Jack Daniel’s is the best-selling whiskey in the world.

[cowdery]

Ponder that statement for a moment.

Jack Daniel’s is the best-selling whiskey in the world.

Look for the qualifier that isn't there.

American.

I'm not sure exactly when it happened, but not long ago Jack Daniel's surpassed Johnnie Walker as the best-selling whiskey in the world.

To all of the people who think whiskey means scotch I say, Jack Daniel’s is the best-selling whiskey in the world.

To all of the people who say whiskey should be spelled without an "e" I say, Jack Daniel’s is the best-selling whiskey in the world.

To all of the people who think all American whiskey is bourbon I say, Jack Daniel’s is the best-selling whiskey in the world.

To all of the people who think American whiskey will always be second fiddle to scotch whiskey I say, Jack Daniel’s is the best-selling whiskey in the world.

I'm not saying Jack Daniel's is the best whiskey in the world, I'm not saying it is the model for what whiskey should be, I'm not saying everybody else should be like Jack Daniel's. I'm just saying this. Everybody in business is in business to succeed and Jack Daniel’s is the best-selling whiskey in the world.

[barturtle]

I blame this on the education system. Surely if schools were properly funded something like this would never happen. People should be much better prepared to make choices for themselves and realize that every decision in their life is an important one, and that what they put in their body should really matter.

People should realize that life is short and there are few simple pleasures and a little taste of the finer things in life is something everyone should enjoy. Life is too short to drink swill. You shouldn't reach for the frozen "OJ" when the freshly squeezed is one aisle over. Tang won't do. Ice milk is not ice cream. Velveeta is not a substitute for cheddar. Tofu will never be a replacement for venison.

What a sad commentary on our times. Success measured by sales? Ferrari wouldn't agree, if they did, they would be building Toyotas(the Camry was the best selling car in 2006, after a couple pickup trucks, and is nearly as bland as JD). When asked how many of one of their supercars they expected to build, Ferrari responded "Exactly two less than the market will bear"

[OscarV]

So Jack Black is on top of the world.

That is a good thing for the future of bourbon.

With Jack getting people to accept American whiskey they'll sooner or later try bourbon.

And those who do try bourbon and want a whiskey for taste and not for a cool image, will stay with bourbon.

You know, that last sentence sounds like something a bourbon snob would say.

,....am I a snob?

[nor02lei]

Big congratulations to Brown Forman for this success. It may just recently have passed red Jonnie walker in sales but it has always tasted better even after the shabby dilution campaigns it has been exposed for. And come to think about it. What no age 80 proof bourbon tastes much better or even better than this? Hm…Dickel number 8 do but that’s no bourbon.

Leif

[polyamnesia]

does this say something for the crafting of whiskEy? or the mystical art of exponential, accumulative, snowballin' advertising metapsychological sleight of hand and other associative weights and pulleys?

i remember seeing david lee roth at a VH concert back in 1980 slugging JD on stage....the impressions he must have made....and then add the outlaw images from t.v/movies, etc.....snowball. snowball. SNOWBALL...........!

sure, it is the best selling whiskEy to a large, undiscriminating group of drinkers (who may or may not be mostly whiskEy drinkers...)

of course, we know JD is NOT the best selling whiskEy in the world or even the u.s. if the polled batch of folks were serious sippers/connoisseurs...

i wonder what is the best selling whiskEy for that group...?

[TNbourbon]

I like Jack Daniel's okay. It's a decent mixer with (diet) cola, and the Single Barrel certainly can be enjoyed neat. The Silver Select that I sampled (thanks, Randy!) was the best JD I've tasted, but very much Jack Daniel's. Sure, I like a lot of bourbons and ryes better, but that's not to say JD is 'bad'.

I don't like Jack Daniel's much at its price. It's the same age as Jim Beam white-label, but at a 33%-40% premium. It's younger than Evan Williams black-label, but twice as costly. It drags Maker's Mark around by the nose, because MM has made the deliberate marketing decision to place itself, pricewise, next to the market leader. Thus, we have dual over-priced, young-ish whisk(e)ys instead of two quite palatable, reasonably-priced ones.

Guess what? Both JD and Maker's can sell all the whiskey they can make. So, they're right, and I'm wrong. (Wish they missed my money.)

[gblick]

What no age 80 proof bourbon tastes much better or even better than this?

Old Fitz Prime. Not the current stuff, but I have some bottles from the 80's & 90's that are very good.

[Jazzhead]

Good for American whiskey and good for JD, but I'll have another tickle o' Dickel.

[HighTower]

Guess what? Both JD and Maker's can sell all the whiskey they can make. So, they're right, and I'm wrong. (Wish they missed my money.)

Very well put, Tim.

Scott

[LarryG]

Good for American whiskey and good for JD, but I'll have another tickle o' Dickel.

Following my gin phase, I think I was on my second bottle of JD when a friend told me he preferred the taste of George Dickel. I bought a bottle of the No. 12 and never gave a second glance to a bottle of JD.

Larry

[CrispyCritter]

I had a sample of JD Silver Select thanks to Chuck, and it was mighty good - but I'd just as soon get Dickel Barrel Select (or even #12) for those times that I want a Tennessee whiskey.

It's funny (in an almost sad way) that JD has that big screaming outlaw image when it's watered down to the minimum strength that can be still called whiskey!

[ILLfarmboy]

...It's funny (in an almost sad way) that JD has that big screaming outlaw image when it's watered down to the minimum strength that can be still called whiskey!

I've thought the very same thing. Not exactly in the same league as candy cigarettes but gettin' there.

[ratcheer]

What I get out of this is that Jack Daniel's is the best selling whiskey in the world.

Tim

[Ruby K]

heh. guess my switch to knob creek in college, followed by my swearing JD off when they dropped the proof AGAIN, didn't really have the effect I hoped it might. And in college, I really drank a lot of jack daniels.

[boone]

With Jack getting people to accept American whiskey they'll sooner or later try bourbon.

And those who do try bourbon and want a whiskey for taste and not for a cool image, will stay with bourbon.

Once upon a time...Jack Daniels, Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey...by Jim Beam.

Jack-Daniels-Daniels-Green-Label-Pint-Kentu.pdf

[cowdery]

Probably more than just "bottled" by Jim Beam, as I assume this was produced before Tennessee repealed its state prohibition.

[bourbonv]

Chuck,

More than likely it is bourbon from the time after Tennessee went dry (1910) and before prohibition. That is when they moved headquarters to Kentucky and warehoused in Missouri. Most of the whiskey stored in St. Louis was stolen during prohibition and what was left was bought by Schenly. When Lem Motlow complained to Schenley about using the name, they researched the trademark and found that only "Old No. 7" was trademarked and sold their whiskey as "Jack Daniels Old No. 8". Neddless to say this shabby treatment came back to haunt them when they were bidding for the brand and distillery against Brown-Forman in the 1950's. Schenley offered more money but the family sold it to Brown-Forman anyway. I am sure they remembered the way Schenley treated Lem in the 30's and did not want anything to do with Schenley. As a result, Schenley built the Dickel distillery.

As a side note, Lem Motlow also asked Schenley for help in rebuilding the distillery after prohibition and they once again treated hin pretty badly, treating him as some hick distiller with a dime a dozen type brand of whiskey. If they had helped Motlow in the 30's, the history of Jack Daniels would be very different today and it probably would not be the biggest selling whiskey in the world.

Mike Veach

[boone]

Once upon a time...Jack Daniels, Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey...by Jim Beam.

And.............the conclusion of the auction!

ebay-JD-JB.pdf

[TNbourbon]

If I'm not mistaken, the winning bidder shares a moniker with one of the Lynchburg stores raided last month. I think I'd store it outside of Tennessee this time.

http://www.sullysgifts.com/about.html

[mier]

Quantity goes for quality.With good merchandising is a world to win,did those earthlings ever heard of Dickel?

Eric.

[boone]

This article was in the Courier Journal (Louisville, Ky.) business section, newspaper last week.

20071.pdf

[ThomasH]

It is very easy to fix this domestic downturn in sales, put the brand back to 90 proof where it belongs!

Thomas

[Gillman]

I think part of it is that Jack Daniels drinkers are trying other straight whiskeys, and finding they sometimes prefer something different which may also be a better value.

Gary

[ILLfarmboy]

No brand is bullet proof and Its hight time B F takes notice of that.

[Martian]

I just returned from a few days in Ireland. Every pub and hotel bar I entered carried JD and JBW. None carried Dickel.