Distilling Legends

The Nov/Dec issue of Mental Floss, on newsstands now, includes a piece called “Whiskey Business: The Many Myths of Jack Daniel,” revealing fascinating stories behind some of the biggest names in American distilling. Meet Jack Daniel in this quick read that covers the origin of the iconic square bottle, the real reason it’s called Old No. 7 and the details of Jack’s love life. Other characters are touched on too, like Jim Beam. Did you know that the bottle Jeannie called home on I Dream of Jeannie was actually a painted Beam’s Choice decanter?