On November 1 I was able to pick up two fall limited release bourbons, so I am calling the beginning of fall limited release bourbon season. I look forward to this time of year like kids look forward to Christmas. As Colin Nissan said in his famous fall humor piece, “You’re either ready to reap this freaky-assed harvest or you’re not.” So, I am writing a series in 2024 for Fall Limited Release Bourbons.

For the first blog of the series, I am reviewing this year’s Old Forester Birthday Bourbon, which I had thought was going to be a distillery only lottery release, but apparently not. Thankfully, OFBB has returned to its traditional 12 year age statement and is bottled at 107 proof, as opposed to 2017’s 95 proof and 2019’s 11 year old 105 proof release. Hard to believe that it has been five years since I had a bottle of this, but I may have turned this down for a few years, or maybe Hokus Pokus just didn’t get any; hard to remember. But I am excited to revisit this bourbon. I picked this up for $200; many are buying this at $1,000 based on internet pricing.

The color on this is a very deep, dark amber, reflecting its long time in the barrel. Thin film and moderately thick legs on the swirl. On the nose, I get banana, citrus fruit, nutmeg, chocolate, fresh pastries, and some nice oak. On the palate is the very traditional Old Forester flavor profile but the flavors are really amped up. Cherries, pipe tobacco, chocolate brownie, molasses, some nice baking spices, and heavy oak tannin. Very complex and drinks a little bit hotter than the proof, although I can see it settling down after the bottle has been open for a bit. On the finish, the baking spices get joined by clove and oak for a long lingering finish.

I think this is very reminiscent of the Old Forester 150th Anniversary Edition. This bourbon is very complex and big on oak, which I like. I also knocked the dust off of my 2017 and 2019 bottles, The 2017 is really good but is too muted for my palate because it is proofed down, but I could see the flavor profile being over-oaked if it wasn’t proofed down, so there is that. The 2019 is superb but lacks some of the flavor punch of the 2024; it is less oaken and not as fruity. It seems a year more in the barrel makes a difference.

I think the seasons over the last twelve years must have been kinder to this year’s OFBB than the other bottles I own. The 2024 release is definitely my favorite OFBB I have tried. But, be warned, this is an oak bomb that not everyone will like.

But I am going to have to polish off my two old bottles to make room for the 2024 release. While these short squat bottles look really cool, they do take up an inordinate amount of space on my bar. Out with the old old, in the with new old.

For the next piece in this series, I will be reviewing the 2024 Four Roses Limited Release Small Batch, which, other than the Pappy and BTAC releases, represents to me the pinnacle of fall limited release bourbon season.