Old Fitzgerald 7 Year Bottled in Bond Bourbon (Spring 2018)

Finally…it…has…arrived! After months of waiting, days of pacing, and more than a few nights whispering sweet nothings to the liquor store clerk—behold!—Heaven Hill’s Old Fitzgerald Bottled-in-Bond 7-Year Aged Bourbon has landed in our trembling, slightly sweaty hands! Released in June 2025, this beauty rolls onto the scene exactly 155 years after the “Old Fitzgerald” name was first poured into glasses aboard luxury steamships and elite railcars, reserved for only the snootiest of mustachioed barons and bourbon-soaked industrialists. Back then, if you didn’t have a monocle or your own railroad, you weren’t getting a sip. Sorry, peasants. It wasn’t until around 1900 that this hush-hush hooch began making its rounds to the masses, galloping across America and Europe like a wheated wild stallion. Even during Prohibition, sales (and probably a few flasks) kept slipping through the cracks. Then came a pivotal moment in bourbon lore: a certain Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle, in what may be the greatest $10 purchase in history, scooped up the Old Fitz brand and tossed in his legendary “whisper of wheat” mash bill for good measure. A legend was reborn. Fast-forward to July 2025: I got my hands on a bottle during the first week of release—and the secret is officially out. Clocking in at a shockingly sensible $60, this may be the best consolation prize for those of us who missed the velvet-robed 9-Year Old Fitz decanters, which now sell for $130 MSRP (if you’re lucky) and go for obscene amounts on the secondary. (Looking at you, guy on Facebook trying to trade one for a jet ski.) But let’s not forget—Heaven Hill, those bourbon wizards from Bardstown, are the current stewards of this storied juice, having acquired the brand from Diageo in 1992. And let’s be honest: this isn’t just a bottle of bourbon—it’s marketing sorcery, history in a glass, and a wheated symphony for the senses. So join me, friends, for this history-soaked, caramel-kissed, oak-whispering review of a bourbon that’s as rich in flavor as it is in folklore. We’ve got the usual shenanigans, some historical rabbit holes, a few dad jokes, and—if you’re lucky—a friend might even make a cameo to roll her eyes at me again. LIKE it. COMMENT it. SHARE it. SUBSCRIBE for more bourbon banter. And remember—every time you click that subscribe button, an angel gets its whiskey. TTFN, bourbon buddies! Cheers, a reviewer 🍻🎩

Color: Medium/Light Copper Nose: The aroma is fairly subtle (even my wife agrees it's much less potent than most I've had her smell); hints of barrel char; something like stewed apple; I detect "stone fruits" such as canned peaches or pears. I don't just smell the glass; I smell the bottle when I open it. With this one, I get the usual molasses/burnt sugars. Alright, let's take the first sip... Palate: (First pour, neat) My initial impression is "cherry," accompanied by a pleasant warmth in the chest! Old wood infused with cherries. A second sip reveals more cherry, but this time with a spicy undertone... like a baking spice. The chest warmth continues with each sip. (Second pour, with a large ice sphere) The ice introduces the spiciness first, whereas the neat pour highlighted the sweet/cherry profile initially. Given it's a wheated bourbon, I wouldn't have expected spice to play such a prominent role. Not much more to add with ice. Oh, wait... was that licorice? (Ponders). Finish: I'm describing this as a long finish—primarily a spice-driven one that lingers at the back and sides of the tongue. Final Thoughts: This is my first time trying an Old Fitzgerald expression. It's been one of the more difficult bourbon brands for me to find. I've located many past releases, but they were all displayed behind glass with price tags ranging from $399.99 to $799.99. Therefore, this new release carries high expectations, which might not be entirely fair. That said, it's GOOD. It meets most of my criteria for bourbon. If I were to find it again at the suggested retail price (which, by all accounts, should be reasonably accessible), I would definitely purchase another bottle. Considering everything, I'm giving this 3.75 stars. It might improve after subsequent tastings. We'll see...

Grabbed this today during Utah's "equitable distribution system" free-for-all 🙄, but it was available today 😃. Made in Spring 2018, aged seven years, 100 proof. Tasting neat. Mahogany copper color with substantial legs in the glass. The aroma is fantastic: sweet stone fruit, vanilla oak, a bit spicy and tannic at the finish. The palate is sweet, with peaches, honey, and soft caramel, followed by more distinct graham cracker and then building spicy grain flavors. The texture is rich, oily, and sweet, and the flavors truly "sing" in harmony. The finish transitions to tannic oak and leather, dried fruit, and spicy grass--still sweet, but earthier and darker. A hint of citrus lingers...for a long finish. An ice cube diminishes the sweetness and amplifies the oak-leather tannins, introducing an unusual acrid taste that's quite distracting. This is an unexpected outcome from ice in my experience. Thus, it's best sipped neat. I'm quite impressed with this bottle, my first Old Fitz. Naturally, I'll drink, ponder, and expand on this review as I consume the bottle. But initial thoughts? Excellent. The finish stands out from the more consistent nose and palate flavor profile, but that's not necessarily a negative. It gives you something to contemplate. I did lower my rating from 4.5 to 4.25 due to my experience with ice, which does not enhance this whiskey. That's regrettable, a peculiarity I can't explain but can discern.

The aroma is rich with sweet, inviting notes; caramel flan, French toast, cinnamon roll, candied orange, damp earth, and toasted oak. Ethanol occasionally appears but doesn't detract. The palate presents pancakes with maple syrup, creamed corn, the flan from the nose, Whoppers candy (malted milk ball), and an underlying earthy note that I'd identify as beet under duress. It's not the most complex whiskey, but the flavors present are rich for the proof and very well-rounded and integrated. The finish offers notes that balance the sweetness, such as mature oak, light cinnamon, and white pepper, along with butterscotch and raisin. It is a bit brief. With such a pleasant finish, one wishes it would last longer. The mouthfeel is light-bodied with a delightful creaminess, perfectly complementing the flavor profile. This is my initial experience with this expression, and overall, it's outstanding; a sweet, rounded bourbon with balanced oak and spice is exactly to my liking. And this is just the standard seven-year release! It's easy to understand why older versions command such prices on the secondary market. At $59.99, this would be a regular in my collection and a strong contender for a daily drinker, assuming availability (I had difficulty obtaining this and was quite fortunate). I would repurchase it immediately upon seeing it.

Nose - Caramel, vanilla, bright red maraschino cherries, light leather Taste - Caramel, vanilla, cinnamon red hots, light red cherry cough syrup sweetness, cocoa powder bitterness, buttery caramel Finish - Lingering cinnamon, caramel, vanilla, light chocolate Score - 82/100 Final Thoughts - This is a pretty enjoyable, but standard/typical wheated bourbon. The nose seems quite generic with a nice cherry hint, but the palate shifts to a more cinnamon red hot flavor upfront that mellows into a lightly buttery yet somewhat dry caramel. It's tasty, but I feel it lacks the full potential of what a wheated bourbon can offer. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Perhaps Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are conducted without considering price.

The aroma is rich and decidedly sweet. Maple syrup, chocolate frosting, some type of berry, and vanilla. The taste was a surprise, with more spice than anticipated. Mild oak, cinnamon, and cherry. My initial expectations might have been a little higher, which could have influenced my rating. However, it's a good bottle that I might need to re-evaluate over time. I'm glad I bought it, but I wouldn't pay above the suggested retail price. At MSRP, however, it's a worthwhile purchase.