Tennessee Whiskey

Jack Daniel's is not a Bourbon - it's a TENNESSEE WHISKEY. Jack Daniel's is dripped slowly - drop-by-drop - through ten feet of firmly packed charcoal (made from hard sugar maple) before going into new charred oak barrels for aging. This special process gives Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey its rare smoothness. It's this extra step - charcoal mellowing - which makes Jack Daniel's a Tennessee Whiskey.

The Jack Daniel Distillery is the oldest registered distillery in the country and is a National Historic Site. Licensed in 1866, the distillery continues to make its old-time Tennessee sipping whiskey the way Mr. Jack did back in 1866 and remains true to its founder's straightforward motto: "Each day we make it, we will make it the best we can."

Some say that Jack Daniel had 7 girlfriends, or that the way he wrote his “J” looked like a 7. Some say he chose the number 7 simply because it’s lucky. Only Mr. Jack knows the real reason. Either way, we consider ourselves lucky that he created Jack Daniel’s the way he did.

Bourbon

Named after the very large county in Kentucky where it was distilled exclusively in the late 1700's, Bourbon is the most famous of all American Whiskies. Today, Bourbon County has been subdivided into many smaller counties that continue to produce 95% of all Bourbon. However, not all American whiskies are Bourbons. To be labeled as Bourbon the whiskey must:

• Contain natural grains of which at least 51% must be corn
• Be distilled at less than 160 proof, or 80% alcohol
• Be aged in charred, new oak barrels
• Be aged at least 2 years to become a “straight” Bourbon whiskey
• The spirit must go into the barrel at no more than 125 proof
• Nothing can be done to alter the flavor or color in any way, from the time it is distilled through bottling. Only water can be added to adjust to barrel and bottling strengths.