Old Forester 1870 Review
This week I am reviewing Old Forester 1870 which has to be the least talked about bottle of the Whiskey Row series. The 1870 signifies the year that George Garvin Brown, founder of Old Forester, began blending or batching bourbon from 3 different distilleries from 3 different towns in an effort of creating consistency. Consistency is one thing but to mean anything it needs to be consistently good. Let’s find out if Old Forester succeeded.
Don’t forget to post in the comments any whiskey you would like me to review in the future.
NAME – Old Forester 1870
PROOF – 90 Proof
AGE – non-age stated (rumored at 4 – 4 ½ years)
COLOR – aged copper penny (1.5 auburn, polished mahogany on the Whiskey Magazine Color Chart)
NOSE – Very fruit forward with the traditional Old Forester cherry note. Also, pear, orange zest, vanilla, oak, chocolate, and a little peanut.
TASTE – Oak comes on stronger on the palate, still the cherry, vanilla and now caramel comes to the party. Slight bit of tobacco and peanut drift in.
FINISH – I would call this a medium finish. Oak, tobacco, some bitter chocolate, and a very slight citrus note. Pretty good finish for how thin the mouthfeel is with this bourbon.
REVIEW – This is a good bourbon that is pleasant to drink and punches above its 90 proof weight. I do understand why it gets lost against the likes of Old Forester’s 1910 and 1920. If you have the full lineup don’t forget about this 1870 and even sneak it in with friends unknowingly and see what they think.
FINAL COMMENTS – The original batching of 1870 was done by Marianne (Barnes) Eaves when she was the understudy of Master Distiller Chris Morris of Brown-Foreman. Instead of coming from 3 distilleries from 3 different towns, this is blended coming from 3 different warehouses, each barrel originating from a different day of production, with a different barrel entry proof and a different age profile. This was the first release of the Whiskey Row Series.
To find out more, visit the Old Forester 1870 page.
You can look at all the past Sunday Evenings Reviews and I would still love to hear what your personal reviews are from each of the whiskies reviewed.
