Old Forester is often overlooked in the Brown-Forman portfolio. I really enjoyed the rye, and now I’m making it a priority to tackle their bourbon lineup. Up first is this 1870 Original Batch, which, as the name suggests, is their imitation of the distillery’s original recipe. Note: This bottle is from before OF changed the label. It’s the one with the diagonal print, meaning it was bottled a couple years ago at the very least. Nose: Lots of cocoa, black pepper, black tea, and pipe tobacco. Toasted almond, macadamia, and walnut. Apple cider. Cola. Rye spice, cinnamon, white pepper, and oak. Palate: Caramel, vanilla, and gala apple. Brown sugar and toffee. A big dried apricot note. Golden raisin. Black cherry. Plain glazed doughnut. Finish: Brown sugar. Apple cider. Toasted almond and macadamia. Black cherry and dried apricot. Black tea and tobacco. Cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, black pepper, white pepper, and oak. length. Moderate length finish, maybe even slightly above, which is respectable at 45% ABV. I’m off to a good start with the Old Forester line. Admittedly, this isn’t the most complex bourbon, but it’s also far from boring. There are some unique notes, and this is a well-rounded, easy-going sipper. I think it’s a good place to start with this line. At $48, this was a solid VFM purchase. I’m looking forward to seeing what the rest of the line has to offer, especially consider the intensity ramps up pretty steadily from here. As for this one, 4/5 even.