There are two big names when it comes to American whiskey, and one of them is Jack Daniel’s. For many years, there was a cheeky saying in the States that America’s favourite whiskey wasn’t a bourbon. Because, by definition, Jack Daniel’s is not a bourbon! It’s a Tennessee Whiskey, which we’ll elaborate on in a moment, but the main talking point is this: Jack Daniel’s has its loyal fans, and its fans in Australia can look forward to something very special: The upcoming return of the Jack Daniel’s 10 Years Old expression.
Fans of “Jack” around the world are familiar with the ubiquitous Old No. 7 Brand with the iconic black label and white writing. The Old No. 7 bottling has never had an age statement, but it’s always been accepted that the spirit in each batch has an average age of around four to five years. Australians love American whiskies, in fact, per capita we are the biggest market for American whiskey outside the USA itself. So when Jack Daniel’s put out an older expression with a 10 Years Old age statement last year, it was no surprise that it sold out quickly. How quickly? The entire Australian allocation of 3,000 bottles sold out in less than a week! Fortunately, we’ve not had to wait too long for it to return to our shores….
Jack Daniel’s limited 10 Years Old release Batch 05 will be available through select in-store and online retailers from 13th August, 2026, as well as in select on-premise venues. RRP is $180. Batch 05 demonstrates how subtle changes in maturation, barrel selection, and blending can create a distinctly unique whiskey with each release. The official notes suggest forward aromas of cooked apple and caramel with soft oak on the nose, with notes of rich molasses, chocolate, and barrel spices on the palate. Sounds enticing already, eh?
A Tennessee Whiskey
The Jack Daniel’s 10 Years Old Batch 05 has been bottled at 48.5% ABV and features the classic mashbill of 80% corn, 12% malted barley, and 8% rye. So what makes it a Tennessee Whiskey and not a bourbon? It’s the so-called Lincoln Country Process which, to most consumers, is often just coined “charcoal mellowing”. Prior to being filled into the American oak casks for aging, the spirit is first filtered through large, 10-foot high vats filled with sugar-maple charcoal. This extra step – also carried out at other Tennessee whisk(e)y distilleries – is said to produce a smoother, mellower spirit with fewer harsh grain or fusel notes. The charcoal absorbs and filters out congeners, fusel oils, and heavier compounds that can contribute to what the drinker perceives as alcohol “burn” or roughness.
Whisky & Wisdom visited the Jack Daniel’s distillery in 2013; it is a distillery that caters superbly for whisk(e)y tourists. If you’re heading to Kentucky for the Bourbon Trail, be sure to include Tennessee in your pilgrimage. (It’s roughly a four-hour drive from Bardstown to Jack Daniel’s Lynchburg distillery, passing through Nashville).
We’ve always got a bottle of Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 handy on the shelf. (You’ll note our 1-litre bottle in the picture below!) So here’s the big question: What’s the 10 Years Old expression actually like? How does it differ to the regular whiskey we’re familiar with? Courtesy of the good folks at Brown Forman and We Are Different, Whisky & Wisdom was privileged to sit down with a lead sample of the whiskey and put it through its paces, so I poured a dram of the two whiskies and enjoyed them side-by-side in a direct A/B comparison.
On the nose, the 10yo had notably more oak; it was rounder, fuller, and seemed more refined. The Old No.7 was more fruit-forward (apricots and toffee apples), whereas the 10yo had more vanillins and a distinct creaminess – and definitely stewed apples and caramel. It sounds trite, but the 10yo noses older…think parchment paper, leather-bound books, old furniture, mulled wine, and even some aged Riesling.
On the palate, the Old No. 7 sets a firm foundation of cereal and grassy notes, layered in the bittersweetness of caramel and wood sugars. Moving across to the 10yo, everything was amplified. The higher ABV (48.5% versus 40%) delivers the payload with a pleasing warmth, and there are again hints of oak, paperbark, all-spice, nutmeg, and dark toffee. Repeated sips and visits bring out sweeter notes of custard, shortcrust pastry, and perhaps even shortbread. The mouthfeel on the 10yo’s palate is significantly thicker, oiler, richer, and more viscous than its NAS sibling. The finish is exceptionally long, leaving an autumnal trail of leaves and cloves, perhaps underscored with some light, dark chocolate notes.
The American whisk(e)y industry was arguably slow to embrace whiskies with age statements, and certainly in releasing older expressions on a regular basis or as part of a core-range. After many years of watching its Scottish cousins across the Atlantic release older expressions with increasingly larger price tags, the American producers saw the light, and we are today blessed with many bourbons and Tennessee whiskies that present our favourite brands in a different, older light. The Jack Daniel’s 10yo is a superb example of this; it is genuinely a delicious, luxurious, sipping whiskey that deserves time, contemplation, and savouring. (Oh…and the bottle comes with a cork stopper, rather than a screwcap!) Arriving in Australia while we’re still in Winter, it’s a fine, fireside dram. And if Batch 05 disappears as quickly as last year’s release did, it won’t even make it through to Spring! Act quickly…..
Cheers,
AD
PS – you might like these other articles by Whisky & Wisdom…
The complete guide to oak, casks, & whisky maturation
Westward – The American single malt whiskey
Westland Whiskey – an American game changer?
