Jack Daniel's 12 Year Batch 2 Review

Distillery: Jack Daniel’s

Proof: 107

Age: 12 years

Mashbill: 80% Corn, 12% Rye, 8% Malted Barley

Price: ~$95

Company

Located in Lynchburg, Tennessee and owned by Brown-Forman, Jack Daniel’s is one of the most well-known names and highest-selling brands in whiskey. They’re most known for creating sour mash Tennessee whiskey—which is like bourbon but the distillate goes through an extra step called the Lincoln County Process (charcoal filtering).

Production

This is the second-ever 12-year release from Jack Daniel’s and it comes in at a higher proof than you’ll normally see a JD bottle at 107. If you remember, I gave Batch 1 an elusive platinum medal. And I was super interested to see how Batch 2 stacked up…

Jack Daniel’s 12 Year Review

Nose – 4.5/5

The nose immediately gives deep, rich caramel chews over a backdrop of vanilla nad orange peel. Some lighter oak and licorice notes also surfaced. This is a very rich, sweet nose that is more caramel heavy than I’m used to with Jack Daniel’s.

Compared to Batch 1, this batch is a bit heavier on caramel. Batch 1 had similar notes but had more pronounced brown sugar, where I don’t really get that note with Batch 2.

Palate – 4.25/5

The deep caramel chews carry over immediately, as does the vanilla. There’s a surprising amount of spice as well (more than Batch 1 in my opinion). But this rounds out the sip well and gives it some character.

It gets oakier as you chew and black pepper starts to emerge. Overall, it’s rich and sweet with some character like Batch 1 was. The main difference is it has a bit more spice this time around and is less heavy on brown sugar notes.

Finish – 4.25/5

The deep caramel chews carry all the way through to the finish, giving a very sweet and rich start. This starts to fade into oak, black pepper, and leather to give a rich, deep finish that’s still medium in length like Batch 1.

The main different between the finishes are, again, the brown sugar notes. Batch 2 is heavier on caramel chews and has slightly less vanilla present in the finish.

Value – 4/5

This is another knock-out batch. It’s very similar to Batch 1 with just a few slight differences.

The most notable difference is that Batch 2’s MSRP is $95 compared to Batch 1’s $80.

I still think it’s a great value at that price, but the waters are starting to get a bit murky. This is one of the best expressions of Jack Daniel’s you’ll find, but I bet the secondary price you’ll have to pay to get a bottle could easily be upwards of $150. And this likely won’t be sitting on shelves…

So, I would definitely buy this for a high-end pour for my stash at $95 every once in a while, but I’m not going to go hunting it down just to pay ~50% more than MSRP. That’s why it gets a 4 here.