The Details

Rating 89
Style
Produced In Tennessee
United States
ABV 45%
Availability Limited
Price $99.99 
Reviewed By
Review Updated 2023-11-15

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey Review

Jack Daniel’s Distillery began experimenting with single malt in 2012, but it wasn’t until nearly a decade later when the company really began staking its claim in the American Single Malt scene. After a string of popular Tennessee Whiskey and rye releases, the 2022 single barrel special release — “Twice Barreled” — featured Jack’s malt distillate, aged for around five years in new American oak, finished in sherry casks for two, and bottled at cask strength.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey: Stats and Availability

Now, Jack is taking the same liquid to the international market with a travel shop exclusive, 90 proof version, this time with an extra finishing year in those sherry casks. Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey is sold in one liter bottles for around $100.

Let’s dive in and see how it tastes.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey review.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey Review

As with all VinePair whiskey reviews, this was tasted in a Glencairn glass and rested for at least five minutes.

Nose

Warming, toasted citrus peel leads on the nose, including orange, grapefruit, and Meyer lemon. Layers of toasted oak sugar come in after. (All Jack Daniel’s whiskeys are aged for at least some time in barrels that are both toasted and charred; the company suggests this increases the amount of wood sugar that comes in contact with the aging distillate.)

Further time in the glass brings a note of medicinal cherry, more liquid than cough drop. There’s a creamy, coffee-esque note, a bit like sniffing a flat white or latte. The oak then comes through again, and the twice-barreled nature either shines or slightly detracts depending on your penchant for wood, as the influence is quite heavy.

Taste

It’s a fruity whiskey on the nose, but initial sips are abundant with chocolate, cappuccino, and crème brulée. It’s abundantly sweet, followed closely by — unsurprisingly — that hefty oak influence. Based on just those notes, it would be easy to call this too sweet, but a surprisingly light mouthfeel adds brightness, and the palate doesn’t get so bogged down in cocoa and oak so as to come across syrupy.

There’s significantly less fruit to speak of here, and it mostly comes in the form of cooked or stewed banana. Some berry shines through — ripe strawberry — though the citrus influence is far less pronounced than on the nose.

At the tail end of the palate, there’s also a savory, semi-salty note that’s tricky to identify, but it’s similar to miso paste or fresh soup. It certainly does good work to cut the whiskey’s sweetness by a noticeable amount, though it could be polarizing among those who aren’t as enamored with the more savory realms of the single malt spectrum.

Finish

The finish here is relatively short, but not jarringly so given its proof. Brown sugar, oak tannins, and some residual salinity produce a relatively dry finish.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey Rating

89/100

Recap

This isn’t Jack’s first take on single malt, and it almost certainly won’t be the brand’s last, with distillery representatives expressing interest in continuing experimentation with the liquid stream. In this 90 proof travel exclusive, the sherry finish shines on the nose, becomes muted on the palate, and then makes a slight return on the finish. It also features a savory undercurrent that will please some single malt fans, but probably not all.

Jack Daniel’s Distillery has shown it’s ready, willing, and able to keep pushing the boundaries of its mash bills and aging techniques. It will be exciting to see where the distillery pushes its flavor profiles — including that of the American Single Malt — with more feedback and older whiskey.

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89
POINTS
Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey
Jack Daniel’s Distillery began experimenting with single malt in 2012, but it wasn’t until nearly a decade later when the company really began staking its claim in the American Single Malt scene. After a string of popular Tennessee Whiskey and rye releases, the 2022 single barrel special release — “Twice Barreled” — featured Jack’s malt distillate, aged for around five years in new American oak, finished in sherry casks for two, and bottled at cask strength.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey: Stats and Availability

Now, Jack is taking the same liquid to the international market with a travel shop exclusive, 90 proof version, this time with an extra finishing year in those sherry casks. Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey is sold in one liter bottles for around $100. Let’s dive in and see how it tastes. Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey review.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey Review

As with all VinePair whiskey reviews, this was tasted in a Glencairn glass and rested for at least five minutes.

Nose

Warming, toasted citrus peel leads on the nose, including orange, grapefruit, and Meyer lemon. Layers of toasted oak sugar come in after. (All Jack Daniel’s whiskeys are aged for at least some time in barrels that are both toasted and charred; the company suggests this increases the amount of wood sugar that comes in contact with the aging distillate.) Further time in the glass brings a note of medicinal cherry, more liquid than cough drop. There’s a creamy, coffee-esque note, a bit like sniffing a flat white or latte. The oak then comes through again, and the twice-barreled nature either shines or slightly detracts depending on your penchant for wood, as the influence is quite heavy.

Taste

It’s a fruity whiskey on the nose, but initial sips are abundant with chocolate, cappuccino, and crème brulée. It’s abundantly sweet, followed closely by — unsurprisingly — that hefty oak influence. Based on just those notes, it would be easy to call this too sweet, but a surprisingly light mouthfeel adds brightness, and the palate doesn’t get so bogged down in cocoa and oak so as to come across syrupy. There’s significantly less fruit to speak of here, and it mostly comes in the form of cooked or stewed banana. Some berry shines through — ripe strawberry — though the citrus influence is far less pronounced than on the nose. At the tail end of the palate, there’s also a savory, semi-salty note that’s tricky to identify, but it’s similar to miso paste or fresh soup. It certainly does good work to cut the whiskey’s sweetness by a noticeable amount, though it could be polarizing among those who aren’t as enamored with the more savory realms of the single malt spectrum.

Finish

The finish here is relatively short, but not jarringly so given its proof. Brown sugar, oak tannins, and some residual salinity produce a relatively dry finish.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey Rating

89/100

Recap

This isn’t Jack’s first take on single malt, and it almost certainly won’t be the brand’s last, with distillery representatives expressing interest in continuing experimentation with the liquid stream. In this 90 proof travel exclusive, the sherry finish shines on the nose, becomes muted on the palate, and then makes a slight return on the finish. It also features a savory undercurrent that will please some single malt fans, but probably not all. Jack Daniel’s Distillery has shown it’s ready, willing, and able to keep pushing the boundaries of its mash bills and aging techniques. It will be exciting to see where the distillery pushes its flavor profiles — including that of the American Single Malt — with more feedback and older whiskey.

Reviewed On: 11-16-2023
89
POINTS
Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey
Jack Daniel’s Distillery began experimenting with single malt in 2012, but it wasn’t until nearly a decade later when the company really began staking its claim in the American Single Malt scene. After a string of popular Tennessee Whiskey and rye releases, the 2022 single barrel special release — “Twice Barreled” — featured Jack’s malt distillate, aged for around five years in new American oak, finished in sherry casks for two, and bottled at cask strength.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey: Stats and Availability

Now, Jack is taking the same liquid to the international market with a travel shop exclusive, 90 proof version, this time with an extra finishing year in those sherry casks. Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey is sold in one liter bottles for around $100. Let’s dive in and see how it tastes. Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey review.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey Review

As with all VinePair whiskey reviews, this was tasted in a Glencairn glass and rested for at least five minutes.

Nose

Warming, toasted citrus peel leads on the nose, including orange, grapefruit, and Meyer lemon. Layers of toasted oak sugar come in after. (All Jack Daniel’s whiskeys are aged for at least some time in barrels that are both toasted and charred; the company suggests this increases the amount of wood sugar that comes in contact with the aging distillate.) Further time in the glass brings a note of medicinal cherry, more liquid than cough drop. There’s a creamy, coffee-esque note, a bit like sniffing a flat white or latte. The oak then comes through again, and the twice-barreled nature either shines or slightly detracts depending on your penchant for wood, as the influence is quite heavy.

Taste

It’s a fruity whiskey on the nose, but initial sips are abundant with chocolate, cappuccino, and crème brulée. It’s abundantly sweet, followed closely by — unsurprisingly — that hefty oak influence. Based on just those notes, it would be easy to call this too sweet, but a surprisingly light mouthfeel adds brightness, and the palate doesn’t get so bogged down in cocoa and oak so as to come across syrupy. There’s significantly less fruit to speak of here, and it mostly comes in the form of cooked or stewed banana. Some berry shines through — ripe strawberry — though the citrus influence is far less pronounced than on the nose. At the tail end of the palate, there’s also a savory, semi-salty note that’s tricky to identify, but it’s similar to miso paste or fresh soup. It certainly does good work to cut the whiskey’s sweetness by a noticeable amount, though it could be polarizing among those who aren’t as enamored with the more savory realms of the single malt spectrum.

Finish

The finish here is relatively short, but not jarringly so given its proof. Brown sugar, oak tannins, and some residual salinity produce a relatively dry finish.

Jack Daniel's American Single Malt Whiskey Rating

89/100

Recap

This isn’t Jack’s first take on single malt, and it almost certainly won’t be the brand’s last, with distillery representatives expressing interest in continuing experimentation with the liquid stream. In this 90 proof travel exclusive, the sherry finish shines on the nose, becomes muted on the palate, and then makes a slight return on the finish. It also features a savory undercurrent that will please some single malt fans, but probably not all. Jack Daniel’s Distillery has shown it’s ready, willing, and able to keep pushing the boundaries of its mash bills and aging techniques. It will be exciting to see where the distillery pushes its flavor profiles — including that of the American Single Malt — with more feedback and older whiskey.

Reviewed On: 11-16-2023