheesy Gold Foil and a Murry McDavid bottle of 20 year old Tobermory Scotch that came in a shiny gold tube). It was a supremely nice gesture for him to do.
“Gold Forester”
Not much is known about this pick except that it comes from the 7th floor of Warehouse H. I assume it was picked sometime in 2024 and is aged anywhere from 4 to 6 years (as all Old Forester Single Barrels typically are). A quick backstory that I usually cover, but Warehouse H (and its sister warehouse G – they share a wall) was not heat cycled from 2018 to 2023 give or take. The reasoning revolves around Brown-Forman conducting a cost cutting experiment whereby they’d test how different the non-heat cycled barrels would be from the ones that were heat cycled. If the differences were too much, they’d cancel the experiment. If they weren’t noticeable, they might consider stopping the heat cycle process altogether.
One of more thing of interest – as I was doing some research for this bottle, I came across this single barrel of Old Forester sold by El Cerrito Liquors around the same time (second half of 2024). Both El Cerrito and Bros Liquors are located in California, but they’re separated by over 400 miles. I didn’t know if they worked together on the label or not, so I reached out to both on social media. El Cerrito responded to my message saying that Bros Liquors copied them. They went on to say that theirs was released almost a year earlier. I guess imitation is the sincerest form of flattery?
So how does Gold Forester taste? Let’s find out. I sampled this neat in a glencairn.
Tasting Notes
Nose: Scents of chocolate, vanilla, oak and cinnamon are fairly common to find in any Old Forester product. But where it starts to take on its own identity is through the additional notes of cherry cough syrup, a cup of cold coffee and a bit of lemon méringue pie.
Palate: As you’d expect for any barrel proof product, the flavors come at you hard. I am finding strong tannic flavors like oak and leather. There’s even chocolate notes that mix with a hint of mint creating this sort of “Andes after dinner mint” experience. Spice ramps up with loads of red pepper flakes, chili oil and hot cinnamon. What’s odd is I’ve had Old Forester picks well into the 130’s for proof and many tasted lower in proof than this one.
Other standout notes include grapefruit zest, citrus oil, black cherry licorice and fruitcake. I find molasses for sweetness and a hint of toffee.
Finish: As the sip is completed, I’m greeted by a smoldering layer of rye spice (minty, herbal, cinnamon) that tingles in my jowls. Tannins bring forth a bit of bitterness and a lot of character with bakers chocolate, dry oak, oak spice and leather linger. The finish keeps just the right about of sweetness from some toffee notes here and there.
Score: 7.8/10
As I kind of expected, this pick is noticeably more rye-forward – probably due to the few years it spent in a warehouse that wasn’t being heat cycled. If it was aged in a warehouse that was fully heat-cycled, it would probably have a bit more barrel influence on the profile notes.
But this is still a very nice bourbon that’s packed with lots of flavor and lots of spice. Actually, it’s the spice notes that stick out the most on this one. The proof is certainly high, but it’s the cinnamon, red pepper flakes and chili oil that are the main culprits behind the heat. I love spicy foods so this one was right up my alley.
Final Thoughts
Old Forester single barrels are becoming the dominant single barrel bottle in my collection these days. There’s no doubt they’re good to the last drop, but as always I caution anyone looking to pick one up to do your research on the groups or stores you’re buying it from to make sure they align with your tastes. You’ll rarely go wrong. As for Bros Liquors, they picked a good one and possibly one of the better Warehouse H single barrels I’ve had so far.
