Tennessee Whiskey
The subject of eternal debate among whiskey enthusiasts, Tennessee whiskey is technically a type of bourbon. It must be produced to the same specifications as bourbon: at least 51% corn, aged in new, charred oak containers, and bottled at a minimum of 80 proof. Unsurprisingly, it must also be produced in the state of Tennessee. The most unique requirement, however, is that it must use the Lincoln County Process in its production. While most whiskey is filtered through activated charcoal before bottling, the Lincoln County Process is a more elaborate filtration procedure that uses sugar maple charcoal before it goes into the barrel. The result is a “mellowing” of the whiskey, as well as unique maple and smoke notes in many expressions. The most famous Tennessee whiskey, and also the best-selling American whiskey in the world, is Jack Daniel’s. There are only a few other Tennessee whiskey producers today, partly owing to Jack Daniel’s dominance of the category and also because Tennessee, until the 2010s, heavily restricted the production of alcohol in the state.
Top Tennessee Whiskey Posts:
A Visit to Jack Daniel’s Distillery
A Visit to Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery
George Dickel Tennessee Whiskies – Cascade Hollow, No. 8, and No. 12
Cascade Hollow Distilling Co. is probably better known to most readers as the home of the George Dickel Tennessee Whisky line, but recently the company launched a new line of whiskies called Cascade Moon — ...
George Dickel is clearly sitting on sizable stocks of well-aged whiskey. The release of their Bottled in Bond in 2019 (first a 13 year and recently a more modest 11 year) and the ever-growing list ...
Can lightning strike twice? 2019’s 13 year old Bottled in Bond Tennessee Whiskey from George Dickel won all kinds of raves, including from yours truly — proving that a $35 bourbon could go toe to ...
Entry #6 in Jack Daniel’s experimental Tennessee Tasters’ Selection lineup is here and it’s perhaps the most unusual of the series to date. Per JD: “The Jamaican Allspice product takes Jack’s Old No. 7 and ...
Bob Dylan’s Heaven’s Door Whiskey got a limited edition release late last year with the launch of the Bootleg Series — the 2019 bottling being a 26 year old bourbon finished in mizunara oak. We ...
On the heels of the Bobby Jones-inspired The Clover Whiskey comes yet another golf-themed bourbon: Sweetens Cove. Admittedly, this one has a little more star power behind it (apologies to Bobby). For starters, this Tennessee ...
The famed golfer Bobby Jones won all of his big tournaments during Prohibition, including the only Grand Slam title anyone has ever won, so it’s safe to assume he had an illegal, celebratory tipple or ...
This is our third go-round with Roaming Man, Sugarlands Distilling‘s attempt to move beyond sugary liqueurs and into the world of craft whiskey. Like all the other Roaming Mans (Roaming Men?), this edition was offered ...
Jack Daniel’s experimental releases continue to roll along, including the second release in the Barrel Reunion series, itself part of the Tennessee Tasters’ Selection line. These whiskeys are only available at the distillery proper. For ...
Following up on expressions like its Tennessee Fire and Tennessee Honey, Jack Daniel’s continues to tinker with adding flavored expressions to its repertoire. The latest: Tennessee Apple, which is exactly what you think it is, ...
