Tennessee Whiskey
Bourbon rules plus a charcoal filter
Straight-bourbon-style whiskey made in Tennessee and filtered through maple charcoal before aging. The new charred oak keeps the congener load high, while charcoal mellowing removes some of the harsher compounds.
- Typical ABV
- 40–50%
- Base
- Corn-led mashbill (at least 51% corn)
- Distillation
- Column and doubler or pot, under 160 proof
- Aging
- New charred oak barrels, entered at no more than 125 proof
- Congeners
- High
- Histamines
- Moderate
- Polyphenols
- Moderate
- Sulfites
- Very Low
- Tannins
- Moderate
- Sugar
- Very Low
- Additives
- Very Low
Tennessee law (Tennessee Code 57-2-106, passed in 2013) defines Tennessee Whiskey as a whiskey made in the state from at least 51% corn, distilled below 160 proof, filtered through maple charcoal, and aged in new charred oak barrels that went in at no more than 125 proof. It must be bottled at 80 proof or higher. That is the federal bourbon standard with one extra step.
That extra step is the Lincoln County Process, in which the new spirit drips through or sits in sugar maple charcoal before it ever sees a barrel. The charcoal strips some heavy and sulfurous compounds, which is why the whiskey tastes mellower, but it happens before aging. The tannins, lignin breakdown products and aldehydes that make bourbon hit hard are added afterward, from the same new charred oak.
For the morning after, treat Tennessee whiskey like a bourbon of similar proof. Many bottles are 40%, which helps per pour, but a stronger, older or single-barrel bottling brings the full bourbon-style barrel load.
What changes the chemistry
- ▸New charred oak releases the same extractive load as bourbon
- ▸Lincoln County Process filters the new spirit through maple charcoal before aging
- ▸Charcoal mellowing removes some volatile compounds but not the barrel-derived congeners
- ▸Most bottlings are 40%, lower than many bourbons
- ▸No flavouring or colouring allowed beyond water