Tennessee whiskey

Description
• U.S. whiskey made from a mash bill with ≥51% corn, plus malted barley and either rye or wheat, produced exclusively in Tennessee.
• Shares core bourbon requirements (distilled ≤80% ABV, barreled ≤62.5% ABV, aged in new charred oak, no added color or flavor beyond water), but is distinguished by the Lincoln County Process: charcoal mellowing over sugar maple charcoal before barreling.
• Bottled at ≥40% ABV; may be labeled straight if aged ≥2 years (often 4+ years).

Caloric value (per 100 g of product)
• At 40% ABV: about 230–250 kcal/100 g (energy from ethanol; carbohydrate, protein, fat ≈ 0 g).
• Rule of thumb: ~240–260 kcal/100 ml at 40% ABV (ethanol density ~0.94 g/ml).
• In cooking, residual alcohol declines with time/heat/surface area but rarely reaches zero.

Key constituents
• Water and ethanol.
• Aromatic congeners from fermentation, oak, and aging: aldehydes (e.g., vanillin, syringaldehyde), ketones, esters (ethyl/isoamyl acetates), oak lactones (cis/trans “whisky lactone”), furfurals/HMF, phenolics and tannins, plus minor organic acids (acetic, lactic).
• Trace minerals and copper within good-manufacturing limits.

Production process
• Milling and mashing of grains (corn dominant) → starch gelatinization and saccharification (malt enzymes).
• Fermentation (often sour mash) to ~8–10% ABV.
• Distillation (pot or column) ≤80% ABV.
• Lincoln County Process: percolation through sugar maple charcoal to soften sulfur/harsh notes.
• Aging in new charred oak barrels (controlled char levels) → proofing with water → bottling (≥40% ABV).

Sensory and technological properties
• Appearance gold–amber; aromas of vanilla, caramel, honey, banana/esters, sweet spice, toast; palate generally smooth with oak/vanilla finish.
• In cooking, contributes sweet-toasty nuances and enhances Maillard complexity in reductions and sauces.
• Ethanol is an excellent aroma solvent, aiding extraction in marinades and glazes (handle with care—flammable).

Food uses
• Marinades and glazes for meats (ribs, brisket), BBQ sauces, enriched demi-glace, desserts (ganache/pralines), syrups and reductions.
• On U.S. cooked-meat labels it may appear as “Tennessee whiskey” or as flavor (e.g., “natural flavor (Tennessee whiskey)”) when used strictly for aromatization.
• Indicative dosages: sauces 1–5%; glazes 3–8% by weight—verify with pilot trials and target alcohol residual.

Nutrition and health
• Alcohol provides 7 kcal/g; consumption should be moderate. Contraindicated for pregnancy, driving, under-age individuals (per law), and may interact with medicines.
• Cooking reduces but does not fully eliminate alcohol.
• Gluten: although made from cereals, distillation removes proteins; whiskey is generally gluten-free at detectable levels (check local claim policies).

Lipid profile
• Total fat negligible; SFA, MUFA, PUFA are absent/trace with no nutritional impact.

Quality and specifications (typical topics)
• ABV at distillation, in barrel, and at bottling; color (Lab*), congeners (aldehydes/esters/fusels), pH (~4.0–4.5), copper traces, very low methanol for grain spirits.
• Legal conformance: mash ≥51% corn, new charred oak, no additives, Lincoln County Process; “straight” when ≥2 years aging.
• Sensory QA: trained panel and batch-to-batch consistency.

Storage and shelf-life
• Shelf-stable at ambient temperature; protect from light/heat; close tightly to limit evaporation/oxidation.
• Indefinite shelf-life unopened; prefer 12–24 months after opening for peak aroma.
• Flammable: store away from ignition sources.

Allergens and safety
• No major EU allergens intrinsically; primary risk is alcohol.
• Facility controls: HACCP with CCP for alcohol handling, hygiene, fire safety; prevent cross-contact with non-alcohol products where relevant.

INCI functions in cosmetics
• Rare as such; related uses include Whiskey Extract or Alcohol/Alcohol Denat. as solvent/fragrance (consider IFRA guidance).

Troubleshooting
• Harsh alcohol note in sauces: perform a separate reduction/flambé before blending.
• Excess bitter/tannic tones: over-reduction or too hot → shorten cook, balance with sugars or fats.
• Aroma loss: prolonged boil-off → reserve a late addition off-heat or use natural extracts.
• Label wording: if used only for flavor in trace amounts, consider “natural flavor (Tennessee whiskey)” per applicable regulations.

Sustainability and supply chain
• Spent grains repurposed as feed; used barrels re-deployed for other spirits/finishes.
• High-strength effluents require treatment to BOD/COD targets.
• Prefer responsibly sourced oak and energy-efficient distillation.

Conclusion
Tennessee whiskey couples bourbon’s technical standards with charcoal mellowing and new-oak aging, yielding a smooth, vanilla-toasty profile. In culinary and industrial applications it works as a characterizing flavor and as a rounding note in sauces and glazes, provided reduction and alcohol residual are properly controlled.

Mini-glossary
• ABV — Alcohol by volume: volumetric alcohol percentage; drives energy (7 kcal/g ethanol) and safety handling.
• HACCP — Hazard analysis and critical control points: preventive safety system with defined CCP.
• CCP — Critical control point: a processing step where a control prevents/reduces a hazard (e.g., alcohol/fire control).
• BOD/COD — Biochemical/Chemical oxygen demand: wastewater impact indicators for distillery effluents.
• SFA — Saturated fatty acids: excess may raise LDL; irrelevant here.
• MUFA — Monounsaturated fatty acids (e.g., oleic): generally favorable/neutral; irrelevant here.
• PUFA — Polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-6/n-3): beneficial when balanced; irrelevant here.

References__________________________________________________________________________

Kerley T, Munafo JP Jr. Changes in Tennessee Whiskey Odorants by the Lincoln County Process. J Agric Food Chem. 2020 Sep 9;68(36):9759-9767. doi: 10.1021/acs.jafc.0c03058.

Abstract. Authentic freshly distilled Tennessee whiskey is filtered through maple charcoal in a processing step known as the Lincoln County Process (LCP). Changes in odorants resulting from the LCP were characterized by a comparative aroma extract dilution analysis (cAEDA), quantitated by stable isotope dilution assays (SIDA), and odor activity values (OAVs) were calculated. Sensory evaluation showed a decrease in malty, rancid, fatty, and roasty aroma attributes of the distillate after LCP treatment. Forty-nine odorants were identified, nine of which have not been previously reported in the whiskey distillate literature. Thirty-one odorants were quantitated, all showing a decrease in concentration as a result of LCP treatment. Odorants, including (2E,4E)-nona-2,4-dienal (fatty), 3-methylbutanoic acid (rancid), 2'-aminoacetophenone (foxy), and 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (roasty), dropped below detection thresholds (OAV < 1) following LCP treatment. Concentrations of lipid-derived aldehydes, organic acids, and other odorants decreased between 13 and >99%. The present investigation lays the groundwork for future studies aimed at flavor optimization for Tennessee whiskey production.

Hughes, D. W. (2023). The Growing Contribution of the Tennessee Alcohol Products Distilling Industry to the Tennessee Economy.

Abstract. Estimates regarding the growth, structure (such as location) and contribution of Tennessee distilleries (alcoholic spirts producers) to the Tennessee economy are provided in this report. Covered in the analysis are the industry’s size and growth with respect to other states and national trends and its location in Tennessee. The contribution of the industry in terms of tax revenues, tourism and foreign trade are discussed. Also discussed is the use of a distillery producer survey and an IMPLAN-based (IMPLAN Group LLC, 2015) input-output model of the 2019 Tennessee economy in arriving at model estimates. Estimation results with respect to the total (direct and multiplier-based) impact of the industry are then provided, followed by summary and conclusions.

Haggquist, Jack, "Surface Water Geochemical Characteristics near Historical Distillery Locations in Tennessee and Kentucky" (2021). Undergraduate Honors Theses. 51 https://digscholarship.unco.edu/honors/51

Abstract. Kentucky and Tennessee has been the primary region in which whiskey has been produced in the United States for the last 200+ years. The locations of Kentucky and Tennessee whiskey distilleries in the pre-industrial era appear to be constrained by the geochemistry of natural waters, stratigraphy, geomorphology, and the average ambient temperatures of fermentation. Distilleries are located near first-order streams where the groundwater surfaces, indicating there was little to no manipulation of these local water sources used in the distilling process during pre-industrial America. These groundwater sources flow through heavily dominated limestone and/or Mg-rich limestone (dolostone), adjusting the geochemistry of the first-order streams creating an optimal Ca-Mg-Fe concentration ratio to create high quality ‘tasting’ whiskey. Collection of water samples in these areas suggest that Kentucky and Tennessee both hold ideal physiographic and hydrologic terrains, as well as the naturally occurring ideal Ca-Mg-Fe concentration ratios in the waters to create high quality ‘tasting’ whiskey. The question of why most American whiskey distilleries has endured prior to the industrial revolution are confined to a small region of Kentucky and Tennessee. No further areas of the southern U.S. with suitable climates or geochemistry for whiskey feedstock productions will be discussed.

Collins TS, Zweigenbaum J, Ebeler SE. Profiling of nonvolatiles in whiskeys using ultra high pressure liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF MS). Food Chem. 2014 Nov 15;163:186-96. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2014.04.095. Epub 2014 May 9. PMID: 24912715.