Help me date this bottle of Old Forester

[chilidawg7]

I picked this up recently via auction and was curious as to the age and/or date of the bottle. I'll give you the details and share pictures below.

There is a tax stamp (still intact) but if the dates were ever listed there, they are gone now. The # on it is 000943126 if that makes a difference.

On the front, the diagonal green banner reads "NEW! Larger Metric Size"

On each side of the bottle, there are three 'dimples,' for lack of a better word, and the #s on the bottom of the bottom of the bottle are 55 13 79, leading me to believe this was probably bottled in '79.

According to the back label, this was bottled as DSP Kentucky 414.

I am going to open this up tonight and enjoy it, but would like to know the history behind it, if you can help.

Thanks!
Chris

[callmeox]

1979 is probably a good guess based on the dates that I found here regarding the conversion of liquor bottles in the US to the metric system.

(the source lists 1980 as the year when BATF began requiring metric sizing)

[Rughi]

1979 is a good guess for a few reasons:

- Apparent bottle date
- 9 digit number sequence - BF used a combo of letters and numbers during the strip stamp era (beginning several months into the Reagan era).
- Your suspicion it used to have distilling/bottling dates puts it before Reagan as well
- The metric banner proclaiming bonus ounces. Forester went metric in 1978 or earlier, so in 79 it would still have been a new thing worth bragging up.

The key would be if this were a 500ml, because I think those were allowed in only one or two years before being outlawed by BATF.


Most of all, though, if it was distilled at 414 it's the good stuff. I've never had a 354 that I thought was as good as the least of the 414's I've tasted.

Roger

[chilidawg7]

Thanks Scott and Roger...

and yes, the bottle is 500 mL.

[Buffalo Bill]

Interesting... this has the same wording on the front label as the latest 75th Anniversary Repeal Bourbon. My guess was that of the 70's but Chris Morris at BF could tell you the exact info. The numbers on the bottom of the bottle are not necessarily barrel/vat production numbers but the bottle production numbers. Perhaps not all that accurate... BB

[reggie]

The key would be if this were a 500ml, because I think those were allowed in only one or two years before being outlawed by BATF.

Anyone know what years the 500's were bottled in? I just picked up 4. 2 with UPC's, 2 without, they are not BIB though.

[AntiqueBourbon]

I have a many old forester bottles.

This 1pint bottle is 1973.
This 500ml bottle is 1979.