Blending whiskey is a real art. Teams of sensory experts taste from hundreds of barrels at some larger distilleries to create a cohesive and consistent flavor profile that is replicable from batch to batch and year to year. It never ceases to amaze me that every bar I’ve ever been to from Nashville to Shanghai has at least one bottle of Jack Daniel’s that has made its way out of the deep dark hollows around Lynchburg to points unknown across the globe. And every bottle intentionally tastes the same as every other bottle. It’s a truly remarkable accomplishment!
And most distilleries are blending their own products with recipes and flavor profiles that they already are quite familiar with. That’s what makes the new collaboration from members of The Tennessee Whiskey Trail even more impressive. The Trail is a collection of distilleries that are members of the Tennessee Distillers Guild who have banded together to encourage whiskey tourism in the state.
To celebrate the growth of distilling in Tennessee, a dozen members of the guild have come together to create a very special blend of whiskeys under the Tennessee Collective label. Master distiller Greg Eidam of Sugarlands Distilling Company has taken the lead in creating the actual blend from small batches of a dozen different spirits, each aged for at least four years.
The participating distilleries are:
• Big Machine Distillery
• Company Distilling
• Jack Daniel’s
• Leiper’s Fork Distillery
• Lost State Distillery
• Nashville Barrel Co.
• Old Forge Distillery
• Old Glory Distilling Co.
• Ole Smoky Distillery
• Sugarlands Distilling Company
• Tennessee Hills Distillery
• Tennessee Legend Distillery
These represent a vast variety of different types of products, from legendary Tennessee whiskey to moonshine, so Eidam had quite the task on his hands. He describes the process this way, “Blending whiskeys is an artform that challenges the blender to really pay attention to the nuances, notes and characteristics of the barrels. Each participating distillery carefully selected its barrel based on its own unique flavor to meticulously create this collaboration of Tennessee spirits.”
Bottled at cask strength, this is truly a one-of-a-kind creation representing the past, present and future of Tennessee distilling that will never appear again after the stock of roughly 2,000 bottles is sold. I’ve been fortunate enough to try a small sample, and it is definitely a unique bottle.
Understandably, the nose is a little muddled with a dozen different whiskeys competing for attention. At cask strength, it’s definitely hot on the palate, but the nuances of the blend reveal themselves after a little time in the glass, especially with a few drops of water or an ice cube to open it up. For what is a relatively young whiskey, the interaction of all the different wood aging treatments is fascinating. Each sip reveals a different aspect of oak from slightly tannic cedar-y notes to a long finish of vanilla and caramel.
Purchases are limited to six bottles per order for $79.99 at the Tennessee Collective website. You’ll also have to make a lovely roadtrip to pick up your bottle. Each bottle must be picked up on Saturday, Nov. 1, from 1-3 p.m. ET at the Townsend Visitors Center by the purchaser. Any bottle not picked up at the festival will be refunded back to the card on file. It’ll be worth the drive!
