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Image courtesy George Dickel
$39.99, 750 mL bottle
- Purchased at Richland Wine & Spirits
Background
“Bottled In Bond” had gotten a bad reputation at one point, being associated with some very cheap whiskies. Despite that, I found that many BIB expressions are excellent simply because of the federal rules regulating them, and most of the time they are very cost-effective. One of my favorites still is Very Old Barton BIB, which at $15 or less per 750mL bottle definitely out-kicks its coverage. Some distilleries are starting to deal with some “special release” BIB expressions, though, with Old Fitzgerald being one of the most sought-after. I’ve seen this ~$100 bottle of whiskey listed at $200-300…which explains why I haven’t gotten any yet. In 2019 Cascade Hollow added their own entry into this race.
I’ll review the BIB rules as I run down what this whiskey is. First, it has to be produced by one distiller, in this case the George Dickel Distillery. Second, it has to be produced in one location, which is Tullahoma, Tennessee, specifically Cascade Hollow. Third, it has to be done in a single distillation season—fall of 2005 in this case, meaning this whiskey is a total of 13 years old before bottling. Last, it has to be bottled at 100 proof, or 50% ABV.
Like Bourbon, all Tennessee Whiskies must be 51% or more corn in the mash bill, must be aged in charred oak barrels, and have to adhere to certain alcohol contents at differing stages. Additionally, by Tennessee state law, they must undergo the “Lincoln County Process” of charcoal mellowing to be called Tennessee Whiskey (with one exception—Pritchard Tennessee Whiskey, which never was charcoal mellowed and got an exemption from the state legislature). Therefore, legally, all Tennessee Whiskies are legally “Bourbon” by federal law, whether distillers refer to them that way or not (they do not).
Notes
The Dickel BIB was an orangey, dark amber color in the glass and had huge notes of vanilla and oak, with hints of corn and honey. On the tip of my tongue I got more wood and grain notes, while the sweeter honey and vanilla flavors came in as secondary notes before the alcohol vapors caused a spicy finish. The spicy bite was short and there was no throat irritation, possibly due to the charcoal mellowing, which I have found does reduce the bite, but can also reduce “character” in a whiskey.
This particular time I paired the George Dickel Bottled In Bond with a Tatuaje Nuevitas Jibaro #1, a blend which did very well in Cigar Aficionado’s 2019 Top 25, ranking number 9. It’s a great blend and pairs well, but honestly Tennessee Whiskey works the same as Bourbon…a good whiskey will naturally pair pretty well with a good cigar. I also smoked several Davidoff Limited Editions, a Highclere Castle Victorian (my own COTY2019 pick), and several other cigars of both Dominican and Nicaraguan origin with this whiskey and they all worked very well.
Bottom line, this is the best Tennessee Whiskey I have ever had, including the Jack Daniels No. 27 Gold.
