Locals combine it with a citrus soda, but George Dickel Tennessee whisky has been used as both a sipping spirit and a medicinal one during the dark days of Prohibition, according to representatives from Cascade Hollow Distilling Co., which produces the whisky today.
*****
When I was in the army, if I couldn't get a decent bourbon, George Dickel was my drink of choice while all my buddies preferred that swill, Jack Daniel's.
It has a taste very similar to Jack but without the bite. Seriously, it's one of the smoothest whiskies I've ever drank. I don't believe I ever mixed it with anything - there was no need to, it tasted just fine as a stand-alone drink.
After I got out of the army and went back to California, I just couldn't find it anymore but I didn't really miss it because the liquor stores in civilian life had a much better selection of bourbons than the tiny Class VI store in Heilbronn ever had.
I'm glad SOMEONE agrees with me that Jack Daniels is overpriced rotgut.
ReplyDeleteJack is drinkable, but it's definitely not going to be my first choice - unless the only other choice is gin. I'll take Jack over that shit any day.
DeleteI have a recipe for a Dickel Whiskey coffee cake. And man,does it taste good. Can't make it very often, to rich.
ReplyDelete"Don't be fickle! Drink George Dickel!! I heard that thousands of times growing up. My old man drank (cringe) Kesslers, smooth as burlap.
ReplyDeleteirontomflint
I fell in love with the cowboy in the tub and his bloodhound... and the slogan, "Water is for washing. Dickel is for drinking." So, not particularly liking bourbon, I decided to buy some anyway. I loved it! It was hard to find in California back in the day. In spite of that, the cowboy in the tub, and his droopy dog, will forever hold meaning for me.
ReplyDelete--nines
I first heard about it from a book I was reading in Playboy called 'Appaloosa Rising'. They used to publish condensed versions in 3-4 parts, and yes, I read Playboy for the articles.
DeleteAnyway, it mentioned George Dickel and the next time I went to the Class VI store, I saw it there so I bought a bottle.
Funny, I can remember the book title, the whiskey mentioned in it, and that it took place in Stanley Falls Idaho, but I can't for the life of me remember what the story was.
$4.95 at amazon https://www.amazon.com/Appaloosa-Rising-Legend-Cowboy-Buddha/dp/0385153864
ReplyDeleteHA! I'd already looked it up.
DeleteAh, but Jack helped me pay MANY a bar tab when I was stationed in Germany since we could get it cheap and the local bikers especially liked it in the biker bar right outside of post...
ReplyDeleteMy mother was from a county in south central Kentucky along the Tennessee line, and I recall being at my grandfather’s house sometime after Grandma had died. He and I were sitting in a dark living room late of an evening, talking, after everybody else had gone to bed. He never had air-conditioning, and he had all the windows and doors open with two or three box fans on trying to move cooler outside air, in.
ReplyDeleteHe was probably in his mid to late 60s at that point, and I recall him suffering from some kind of joint ailment. Knees or back, I can’t remember, but I do recollect him saying that the camphor wasn’t working anymore. After a time he got up and went and brought back a pint of something or other, and he sat down and took a long swig. I asked him what it was, and he said it was whiskey. Looking back, I assume it was bourbon. Neither of my parents drank, nor did any of my grandparents, or so I thought, so it was a bit of a shock to see him pull out a bottle of whiskey in a dry county. After he pulled the bottle away from his lips he looked at me and said, “This is for pain. Don’t tell your mother.“
I’m not sure why, but this post reminded me of that. I sure do wish I knew what he was drinking.
I remember being at my very Baptist great-grandparent’s house in East Tennessee and finding a bottle of bourbon on the back shelf in the bathroom cabinet. On the way home, I asked my Baptist preacher dad why my great-grandparents had liquor in their house and he explained how they used it for medicine (Papaw was born in 1899, long before modern pharmaceuticals reached the Smokies). My very Baptist mother now lives in the same house. Was there last month and noticed a bottle sitting on the same shelf. I wonder if it’s the same one.
DeleteAlrighty, then. George Dickel is now on my 'to buy' list, for both bourbon and rye.
ReplyDeleteI've been itching to try some rye, which I never have before. Now I have a reason to do 'er. Thanks for the tip.
Rye whiskey was Matt Dillon's preferred at the Long Branch, don't you know.
Seriously? You've never drank George Dickel? You're in for a treat.
DeleteLooking forward to it!
DeleteIt's funny, growing up I always associated rye with rotgut, because that's how it always seemed in the westerns. Several years ago I discovered quite the opposite. I rather enjoy it!
DeleteJust got back from my favorite supermarket and dern it, no George Dickel.
DeleteI did see it advertised at a big box store, but those places are too close to the Big City, so that option is out.
The search continues.
Try Safeway.
DeleteYes, they've got two choices. Rye is reasonable, $23. And a 13 year old 'Tennessee Whiskey' that's 100 proof. A little pricey at $52 but it sounds interesting!
DeleteSafeway in Crescent City, California has it now. So I imagine all Safeways have it.
Delete--nines
If one Safeway has it, it can be ordered by the store manager.
DeleteElmo, I never tried the expensive stuff. Hell, I didn't even know they had it. See if you can't find the cheaper corn whiskey I used to drink.
DeleteThey have several to choose from. Scroll down to 'Selections'-
Deletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Dickel
I'd guess what you're referring to is either the Old No. 8 Brand with a black label or the No. 1 Foundation Recipe white corn whisky.
Interesting, George spelled whiskey without the 'e' because "Dickel believed his product to be as smooth and high in quality as the best Scotch whiskies".
I drank the black label Old No. 8 for the most part. Seems like they had a green label corn back then, too.
DeleteI also found Dickel to be a much smoother drink than J. Daniels.
ReplyDeleteMy parents drank cheap blended whiskey, but if I ever get the desire to drink any hard stuff, it will often be Wild Turkey, since that is to me a decent tasting whiskey, or Jim Beam, which I don't like quite as well.
ReplyDeleteSince I am not a very heavy drinker of anything, I often will put one ice cube in per shot, to not only give it a bit of a chill, but to cut the alcohol just a bit. Perhaps blasphemy to some, but it works for me.
Now, I am sort of thirsty for a nice glass of bourbon. My wife, my daughter and I are going on a color tour next week to the old German town of Frankenmuth, on the eastern side of Michigan for a couple of days. I may have to get a little better grade of something. We have 2 or 3 decent liquor stores here in my city, that are not the corner places in the bad parts of town, but actual stores that stock decent quality goods.
It's your whisky, Pigpen51, drink it the way you want it. Booker Noe is said to have answered the question "what do you say to someone who puts coke (the Southern soft drink) in your finest bourbon(?) with, after a moments pause 'they have the finest bourbon and coke on the planet.'" And, FWIW, a few drops of water actually can/does accentuate the bourbon's taste. regards, Alemaster
DeleteI've always preferred George Dickel to Jack Danials for Tennessee sipping whiskey. Jack Danials is fine for mixing but it's just not as smooth.
ReplyDeleteThe best whiskey i had was at a bikers party, it was moonshine and boy was it good. This was in Connecticut which is a ways from the good moonshiners in the south. Someone paid attention but no one said where it came from. I liked the bikers girl friend so it was good they gave me whiskey, but that may have been why she shared.
ReplyDeleteNever understood the love for Jack Daniel's. There's a whole lot of better tasting choices in that price range.
ReplyDeleteDickel is a fine choice for something smooth and enjoyable a couple hours around a fire. I don't mix whiskey with anything but a little ice anymore. If you have to cover it up, it's not worth drinking.
ReplyDeleteChapel Annex #6 only carried JD, so that's all I could get. When on leave, I'd go for the real stuff. The Germans screwed up JD even more when they bought the distillery.
ReplyDeleteGeorge is my standard every trip to the store The George Barrel Select is super smooth
ReplyDeleteTraveling now and having to drink Seagrams-not even close but I’m in a tight spot
Also a fun tour if you’re in the area
ReplyDeleteSo it’s a cold March night of 1968 and I’ve just walked all the way across Ft. Holabird with my duffle bag.
ReplyDeleteAs I walked into the semi dark casual company barracks with dust and lint balls under the bunks, a voice called out from a group of 5-6 playing poker at the far end saying..”Come on in and have a drink..!!”
Dude named Rasky with a thick northern New Jersey accent handed be a bottle of……
“Fighting Cock
Kentucky’s Finest Bourbon”
I took a swig and examined the fine print under the large red rooster and saw….
“Brewed and Bottled in Stamford, Connecticut “
Boy did I ever know that I wasn’t in Basic anymore..:)
The company I work for built the conveyors that move their grain, and I handled the sale. Very good people to work with.
ReplyDeleteNot once in my lifetime have I ever heard of George Dickel, nor have I ever seen it in a store. I'll keep my eye out for it.
ReplyDeleteJD is Okay, but I think most people buy it for the name. Dickel is good and drank a lot of it when living in North Carolina. Ezra Brooks was my choice until they diluted it to 80 proof from 90. I don't drink much whiskey anymore, but when I do I drink it Evan Williams is my brand. The best whiskey I ever drank was some ...'shine made in Hernando County, Florida. It was called Withlacoochee Swamp Water. I drank almost a half of a quart mason jar of it one night and got the highest I have ever been in my life. No matter what I had ingested into my 60 year old body before hand!
ReplyDeleteI agree - the distillery tour is great. It's really interesting, the guides are great, and it smells like heaven in there. Also, when I went 8 years ago, they gave free tastings of all their products. Definitely worth the drive.
ReplyDeleteDr. Dickels’ Tennessee Tranquilizer. When I was a poor college student at Va Tech, my friends and I pitched in and bought a half gallon of it to take to an outdoor party/concert. As we were getting out of the car, my friend dropped the glass bottle and it smashed on the concrete. All four of us cried as we watched that precious fluid run down the gutter. I will never forget that day….
ReplyDeleteThe only Jack I liked was Gentleman Jack. Jim Beam, Wild Turkey, and Evan Williams were my choices in whiskey.
ReplyDeleteDickel is distilled about 7 miles from my house. I MUCH prefer it to Jack, which is distilled about 15 miles away. My favorite is Jim Beam, but I'd mix with Sun Drop so I'd buy Evan Williams (cheaper). Old age has caught my ass and the medications I take don't go well with alcohol so I've been drink free for several years now. Shit.
ReplyDeletewildbill
Hadn't tasted George in about 20 years. Inspired by the many comments I crossed the NC border and the ABC store had a nice selection of George. Settled down with Victor Davis Hanson's post and George. Yep, still a fine Tennessee whisky.
ReplyDeleteWell , Jack D has probably sold as many T shirts as they have sold bottles of booze .It is ok for mixing but nothing special . I usually keep a quart bottle of J.D. on hand for a gift. If its somebody's birthday and is appropriate and I forgot to get something , chances are you will get the emergency Jack . I also gave one to the propane delivery dude each Christmas . Guess I will have to give Georg Dickel a try
ReplyDeleteVisiting friends in TN, that was always the choice for the weekend. "A little Dickel do ya!"
ReplyDelete