FOOD
&
DRINK
IAMOLD
.
Manybad thingshappenwhen
yougetold.Yourkneesache.Youreyesight
goes.Yourpatience thins.
Manygood thingshappen too.As
it iswithaveteranpointguard, the
worldaroundyouslowsdownandyour
courtawareness improves.Distractions
disappear.Beautyandgoodnessarehigh-
lighted.Andstrongwhiskeybegins to taste
really, reallygood.
I lovemanyspirits,butImostad-
mirebourbon— thatharshnectar that
Simpsons
attorneyLionelHutzoncecalled
“brownestof thebrown liquors.”Myonly
problem:Mostbourbonsareblended
frommanybarrelsandare thendiluted
toachieveauniformityandsmooth-
nesspleasing to the largestnumberof
people.Not that there’sanythingwrong
with that,butmymaturepalateneedsa
sippin’whiskeywithmorekick.That’s
whyIusuallyorderhigher-endbrands like
Blanton’s,whichhaveahighersingle-
barrelproof.ButIstill long formainstream
acceptanceofmy tastes, at least in termsof
my tippling.
Thisdesire ledme in latesummer
to theseventhstoryofaJackDaniel’s
barrelhouse inswelteringTennesseeheat.
WithJD’smasterdistiller,JeffArnett,
Iclimbedup tiny, ricketywoodsteps
throughcobwebsandbees to taponebarrel
agedfiveyears.Wepassedaround thedark
mahogany liquor to takeasipofwhat the
companywouldsoonbesellingas“barrel-
proof” in itssingle-barrel lineofwhiskeys.
Evensweatingbullets, Iwelcomed the
richnessand thefire inmy throat.
Anote:Technically,JackDaniel’s
makes“Tennesseewhiskey,”notbourbon.
Themaindifference is thatallJDproducts
go through“charcoalmellowing”— the
liquidruns throughsugar-maplecharcoal
made from thesamewhiteoak fromwhich
itsbarrelsare fashioned.This takesaway
theslight“bitteredge”ofmostKentucky
bourbons.Whichwasaproblem forme
becauseI liked thatedgeat90proof.At
the125 to140proofofcask-strengthJack
Daniel’s, theslightmellowingmakes it
nearlyperfect formysippingpleasure.All
sortsofbrands (JimBeam,KnobCreek)
areofferingsingle-barrelgoodness.Add
thisJack to that list.Also,bewarned: Ifyou
getacolabeverageneara tumblerof this,
I’llknock itoutofyourhands.
JackDaniel’sBarrelProof isnow
availablenationwide
.
–
ERICCELESTE
PHOTO
DAVID HALLORAN
JackDaniel’sups itssingle-barrelwhiskeygame
FullProof
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