Jack Daniel's
- For the running coach, see Jack Daniels (coach).
- For the British car engineer, see William 'Jack' Daniels.
| The distinctive bottle of Jack Daniel's whiskey is familiar around the world. | |
| Type | Tennessee whiskey |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Brown-Forman |
| Country of origin | Lynchburg, Tennessee USA |
| Introduced | 1875 |
| Proof (US) | 80 (Lowered from 86) |
| Variants | Single Barrel, Gentleman Jack |
| Related products | Chivas Regal, Johnnie Walker |
| Website | www |
Jack Daniel's is a Tennessee whiskey distillery and brand known for its rectangular bottles and black label. The company, based in Lynchburg, Tennessee, has been owned by the Brown-Forman conglomerate since 1957.
It is believed that the founder — Jasper Newton "Jack" Daniel — was born in September 1850, although seemingly no one knows the exact date. If the 1850 date is correct, he may have become a licensed distiller at the age of 16, as the distillery claims a founding date of 1866. Other records list his birthdate as September 5, 1846, and in his 2004 biography Blood & Whiskey: The Life and Times of Jack Daniel author Peter Krass maintains that land and deed records show the distillery was actually not founded until 1875. Daniel was one of thirteen children, of Welsh descent.
Since Jack Daniel never married and did not have any children, he took his favorite nephew, Lem Motlow, under his wing. Lem had a head for numbers and was soon doing all the distillery's bookkeeping. In 1907, due to failing health, Jack Daniel gave the distillery to his nephew. Jack later died from blood poisoning from an infection in 1911.
The infection allegedly set up originally in a toe, which Daniel injured in kicking his safe in anger when he couldn't get it open early one morning at work: he was said to have always had trouble remembering the combination. This incident was the subject of a marketing poster used on the London Underground in January 2006, with the line "Moral: Never go to work early."
When the company was later incorporated, it was incorporated as "Jack Daniel Distillery, Lem Motlow, Prop., Inc." This has allowed the company to continue to pretend in marketing that Lem Motlow, who died in 1947, is the current proprietor, as mentioning him in the advertising is technically just citing the full corporate name. Likewise, the advertisements continue to say that Lynchburg has only 361 people, while the current (2000 census) population is actually 5,740. This is allowable because the entire label was trademarked in the early 1960s when this figure was the actual population cited by the Census Bureau; changing the label would require applying for a new trademark or forfeiting trademark protection. However, the 361 figure is also used on their website, which has nothing to do with the old label trademark issue. The large expansion of Lynchburg's population is largely due to its consolidation with Moore County. Interestingly enough, Moore County, where the Jack Daniel's distillery is located, is one of the state's many dry counties. Therefore, while it is legal to distill the product within the county, it is illegal to purchase it there. However, a state law has provided one exception: a distillery may sell one commemorative product, regardless of county statutes. Jack Daniel's now sells "Gentleman Jack, Single Barrel" at the distillery's White Rabbit Bottle Shop.
In October, 2004 it was announced that all generally-available Jack Daniel's products would thenceforth be bottled at 80 U.S. proof (40% alcohol by volume), which is the highest proof allowed in some jurisdictions; this will simplify the production process. (This reduction in alcohol content was condemned by Modern Drunkard magazine). Previously, the famous black-label brand (the better-quality, higher-priced product) had been 86 proof, where legal, the lower-end green label 80 proof; these marked reductions from the previous practice until recent years of bottling the black-label product at 90 proof and the green-label product at 86. Both are made from the same ingredients; the difference is determined by professional tasters who determine which of the batches will be graded out as worthy of being labelled with the prestigious black label, the rest being sold under the green label.
In recent years, a third product, "Gentleman Jack", was created. It has always been bottled at 80 proof since its inception. This superpremium product is produced in the same manner as other Tennessee whiskey except that after aging and prior to bottling it is once again subjected to the Lincoln County Process (charcoal-filtering). There is also now a 94 proof "Single Barrel" product available in some markets, which has also been sold in commemorative bottles at the distillery in recent years.
The distillery at 280 Lynchburg Highway is part of the American Whiskey Trail. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 14, 1972.
According to Jimmy Bedford, current Master Distiller, years and years ago the company would ship all products by railroad. One shipment got lost in a railroad terminal and when the barrels were located they were ordered to be shipped down the track. A new shipping ticket was created and "Old" was written in front of the original shipping number, "No. 7". Requests then began coming in for more shipments of the "Old No. 7 on the ticket". [1] The full title printed on the label reads: Jack Daniel's Old Time Old No.7 Brand Quality Tennessee Sour Mash Whiskey.
Trivia
- In the movie The Quiller Memorandum (1966) starring George Segal, the main character orders Jack Daniel's while being interrogated in Neo-Nazi's headquarters.d [2]
- In 2005, Jack Daniel's shipped 7.5 million cases. The company is experiencing a 15-20% growth and anticipates shipping 10 million cases by 2009.
- In 2006, Jack Daniel's sponsors the number 07 car (numbered after the Old No. 7) in NASCAR, driven by Clint Bowyer for Richard Childress Racing.
- In 2006, Jack Daniel's sponsors the team Jack Daniel's Racing in the Australian V8 Supercar series
- Along with an assortment of other items, a flask of Jack Daniel's is buried with singer Frank Sinatra, whose preference for Jack Daniel's in the 1950s and 1960s helped give the product a very high profile in America.
- In the 2004 movie After the Sunset, Pierce Brosnan's character orders a "Jack on the rocks," stating that if it was good enough for "Frank," it was good enough for him.
- In the 1978 movie Animal House, John Belushi's character chugs a full 26er *(700ml) of Jack Daniel's (actually iced tea) in about eight seconds.
- Jack Daniel's hometown of Lynchburg, Tennessee is in a dry county.
- Jack Daniel's is the signature drink of the Mustache Commander and of StreetWars. A giant bottle greets every player as they enter the tournament and all are commanded to drink a glass.
- In the 1992 movie Scent of a Woman, Al Pacino's character Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade's drink of choice is Jack Daniel's. However he calls it "John" Daniel's with the joke being "He may be Jack to you son, but when you've known him as long as I have... that's a joke."
- Jack Daniel's was also a prominent fixture of the 1980's Hair Metal era as it was shown frequently in music videos for artists like Motley Crue. Slash of Guns N' Roses favours it as well. The drink was so loved by bassist Michael Anthony of Van Halen that he had custom made basses styled after the famous Jack Daniel's bottle.
- WWE wrestler, The Undertaker's favorite alcoholic beverage is Jack Daniels.[citation needed]
- In Family Guy, episode 209 - If I'm Dyin', I'm Lyin' Peter talks about needing the courage of his friend Jack Daniels, and calls him, getting an elderly woman (apparently his wife) and hears that he has died from a wheat thrasher accident.
- In American Dad episode 210 Roger the Alien is shown with a bottle of Jack Daniels in the morning of Christmas Day.
- The American rock singer Wednesday 13'a favourite drink is Jack Daniel's : He refers to it in the song "Too Much Blood" on his album Fang Bang : "I've got a shotgun, a bottle of Jack, goin' to Hell and I ain't comin' back!"
- In Duke Nukem 3D, Duke is known to say "A babe, a stogie, and a bottle of Jack. That's what I need right now."
External links
- Official website
- Jack Daniel's Collectors Page Jack Daniels & Lem Motlow collectables, jugs and bottles.
- Jack Daniel's family genealogy
- MHFS site promoting every day drinking
- The Whisky Guide