Name: Gentleman Jack
Type: Tennessee Whiskey
Origin: Lynchburg, TN
ABV: 40%
Price: $32.99 at my local liquor store
Bottle provided by Villiger Cigars
This next review comes as more of a continuation of my previous review. Villiger Cigars decided that after some testing, Gentleman Jack made a worthy pairing to accompany their cigar and included it with the samples. As a staunch supporter of whiskies from Ireland, Scotland and various other types, I can say Tennessee Whiskey is one of the absolute last types for me to ever drink. I couldn’t honestly tell you the last time I had a glass (guessing at least 15 years ago in college). But with all that being said, I do enjoy the reviewing process and was more than happy to give the Gentleman Jack a fair shake.
The color on the Gentleman Jack shines a light caramel in a clear glass. The nose on it gave off hints of vanilla and light wood. The opening flavor notes on the palette are actually quite nice with more of the vanilla mentioned and touches of toffee. What makes Gentleman Jack more refined from the standard Jack Daniels bottle is that the whiskey is double charcoal mellowed, giving it a much more smoother finish. While I have not had a glass or shot of standard Jack Daniels in at least 15 years, one thing I do remember is the “bite” that accompanies the aftertaste. That was always touch for me to deal with, especially one I developed a palette for the Scottish and Irish tastes. The Gentleman Jack removes some of this “bite” and makes this an acceptable whiskey for me. More than acceptable really, as the finish on this is very smooth and easy drinking for a Tennessee Whiskey. However, I still think many of my favorite blended Scotch whiskeys or certain Irish whiskies are much smoother on the palette than this, but that is my experience with those selections coming out.
I mentioned before that Villiger chose the Gentleman Jack to pair with the La Vencedora. With my last La Vencedora, I did take some time to examine that pairing first hand. I have to say that they are right on with this pairing. While my personal tastes with the cigar would lean me to a Caribbean rum first, I think in the end the rum would overpower the cigar. With the Gentleman Jack, the cigar and whiskey balance well to each other. Neither overpowers the other and even the cigar helps tone down the aftertaste (the bite) of the Gentleman Jack. Looking to other cigars, I think the Gentleman Jack could make a worthy partner to many cigars as a balance to mild and medium bodied cigars or an accompaniment to full bodied cigars. This is something I will have to investigate further.
While the Gentleman Jack is not going to be purchase in my house anytime in the future, it is one that I will keep in mind for when I am out visiting a cigar lounge and need a worthy companion to a cigar, especially when the whiskey choices do not include from countries mentioned above.
Final Score: 8.5/10
Thanks once again to Villiger Cigars for the Gentleman Jack sample. And as always, thank you very much for reading and I look forward to the next time I can share my thoughts with you.
