Jack Daniel's Bonded Rye Whiskey Review

 

You’ve heard of Jack Daniel’s, right? Its Old No. 7 Tennessee Whiskey is the best-selling whiskey of any kind in the world. Founded in Lynchburg, Tennessee, in 1866, the distillery sources water from the Cave Spring Hollow, two miles beneath its campus.

 

Everything Jack Daniel’s distills goes through the Lincoln County Process (LCP). The LCP process takes 3-5 days for Jack Daniel's. After the LCP, the whiskey goes into barrels. Jack Daniel’s has its own cooperage, giving it greater control over barrel quality and consistency.

 

Today, I’m sipping on Jack Daniel’s Bonded Rye, distilled from 70% rye, 18% corn, and 12% malted barley.

 

Before I go further, some of you may be unfamiliar with what Bonded (or Bottled-in-Bond) means.

 

The first consumer protection law ever passed by Congress was the Bottled In Bond Act of 1897. Back in the day (yes, I’m old!), rectifiers and retailers were doing some disgusting stuff to make their whiskey stocks last longer (and save money). They’d add in reasonably innocuous things, like prune juice and brown sugar, but they’d also use tobacco spit, turpentine, shoe polish, and iodine – these additives could make you, at the very least, sick, if not outright kill you!

 

The Act was spearheaded by Edmund Haynes Taylor of Old Taylor Bourbon and then-Secretary of the Treasury John G. Carlisle. It was meant to put an end to those disgusting and dangerous practices and provide a guarantee to the consumer that what they were drinking was, truly, pure whiskey.

 

The brand must fit very tight parameters to carry Bonded on the label. It must be distilled from a single distiller in a single distilling season (either January to June or July to December) and be a 100% American-distilled spirit. If the brand is not the distiller, the bottle must clearly state who it was and where it was bottled. The whiskey must be packaged at 50% ABV (100°) and can only be proofed with pure water. It must mature at least four years in a government-bonded warehouse.

 

Now, back to this American Rye. It carries no age statement, but we know from the Bottled-in-Bond Act that it is at least four. According to Chris Fletcher, the Master Distiller, it is closer to seven. It is available in either 700mL for about $32.00 or 1L bottles priced around $38.00. Distribution is nationwide.

 

Thanks to Jack Daniel’s, I have been provided with a sample of the Bonded Rye in exchange for my no-strings-attached, honest review, so let’s #DrinkCurious and discover what it is all about!

 

Appearance: I poured this whiskey into my Glencairn glass to explore neat. It had a reddish-brown coloring that went well beyond amber. A thin, jagged rim released thick, tightly spaced tears.

 

Nose: After allowing the whiskey to rest for about ten minutes, I brought it to just under my nostrils and inhaled. The aroma was heavy on rye spice, along with vanilla, raisins, cherries, dry leather, and gentle oak. Drawing the air through my lips produced vanilla and oak.

 

Palate: The Rye had a creamy texture that crawled across my tongue and throat. It was slightly warming as the front of my palate encountered what tasted like Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal. The middle offered caramel, dry leather, and tobacco. Flavors of bold rye spice, maple, and mint hit the back of my palate.   

 

Finish: The somewhat long finish featured cinnamon, tobacco, rye spice, maple, and leather. The leather was so dry it sucked the moisture from my mouth! It started soft and then ramped up but never became hot. The duration was 1:36.

 

Bottle, Bar, or Bust: Jack Daniel’s Bonded Rye is approachable and affordable. If you think you don’t like Ryes because they’re too harsh, this ain’t that. At the same time, Rye fans will appreciate the mouthfeel, flavors, drying quality, and rye grain presence. When I consider other affordable, bonded Ryes, Jack Daniel’s is at the upper echelon of what’s available. It easily earns my Bottle rating. Cheers!

 

 

My Simple, Easy-to-Understand Rating System

• Bottle = Buy It
• Bar = Try It
• Bust = Leave It

 

Whiskeyfellow encourages you to enjoy your whiskey as you see fit but begs you to do so responsibly.