It ’s a staple fibre of bars both high - remnant andlowbrow . It ’s the preferred drunkenness of mortals and rock God alike . It can ascertain its way just as easily into a glass of rock as into a cocktail . We all get it on Jack Daniel ’s , a whiskey so prevalent it ’s a home name even in house located in dry counties . But do you really know Jack ? Well , after reading these 15 nugget of truth , you just might . Though the meaning of the number seven will still elude you .

1. Jack Daniel’s is the oldest registered distillery in the US

Is Jack Daniel ’s the old still in the US ? Yes and no . Maker ’s Mark claim it ’s the oldest , and Laird ’s Applejack has been around since the Revolutionary War . Plenty of older distilleries were pumping out rum before whiskey became democratic . But Jack lays claim to being the former register distillery , having registered in 1866 ( probably ) by a teenage Jack Daniel … he was real , and more on him later .

2. It’s Tennessee whiskey… and that’s very specific

Jack Daniel ’s is distil in a process that gives it the title of a Tennessee whiskey , a term recognized by the Union government in 1941 , almost 80 years after Daniel set off purify the poppycock . The process is unlike from other American whiskeys in that the spirit is filtered through layers of sugar - maple charcoal . At the distillery , visitor might see immense piles of maple wood being burned on “ rick . ” The woodwind instrument lessen into itself as it is cauterize , make oxford gray . The whiskey is then dribble through it over a flow of four days , then through white woollen to remove any of the charcoal .

3. It’s the best-selling American spirit

In 2014 , Jack Daniel ’s sell almost $ 3 billion worth of whisky . Seeing as the average bottle is around $ 20 , that ’s 150 million bottles of Jack Daniel ’s , give or take . That number might be reduced by a million or so following the passing of Lemmy , but it should keep JD well onwards of the challenger nonetheless .

4. It’s made in a dry county

That ’s right : the intimately - selling American whisky is made in an area where it can not be sell . Lynchburg in Moore County has been a ironical city since inhibition , even after annulment . While you may tour the quickness and taste the whiskeys ( only on the " enhanced tour " ) , you ca n’t purchase Jack Daniel ’s where it ’s made . Except …

5. You can totally buy Jack Daniel’s at the distillery

While the county is dry and you may not buy whisky , there is nothing prohibiting the sale of feeding bottle . A commemorating bottleful set you back around the same price as a feeding bottle of Gentleman Jack , and just materialize to come filled with the same product .   call up though : you ’re buying the bottle , not the whiskey inside of it . There is another way of life to corrupt it , too …

6. You can buy your own barrel

It ’s not cheap , but if you want your very own single barrel , you could make your way to the distillery and appreciation straight from them . you could then pluck your favourite and buy the integral barrel . If you ca n’t make it to Tennessee , you could still call or e-mail , let them know your taste preferences , and have them pick one out for you . It ’s the perfect Father ’s Day gift for a dad who has it all , admit an incredibly wealthy child and a spot to salt away a gravid - ass bbl of brown liquor .

7. There are many types of Jack Daniel’s

While the flagship Old No . 7 is the most pop and well - known type of Jack , there are other varieties as well . The Gentleman Jack is double separate out , compared to the single - filtrate No . 7 ; the single barrel is , well , from a single barrel , but is also strong at 94 trial impression ( compared to the common 80 proof ) ; and the love and cinnamon whiskeys are blended with honey liqueur and cinnamon liqueur , respectively . The flavored Jacks are at a low-toned cogent evidence , due to blending . There are also many special and limited - variant bottles , include the Sinatra Century , honor the late vocaliser on his 100th birthday because …

8. It was Frank Sinatra’s favorite whiskey

Dean Martin once spill the beans , " I love Vegas like Sinatra loves Jack Daniel ’s . " It ’s no urban myth : Frank Sinatra loved the Tennessee whisky so much he was buried with a bottle of it , along with a Zippo lighter , a pack of Camel cigarette , and 10 dime . Jack Daniel ’s let go of the Sinatra Special as well as the Century . In January , it did the same for Motörhead singer Lemmy Kilmister , who reportedly drank a bottle a sidereal day for 30 year . Speaking of …

9. You can now call a Jack & Coke a “Lemmy”

Most bartenders ( the ones worth knowing , anyway ) will know exactly what you ’re talking about if you roll in and order up a Lemmy in honour of the recently buy the farm ace of spades . We told you the fop make love what he like .

10. No one seems to know what the number seven stands for

When you order Jack at most bars , opportunity are you ’re getting a shot of Jack Daniel ’s Old No . 7 . For about as long as it has been bottled , Jack Daniel ’s whiskey has gestate the number seven , and to this day there is still argument about it . The most democratic theory is that his still was registered as number seven by the government , though this contradicts our first fact . Others have suggested that it represents his seven buff ( Daniel was never splice ) . Whatever the compositor’s case , many take to know for sure , but it ’s still a mystery .

11. Jack Daniel wasn’t the founder’s real name

Jack Daniel was a real guy , but that was n’t his real name . Jasper Newton Daniel was make for two Revolutionary War grinder , but protagonist and family called him Jack . Our advice : do n’t order a " Jasper Newton Daniel on the careen " unless you desire some serious eye - rolls from your bartender , and probably a lousy pour for it .

12. He was a teenager when he was distilling… probably

Again , there is equivocalness to Jack Daniel ’s life . While some news report claim he was born in 1850 , make him 13 when he grease one’s palms the distillery from Call and 16 when he registered it , other reports exact his female parent died in 1847 . That would make it very hard for her to have had Daniel . Other dates given are September 5th , 1856 , and January of 1849 . Whatever the vitrine , he was a untried man when he grease one’s palms and register the Jack Daniel ’s distillery .

13. It’s a large legacy for a small man

Jack only place upright at 5’4 ” , and his statue stands as in high spirits . While people were certainly smaller in the 1800s , he was still short by the century ’s standards .

14. The town it’s named for is small, too

Not , like , 361 small . That was the population when the label was trademarked , and so now every bottle of Jack athletics that little turn of nose count history . Still , at under 7,000 in Lynchburg , it ’s not exactly a booming city . Hell , they do n’t even have a proper bar !

15. Jack might have died kicking a safe

The legend of Daniel ’s qualifying has been challenge by late biographer , but as it plump , it was his temper that did him in . The company ’s books were lock in in a safe , and his nephew , Lem Motlow , was the one who usually unfold it . One morning , Daniel arrived to bring too soon , before his nephew . He tried to open up the safe , but , as usual , could not commend the combination . Frustrated , he kicked the safe , break dance his big toe . This led to a blood infection that , years later in 1911 , he finally succumbed to . Before he died , he passed the distillery on to Motlow and another nephew , though Motlow end up buy the other out . Motlow died in 1947 , and thankfully never deepen the name to his own . Because a Lem Motlow does n’t quite vocalise like a thirst - quencher .

Sign up herefor our daily Thrillist email , and get your locating of the good in food / drink / fun .

Article image

Jozef Sowa / Shutterstock.com

I

jack daniels distillery whiskey barrels

Flickr/Leslie

jack daniel’s distillery tour lynchburg tennessee

Flickr/Scott Johnson

jack daniels single barrel whiskey bottle close up

Flickr/jshyun

jack daniels honey whiskey bottle close up

Flickr/no_typographic_man

jack daniels neon sign

Flickr/Thomas Hawk

jack daniels distillery tour statue

Flickr/Brian Collins