Old Forester 1910 Old Fine Whisky Kentucky Bourbon - 750ml

Old Forester 1910 Old Fine Whisky is produced at the Old Forester Distilling Co. in Louisville, Kentucky, and commemorates an accident of history that inadvertently gave birth to a new technique. In October of 1910, a fire halted the bottling line at Old Forester's Louisville operation while a vat of fully matured whisky sat ready to be bottled. Facing the choice between losing the spirit or finding an alternative, the distillery transferred it into a second set of new charred oak barrels to hold until the line was repaired. The resulting whisky — richer, more deeply oaked, and unlike anything previously produced — was eventually released as "Very Old Fine Whisky," the first documented case of double-barreled bourbon in American distilling history. The 1910 expression recreates this process deliberately, applying what was once an improvised solution as a defining production technique.

After standard maturation in new charred American white oak, a small batch of selected barrels is re-emptied and the bourbon is filled into a second new barrel — this time lightly toasted and heavily charred — at a low entry proof of 100. This reduced entry proof into the second barrel allows a greater proportion of the wood's sugars to dissolve into the whisky than a higher entry proof would permit, producing the characteristic sweetness and textural density that distinguishes 1910 from its Whiskey Row siblings. The second barreling introduces a fresh pulse of oak influence — vanilla, caramel, and toasted char — layered over the flavor compounds already developed during the first maturation. The finished whisky is bottled at 93 proof.

The palate is smooth and rounded, opening with sweet oatmeal raisin cookie and milk chocolate before moving through warm cinnamon spice, nutmeg, and mocha — a profile that reflects the accumulated sweetness of two encounters with new American oak. The texture is viscous and coating, with a peripheral dryness and peppery spice that provides structure beneath the sweetness. The finish is moderately long, closing on smoky charred oak and a lingering sweetness that is the 1910's most immediate and defining characteristic.