Swahili1
Old Forester Birthday Bourbon 2017
Bourbon — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed
November 29, 2019 (edited November 16, 2020)
So I sampled this side by side with 2019 BB in what I called the "Battle of the Birthday Bourbons" after Thanksgiving Dinner. Where 2019 had cherry and vanilla on the nose, a spicy finish, and a welcomed bit of heat, 2017 was a bit of a polar opposite.
I found the nose to have caramel and classic Old Forester green banana on the nose. It was a bit hard for me to find but I got there. The palate had vanilla caramels and a graham cracker crust. I like that alot. It was very traditional. The finish got a bit bitter after giving some oakiness and was short......not my cup of tea for a premium once per year release. Although some parts of this taste were really good, it fell short on others. I actually enjoyed 1920 better than 2017 BB. My guess is that the lack of abv robbed some of the richness.
Overall: I prefered the 2019 over the 2017. The 2017 had no edge, where the 2019 was interesting and more complex, 2017 was Old Forester Birthday light in my opinion.
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