Jack Daniel's Old No. 7: An Old Friend Who Isn't The Same As He Was
Written: Sep 05 '07
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Sweet taste
Cons: Sweet taste. I'm just not sure i like it.
The Bottom Line: Though it doesn't do much for me, Jack Daniels remains a very popular drink for an unusually diverse cliental.
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| popsrocks's Full Review: Jack Daniels 'Old No.7' Whiskey |
A few years back when I was doing a good amount of traveling to colleges in the southeast to host game shows. I recall one particular trip when we went through Kentucky Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia.
My Buddy and Jack
I had a buddy who took the roadie position and seemed to drink Jack Daniels by the barrel. We would do our show and he would have "Jack" to keep him company and I would join them the rest of the night. I never minded the three-some when we walked into many a southern bar. My buddy had Jack in common with many of the locals and could BS with the best of them. We always had a good time.
He always bragged that he knew "Jack" as Jasper because he has known the stuff so long and so well even before Jasper, the founder, was known as "Jack".
That line was a bit different in the film Scent of a Woman when Al Pacino as blind Lt. Col. Frank Slade stated, "He may be Jack to you but when you've known him as long as I have..."
The Lt was calling the spirits "John".
"Old No. 7" ?
These tales goes well with many other Jack Daniel stories, some of which do not have definitive answer to the question, "Why does the square bottled favorite carry the words "Old No.7."
The Jack Daniels web site states it could be because the man Jasper "Jack" Daniels, who never married, had seven girl friends. It's also said he made his "J" in a form that looked like a 7. Another possibility mentioned is that Mr. Jack may have simply liked the "lucky" number "7".
A logical story notes that the recipe for Jack Daniels was Mr. Jack's 7th recipe or 7th trial batch. Did you know that WD 40 was the 40th trial of a (W)ater (D)isplacement formula of its maker? Yup, that's true. I wouldn't drink that stuff though.
Mmm? Another thought. Perhaps "Old No. 7" was because of his death in 1911. Born in 1850, would make him about 61. Add 6 and 1 and you get seven. Wow! Spooky...:). Did he know he was going to die then?
OK, end of silliness. The answer is, no one knows why the black-labeled, square-bottled spirit, Jack Daniels, has the added "Old No.7". It seems Jack was never asked why.
Interesting fact; Jack Daniel died of an infection started when, in a bout of rage, he kicked his safe that wouldn't open. I doubt the #7 was in that combination he was always forgetting.
According to the web site Jack, at 16 years old, registered his trademark for his company and "to this day the words "Oldest registered distillery in the US" is (on) every Jack Daniel's label." The distillery also happens to be a National Historic Site.
The Taste
Jack opened a distillery in Tennessee. Like other whiskeys he started with the basics of a mixed mash of grains.
Jack had a source of cave, spring-water and used nearby sugar maple trees for a special charcoal filtering, (the Lincoln County Process), that "mellows" the whiskey giving it the character so many seem to know and appreciate, its distinctive smoothness. I can't say I believe it's much smoother than others such whiskeys but it is good enough. The current "Jack" still uses the same spring water for every bottle of Jack Daniels produced.
The truth is, I don't drink this often at all any longer and, even back when, it was with Coca Cola. When on the road down south the words "Jack and Coke" from my buddy's mouth had us set up for the next round at the drop of a John Deer hat. The few times I have had it neat it does give a smooth sweet taste with charcoal flavour. I simply don't pick up the other flavours others find in it. Perhaps my taste buds are worn down like the chasm of the great Grand Canyon. That said it's still a taste I do enjoy on occasion even though the overall flavour is a bit too sweet to my liking to have often. I'm more of a Scotch kinda guy when drinking hard liquors.
The smoothness and sweetness does give over to a good bite but something was different than my older days on the road. I was with a few co-workers a couple of weeks ago and the younger guys, as always, started doing shots. I don't go as far as these dudes do but I did try a couple of rounds of J.D. neat. That way it helped to help clear my sinuses and created a nice warm feeling inside. I was surprised that it didn't burn quite the way I expected and recalled liking. I wasn't aware of it until this writing that Jack Daniels changed their product! What was a 90 proof drink is an average 80 proof. I knew it didn't provide the "kick" like it used to not that it really matters to me any longer.
Personally, if I have the stuff, I want it sweet. I'll go for the traditional Jack and Coke that my buddy introduced me to many years ago. It's the sweeter version of a favorite of mine a Sweet Rob Roy that's a mix of Scotch and Sweet Vermouth.
...and Finally
Jack Daniels is one of those spirits that transcends social tags. I've seen the uppity-egoists at big dollar-a-table events drink it with as much fervor as the hoi polloi in NYC bars or the hard drinkin' southern guys who call themselves rednecks. You'll find it on the shelf of every bar, every where. Well perhaps not everywhere. I recall a local Kentucky bar had a full bottle hangin by a noose. It had a sign noting that "Jacks" friends get the same treatment. We didn't ask for Jack that night. You can "Believe it or not".
I do know I can ask for Jack Daniels Old No 7 Tennessee Sour Mash Whiskey everywhere because the brand is truly national and international in its distribution and preference of an extremely wide scope of spirited, spirit drinkers. Me, I'll have it when the boys are paying for the shots or as a rare change of pace from my Sweet Rob Roy.
Recommended:
Yes
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