Old Forester The 117 Series

“This limited-edition bottle celebrates Brown’s Gaelic roots with the sherry and wine barrels sourced and matured from the protected Speyside region around the River Spey in northeastern Scotland. The cask finish highlights Old Forester’s natural fruit character which is a result of fermentation with the oldest yeast strain.”
– Press Release

Nose: subtle hints of smoky char, milk chocolate drizzled over shortbread accompanied by mulled, spiced fruit
Taste: baked apples and dried fruits with rich notes of toffee, cinnamon and chocolate rounded out by toasted almonds and smoky char
Finish: silky and buttery with cocoa and baking spices lingering into an earthy and oaky finish

Old Forester 117 Series Bottled in Bond was distilled in Spring 2014, making it 9 years old at the time of release.

“The heritage of Old Forester is uniquely tied to the Bottled in Bond movement as George Garvin Brown’s first bottled bourbon really set the stage for quality guarantee decades before the historic law went into effect.”
– Melissa Rift, Old Forester Master Taster

Old Forester 117 Series Warehouse H is a blend of barrels from the distillery’s warehouse H, constructed in 1946. The 4-story warehouse houses 50,000 barrels, and is heat-cycled when temperatures are below 60 degrees to accelerate the maturation process and interaction with the barrels. Warehouse H has a unique heat-cycling profile, with the first floor sometimes being the warmest, rather than the higher floors of the warehouse.

The 117 Series Extra Extra Old is a riff on Old Forester’s 1910 Old Fine Whisky, which is finished in a heavily charred secondary barrel. Extra Extra Old takes that expression and extends the finishing time to 24 months.

It is the second expression in the series that experiments with 1910’s recipe, following the 18-month finished 1910 Extra Old, released in February 2022.

It is bottled at the same 93 proof as 1910.

The 117 Series Whiskey Row Fire was released on the 7th anniversary of the July 7, 2015 fire on Whiskey Row in downtown Louisville, KY.

Whiskey Row Fire is made from a blend of single barrels chosen by the Louisville Fire Department and aged at nearly 7 years – the barrels were dumped and bottle short of their 7th year so they could be made available for sale on the day of the anniversary.

The 117 Series 1910 Extra Old is a riff on Old Forester’s 1910 Old Fine Whisky, which is finished in a heavily charred secondary barrel. 1910 Extra Old takes that expression and extends the finishing time to 18 months.

It is bottled at the same 93 proof as 1910.

Old Forester 117 Series Warehouse K is a blend of barrels from the distillery’s warehouse K, constructed in 1953. According to Old Forester, it is one of the most popular locations for single barrel selections.

The blend is made up of barrels from every floor of warehouse K, with the exception of K-4.

The inaugural release in The 117 Series, High Angels’ Share is meant to showcase the flavors of low-yield barrels. It is comprised of a blend of barrels selected because they’d lost “exceptional volume to evaporation in the aging process, resulting in a bourbon that is rich and multidimensional, layered with dark flavor notes, dried fruits and unexpected herbaceous qualities.”