Whether the whisky was really named for him or not, it was the same as a certain other whiskey called Jack that was on the rise in the 70s. The story goes that Yukon Jack was named after Jack McQuesten, a 19th-century gold prospector who lived an adventurous life on the Yukon frontier. Any company that could turn a mustard ad into a catchphrase figured to do just as well with honey-based liqueur. Back then Heublein owned Kentucky Fried Chicken and Grey Poupon, Smirnoff vodka and Hamm’s beer, to name just some of its properties. Yukon Jack first appeared in the US in the early 1970s, imported by Heublein Inc., a food and beverage company based in Hartford, Connecticut. Instead it was a fortunate name and clever marketing that turned an ordinary liqueur into an enduring hit. All the Yukon Jack recipe amounts to is Canadian whisky tinged with honey, which is not exactly a new idea. How’d it become popular? We can probably rule out delicious taste. The overproof liqueur has been popular ever since it stormed the border 45 years ago. For a so-called black sheep, Yukon Jack isn’t much of an outcast.
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