Old Forester Barrel Pick ‘1NCE AGAIN’ – Is It A Whiskey Worth Repeating?

Behind the Pour

Taste Select Repeat is an e-commerce liquor store founded by media veteran OJ Lima and photographer Pierre Austa, built specifically around the single barrel pick. Their name is the mission: taste, select, repeat. The bottle Crystal and Roger are opening is dubbed '1nce Again' — TSR's fourth selection with Old Forester, chosen by OJ Lima alongside Master Taster Melissa Rift at Great Oak Manor as part of a Taste of Appalachia experience. Warehouse J, Floor 2. 130.4 proof. Real cork. The color in the glass is described as mahogany before the pour begins.

What You'll Discover

• 130.4 proof, cask strength, no water added: This barrel went in at 125 proof and came out at 130.4 (65.2% ABV). That slight increase in proof during aging is normal — it depends on where in the warehouse the barrel sits and how much evaporation occurs.
• The mash bill: Old Forester uses 72% corn, 18% rye, and 10% malted barley. The relatively high rye percentage for a traditional Louisville bourbon gives it a spice-forward character alongside the sweetness from the corn.
• Warehouse J, Floor 2: Rick house position changes bourbon dramatically. Floor 2 in Warehouse J sits in the moderate temperature zone — not the heat-exposed upper floors, not the cooler lower floors. It is where Old Forester's team and OJ Lima found the barrel they wanted.
• The Taste Select Repeat model: TSR's e-commerce approach gives bourbon enthusiasts access to single barrel picks from across the country without needing to be in the right state at the right moment. OJ Lima and Pierre Austa travel to select; customers order direct.
• Brown-Forman lineage: Old Forester is the founding brand of Brown-Forman, now one of the largest spirits companies in the world. Master Distiller Chris Morris continues the tradition that the company's founder, George Garvin Brown, started in 1870.

A Moment of Pourspective

The most honest thing a bourbon can do is go into the bottle exactly as it came out of the barrel, and let the wood, the grain, and the years speak directly. No dilution, no correction, just what happened in that specific rick house in that specific spot.

Explore the Conversation

The '1nce Again' name is a statement about relationships — with brands, with pickers, with the barrel selection process. TSR returning to Old Forester for a fourth selection means the first three worked, that the trust built between OJ Lima and Old Forester's team has produced results worth repeating. That context raises the stakes on what Crystal and Roger are pouring. At 130.4 proof, the expectation is heat before flavor. Roger notes the opposite: it is rich, not hot on the nose. The sweetness that corn-forward bourbons develop over time at barrel strength is present, but so are cinnamon, pepper spice, and caramel. Crystal describes it building in the glass — flavor that keeps giving after the initial pour. The chocolate and fudge notes they find mid-palate are consistent with what long-aged, high-rye bourbons produce when they have the kind of barrel position this one had. It is not a delicate bourbon — it is a bourbon that has been sitting in wood at full strength for long enough to become something more than its ingredients.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is Taste Select Repeat? TSR is an e-commerce liquor store founded by OJ Lima and Pierre Austa specializing in single barrel picks — bourbon, tequila, and other hard-to-find spirits. Find them at their website.
• How do I find the 1nce Again barrel? The 1nce Again was available on TSR's website. Single barrel picks sell out — follow TSR on social media for future releases.
• What does 'cask strength' mean for Old Forester? Old Forester's standard expressions are proofed down with water to consistent levels (like 86 proof or 100 proof). A cask strength pick comes directly from the barrel at whatever proof the barrel reached — in this case 130.4.
• Who is Melissa Rift? Melissa Rift is Old Forester's Master Taster, responsible for nosing and tasting the distillery's barrels and working with single barrel buyers to select the right one.

Episode at a Glance

• Spirit reviewed: Old Forester Single Barrel (Taste Select Repeat '1nce Again' pick)
• Hosts: Crystal and Roger
• Category: Bourbon
• Details: Warehouse J Floor 2, 130.4 proof (65.2% ABV), 72/18/10 mash bill