Smooth as Tennessee Whiskey (with thanks to Chris Stapleton)

Visiting the Jack Daniel’s distillery is fairly easy and reasonably priced. We did not have reservations, and still got right into a tour. Of course, it was a Tuesday in November. If you are in prime season, or on a weekend, you may want to order your tickets online. The dry county tour allows you to see the whole process, and not taste any whiskey, for $15. For $20, you can take the Flight of Jack Distillery Tour and sample their most popular whiskeys and liqueurs. $25 dollars gets you the tour, and a tasting of single barrel and limited edition bottles. I would have liked to have been there on a Friday or Saturday, where for $100 you can do the tour, and have a 2 course meal paired with their various whiskeys. 

So what the heck is Whiskey? Or Whisky? Or Bourbon? There is Whisky, from Scotland, Irish Whiskey, Rye Whiskey, Bourbon and Tennessee whiskey. How can we CA wine people begin to comprehend? After the Bourbon Trail tour in Kentucky, and the Jack Daniel’s tour in Lynchburg, I may have a glimmering of clarity. First, they are all made from grain, and they have fairly similar distillation processes. All bourbon is whiskey, but not all whiskey is bourbon...huh? 

The tour guides at Maker’s Mark (Brandy) and Jack Daniel’s (Ben) were both excellent and informative. So here is what I think I learned: Scottish and Irish whiskeys are made from barley. Canadian whiskey is Rye based. American whiskey, both Bourbon and Tennessee whiskey are majority corn based, although they also use some barley and rye. Maker’s mark does not use any rye in its bourbon, although most bourbons do. Bourbon uses water in its fermentation process, and relies upon the aging of the whiskey in charred barrels to give it flavor. Tennessee whiskey uses sour mash (which is essentially like a sourdough bread starter) and instead of moving the whiskey barrels around and aging they filter their whiskey through charcoal made from Sugar maple wood. Most Bourbon has a bit more bite than Tennessee whiskey, which is smoother and sweeter because of the coal filtration. 

The water is a critical element. Jack Daniels has a limestone river that provides iron free water, and Maker’s Mark has a limestone lake that does the same. As I believe Coors once said, It’s the water ,and a lot more.

Is there a right or wrong way to drink any of these beverages? Depends on who you ask. The consensus is that when you try a particular whiskey for the first time you should sniff deeply and breathe through mouth and nose. Then, take a small sip and roll it on your tongue. Do this 3 times, and then...hey it is your palate, your money, your experience, so do what you want! You can drink it neat, or with a tiny bit of water, or on the rocks, or with ice and water, or in a cocktail. I think, just like with any food or beverage, if it is a high end “premier” beverage you may want to enjoy it neat. When I drink red wine I prefer it at room temperature, and I like good wine. If I am making sangria, mixing it and adding ice, I buy pretty cheap wine. So live it up!