UPROXX: We Blind Tasted And Ranked Some Tennessee Whiskey For Holiday Sipping
- Nov 30, 2021
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 22, 2022
By: Zach Johnston • Nov 15, 2021 • Read the full article here
There are a lot of great things happening in Tennessee when it comes to whiskey. While the conversation about Tennessee whiskey has been dominated by George Dickel and, of course, Jack Daniel’s, there is so much more going on now with new brands and those old-school classics changing up their own lines. It’s an exciting time to follow and drink Tennessee whiskey, and that’s why we’re blind-tasting some of our favorites below.
The keyword there is “favorites.” We’re not tasting every single Tennessee whiskey on the shelf. We’re tasting six Tennessee whiskeys that we dig. Three of these TN whiskeys are sourced. The other three are made and bottled under their own labels. One of them was one of my favorite whiskeys of the year back when I tasted in the early summer. Will it still stand up? Let’s find out.
Our lineup today is:
George Dickel Bottled-in-Bond, Fall 2008
Nelson’s Green Brier Sour Mash Tennessee Whiskey
Uncle Nearest 1884 Small Batch
Bib & Tucker Small Batch 6-Year-Old
Heaven’s Door Redbreast Master Blender’s Edition
Gentleman Jack
It’s a small but powerful grouping of whiskeys. Let’s see which one comes out on top!
Part 1: The Tasting
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#5 Tasting Notes:
The nose on this one is huge with meaty dates next to rich marzipan, worn leather, sweet Gala apples, dry cedar, and bright red cherries. The palate has this vanilla and eggnog latte vibe with a walnut background until the mid-palate comes in with a moist and heavy vanilla pound cake bespeckled with poppy seeds next to orange-infused marzipan covered in dark chocolate that leads towards a hint of dry cherry tobacco and a final note of chocolate-covered raisins.
Part 2: The Ranking
Heaven’s Door Redbreast Master Blender’s Edition — Taste 5
The Whiskey:
The juice in the bottle is Heaven Door’s low-rye 10-year-old Tennessee bourbon. They take that whiskey and fill it into Redbreast whiskey casks that had previously aged Irish whiskey for 12 years. After 15 months of final maturation, those barrels are vatted and slightly proofed down with soft Tennessee spring water.
Bottom Line:
This wasn’t a surprise at all. This expression is damn near perfect. It’s so deeply hewn with pronounced flavors that feel like coming in from the rain and sitting next to a warm fire. This is a stellar whiskey.
Part 3: Final Thoughts
I think the biggest surprise for me today was the Gentleman Jack scoring so high. I really didn’t think I liked that whiskey that much. That’s why I love these blind taste tests, you’ll always be surprised what you pick and don’t.
As for the rest, I wasn’t overly shocked. That Heaven’s Door expression is just pure fire. It remains one of my favorite pours of the year for sure — as does the Dickel. I guess I have to say that I was a bit surprised Uncle Nearest didn’t rank higher given all the awards love it receives. But it was just a bit thin for me today. Maybe I’ll put it up against only other small batches next time and see how it fares. Until then, I’m going to be sipping on that Heaven’s Door.
This blind taste test definitely highlights the growing diversity in Tennessee whiskey beyond the usual suspects. I was particularly intrigued by the tasting notes for the #5 entry – "vanilla and eggnog latte vibe" sounds fantastic! It's great to see Heaven's Door Redbreast Master Blender's Edition getting such high praise. For anyone who found this article interesting and wants to save it for future reference, I'd recommend checking out Markdown to PDF Converter to easily convert it to a PDF.
This blind taste test is a fantastic exploration of Tennessee whiskey beyond the usual suspects. It's great to see the depth and variety available, especially with that Heaven's Door Redbreast Master Blender's Edition being so highly rated – sounds like a real treat! If you're looking to get creative with visuals after enjoying some of these spirits, you might enjoy turning your own favorite photos into cool pixel art over at Photo to Pixel Art.
This blind tasting sounds like a fantastic way to explore Tennessee whiskey beyond the usual suspects. The notes for tasting #5 are intriguing, and it's no surprise that the Heaven's Door Redbreast Master Blender's Edition is a standout – that cask finish sounds incredible! It's always great to see established favorites like Gentleman Jack perform well too. For anyone looking to refine their tasting notes, I found AI Cleaner Text to be super helpful for polishing up my thoughts.
This blind tasting sounds like a fantastic way to explore Tennessee whiskey! It's always interesting to see how personal preferences align or diverge from awards. The Heaven's Door Redbreast Master Blender's Edition sounds exceptional, and I appreciate the insight into the Gentleman Jack surprise. If you're looking to enhance your own enjoyment by processing photos of these whiskeys, checking out HD Photo Converter Online could be a good option to upscale them to HD.
This blind taste test sounds fantastic for holiday sipping! It's great to see a focus on a diverse range of Tennessee whiskeys beyond the usual suspects, and the Heaven's Door Redbreast Master Blender's Edition sounds particularly impressive. For creating special keepsakes, you might enjoy the AI Family Portrait Generator.