What surprises me most about Old Forester is that I actually like it more than its supposed "top shelf" older sibling, Woodford Reserve. It's not a perfect bourbon by any stretch (and, if pressed, I'd prefer its 100 proof iteration), but it's a good deal and would make for a decent enough "table whiskey," if that's your thing. Smell is cotton candy, peaches, baking spices, a bit of nuttiness, vanilla, caramel. Some heat/sharpness, some fatty smoked meat. Taste is a bit thin and hot, and the dominant note is the nuttiness (not too far from a Beam-type funk), but there are hints of what could be: that peach or peach juice, caramel, vanilla, faint pickle. The finish the weakest part of the equation--poorly integrated soggy wood, brine, caramel, char. Fix that finish and you've got a great low-mid-shelf steal.