Old Forester President's Choice 2026 Set

Price

$799.95

✔ Authenticated by the house — seal, fill level, and label inspected before release
✔ Documented provenance on every bottle
✔ Climate-safe, collector-grade packaging

Age: 7–9 Years (Handwritten on individual labels) | Region: Kentucky, United States | Proof: 117.5

Secure payments

Vault-to-door shipping

Adult signature (21+) at delivery

2 bottles

Set size

700mL

Each bottle

Single

Barrels

Jun 13

2026 national debut

Handwritten

Label fields

This set holds both bottlings of Old Forester's 2026 President's Choice release, the President's Choice Bourbon and the President's Choice Rye, one 700 mL bottle of each. Old Forester announced the two together on June 8, 2026, at one suggested price, for the second consecutive year, and sells them as separate bottles; the pairing under a single SKU is Midnight Whiskey's. Each bottle is drawn from a single barrel, with its own age, barrel number and strength written on the label by hand.

Nº 01

The Elemental Distinction

Both 2026 President's Choice bottlings in one purchase: the bourbon and the rye, 700 mL each.

A pairing from the producer's own release: Old Forester announced the two expressions together, put both on sale the same day at the same suggested price, and has released a bourbon and a rye under the label two years running.

Two single barrels, each bottled at a proof point Master Taster Melissa Rift and Assistant Master Distiller Caleb Trigo set for that barrel, so each bottle carries its own figures.

The grain is the main contrast: a Kentucky straight bourbon against Old Forester's rye recipe of 65% rye, 20% malted barley and 15% corn.

Each label is completed by hand with its barrel's age, number and strength, so the set records two barrels.

Old Forester sells the bourbon and the rye as individual bottles; the two-bottle set and its single SKU are Midnight Whiskey's.

Nº 02

Two Grains, One Label

The pair and its history

President's Choice traces to 1964, when then-president George Garvin Brown II offered private barrels, each sold whole. Old Forester revived the label in 2018 and added a rye in 2025, the year President's Choice first reached select retailers nationwide. The set gathers the bourbon single barrel of the pair and the rye single barrel of the pair, both from the June 2026 release.

Nº 03

Selection & the Label

What both bottles share

Tasted by

Melissa Rift and Caleb Trigo

Master Taster and Assistant Master Distiller, who taste the barrels for both expressions and set each one's proof point.

Criteria

Maturity, complexity, distinct character

The qualities Old Forester names for the barrels chosen for President's Choice.

Label

Age, barrel number, strength

Completed by hand for each bottle, so the two labels in the set carry their own figures.

Released

June 13, 2026

The national debut of both expressions, ahead of National Bourbon Day.

Nº 04

Sensory Profile & Strategy

Two barrels side by side

Side by Side

The two bottles share a release, a selection team and a way of bottling, which leaves the grain as the clearest difference: a bourbon against a rye whose 20% malted barley Old Forester credits with a floral character balancing the rye's spice. Each is a single barrel at its own chosen proof, so the pair is best read label first, with the handwritten age and strength of each bottle in view.

Strategic Position

Two bottles are worth one SKU when the comparison is the point: the bourbon and the rye came from the same release, went on sale the same day and carried the same suggested price.

Nº 05

Collector Note & Index

Vault provenance

→

Bought separately

Old Forester sold each 2026 bottle on its own at a suggested $225; the set keeps a bourbon barrel and a rye barrel from the same release together.

→

Recording the pair

Note both handwritten barrel numbers; together they identify the two barrels in this set.

Collector Index2026 SET

Release: President's Choice 2026 · bourbon and rye
Set contents: 2 × 700 mL
Announced: June 8, 2026
National debut: June 13, 2026
Tasted by: Melissa Rift & Caleb Trigo
SRP reference: $225 per bottle — reference only, not an offer

Find it in the whiskey collection this President's Choice set belongs to.

Nº 06

Technical Specifications

Specification	Detail
Set contents	Old Forester President's Choice Bourbon and President's Choice Rye, 2026 release — one bottle of each
Class	Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky and Straight Rye Whisky
Selection	Single barrel in both bottles; each tasted, and its proof point set, by Master Taster Melissa Rift and Assistant Master Distiller Caleb Trigo
Rye mash bill	65% rye, 20% malted barley, 15% corn
Strength	Written by hand on each label; the 2026 release runs 110 to 125 proof (55–62.5% ABV) — confirm each bottle's label
Age	Written by hand on each label; 2026 barrels are aged 7 to 9 years — confirm each bottle's label
Barrel numbers	Written by hand on each label
Release	Announced together June 8, 2026; national debut June 13, 2026
Set origin	Assembled by Midnight Whiskey from two bottles Old Forester sells separately
Producer	Old Forester Distilling Company, Louisville, Kentucky
Format	2 × 700 mL

Nº 07

Records & Assurance

Production Methodology

Old Forester announced the 2026 President's Choice bourbon and rye together from Louisville on June 8, 2026, and both went on sale nationally on June 13, the second consecutive year the label carried both. For each, Master Taster Melissa Rift and Assistant Master Distiller Caleb Trigo tasted barrels chosen for maturity, complexity and distinct character and set a proof point for each one, which was then bottled on its own with its age, barrel number and strength completed by hand on the label. The rye is made from Old Forester's recipe of 65% rye, 20% malted barley and 15% corn. Old Forester sells the two as separate bottles; Midnight Whiskey assembles the set.

Authentication & Vault Preservation

Every bottle sold through Midnight Whiskey is sourced as an authentic, sealed product and inspected before it ships. Orders are packed with padded, glass-rated handling and require an adult signature (21+) on delivery; we do not ship to anyone unable to verify legal drinking age. For our full sourcing and handling protocols, see our editorial and authentication standards.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is in the Old Forester President's Choice 2026 set?

The Old Forester President's Choice 2026 set holds one 700 mL bottle each of the 2026 President's Choice Bourbon and President's Choice Rye. Each bottle is drawn from a single barrel, bottled at a proof point set for that barrel by Master Taster Melissa Rift and Assistant Master Distiller Caleb Trigo. Old Forester sells the two as separate bottles; the two-bottle set is assembled by Midnight Whiskey.

Were the 2026 President's Choice bourbon and rye released together?

Yes. Old Forester announced the 2026 President's Choice Bourbon and President's Choice Rye in one release on June 8, 2026, at the same suggested retail price, and both went on sale nationally on June 13. It was the second consecutive year the President's Choice label carried both a bourbon and a rye.

What proof are the bottles in the Old Forester President's Choice 2026 set?

Each bottle carries its own. The bourbon and the rye in the Old Forester President's Choice 2026 set are single barrels, each bottled at a proof point Master Taster Melissa Rift and Assistant Master Distiller Caleb Trigo chose for that barrel, and each label has its strength written in by hand with the barrel's age and number.

Midnight Whiskey · The Vault Old Forester · President's Choice 2026 Set

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President's Choice 2026

The Elemental Distinction

Two Grains, One Label