Jack Daniels – What Maple Charcoal Can Do for You

Once Upon a time, I thought it would be a lot of fun to contribute to an online publication about alcohol. They apparently did not like what I sent them. Will you?

Jack Daniels – What Maple Charcoal Can Do for You

By Joseph Samuel Wright

At the family Christmas this year my grandma looked at my bottle of Jack Daniel’s and yelped, “Why’d ya bring THAT? That’s not bourbon!”

“Thanks, Grandma, I know. It’s Tennessee Whiskey!”

She’s from Kentucky; I’m from Tennessee. It’s an unconquerable alcoholic divide.

While Bourbon is associated with the state of Kentucky (approximately 95% of the world’s bourbons are still made there), it can actually be brewed anywhere so long as it meets style specifications. These dubious standards are not true of Tennessee Whiskey. In fact, Tennessee Whiskey is so special that at present there are only the labels Jack Daniel’s and George Dickel.

So what’s the difference ‘twixt the two drinks? Tennessee Whiskey undergoes the Lincoln County Process where the whiskey is filtered through maple charcoal giving it its distinctive (and delicious) flavor. Jack Daniels calls this “charcoal mellowing,” and if you ask me, that’s what makes it the best whiskey on the market.

I spent a solid month tasting various whiskeys trying to find my perfect one, and I was about ready to give up. Bourbons came up too dry. Irish Whiskey was too sweet. I was fixin' to call off the search when I gave in and got a Jack Daniel’s on the rocks. Then I found heaven.

I had been resisting the Jack because it seemed too gimmicky for a Tennessean to drink the home brew, but I have found that Jack Daniel’s is the perfect sipping whiskey. The flavor is rich, with just the right hint of sweetness and a touch of smoke. Pour that libation over rocks and relax; you’re home.

I’m aware of the mixing options: Jack and Coke, which is a bastardization of something beautiful, or Jack and Ginger which is less awful but still unnecessary. To my mind and tongue, though, this is a whiskey that is already mixed to perfection. It needs no additives or complements. It is complete unto itself.

Jack Daniel’s reveals that their whiskey is slow-dripped by the drop through “ten feet of packed charcoal (made from hard sugar maple) before going into new charred oak barrels for aging.” It’s that tradition of dedication that makes Jack one of the best-selling beverages in liquor stores today. And even though it’s no sissy drink, Jack Daniels has no carbs, fats, or cholesterol, so it tastes great, looks cool, and won’t give you a beer gut. Is there anything this delicious down-home drink can’t do?

So forget about Woodford Reserve. Jack Daniel’s is the good stuff!