Jack Daniel’s 14 Year Review Batch 001
“Jack Daniel’s Aged Series”
Jack Daniel’s Distillery has been going crazy in recent years by expanding their brand with so many fantastic releases. Jack Daniel’s Old Number 7 is still one of the most recognized whiskeys and a “must have” in bars across the globe. JD Black Label remains the world’s top-selling whiskey, with over 150 million bottles sold yearly. Then they added (to name a few) JD Sinatra, JD Bonded, JD Barrel Proof, “Coy Hill”, “Church Hill”, JD 10 year, JD 12 year, and now Jack Daniel’s 14 year. Is this the best JD yet? I’m excited to grab a pour while I taste my way through this Jack Daniel’s 14 year review of batch 1.
It has been over 100 years since Jack Daniel’s has offered age stated products. Before Prohibition they had age statements of 10, 12, 14, 18, and 21 year old whiskey. Due to many things including Prohibition, taxes, logistics, consumer preferences, etc, the age stated series was dropped. But now, Jack Daniel’s has brought it back, with the hope of giving us the full range of age stated Jack Daniel’s bottles, with the 18 year and 21 year yet to come (hopefully!)
The stated goal is to make these age stated bottles available every year. The 10 year has release 3 batches, the 12 year 2 batches, and now the 14 year has released it first batch in 2025.
Series: Jack Daniel’s Aged Series
Batch: 001 (2025)
Classification: Tennessee Whiskey
Age: 14 years
Proof: 126.3
Proof Designation: Barrel Proof
Filtered Status: Non-Chill Filtered
Special Process: Lincoln County Process
Mash bill: 80% Corn, 8% Rye, 12% Malted Barley
Barrel Char Level: 3
Barrel Entry Proof: 125
Distillate Source: Jack Daniel Distillery
Distillery: Jack Daniel Distillery
Company: Brown–Forman Corporation
Bottled By: Jack Daniel Distillery
Distilled/Aging Location: Lynchburg, Tennessee
Master Distiller: Chris Fletcher
Release Date: February 2025
Batch Notes: batch size is about 24,000 bottles
MSRP: $150
Secondary Market: $350 – $700
Availability: Low/Rare
Jack Daniel’s 14 Year Review Batch 001
January 20, 2026
My tasting reviews are unique in that I include the notes of several well-known whiskey critics. The hope is that this format will help me and others to explore and expand their tasting experience. After you have taken your own tasting notes, read the reviews and see if there is a flavor note that others discerned that now you can detect as well.
For this tasting: Fresh Crack, Glencairn Glass, Neat, Room Temp, Breathe: 1 hour
Legs
Beads form on the crown at 5 seconds, the legs begin to fall at about 12 seconds and the first legs reach the bowl and about 36 seconds.
Nose
This has a fabulous nose! There are so many intense, dark, deep aromas here! Dark caramel, toffee, molasses, custard, bourbon-soaked vanilla bean, butterscotch, old oak, leather, brown sugar, dark bananas foster, and a hint of maple syrup.
Other Reviewer’s Perceptions
Mash & Drum: The nose is dark and syrupy. It almost comes off as a little bit of a blackstrap rum, with really rich molasses flavors that lead into almost a bitter dark chocolate. It’s really, really beautiful on the nose. A ton of dark brown sugar, like you have carved off the top of a creme brûlée and are just eating the crispy part.
The molasses is there for days. It almost gives you some maple syrup vibes as well. There’s a touch of smokiness in here.
Just two more years removed from the 12y year and we’re already seeing another uplift in not only depth of flavor but sweetness. We’re going from toffee and butterscotch now to a very rich molasses almost rum type of unique flavors here. Man the smokiness is here, a ton of tobacco. It almost comes off like a cigar and I think the little bit of a smoke note also leads into that as well, the oak is there but I feel like the sweetness actually outlasts the oak,
Breaking Bourbon: A delectable assemblage of rich, sweet scents instantly communicates that this is a Jack Daniel’s whiskey. With perfect intensity, the aroma starts with seductive notes of dark cherry, deep molasses, light maple, and sweet aged charred oak. While they are first out of the gate, they are not the last, with additional layers of chocolate, aged leather, fresh cigar leaf, and brown sugar added. This may seem overwhelming on paper, but the scents all work in unison and remain easy to decipher. Bright and sweet but stately and seductive, it is easily one of the best aromas found on a Jack Daniel’s whiskey to date.
Drums & Drams: This smells ridiculous. This is like a chocolate, mocha, root beer bomb of a whiskey. It smells dense and concentrated. Old, old rickhouse oak while at the same time I’m getting this fresh, Cinnabon, chocolate notes dancing on top of the darker more aged notes. This smells phenomenal.
Palate
On the palate this explodes with flavor. Toffee, caramel corn, molasses, vanilla, rich creme brûlée, dark chocolate, root beer, burnt sugar (but without the bitterness), some graham cracker, a hint of pecans, old oak, barrel char, leather, orange peel, banana, tobacco, and mild baking spices with cinnamon, cloves and anise.
Each sip brings new flavors or new depth of flavor to previous notes. It is soll viscous, so mouth-coating, and completely enjoyable. The sweetness is nicely balanced by the old oak, the tannins, and the spice. Spectacular.
Other Reviewer’s Perceptions
Mash & Drum: The proof on this is beautiful. It allows you to taste all these flavors up front. This is just pure molasses. It is rummy, it is almost maple syrupy, a little bit of dark chocolate, some creme brûlée. That leads into this charred oak smokiness that you get right at mid-pallet and then the back end is spicy tobacco. It is like smoking a spicy cigar and I feel like a lot of people, if you’re cigar smoker, you’re going to absolutely really this.
This is like taking a cigar and just dipping it in chocolate and molasses at the same time. A spicy cigar. It’s a really beautiful profile, I love the upfront sweetness of this. But I can see maybe the smokiness and the spiciness of this cigar effect maybe being a little bit too much for some people so I could see some folks leaning towards the 12 year rather than the 14. But, the 14 is very sexy!
Breaking Bourbon: As soon as the whiskey hits your tongue, you’ll notice its viscosity. It’s thick and mouthcoating, attaching itself to your taste buds to maximum effect. Assorted dark chocolate-covered notes hit first, revealing a range of cherry, raspberry, caramel, and nougat. Seasoned oak and cigar leaf add a contrasting element to the sweetness that opens the palate, adding further dimension. This is a robust and flavorful sip that uses its proof well and refrains from being overly hot in any way. Beautifully crafted.
Drums & Drams: This is so delicious. The proof is just right for delivering all these flavors. Oh my gosh! This whiskey is incredible. Heavy, funky, rickhouse oak with lots of leather. The richest, darkest chocolate and burnt caramel. In addition to all those dark, rich notes, now I’m getting this orange soda, spice.
Finish
The finish is long and enjoyable with oak, leather and barrel char along with mild toffee, vanilla, custard, and mild baking spices. The dryness of the oak notes balance the sweetness, finishing more dry than sweet. Over time, the finish transitions from oakiness to spiciness to sweet notes and vanilla.
Other Reviewer’s Perceptions
Mash & Drum: Finish goes for days.
Breaking Bourbon: The whiskey’s finish loses much of the nose and palate’s sweetness, and its time in the barrel begins to show. The seasoned oak turns dry, and aged leather, burnt sugar, and oak spice begin to appear. As the taste dissipates, spice lingers, and a light musty oak note blossoms. Dark chocolate is still present, and dark bootstrap molasses can be tasted. It is fully flavored and oak-dominated, yet it is careful not to go overboard despite its high proof. The finish contrasts the palate nicely, showcasing its time spent in the barrel beautifully.
Drums & Drams: Rich aged oak and butterscotch. It feels dusty to me.
Mouthfeel
The mouthfeel is Unctuous. It is full, rich, and mouth-coating. Fabulous!
Mouthfeel Rating Guide: Thin = Watery | Silken = smooth & slippery, but not mouth coating | Creamy = coats the tongue like heavy cream does. | Rich or Unctuous = coats the entire palate like quality olive oil
Tasting Summary
The nose on the JD 14 year is out of this world! So many warming, pleasant, evocative aromas! The palate is pleasantly intense, rich, dark and complex. It has so many variations of sweetness: caramel, toffee, molasses, vanilla, creme brûlée, maple, brown sugar plus old oak, leather and spice. For fruit, I got dark Bananas Foster and orange peel. And then balancing flavors of dark chocolate, old oak, leather, and tobacco combined with baking spices of cinnamon, cloves, anise.
The Burn
The burn is Low. This means that the burn from the alcohol is a bit lower (5% to 9%) than what I would expect it to be. I would guess this to be around 120 proof, not 126.3 proof.
The Burn Rating Guide:
Very Low = it drinks like it is a much lower proof
Low = it drinks like it is a little lower proof
Average = the heat is about what I would expect
Hot = it is hotter than what I would expect
Scorching! = it drinks much hotter than what I would expect
My Rating – 9.4
The higher the score the better the whiskey is in my opinion. For reference, my best rated bottle so far is the George T. Stagg 2022 (138.7p) with a score of 9.7.
| Score Type | Score | Examples |
| Likability Score | 9.4 | 1.0 – 10.0 |
My Tasting Notes
A blank version of this tasting notes wheel is available in both a color and a black & white version in the member’s area.
Notes and History
The Jack Daniel Distillery officially was registered by the U.S. Government in 1866 and it has the distinction of being the first registered distillery in the United States. It is also on the National Register of Historic Places.
Prior to Prohibition in 1910, Jack Daniel’s regularly offered age-stated whiskeys including 10, 12, 14, 18, and 21-year-olds, as a marker of quality. In the 1960s-1970s, with global fame and Frank Sinatra’s endorsement, the brand focused on the “Old No. 7” mystique, and age statements began to disappear from labels. By the 1980s-1990s, removing age statements allowed the distillery to blend barrels of varying ages for consistent flavor and to meet demand during market downturns, as the goal was bottling “when it’s ready,” and not by a calendar date or age statement.
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