Review - Old Fitzgerald: Bottled-In-Bond 7 Year

Noah Kurz

Noah Kurz

— 3 min read
Review - Old Fitzgerald: Bottled-In-Bond 7 Year

Every so often, a new bottle hits the shelves and takes the whole whiskey community by storm. It seems like every whiskey fan you know has tried it, and then the FOMO starts to set in. You are left wondering how everyone else is getting the chance to snag this awesome new bottle, when you can't find it anywhere. That's exactly what happened with my wife and me and the Old Fitzgerald: Bottled-In-Bond 7 Year. We were hunting for this bottle for months. We finally got our hands on one of our own, though, so let's see if it is worth the hype!

What Does Bottled-In-Bond Even Mean?

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Bottled-In-Bond means that the distiller went through certain hoops to get that saying put on the label. At the end of the day, it's not a predictor of quality in any substantial way; however, it does provide some standardization, and I personally think people just getting into whiskey could really benefit from focusing on Bottled-In-Bond bottles to help narrow down what they like.

To earn this label, distillers have to produce a whiskey that meets the following requirements:

  1. The whiskey must be distilled in a single distilling season
  2. The whiskey must be made by a single distiller
  3. The whiskey must be aged for at least 4 years
  4. The whiskey must be exactly 100 proof
  5. The whiskey must be aged in a government-bonded warehouse, with government supervision
  6. The whiskey can contain no additives such as food coloring or spirits from other distillers
  7. If the whiskey was distilled by one distiller but bottled by another, the label must clearly indicate this
Fun Fact: The Bottled-In-Bond Act of 1897 was first introduced as a way to undermine unscrupulous rectifiers, blenders, and distributors who would oftentimes put harmful substances in whiskey, such as iodine, gasoline, tobacco, and moonshine, to mimic genuine whiskey at a lower cost. This would sometimes lead to fatal outcomes.

Initial Thoughts

  • Color: Slightly darker than average caramel
  • Nose: A sweet woody note comes through very heavily, and it's followed up by caramel, brown sugar, and vanilla
  • Palate: Liquorish, brown sugar, oak, and caramel
  • Finish: Strong notes of oak and tobacco
  • Overall Rating: 3.5/5

In-Depth Review

Overall, this is a solid bottle. While the taste profile doesn't align with my personal preferences, it offers sufficient complexity and uniqueness, and I know many people who would love this bottle. I did have very high expectations for this bottle, so that may be weighing into my opinion here. I'd be interested in doing a blind taste test with this bottle, to see where it stacks up when the branding is out of the way.

Again, many people are really enjoying this bottle; the bottle currently has an average rating of 4/5 on the NEAT: Whiskey Finder App, with numerous individuals giving it a perfect or near-perfect score. The flavor notes just don't hit my personal preferences, but to many, they would!

What could be better?

While this is an above-average offering from Old Fitzgerald, it falls short in some areas, particularly in terms of the proof level and the age statement. So what would I improve?

  • Nose: The nose is really my favorite part of this bottle; there's not much room for improvement here. It's nice and complex, and is very inviting. It draws you in with its sweet notes and complexity.
  • Taste: The initial taste I get from this bottle is spectacular. The sweet caramel flavor is balanced with great notes of oak. I just wish there were another note in there to round it out in a nice way.
  • Finish: This is really what keeps me from rating this bottle a 4/5. The finish is very overpowering with Tobacco. I wish some of those sweeter notes I got initially had carried over to the finish.

So is this a buy or a bye?

For many, this is a buy at MSRP of $65. It provides a lot of complexity, and the nose on this bottle is great. I do not think I would personally "hunt" for this bottle again, but I do believe if it were readily available on the shelves, I would come back to it every so often. This is not going to be the best bourbon you have ever had; it's not supposed to be. This is supposed to be an entry point to the Old Fitzgerald lineup; it was not designed to be a bottle that is hunted for, and I think as this bottle works its way into the market, it will find its place as an above-average bottle in the $50-$70 range.

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To see all of my reviews, follow me on the Neat: Whiskey Finder app. It's the world's best whiskey app, which allows enthusiasts to connect, share, and review thousands of different whiskeys. I'll see you there! Cheers!

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