Old Forester 1920 Vs. Wild Turkey Rare Breed
I’ve been wanting to review Old Forested 1920 for awhile but was having trouble coming up with a suitable comparison. It’s one of my favorite always-available bottles, and then I realized another of my favorite always-available bottles is also the same proof. So which is the better buy?
Wild Turkey) 1116.8 proof. $49
-The nose to me is overwhelmingly vanilla and spearmint, with some alcohol heat and mild spice.
-The palate opens with brown sugar and vanilla, then some barrel char, and LOTS of vanilla all the way though until the mint starts to come in.
-The medium-long finish is more spearmint mixed in with oak, mild spice, and more vanilla sweetness.
Overall I really enjoy this pour, but it is a vanilla-mint bomb without a ton of complexity.
Old Forester) 115 proof. $59
-The nose is light and sweet with stone-fruit, spice and oak notes.
-The palate start somewhat hot, but caramel and vanilla sweetness quickly take over, then the baking spices of nutmeg, cinnamon and clove come in, and finally some stone-fruit appears.
-The Medium finish is also initially sweet, but moves into more rye-spices, and a pleasant heat.
Overall I really enjoy the flavors of this bottle, but it is a little hot, and a couple drops of water really helps the fruity sweetness open-up.
VERDICT) I really need to stop putting such evenly matched bottles up against each other LOL! In this case I would again advise that both these bottles be on your shelves. However, for my palate the added complexity and fruit of the Old Forester makes it the slight favorite here, and Fancy Glencairn makes a triumphant return to the ring!