Review #289 - Old Forester 117 Series - Warehouse H
The 117 Series is a limited line from Old Forester, each expression of which dives into a different aspect of the distillery's production or aging process. Here's a bottle that looks at a specific warehouse: Warehouse H.
According to the brand's website, "The four story, eight chamber warehouse was designed to be heat cycled in the winter months when temperatures dropped below 60 degrees and the maturation process ceased. Warehouse H is unusual in its heat cycling profile with the 1st floor sometimes hitting the highest temperatures."
There's no age statement, but we do get this at a preferential strength of 49% ABV (98 proof), which is higher than some of their entry level bottlings; it is a bit lower in strength than some other members of the 117 Series, though. And because this was a limited release that is now long gone from shelves, prices to buy online have skyrocketed.
Old Forester 117 Series - Warehouse H
USA - Bourbon
Current Locally Available Price: USD 380 (2024, 375ml)
Age Statement: NAS
Strength: 49% ABV
Details: 2023 release; aged in Warehouse H
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 1 time; bottle at 50% fill level at time of review. Tasted in a Glencairn glass, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: Interesting, but a little soft: lemon and vanilla, pepper, cherries, and some oak. Sweetness comes from brown sugar, and there's an interesting cilantro note at times.
Palate: The mouthfeel is medium; relatively oaky, hints of sweet cherry, and an oily, chewy texture. Subtler floral notes and vanilla can be found later.
Finish: Medium length, with some banana and cloves. A bit of oil lingers, along with cherry wood.
Final Note: There are some interesting flavors here, and the oak shows a nice bit of maturity, but the whole experience was quite soft and subtle, not bringing any punchy flavor in our experience. It has some of those classic sweet notes that Old Forester brings from time to time - especially cherry in our tasting, but there were hints of banana, too. It would be nice to get this at a slightly higher strength, though.
Back when this was available for well under $100, we probably would have purchased a bottle given the chance, though it does come in the 375ml format; at secondary prices now, it's a tough buy.
Our Average Rating: 6.0 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 3.83
