amg Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 Cross-posting this from the 'what bourbon are you drinking' thread, because I think it might have gotten lost there and I know others were interested in this bottling:This is in regard to the Old Forester Single Barrel recently picked by Big Red Liquors in Indianapolis:I finally got around to my sbs with the Old Forester SB store pick and Old Forester Sig. Here are my notes:I started out with these blind, with the Signature diluted to 90 proof to match the SB, but these are so different that I could identify them immediately. Also, I found that adding water to the Signature brings out the tannins in a way that I don't care for, so I did a comparison with the Signature at 100 proof.The single barrel is 90 proof and is devoid of other information other than that it is from warehouse L. There's a blank white address-sized label on the back where maybe more info could go. Not sure what that's about. It pours a slightly darker amber than the signature.The nose has less leather and much more fruit (red fruit and some apple) than the sig. The fruit really dominates the nose. Interesting.Lots of apple on the palate as well. The usual old forester caramel takes a back seat to the apple and cherry, but is still present.Finish is medium-long with lots of fruit and less oak than the signature. Also some baking spices linger.Overall, a very pleasant bourbon that's pretty different from the standard brand profile. Is it worth $45? I'm glad I picked one up but I don't think I will be bunkering this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 Yikes, $45 is a bit much. Only $35 at TPS where I got mine. I thought mine was fantastic. Very fruity like yours. Found myself wishing I had gotten more. Hopefully they'll start showing up on store shelves in the mitten soon. Been on the list for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbroo5880i Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Thanks for the tasting notes! It sounds like a solid bourbon. Just not $45 solid. It sounds like it is significantly different from Signature. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amg Posted July 6, 2014 Author Share Posted July 6, 2014 Yeah, I didn't find out it was $45 until the manager had already gone in the back to grab me one, so I made an impulse buy on it. It seems like the trend around here is to charge a pretty big premium for store picks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T Comp Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Cross-posting this from the 'what bourbon are you drinking' thread, because I think it might have gotten lost there and I know others were interested in this bottling:And a cross response post from that thread that your notes are excellent. Done right, this is one of my favorite and informative parts of the SB community. And it doesn't get old or repetitive as long as new bourbons keep getting released :grin:. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amg Posted July 6, 2014 Author Share Posted July 6, 2014 And a cross response post from that thread that your notes are excellent. Done right, this is one of my favorite and informative parts of the SB community. And it doesn't get old or repetitive as long as new bourbons keep getting released :grin:.Thanks! I've learned so much from others here, I'm glad I can contribute something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulO Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Thanks for the review Andrew. Payless also had or has a barrel selection of Old Forester priced about the same. I really like OF Sig a lot. I was looking forward to the single barrel until I found out it was NAS 90 proof and expensive. For some reason BF seems to be really marking the price up on this. I'm used to store selections the same price or a small discount on the standard version. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amg Posted July 6, 2014 Author Share Posted July 6, 2014 The 90 proof doesn't bother me as much as the lack of other information. We already know it's "4-6 years". Why not put a barrel number and some real dates on it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squire Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Yes indeed, the more special the more disclosure there should be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Correction, mine is from Liquor Barn.It came with a hang tag indicating that it is series 3, barrel 1. What does that mean? Your guess is as good as mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Dusty Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 (edited) Posted notes a couple of days ago in the "drinking" thread. Solid but not $45 solid.notes copied and pasted:Re: What bourbon are you drinking? Summer 14Just opened an OF Single Barrel store selection. 90 proof NAS so had some reservations, but it came highly recommended by their whiskey buyer.Nose: bananas-specifically dried banana chips. Popped it open and the whole area smelled like I just opened a bag of those suckers. Long syrupy legs and big beads on the glass. Nose has become more vanilla as it opens, custardy with some light herbal notes.Taste: lots of spice on the entry. Woody spices cinnamon, nutmeg. Then some sweeter notes and some barrel and a little of the herbal hints especially late.Finish: hot and lingering shows its youth here a bit but not bad QPR. I imagine this would have been a heck of a Birthday Bourbon if it had lived to be 12 years old. Edited July 7, 2014 by Old Dusty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbroo5880i Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Yeah, he claimed it was the best whiskey he had in the last two years. Thanks for the tasting notes! It sounds like a decent enough bourbon but it sounds like it could have used more time in the barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amg Posted July 7, 2014 Author Share Posted July 7, 2014 Eric, did yours have a blank white label on the back of it? I wonder if the stores put those on to distinguish between the two barrels they bought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Dusty Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Eric, did yours have a blank white label on the back of it? I wonder if the stores put those on to distinguish between the two barrels they bought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sutton Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Thank you for the notes - and also quite surprising that they are so different from the standard profile. The bump in price is a bit high since most of these store picks are usually right around the standard bottle price. That nit aside, I'd still be interested in that the select profile is so different from the standard, rather than a variant on the theme.I didn't know that B-F was doing barrel selects of Old Forester. Will have to ask my store if they have any plans to get some samples ... thanks again for the post! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanstaafl2 Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Thank you for the notes - and also quite surprising that they are so different from the standard profile. The bump in price is a bit high since most of these store picks are usually right around the standard bottle price. That nit aside, I'd still be interested in that the select profile is so different from the standard, rather than a variant on the theme.I didn't know that B-F was doing barrel selects of Old Forester. Will have to ask my store if they have any plans to get some samples ... thanks again for the post!A local store did one of these about a year ago and it was well above the regular on the shelf bottle in price and didn't seem all that impressive to me. Low proof as well as I recall. 90 proof I think. I think I preferred the standard off the shelf OF Signature 100 proof but will have to get them out and compare again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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