Old Forester Statesman Bourbon Whiskey 750ml

Old Forester Statesman Bourbon comes from Brown-Forman's Old Forester Distilling Company in Louisville, Kentucky, a brand that traces its history back to 1870 and stands as the only bourbon continuously produced by its founding family before, during, and after Prohibition. Statesman debuted in 2017 as a tie-in to the film "Kingsman: The Golden Circle," whose plot involves a whiskey distillery serving as a front for a covert organization, and unlike many movie promotions, it was kept on as a permanent addition to the lineup rather than a limited run.

Statesman shares Old Forester's original mash bill of 72 percent corn, 18 percent rye, and 10 percent malted barley, but distinguishes itself through where it ages rather than how it's made. The whiskey is drawn from barrels resting on the highest, hottest floors of the distillery's heat-cycled rickhouses, where summer temperatures can climb past 100 degrees. That extra heat accelerates the whiskey's contact with the expanded wood, concentrating flavor even as it increases evaporation. The final blend combines barrels aged four to six years and is bottled at 95 proof.

On the nose, bright cherry, brown sugar, and vanilla meet sugar cookie sweetness and seasoned oak. The palate opens with buttery leather and a bold flash of pepper, moving into cinnamon bark and sharp citrus, while the finish closes with spicy eucalyptus, orange cream, and lingering caramel warmth.