Ringing in the New Year with A Trio of Unique Jack Daniels Expressions
Ringing in the New Year with A Trio of Unique Jack Daniels Expressions
This is a tasting of 3 unique Jack Daniels expressions. Two of which are travel exclusives (only found in duty free stores across the world) and one is a distillery/Tennessee only offering. These were all reviewed neat in a Glencairn. I was not trying to determine which was best, rather, I thought it would be interesting to see how similar or different each of these harder to get offerings were. Let’s find out!
Tennessee Travelers Sweet & Oaky
Cost: $30 at duty free store (Aukland, New Zealand)
Age: NAS
Proof: 107
Mash Bill: 80% corn, 12% barley, 8% rye
This is a traveler’s exclusive only found in duty free shops around the world, and only offered in a 500mL bottle.
Appearance: Deep, golden honey in color with fast, thin legs.
Nose: Fun sweetness! I can't put my finger on the specific profile of the sweetness, but it's inviting. There’s a very faint oakiness. It's a rather delicate nose overall.
Palate: A blend of sweet oak, vanilla, and honey. Great mouthfeel and feels way below the 107 proof it is. Compared to the other 107 offering in this tasting (Tennessee Tasters), this feels like a significantly lower proof.
Finish: Young oak and sugar sweetness linger with hints of tobacco. Zero hug with this one, though it does seem to finish hotter on the palette than the rest of the sip and even more than the other two expressions in this tasting.
Rating: 5.0/10
Overall: This is a deceiving pour! It drinks like it's 80 proof (except for that lingering heat on the pallet). Very light and delicate overall, but not very complex. It's very straightforward and lives up to its name: “Sweet and Oaky.” This absolutely nailed what you're gonna get when you try this (but rather light oak). While it was a fun sip, I wish there was more complexity to it and the finish had a little more umph.
Tennessee Tasters’ Selection: High Angel’s Share Barrels
Cost: $30-$40 at Jack Daniels Distillery (can’t remember exact price)
Age: Approx. 5yr 9mo (Barreled January 2013 and bottles released October 2018)
Proof: 107
Mash Bill: 80% corn, 12% barley, 8% rye
This is a Tennessee only offering (mostly at the distillery). There were approximately 24,000 375mL bottles. This was one of the first “Tennessee Tastes’ Selection” series offerings back in 2018. The story behind this expression is that there were a set of barrels filled in January of 2013 that the angels took more of their share than normal. This means the barrels had lost a significantly more amount of whiskey to evaporation than normal, which resulted in a more robust flavoring in the remaining whiskey in the barrel. I had a family member that purchased one a bottle when they visited the distillery back then and have been sitting on a half bottle of it for a few years now. So I get a chance to try it!
Appearance: Dark amber in color. With a swirl, it beads beautifully around the glass and appears very oily.
Nose: Very potent! There's a lot of caramel and oak. I get a some spiced apple, and I don’t know if it's just because I'm trying to look for it, but there is a hint of banana. I would describe this nose overall as “sweet and spicy.” It's also rather astringent and burns my nose a bit.
Palate: Barrel char stands out first, closely followed by sweet dark fruits. There's a hefty spice, and a decent burn. With a hearty chew, I get some very nice sweet cherry. This coats the palate well but has a strong, astringent feel in the tingling that remains on the palate.
Finish: There’s a hug that builds, with some sweet, caramelized oak. The finish is fairly mild for how astringent it was otherwise.
Rating: 6.6/10
Overall: This is rather complex with some bold dark fruits that I'm not used to picking up in JD products, but that I'm a sucker for. So, this resonated with me pretty well. I was a little put off by how astringent this one was in the nose and the palate.
JD Single Barrel Bottled in Bond
Cost: $60 at duty free store (Aukland, New Zealand)
Age: NAS (rumored 5-7 year depending on barrel)
Proof: 100
Mash Bill: 80% corn, 12% barley, 8% rye
This is a travel exclusive offering found only in duty free airports around the world. I actually previously did a review of this bourbon (different barrel). It was interesting to see the subtle differences in the two barrels. They both had all the same notes, but some stood out more in one barrel than the other. I personally think this barrel is nicer than the previous one. But they’re both very similar. (NOTE: I made my tasting notes without reviewing my previous review of this expression so that I wasn’t biased in what I had picked up last time.)
Appearance: Reddish mahogany in color; very viscous and oily looking.
Nose: Immediate caramelized banana. Big banana profile! A solid background of oak, and a very slight herbal note. This smells fantastic!
Palate: Bold oak, tobacco, banana (but not nearly as much as there was in the nose), and some burnt brown sugar. This is very oily and coats the pallet well.
Finish: A weave of oak, leather, and ripe banana linger accompanied by a very light hug. The finish is rather short though. It leaves me wishing it was longer because it is so nice.
Rating: 8.3/10
Overall: The nose, taste, and finish are all very unique experiences individually but with a few common threads that tie them all together. I’m a very big fan of this expression! Very tasty sip overall! (NOTE: In my first review of this expression, I gave this an 8.5/10. This time I gave it an 8.3/10. However, as I stated above, I do think that this bottle was better than the last one I had. I think the difference in my rating is simply an artifact of timing of the sip and changes associated with that such as environment, season, new experiences since the last tasting, etc. Overall though, 8.3 vs 8.5…that’s in the noise. You can take JD SiB BiB to be an excellent mid-8’s expression in my opinion and overall, this just confirms that.)
Final Thoughts: This was a really fun tasting! All the same mash bill, all around the same rumored age of 5-7 years, and all around the same proof of 100 or 107, however, all extremely different experiences! It’s shit like this that makes bourbon/whiskey so interesting! In the end, this tasting reconfirmed that the Jack Daniels Single Barrel Bottled-in-Bond expression is my favorite JD expression by a long shot (for those that I’ve tried at least, obviously). Any time I travel internationally, I will be looking for JD SiB BiB!
1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but many things I’d rather have.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite
10 | Perfect | Perfect
This is a tasting of 3 unique Jack Daniels expressions. Two of which are travel exclusives (only found in duty free stores across the world) and one is a distillery/Tennessee only offering. These were all reviewed neat in a Glencairn. I was not trying to determine which was best, rather, I thought it would be interesting to see how similar or different each of these harder to get offerings were. Let’s find out!
Cost: $30 at duty free store (Aukland, New Zealand)
Age: NAS
Proof: 107
Mash Bill: 80% corn, 12% barley, 8% rye
This is a traveler’s exclusive only found in duty free shops around the world, and only offered in a 500mL bottle.
Appearance: Deep, golden honey in color with fast, thin legs.
Nose: Fun sweetness! I can't put my finger on the specific profile of the sweetness, but it's inviting. There’s a very faint oakiness. It's a rather delicate nose overall.
Palate: A blend of sweet oak, vanilla, and honey. Great mouthfeel and feels way below the 107 proof it is. Compared to the other 107 offering in this tasting (Tennessee Tasters), this feels like a significantly lower proof.
Finish: Young oak and sugar sweetness linger with hints of tobacco. Zero hug with this one, though it does seem to finish hotter on the palette than the rest of the sip and even more than the other two expressions in this tasting.
Rating: 5.0/10
Overall: This is a deceiving pour! It drinks like it's 80 proof (except for that lingering heat on the pallet). Very light and delicate overall, but not very complex. It's very straightforward and lives up to its name: “Sweet and Oaky.” This absolutely nailed what you're gonna get when you try this (but rather light oak). While it was a fun sip, I wish there was more complexity to it and the finish had a little more umph.
Tennessee Tasters’ Selection: High Angel’s Share Barrels
Cost: $30-$40 at Jack Daniels Distillery (can’t remember exact price)
Age: Approx. 5yr 9mo (Barreled January 2013 and bottles released October 2018)
Proof: 107
Mash Bill: 80% corn, 12% barley, 8% rye
This is a Tennessee only offering (mostly at the distillery). There were approximately 24,000 375mL bottles. This was one of the first “Tennessee Tastes’ Selection” series offerings back in 2018. The story behind this expression is that there were a set of barrels filled in January of 2013 that the angels took more of their share than normal. This means the barrels had lost a significantly more amount of whiskey to evaporation than normal, which resulted in a more robust flavoring in the remaining whiskey in the barrel. I had a family member that purchased one a bottle when they visited the distillery back then and have been sitting on a half bottle of it for a few years now. So I get a chance to try it!
Appearance: Dark amber in color. With a swirl, it beads beautifully around the glass and appears very oily.
Nose: Very potent! There's a lot of caramel and oak. I get a some spiced apple, and I don’t know if it's just because I'm trying to look for it, but there is a hint of banana. I would describe this nose overall as “sweet and spicy.” It's also rather astringent and burns my nose a bit.
Palate: Barrel char stands out first, closely followed by sweet dark fruits. There's a hefty spice, and a decent burn. With a hearty chew, I get some very nice sweet cherry. This coats the palate well but has a strong, astringent feel in the tingling that remains on the palate.
Finish: There’s a hug that builds, with some sweet, caramelized oak. The finish is fairly mild for how astringent it was otherwise.
Rating: 6.6/10
Overall: This is rather complex with some bold dark fruits that I'm not used to picking up in JD products, but that I'm a sucker for. So, this resonated with me pretty well. I was a little put off by how astringent this one was in the nose and the palate.
Cost: $60 at duty free store (Aukland, New Zealand)
Age: NAS (rumored 5-7 year depending on barrel)
Proof: 100
Mash Bill: 80% corn, 12% barley, 8% rye
This is a travel exclusive offering found only in duty free airports around the world. I actually previously did a review of this bourbon (different barrel). It was interesting to see the subtle differences in the two barrels. They both had all the same notes, but some stood out more in one barrel than the other. I personally think this barrel is nicer than the previous one. But they’re both very similar. (NOTE: I made my tasting notes without reviewing my previous review of this expression so that I wasn’t biased in what I had picked up last time.)
Appearance: Reddish mahogany in color; very viscous and oily looking.
Nose: Immediate caramelized banana. Big banana profile! A solid background of oak, and a very slight herbal note. This smells fantastic!
Palate: Bold oak, tobacco, banana (but not nearly as much as there was in the nose), and some burnt brown sugar. This is very oily and coats the pallet well.
Finish: A weave of oak, leather, and ripe banana linger accompanied by a very light hug. The finish is rather short though. It leaves me wishing it was longer because it is so nice.
Rating: 8.3/10
Overall: The nose, taste, and finish are all very unique experiences individually but with a few common threads that tie them all together. I’m a very big fan of this expression! Very tasty sip overall! (NOTE: In my first review of this expression, I gave this an 8.5/10. This time I gave it an 8.3/10. However, as I stated above, I do think that this bottle was better than the last one I had. I think the difference in my rating is simply an artifact of timing of the sip and changes associated with that such as environment, season, new experiences since the last tasting, etc. Overall though, 8.3 vs 8.5…that’s in the noise. You can take JD SiB BiB to be an excellent mid-8’s expression in my opinion and overall, this just confirms that.)
Final Thoughts: This was a really fun tasting! All the same mash bill, all around the same rumored age of 5-7 years, and all around the same proof of 100 or 107, however, all extremely different experiences! It’s shit like this that makes bourbon/whiskey so interesting! In the end, this tasting reconfirmed that the Jack Daniels Single Barrel Bottled-in-Bond expression is my favorite JD expression by a long shot (for those that I’ve tried at least, obviously). Any time I travel internationally, I will be looking for JD SiB BiB!
1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but many things I’d rather have.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite
10 | Perfect | Perfect
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