Bourbon whiskey
is a variant of the American whiskey. It is produced as a distillate of a mixture of cereals with at least 51% maize, usually also containing rye or barley. Further requirements are the alcohol content, which must not exceed 80% during production and may not exceed 62.5% at the beginning of maturity, and storage in new carbonized American white oak barrels. Bourbon whiskey can come from all over the United States, but in fact, with the exception of one of the major bourbon distilleries, is located in Kentucky or Tennessee.
On Tennessee whiskey
is a bourbon whiskey that has been subject to additional legal requirements since 2013. It is subject to the same requirements as bourbon whiskey. In addition, the whiskey must have been produced in the US state of Tennessee and have undergone the Lincoln County Process - a filtration through charcoal. This means that every Tennessee Whiskey is also a Bourbon, but not every Bourbon is also a Tennessee Whiskey.
The regulations on the names and classifications are subject to the American Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
bourbon
- must be burnt in the USA, the underlying mash must contain at least 51% corn. The alcohol content in the fire must not exceed 80% by volume and at the beginning of storage not more than 62.5%. As long as the bourbon is not labeled as a straight, it may, in certain circumstances, consist of additives in the USA up to 2.5% of its volume.
Straight bourbon
- Must be stored in new American oak barrels for at least two years. Up to a storage period of four years, the storage period must be stated on the label. Straight bourbon must not contain any additives.
Kentucky Straight Bourbon
- Must be distilled and aged in Kentucky for at least one year.
Bonded Bourbon - a whiskey from a single distillery from a single vintage that is stored in special warehouses for at least four years. These are monitored by the United States government and are called Bonded Warehouses in the United States.
Tennessee whiskey
- must meet all the requirements of a bourbon. In addition, it must have been manufactured in the US state of Tennessee and passed the Lincoln County Process. This technique was developed in Lincoln County, Tennessee, around 1820. The technology probably goes back to Alfred Eaton from the Cave Springs Distillery (now Jack Daniels). Filtration with charcoal itself was used previously to clean contaminants from drinking water.
Single barrel
- Whiskey from a single barrel. The term is not legally defined.
Small batch
- German small amount of whiskey from a selected small amount, particularly suitable for maturing suitable barrels in a warehouse at larger companies or the entire production at smaller distilleries. The term is not legally defined.
White Dog / Legal Moonshine / Mash Whiskey / New Make
distilled clear whiskey that only matured for a few weeks or months. Particularly popular with microdistillers; must not be sold as whiskey in Europe.
Source: Wikipedia