iGanja.com

One final thought on the great whiskey debate

webmaster@iganja.com (d'mo) — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 23:16:14 GMT

Well, it has taken time, but I can honestly say I have finally made peace with the break-up. "That bitch broke my heart" she did, but a rather amazing thing happened as a result. I found that there are a lot of very fine whiskeys out there worthy of my time and attention to taste and enjoy. I for one have found that Evan Williams black label (curiously similar looking to Jack Daniels' black label. So much so that you'd think they completely ripped Jack Daniels off until you realize that Evan Williams has been around for nearly 100 years longer than Jack Daniels,) is a fantastic whiskey! 86 proof, and less than half the cost of Jack Daniels! Then of course there is Maker's Mark. Which, at 90 proof and about the same price as Jack Daniels, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out where the value is there. So I bid you a fond farewell Jack. I will miss you, but I got some new friends now, and I only hope they treasure my friendship for I am a loyal friend…

Sign the petition to bring back 90 Proof

oh, I ganja

USA Today Article
Modern Drunkard Magazine (still never read the magazine)

One last fuck you very much!

webmaster@iganja.com (d'mo) — Tue, 17 Jan 2006 22:18:07 GMT

From: me

To: "Jack Daniels" <Jack_Daniels@lynchburg.jackdaniels.com>

Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2005 10:59 PM

Subject: Re: Message for Jack Daniel's

First, thanks for your response, even if it does read a bit canned.

Second, I have no idea about modern drunkard magazine, as I have never read it, nor care to.

My position does not change based on your very well written rebuttal. You succeeded only in missing my point. You make a very good whiskey to be sure, and a free tasting if I ever find myself near Lynchburg Tennessee will be a nice consolation. However, the uniqueness of Jack Daniels is that it was (emphasize was) a whiskey that stood out from the crowd because of it's bite. I found it a good call for you to offer a mellower (read weaker) version in your Gentleman Jack and found that it was a nice alternative, and a good choice for those who couldn't handle a real "old time" whiskey. And to be perfectly honest, if I'm going to drink Jack Daniels neat (the way it ought to be) I'll drink the Single Barrel. But the fact that so many people mix black label means that the PROOF DOES MATTER. Your argument that you are selling more Jack than before you switched it does not hold water with me. The proof had nothing to do with that. I'd say your recent wave of good marketing has more to do with it than anything, and I'd be willing to bet you marketed even harder in the test markets. No wonder it's selling more.

Anyway, I'm sure Jack labored long and hard over lowering the proof from the original 92? to 86 (whenever that was) and probably worried over how his most loyal drinkers would take to it, and I'd like to think he made the final decision with a heavy heart. But I'd bet anything he's rolling over in his grave over this latest change. To me, it's just another example of a family owned company turned corporation and neglecting it's most loyal patrons in search of a few more customers who don't know the difference, and will leave you the second Wal-Mart puts Early Times on sale again. For me, I'll probably just switch to Maker's Mark on principle. It won't be as good, but at least I'll be content with the knowledge that they haven't yet sold out for a couple extra bucks.

btw, you should probably change your website. To say that "More than a century later, every bottle of Jack Daniels is still made the same way" is simply not true.

David Moore

oh, I ganja

What a crock of shit!

webmaster@iganja.com (d'mo) — Tue, 17 Jan 2006 22:06:13 GMT

Here is the response from Jack Daniels

----- Original Message -----

From: "Jack Daniels" <Jack_Daniels@lynchburg.jackdaniels.com>

To: me

Sent: Monday, November 01, 2005 2:17 PM

Subject: Message for Jack Daniel's

Hello David,

We sure appreciate your taking the time to write. The folks at Modern Drunkard Magazine are apparently worked up about our lowering the proof of our Black Label whiskey a little bit. It seems they're judging our whiskey simply by how much alcohol is in it. We're awfully glad you've given us the opportunity to respond, and to explain how important quality and tradition are here at the Jack Daniel Distillery.

It might interest you to know that we've been bottling Black Label at 80 proof for several years in a number of states and countries. Our number one concern is to make sure our whiskey is of the highest quality. That means starting out with select grains for our mash and the cool, iron-free water that flows from the Cave Spring. It means maturing our whiskey in new white oak barrels. It also means following through with an extra step of mellowing our whiskey drop by drop through 10 feet of charcoal to make it a smooth sipping Tennessee Whiskey.

You see, Mr. Jack's whiskey-making tradition is very important to all of us at the Jack Daniel Distillery. That's why we take it to heart when folks suggest that a lower proof whiskey is somehow a lower quality. Fact is everywhere we've been at 80 proof the number of folks enjoying our whiskey is growing faster than in the places where it was 86 proof. Mr. Jack lowered the proof of his whiskey when he went from selling it by the barrel to selling it by the bottle because he knew that's the way folks actually were drinking it - at a lower proof. The same is true today.

Some folks have mentioned that we're watering down our whiskey. Water is a natural ingredient used to make whiskey. It's a critical element in the character and quality of whiskey. Water is the reason Jack Daniel decided to build his Distillery in the Lynchburg Hollow and is the reason we still make our whiskey there today. The water we use in the whiskey-making process is the same iron-free cave spring water that Mr. Jack found at the Cave Spring Hollow more than 135 years ago.

We realize that quality and tradition mean a lot to you, just as they have to Jack Daniel's for more than 135 years. So we would like to invite you, if you're ever traveling near Lynchburg , to take the time to drop by the Distillery and enjoy a taste of our Tennessee Whiskey with our tasters. We are confident you will agree that our taste and quality have not changed! Please call (931) 759-7822 and ask for Randy Fanning, and he'll make sure you have a personal tasting.

Again, thank you for writing. We hope we'll hear from you again soon.

Best regards,

Jone Richardson at Jack Daniel's

A Lynchburg lynching is what is needed here!

webmaster@iganja.com (d'mo) — Tue, 17 Jan 2006 21:47:45 GMT

Around the start of 2004, the new corporate pinheads at the world renowned Jack Daniels distillery in Lynchburg Tennessee (Actually Brown-Foreman Corporation who now owns Jack Daniels) came up with a brilliant idea! Read All About It! I will recount the somewhat disturbing scene as it has played out in my head since then. The names have not been changed to protect the innocent; in fact the names may be correct for all I know: I simply made them up.

So, Steve the CBC (chief bean counter,) had a meeting with Rick, the head of marketing, one day and here is what transpired:

Steve: “Hey, Rick. You know Jack Daniels is the number one seller of bourbon in the US, not to mention one of the highest priced black labels. In fact our annual sales will be over $1 billion in 2004!”
Rick: “Yeah, so looks like I’m doing a fantastic job, eh?”
Steve: “Right you are Rick, you sexy hunk of man you!”
Steve: “So, why is it that we continue to bottle 86 proof whiskey when all the other black labels are bottled at 80 proof?”
Rick: “Well Steve, I’d guess because that’s the way Jack wanted it?”
Steve: “Right you are again! Did I mention I love that color tie on you? Delicious!”
Rick: “Thanks Steve, you look pretty hot yourself today. I really like the cut of your pants. DKNY?”
Steve: “Calvin Klein, baby. You know, now that Jack is long dead and buried, and we now own the company, we should be looking to maximize our profits.”
Rick: “Oh, I like where you’re going with this Steve. Is it getting hot in here? What do you propose we do?”
Steve: “I’m so glad you asked, Rick. I’d say we add just a touch more water to our final product to make it say, 80 proof like all the rest of the black labels out there.”
Rick: “Wow Steve! You thought that up all by yourself did you? Might be harder to market it.”
Steve: “Well Rick, there in lies the real beauty of this idea!”
Rick: “Do tell Steve, I can hardly contain myself. Is that your manhood bulging?”
Steve: “YOU, don’t have to do anything! We’ll test out the lower proof in a few test markets. See if anyone notices! Of course we’ll add a few more marketing dollars to those areas to skew the results. We can continue to charge the exact same amount for it, but at a lower proof, it’s seven percent added profit baby!”
Rick: “Seven percent? Is that worth it?”
Steve: “That comes to over $77 million a year you man bitch!”
Rick: “What about our most loyal customers? The one’s that can actually tell the difference? Shouldn’t we be sensitive to their loyalty?”
Steve: “We’ll tell them our single barrel was specially made for them, and if they still don’t get it, fuck ‘em, let em buy Maker’s Mark.”
Rick: “I love it!”
Steve: “I knew you would.”

So, when I finally got wind of this devious little plan of theirs, I decided to write to Jack Daniels and let them know I was on to them.

From: Me
Sent: 29 Oct 05 20:56:25
To: jack_daniels@lynchburg.jackdaniels.com
Cc:
Subject>: Drop us a line at Jack Daniel's / USA

The following 'Contact Us' form was submitted on 10/29/2005 8:56:12 PM

Comments: I am ashamed of you! A company that emphasizes and advertises it's "History" as much as Jack Daniel's does; to change it's recipe is beyond hypocritical. It is a slap in the face to all your customers who base their choice not only on taste, but also on tradition and loyalty. And for what? The label should have changed even more than from 86 to 80. It should now read New Time, New No.8 or maybe just Early Times #2. Hell, you could put it in a plastic bottle for all the uniqueness and prestige it now holds. You have ruined it! Take a lesson from Coke! New Coke sucked, and so does New Jack!

oh, I ganja!