American Whiskey Review #6: Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Barrel Proof

Distillery: Jack Daniel’s

Region: Tennessee

Barrel No: 19-00255

ABV: 66.5%, Cask Strength

Age: NAS

Price: On sale for $60

Color: 1.8, Old Oak.

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Nose (according to the wife): A big, strong note of black tea comes up front followed by a bit of lemon, some old wooden furniture, and a bit of corn mash. There’s also a bit of medicinal herbs and a lovely bit of cola.

Palate: Incredibly strong (at 66.5%, it would be weirder if it wasn’t) but a lot smoother than expected. Lots of that cola flavor along with some young oak and leather. With a bit of water, there’s a bit of cocoa powder that’s pretty nice.

Finish: Medium in length. There’s a lot of baking spices, some more cola, and a hint of peanuts. With water, a dash of lemon comes out.

Conclusion: I’m not a huge fan of Jack Daniels but I was pleasantly surprised by their Single Barrel Select a while back so I decided to snap this up when I saw it on sale. At 66.5% ABV, it is by far the strongest alcohol I’ve ever had but it, surprisingly, is not nearly as harsh as some other incredibly high proof ones like the Glenfarclas 105 or Stagg Jr. It’s actually pretty drinkable at full strength, which was a plus. The nose has got to be the most complex part, with some lovely tea and old wooden note, but the star of the show has the medicinal cola that was present throughout. On the whole, I enjoyed this. It might be a bit pricey for what it is but I did enjoy it throughout.

Final Score: 83.

American Whisky review #6, Bourbon Whisky Review #5, Whisky Network Review #115

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Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.