George Garvin Brown (in 1870) was the first person to bottle bourbon. He did it as a means to guarantee quality and Brown-Forman celebrate that innovation and the man himself every year with the annual limited release of this bourbon. Aficionados the world over anticipate the release of Old Forester's Birthday Bourbon. The 2012 edition is from a batch of 82 barrels all distilled the same the same day over 12 years ago utilizing a mash bill with 2% more malted barley than usual, so like all the previous Birthday Bourbons (this is the 11th Edition), its flavor profile is unique to this offering. On the nose you find toasted almond, caramel-glazed brown bread, ground cocoa, herbs, Demerara sugar, brown spice, baked apple and over-ripe orange. The taste is warming and vivacious with nuts, leather and spice niceties wrapped up in dark, wood tones that marvelously harmonize with stewed fruits. The finish lingers with wood, spice, caramel, toasted coconut and roasted nuts. This is an event to drink, so raise a toast to George Garvin Brown; try it neat with a splash of water or with ice--as you like.
Nose: Very sweet and nice smelling. The vanilla, caramel and brown sugar are very, very prevalent. It has a perfect amount of oak to go with it which balances the sweetness out. A small amount of alcohol is present.
Palate: Spot on with the nose, with the addition of cinnamon and baking spices. Hints of rye spices also seem to show themselves. Very pleasant and agreeable.
Finish: There's a little bit of dryness that creeps in with the finish. Being a 12-year-old bourbon this makes sense. The dryness also brings with it some spice and heat on the backside of the finish. Great end to the whole experience.
Uniqueness: The flavors in the 2012 edition are nothing you can’t find in many other bourbons. Vanilla, caramel and brown sugar are found in almost every bourbon. What makes this year’s edition special is the intensity of those flavors and the fantastic balance of them. When you then mix in the right amount of oak, spice and dryness, the 2012 edition really becomes the full package. Also, the extra 2% of malt added to the standard Old Forester mashbill in this Birthday edition had a positive impact on the flavor over previous years, but again, I wouldn’t necessarily call those flavors unique.- BreakingBourbon.com
Nose: Very sweet and nice smelling. The vanilla, caramel and brown sugar are very, very prevalent. It has a perfect amount of oak to go with it which balances the sweetness out. A small amount of alcohol is present.
Palate: Spot on with the nose, with the addition of cinnamon and baking spices. Hints of rye spices also seem to show themselves. Very pleasant and agreeable.
Finish: There's a little bit of dryness that creeps in with the finish. Being a 12-year-old bourbon this makes sense. The dryness also brings with it some spice and heat on the backside of the finish. Great end to the whole experience.
Uniqueness: The flavors in the 2012 edition are nothing you can’t find in many other bourbons. Vanilla, caramel and brown sugar are found in almost every bourbon. What makes this year’s edition special is the intensity of those flavors and the fantastic balance of them. When you then mix in the right amount of oak, spice and dryness, the 2012 edition really becomes the full package. Also, the extra 2% of malt added to the standard Old Forester mashbill in this Birthday edition had a positive impact on the flavor over previous years, but again, I wouldn’t necessarily call those flavors unique.- BreakingBourbon.com
