Jack Daniel's Single Barrel Select

Haven't had Jack in a long time. Was surprisingly good.

Long finish. Sweet. Pretty good.

Nose: oak, spice Taste: oak, brown sugar,

I've yet to find a bourbon that wows me. But on the other hand I've yet to experience a wide range of American whiskey. So far, the majority of my tasted drams have been from the Celtic countries, while the choice of US drinks is very limited as, understandably, it appears that mainly the better known "international" brands are imported in Ireland. Of those I have tried I have been impressed by ryes like Rittenhouse BiB but not a bourbon (yet anyway). I tasted this JD Single Barrel Select as a sample from a gift pack that include No. 7 and Gentleman Jack. This is by far my favourite of those three. I'm not a fan of banana flavours, which I see from other reviews is a JD signature note. I didn't get it on this which is a tick for the Pro column. I get brown sugar, oak, some tannins and a pleasant spice tingle as it develops and finishes. Good but no 'wow' factor. But what surprised me was when I went the well trodden JD&C route. I had this over Christmas with Fever Tree Madagascan cola mixer - it was fantastic! The vanilla was brought to the fore, the oak remained and the tannins dissipated. And it mixed much better than other drams with the same cola (e.g. JW Black). Still searching for that straight sipper though.