Jack Daniel’s New Whiskey Is A Rare Sweet Mash Bottling

Jack Daniel’s is one of the most popular whiskey brands in the world, to the point where the famed No. 7 label can seem ubiquitous on bar and retail shelves. But the Tennessee brand’s latest release is a limited bottling that stands apart for its rare (at least for Jack) production technique: sweet mash.

Like most (but not all) major American whiskey producers, Jack Daniel’s generally uses “sour mash” to kick off its whiskey making process. That involves using a portion of leftover mash from a previous distilling run—also called “backset”—to help lower the pH of a new batch of grains leading into fermentation. This “sour” mash makes for a more efficient environment for yeast to convert sugar into alcohol, and it also helps prevent the growth of unwanted bacteria.

In contrast, “sweet mash” involves fermentation without the use of backset. It’s generally thought of as a more exacting process, requiring a higher level of precision, control, and sterilization. To begin a new distilling season, Jack Daniel Distillery actually utilizes a sweet mash process, since there’s no available backset at that point. (The distillery then switches to sour mash for the rest of the season.)

Now, drinkers can try true sweet mash Jack Daniel’s whiskey to assess any flavor difference for themselves. Jack Daniel’s Distillery Series Selection #15 is a sweet mash Tennessee whiskey, which comes from the start of a 2016 distilling season. After distillation, that whiskey went into barrels and aged for nearly nine years in the top of Tract 2 barrelhouses (a notably hot and intense aging environment).

Barrels used in the batch were hand-selected by Kathy Thurmond, Jack Daniel’s Whiskey Taster and Quality Control Manager. The final product was batched and bottled at 117 proof.

The whiskey comes from the brand’s standard mash bill of 80% corn, 12% malted barley, and 8% rye. That makes it a rare opportunity to taste any difference imparted via production techniques.

“Our Distillery Series has experimented with every step in the whiskey making process from grain bill to barreling, and this release showcases yet another lever that we can pull and tweak here at the Jack Daniel Distillery,” says Jack Daniel’s Master Distiller Chris Fletcher. “What excites me about this release is the complexity and richness that has emerged from a little extra time in the right places in our barrelhouses.”

We haven’t had the chance to try the whiskey yet ourselves, but brand tasting notes emphasize rich butterscotch and “undertones of pecan, berry and caramel.”

Like all Distillery Series Selection bottlings, Sweet Mash Tennessee Whiskey is available in 375 milliliter bottles exclusively at the distillery’s White Rabbit Bottle Shop in Lynchburg, Tennessee. The suggested retail price is $44.99.