Producer note (March 2023 press release): oak forward, with layers of dark fruit and bittersweet cocoa. Worth knowing: Jack Daniel's issued the identical note for Batch 4 two years later, so it describes the distillery's standing intent for the expression more than anything unique to this bottling.
This batch: Breaking Bourbon read the 2023 as noticeably more fruit- and oak-forward than the debut, and less sweet overall — red raspberry, banana and stewed apples with cinnamon and sweet charred oak on the nose; cranberry, plum and dried fruit a shade darker on the palate; then oak ramping through a dry finish of leather and barrel char, closing on light smoke. Their verdict: a whiskey that tastes older than it is.
Reviewers disagreed sharply on this batch, which is worth knowing. One found it excellent; another, tasting it beside the 12-Year, called it light and lacking in flavour for 97 proof. Both are readings, presented as readings.
The expression: Jack Daniel's published no note specific to Batch 2; its standing 10-Year note is apple and caramel into molasses, chocolate and barrel spice, closing long and warm.