Old Forester Fridays – The Statesman & The Cowboy: Style Over Substance?
Old Forester Fridays – The Statesman & The Cowboy: Style Over Substance?
Premiere Date: May 23, 2025
Author: Tortured Bourbon
Two bourbons. One GQ model. One Texas cowboy. And a single, burning question: do these bottles taste as good as they look—or are they all hat and no flavor?
In Episode 4 of Old Forester Fridays, we put Old Forester Statesman and Old Forester King Ranch Edition head-to-head in a non-blind tasting where bottle design, branding, and actual bourbon quality are all on the table. With Heather serving as fashion critic and B doing his best cowboy impression, we’re diving into one of the most marketing-heavy matchups yet.
🥃 Round One: Old Forester Statesman
Launched in 2017 as a promotional tie-in to the Kingsman movie franchise, Statesman is all swagger and slow-mo action. But beneath the sharp bottle lies a 95-proof bourbon built on the classic Old Fo’ mash bill of 72% corn, 18% rye, 10% malted barley.
What makes Statesman special? Its barrels are pulled from the warmest parts of the warehouse, meaning more intense heat cycling, deeper char interaction, and concentrated flavor. In theory, at least.
What we’re supposed to taste:
Nose: Clove, oak, cinnamon, sharp citrus
Palate: Buttery leather, pepper, heat, sweet cherry
Finish: Bold, spicy, oak-forward
What we actually said:
B called it “a bourbon that shops at Brooks Brothers and carries a monogrammed flask.”
Heather praised its understated, tuxedo-ready bottle design, saying it’s “minimalist, sleek, and totally date-night worthy.”
🤠 Round Two: Old Forester King Ranch Edition
Enter: The Cowboy. King Ranch Edition is Old Forester’s leather-bound tribute to Texas ranching culture—complete with a mesquite charcoal finish, a 105-proof pour, and branding big enough to tow a horse trailer.
A collaboration with King Ranch, this limited release is mostly found in Texas, but we wrangled a bottle thanks to one of our viewers. It uses the same mash bill but adds a smoky, earthy layer meant to evoke campfires, saddle shops, and rawhide swagger.
What we’re supposed to taste:
Nose: Mesquite smoke, brown sugar, leather, vanilla, charred oak
Palate: Caramel, molasses, earthy oak, baking spice, light smoke
Finish: Long, dry, slightly smoky, with lingering spice
Design Notes:
Heather called the bottle “over the top—but in a confident, custom-leather-jacket kind of way.”
B said it looks like the kind of bottle that lights a cigar with a $20 and tells your Prius to wait outside.
🏁 So… Who Wins?
This one’s less about ranking and more about vibe vs. value. If you want a smooth-talking, elegant pour with clean lines and solid spice, Statesman delivers. If you’re chasing bold flavors, leathery packaging, and Texas energy, King Ranch might be your new favorite hunting companion.
As Heather said: “If I’m paying $60, it better taste good—but it should also look like it moisturizes and texts back.”
Spoiler: One of them does both.
📺 Watch the Full Episode
Pour a glass, bring your fashion sense, and join us for one of our most stylish sips yet.
