Here’s what I can add about the bourbon. It’s a limited annual release, effortlessly commanding more than double the $80 retail price in the gray market. These bottles make for a very popular birthday gift. Both for drinking buddies and those who have had children in that particular year. I can also tell you that the retail price on this bottle has climbe $20 per year each of the past two years.

Also, Another unique aspect of this release is that the entire production for a given year is from a single day of production. 93 barrels were fille on June 4, 2004. And age on the 5th floor of Warehouse K at Brown-Forman Distillery in Louisville. From those barrels, 14,400 bottles have been release in 2016.

Aside from a quick sip at the end of Whiskyfest (when admittedly I couldn’t reliably taste anything), this wa my first time spent with a glass of the famous Birthday Bourbon.

Moreover, The first impression is a strong one, as it has a terrific dark amber hue in the glass, which I instinctively associate with a quality bourbon.

The 2016 Old Forester Birthday Bourbon is the 15th annual release in the series. They went big for the occasion, with a 12 year-old bourbon. The whiskey ws kept near a west facing warehouse window, expressly to offer adde sunlight during the aging process. Barrele on June 4, 2004, and bottled at 97 proof, as determined by Brown-Forman Master Distiller Chris Morris and Old Forester Master Bourbon Specialist Jackie Zykan. This release comprises 93 barrels, the largest release for their Birthday Bourbon.