Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 Tennessee Whiskey and Jim Beam Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey are the two best-selling American whiskey brands in the world. More bottles of those two whiskeys are produced, shipped, and consumed worldwide than any other American whiskey by a country mile. All of which begs the age-old question: which is better?
While we’ve already answered that for the basic versions from each brand, we thought we’d dive a little deeper. This time, we’re asking which of these mammoth brands makes the best premium single-barrel whiskey.
It’s a valid query — since both Jack Daniel’s and Jim Beam make a great single-barrel product that’s both easy to find and easy to afford. You can grab both of these bottles from most liquor store shelves right now. So let’s find out exactly which one you should be buying via a blind taste test.
Before we dive in, to be clear, these whiskeys are very distinct. Which is which is obviously, as soon as you nose them. Jack Daniel’s whiskey goes through the Lincoln County Process — a sugar maple charcoal filtration. This makes the flavors from the yeast — fruits, florals, soft sugars — more accessible during aging. Jim Beam doesn’t go through this process, making Beam’s whiskey oakier and spicier with a deep cherry vibe.
So we’re not pretending that we don’t know these whiskeys from the moment they hit the nose. I’m simply looking at them blindly as sippers and deciding which one tastes best.
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Part 1 — The Jim Beam Vs. Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Blind Tasting
Taste 1
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with classic notes of vanilla sheet cake, salted caramel, wintry mulled wine spices, and a sense of cherry pie in a lard crust next to a hint of dried corn husk, old broom bristle, and dark chocolate pipe tobacco.
Palate: The palate layers orange zest next to sticky toffee pudding, old leather, and cherry tobacco next to dark chocolate with this lingering sense of coconut cream pie lurking somewhere in the background.
Finish: The finish leans into more woody winter spices (especially cinnamon bark and nutmeg) with rich toffee and cherry-chocolate tobacco braided with dry sweetgrass and cedar bark.
Initial Thoughts
Cherry and woody spice? This is Jim Beam, baby! It’s also pretty delicious. I would say that the end was a little weak compared to the nose and palate, but only slightly so.
Taste 2
Tasting Notes:
Nose: A clear sense of toasted oak, dark apple tobacco, apricot jam, and a hint of molasses drives the nose toward pear syrup and pancakes covered in blueberry sauce.
Palate: Notes of caramel corn, mild winter spice barks, and plenty of oily vanilla beans are countered on the palate by cream soda, cinnamon cookies, and soft apple butter tobacco with a mild chewiness.
Finish: The sweet banana fruit arrives on the end and marries well to a peppery spice, apple clove gum, and mulled wine that amps up as the end draws near with a touch of woody pipe tobacco on the very end.
Initial Thoughts
This is a fruit bomb, which is pure Jack. It’s also just deeper somehow. There’s more here and it ends on a lush and vibrant note that’s almost chewy.
Part 2 — The Runner-Up and Winner of the Jim Beam Vs. Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Blind Tasting
2. Jim Beam Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 54%
Average Price: $20
The Whiskey:
Each of these Jim Beam bottlings is pulled from single barrels that hit just the right spot of taste, texture, and drinkability, according to the master distillers at Beam. That means this juice is pulled from less than one percent of all barrels in Beam’s warehouses, making this a very special bottle at a bafflingly affordable price.
Bottom Line:
This is a really good bourbon, especially for the price. But the finish needed something a little longer lasting. I’d say build this into a cocktail and you’ll be all set for a great old fashioned or Manhattan.
1. Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Select Tennessee Whiskey
ABV: 47%
Average Price: $48
The Whiskey:
This was first introduced in 1997. The whiskey is hand-selected from barrels on the upper floors of Jack’s vast Tenessee rickhouses. The whisky is bottled at a slightly higher proof to allow the nuance of the single-barrel whiskey to shine.
Bottom Line:
This was just more rounded while still feeling 100% approachable. It was fresh and vibrant and landed the finish with a deep sense of aged whiskey. Overall, this felt like an easygoing sipper for any ol’ day when there’s time to slowly sip some whiskey.