Feds Finally Define Tennessee Whiskey, Sort Of.

[cowdery]

Maybe this was always in NAFTA, but I never saw it before it was pointed out to me recently.

"Tennessee Whiskey...is a straight Bourbon Whiskey authorized to be produced only in the State of Tennessee."

In order to enact the terms of the treaty in its own laws, Canada's Food and Drug Regulations (C.R.C., c. 870) now include this definition of Tennessee whiskey:

"Tennessee whisky...is a straight Bourbon whisky produced in the State of Tennessee and manufactured in the United States as Tennessee whisky in accordance with the laws of the United States applicable in respect of Tennessee whisky for consumption in the United States."

Notice that it does not define Tennessee whiskey as "straight bourbon whiskey that has been filtered through charcoal prior to barrel entry."

The Canadian rule, of course, only applies in Canada, which means Canada has a stricter law defining Tennessee whiskey for sale in Canada than the U.S. has for its sale in the U.S. As far as U.S. law is concerned, Tennessee whiskey is just whiskey, of any sort, that originates in Tennessee.

It's also a bit circular in that it makes reference to U.S. law controlling, but there's nothing in U.S. law that defines Tennessee whiskey as straight bourbon whiskey.

That, I think, is kind of funny. There is more here. For links to the trade agreements and the Canadian reg, go here and scroll down to the end of the comments. The links are there.

[blair]

Thanks Chuck. I reside in Tennessee and am considering opening a distillery here. I had heard that charcoal filtering was not required in the legal definition of Tennessee Whiskey but could not find confirmation of that. Nothing in the beverage alcohol manual, etc. So this explains it. There apparently was no concrete definition before this.

I looked at the posts on your blog. I also agree that Brown Forman/Jack Daniels probably gave their blessing on this definition before it was put into the NAFTA agreement. However, it makes me wonder why they didn't include the charcoal filtering in their definition. Do you think they wanted to preserve the opportunity for Jack to market a nonfiltered TN whiskey? Or, more likely, for Brown Forman to create a new TN whiskey brand, nonfiltered?

I would assume this means that you probably can't get TTB label approval for just any whiskey made in TN to be called Tennessee whiskey, only if it meets the straight bourbon standard including 2 years in a new charred oak barrel.

Blair

[cowdery]

Thanks Chuck. I reside in Tennessee and am considering opening a distillery here. I had heard that charcoal filtering was not required in the legal definition of Tennessee Whiskey but could not find confirmation of that. Nothing in the beverage alcohol manual, etc. So this explains it. There apparently was no concrete definition before this.

I looked at the posts on your blog. I also agree that Brown Forman/Jack Daniels probably gave their blessing on this definition before it was put into the NAFTA agreement. However, it makes me wonder why they didn't include the charcoal filtering in their definition. Do you think they wanted to preserve the opportunity for Jack to market a nonfiltered TN whiskey? Or, more likely, for Brown Forman to create a new TN whiskey brand, nonfiltered?

I would assume this means that you probably can't get TTB label approval for just any whiskey made in TN to be called Tennessee whiskey, only if it meets the straight bourbon standard including 2 years in a new charred oak barrel.

Blair

I know many here always suspect the majors of having secret, nefarious plans. I think the answer here was that in treaties you have to keep it simple and, most of all, unambiguous. Especially since actual U.S. law doesn't harmonize with these agreements, I'm sure they wanted to keep it as simple as possible. Straight bourbon whiskey is thoroughly defined in the Standards of Identity so that is how the agreements define TN whiskey, as straight bourbon made in Tennessee. The Canadian regs define bourbon whiskey as "whisky manufactured in the United States as Bourbon whisky in accordance with the laws of the United States applicable in respect of Bourbon whisky for consumption in the United States." That way the TN definition can piggyback on the Bourbon definition.

If BF is afraid of anything, it's that a thorough examination of the rules by TTB with the idea of adding a definition of TN whiskey to the Standards would result in a finding that Jack Daniel's is simply straight bourbon whiskey and should be labeled as such.

Jack Daniel's will abandon charcoal filtering the day Maker's Mark abandons red wax.

Yet as the U.S. laws are now written, there is nothing to prevent any whiskey made in Tennessee, regardless of type, from calling itself Tennessee whiskey. Even 'made' seems subject to very loose interpretation. (See Prichard's Tennessee Whiskey.) You are not, however, allowed to export it unless it is straight bourbon. That's the paradox.

[Tom's Foolery]

Does Jack Daniel's sour mash whiskey meet the definition of a straight bourbon? I assume that it does. The charcoal-mellowing process, by itself, would probably not disqualify JD as a straight bourbon. But a whiskey not labeled as a bourbon or a straight whiskey does have the option of adding harmless coloring and flavoring ingredients to the product. I assume that JD is not using these types of additives, or else the smart people at JD would be very cautious to avoid defining TN whiskey as a straight bourbon made in TN.

[cowdery]

Your assumptions are all correct. Jack Daniel's meets every requirement for straight boubon whiskey. Charcoal filtering doesn't change that. The bottom line has always been that the only reason Jack Daniel's is not labeled as straight bourbon whiskey is because its owners feel "Tennessee Whiskey" is a more distinctive niche. Everything else you may have heard is an urban legend.

[bioviper]

Thanks Chuck. I reside in Tennessee and am considering opening a distillery here. I had heard that charcoal filtering was not required in the legal definition of Tennessee Whiskey but could not find confirmation of that. Nothing in the beverage alcohol manual, etc. So this explains it. There apparently was no concrete definition before this.

I looked at the posts on your blog. I also agree that Brown Forman/Jack Daniels probably gave their blessing on this definition before it was put into the NAFTA agreement. However, it makes me wonder why they didn't include the charcoal filtering in their definition. Do you think they wanted to preserve the opportunity for Jack to market a nonfiltered TN whiskey? Or, more likely, for Brown Forman to create a new TN whiskey brand, nonfiltered?

I would assume this means that you probably can't get TTB label approval for just any whiskey made in TN to be called Tennessee whiskey, only if it meets the straight bourbon standard including 2 years in a new charred oak barrel.

Blair

i think you could still call it tennessee whiskey if its under 2 years old you just cant call it strait. and you would have to put aged under 4 years somewhere on the bottle if you decided to age fast in mini casks