In 1870 George Garvin Brown created Old Forester on Louisville, KY's, famous Whiskey Row. In honor of that milestone year in bourbon history, we have crafted a tribute- Old Forester 1870 Original Batch- the first expression in the Old Forester Whiskey Row series. 1870 Original Batch echoes George Garvin Brown's original batching process. Back then, Brown batched barrels obtained from three distilleries to create a consistent flavor profile. To emulate that process today, we also select barrels from three warehouses, each barrel originating from a different day of production, with a different entry proof and a different age profile. The three expressions of Old Forester are then batched together and minimally filtered to craft Old Forester 1870 Original Batch.

This truly small-batch bourbon starts with traditionally grown corn, rye and malted barley. All of our staple grains are cultivated exclusively for us on the Omlin Family farm in Quincy, Washington. The grains are mashed, distilled, and barreled in our Woodinville distillery, then trucked back over the Cascade Mountains to our private barrel houses, where Central Washington's extreme temperature cycles promote the extraction of natural flavors from the oak. Prior to being coopered, the barrel wood is seasoned in open air, rain, wind, sun, and snow for eighteen months, softening the wood's harsh tannins. The barrels are then slowly toasted and heavily charred to further enrich the wood's desirable flavors. This meticulous process yields a truly hand-crafted spirit with aromas of crème brûlée and spice cabinet, as well as notes of rich caramel, dark chocolate, and vanilla bean on the palate with a sweet, lingering finish.