Ricochet is the best place on the internet to discuss the issues of the day, either through commenting on posts or writing your own for our active and dynamic community in a fully moderated environment. In addition, the Ricochet Audio Network offers over 50 original podcasts with new episodes released every day.
Jack Daniel’s, It’s Like I Don’t Even Know You Anymore — Troy Senik
I’d like to tell you that the rollout of Ricochet 2.0 was sponsored by Jack Daniel’s, but that would imply that they were putting money into my pocket instead of the other way around. Yes, like any good writer, when the yoke becomes heavy I often pour my therapy into a tumbler (to say nothing of my writerly support for the coffee and tobacco industries — I’m a one-man farm bill!). I may have doubled the GDP of Lynchburg this week.
Being partial to whiskey — and my intermittent home state of Tennessee — Jack Daniel’s is less a choice and more a matter of muscle memory. It’s woven into the very fabric of the Volunteer State.
Alas, the folks who make it seem to think that their history and their market dominance is insufficient to secure pride of place. What do they want? Well, shouldn’t it be obvious? Gubmint!
From Reid Wilson at the Washington Post:
A year-long fight among state legislators over the definition of true Tennessee whiskey is spilling over to the international distilled spirits business, dividing both Tennessee’s powerful whiskey interests and multinational corporations battling for billions of dollars in global market share.
For more than a century, distillers around Tennessee have produced whiskey — some legal, some illegal — using a variety of base products like corn, barley or rye, and a number of different techniques. But under a new law passed by the legislature last year, only one process would lead to genuine Tennessee whiskey: a drink made of fermented mash comprised of at least 51 percent corn, aged in new barrels of charred oak, filtered through charcoal and bottled at 40 percent alcohol, or higher, by volume.
Sorry, I just have to break in here. “Some illegal” is an olympian euphemism. I’ve been in those hills. The moonshine is practically the medium of exchange. Anyway, back to your regularly scheduled programming:
On Tuesday, two Tennessee legislative committees voted to delay consideration of a new proposal that would roll back some of those requirements. The disagreement centers on the process by which Tennessee whiskey is distilled, and whether a producer has to use pricey new oak barrels every year. Current law requires those new barrels be used.
The bill up for debate, proposed by state Rep. Bill Sanderson (R), would allow whiskey makers to age their products in reused barrels, a process far less expensive than one that requires buying new barrels of expensive American oak year after year. Supporters of the 2013 law said it was necessary to codify what the industry calls standards of identity, a concrete definition of what makes Tennessee whiskey special — and different from other, lower-quality spirits. But opponents say the law effectively codifies Jack Daniel’s formula.
Now, I’m a Jack Daniel’s apologist par excellence — being elevated to the rank of Tennessee Squire is on my bucket list, though this post will probably forever render that goal out of reach —but the opponents are right.
Personally, I don’t see any reason for “standards of identity” to be a government concern. That’s not basic disclosure of the kind usually handled through state regulation — it’s the sort of brand differentiation that is the rightful purview of trade associations, not lawmakers. I’d rather not have politicians telling people who make whiskey in Tennessee that they can’t call it “Tennessee whiskey.”
The barrels used in this process are expensive; doubly so given recent disruptions to the oak supply. Jack Daniel’s not only has market power that insulates it from these costs, it also has vertical integration — it owns its own cooperage in Louisville. The little guys — not so much.
That’s the whole idea: you want to play the Jack Daniel’s game, you’ll pay Jack Daniel’s prices. Way to harsh everybody’s buzz, JD.
Of course, the consequences here are small by the standards of regulatory capture. The other boozemakers can still release their product, just not with the “Tennessee Whiskey” appellation. In the end, this market will still be free enough that victors will be crowned at the intersection of price and quality. Some may look at that and say, “why bother getting worked up about in the first place?” I look at it and say, “Why bother getting government involved in it in the first place?”
It pains me to see my liquid religion brushing up against my political convictions. Love, however, is not a matter of ignoring faults — it’s a matter of maintaining your affection despite them.
I’ll have another.
Published in General
Now now. Handing a Scotch newbie a glass of Laphroaig or Lagavulin is like handing a newbie pistol shooter a .454 Casull with max loads. Let the newbies start out on a nice Speyside malt, such as The Macallan (which, incidentally uses only casks that were originally used to age sherry).
No, but the Left would like to put them in pine boxes.
If you only know Jack, you don’t know Dickel.
I’m generally opposed to half-measures where alcohol is involved, but I suppose if someone wanted to ease himself into Islay malts he could start with Bruichladdich or Bunnahabhain. My approach is go big or go home. I personally prefer Laphroaig to Lagavulin (it’s one of the few areas where I disagree with Ron Swanson), but both are excellent whiskies, as is Ardbeg. Though not Islay, Talisker and Highland Park are also quite good.
In addition to the state interfering in commerce and standards of identity, is it not also in a way the statetrying to redefine language? “It depends on what your meaning of ‘Tennessee’ is.” I thought Tennessee was a geographic location, but apparently not according to JD. Kentucky apologists try to convince everyone that bourbon is only bourbon if made in Kentucky. Because that’s not true the simple solution (which most distillers use) to maintain your state pride is to label it, creatively, “Kentucky Bourbon.”
Hmm, still learning my way around the media and formatting options in 2.0, apparently.
Good call on the Carlos Santana / Hooker track, BY.
Troy–Question: Why is bootleg liquor still made? Is it the flavor or the price or what? I lived in North Carolina and the price for the stuff was very high. Store bought anything was cheaper and you could smell it without passing out.
For whatever reason, governments have been the go-to body for appellation descriptions. The US has done it for a very long time. That said, perhaps it’s time to turn it over to private bodies. That said, Jack Daniels needs to drop the crony capitalism bit and act like its customers expect.
Despite my “medium of exchange” crack, it’s not the economics. The costs, as you point out, are pretty high.
My educated guess:
1. The concentration of alcohol.
2. The appeal of doing it yourself (I know a lot of people in rural communities in Tennessee who are singularly obsessed with making as many things that they would otherwise have to buy as they can).
3. It’s just part of the culture in the hills.
Solution: Anything not matching the requirements for “Tennessee Whiskey” (i.e. new oak barrels) should be called “Volunteer State Whiskey” or “Smokey Mountain Whiskey”. The latter would probably sell quite well just because of the name.
Also add, “proudly made in Tennessee” if it is.
I grew up in E. Tennessee. Came across an active still once while out hunting. VERY carefully retraced my steps away (booby traps) and got the heck outta there.
The “Revenoors” (BATF guys ) busted up a huge still (biggest ever at that time) about 2 miles from my home.
It is definitely part of the culture to go against “the Man”. More often these days Meth is the product of choice. It’s relatively easy to make, relatively easy to conceal and much more profitable than “shine.”
Troy, question:
Is Jack Daniels cheaper to buy closer to the source?
For the beginner I would also recommend Glenmorangie. I have moved on to “heavier” stuff, but Glenmorangie is still my “go-to” Scotch.
Ardbeg is excellent. My favorite Islay malt. Wonderful balance of peat and sweet. Ditto on Talisker and Highland Park. Highland Park is another good choice for a newbie.
Back in the days of horse-drawn transport and utterly awful roads, it was much more economical to ship your surplus grain back east by making whisky and shipping the whisky. And when you’re that poor, paying a cut to the “Revenoors” doesn’t sit well.
&blockquote>I’m generally opposed to half-measures where alcohol is involved, but I suppose if someone wanted to ease himself into Islay malts he could start with Bruichladdich or Bunnahabhain. My approach is go big or go home. I personally prefer Laphroaig to Lagavulin (it’s one of the few areas where I disagree with Ron Swanson), but both are excellent whiskies, as is Ardbeg. Though not Islay, Talisker and Highland Park are also quite good.
Agree Laphroaig (10 y/o cask strength), Lagavulin (a man’s drink, if ever there was one) and Highland Park (18 y/o) are great choices.For those who enjoy learning a bit more about spirits, specially, scotch I recommend viewing Ralfy’s Youtube Channel videos – https://www.youtube.com/user/ralfystuff