Note: This review of the Jack Daniel’s 2026 Aged Series reflects the personal opinions of Editor Kyle Swartz. These bottles were sent to him as a media sample.

The Jack Daniel Distillery has announced the release of its annual Aged Series, which this year includes Jack Daniel’s 14-Year-Old Tennessee Whiskey Batch 2 (98 proof), 12-Year-Old Batch 4 (107 proof) and 10-Year-Old Batch 5 (117.6 proof). They are available this month in limited quantities across the U.S. in 700-ml. bottles with suggested retail prices of $149.99, $99.99, and $89.99, respectively.

JD 10-Year-Old Batch 5

The nose has a ton of classic JD vanilla, burnt char, rickhouse barrel, cocktail cherries and a touch of mustiness. The palate brings more of those vanilla and cherries, very drinkable, smooth, which makes sense for only 98 proof. A nice cinnamon at the back palate ties everything together. The finish opens up with dry cherries and then falls away fairly quickly, an unfortunate side effect from the low proof.

Upshot: This is a very good whiskey, but last year’s spectacular JD 10 Batch 4 surpasses the 2026 bottling.

JD 12-Year-Old Batch 4

Similar to the 10, this opens with aromas of cherries, vanilla and pencil shavings. There’s more fruits on the palate than on the 10, cherry and candied stone fruits, but far more tannins, too. This issue persists onto the finish: too tannic for my taste.

Upshot: Last year, the JD 12 was my least favorite of the trio, and that holds true again in 2026.

JD 14-Year-Old Batch 2

Dark fruits emerge first on the nose: plums, raisins, dark cherries, followed by rickhouse barrel. More of the same on the palate: a wonderful array of dark sweet flavors, with notes of molasses and dark char. The finish brings heat, as you’d expect from 117.6 proof, though it’s still pleasant with loads more dark cherries, prunes, and raisins.

Upshot: To nobody’s surprise, this is the best of the bunch. I would grade this year’s JD 14 as an A-, a notch below last year’s 14, which was an easy A and a Bottle of the Year contender. Which is not to knock the 2026 release. It just had tough shoes to fill and did not quite reach the heights of the first iteration. This bottle and the JD 10 B4 are both obvious buys anywhere near SRP.

Kyle Swartz is editor of Beverage Dynamics. Reach him at kswartz@epgacceleration.com. Read his recent piece, How to Attract Gen Z to Alcohol.

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