There’s often a sense of camaraderie among distilleries that call the same state home, even while there is also, of course, a healthy dose of competitiveness. Still, the general feeling for many is that a rising tide lifts all ships, which manifests itself as friendships between distillers and a helping hand when a business is facing hard times. But there’s never been something quite like the new Tennessee Collective release, a blend that combines whiskeys from 12 different Tennessee distilleries, including its most famous member, Jack Daniel’s.

The point of this new release is to promote the Tennessee Whiskey Trail, the Volunteer State’s version of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. The Trail has 30 members, all of which are also part of the Tennessee Whiskey Guild, spanning 830 miles across the state and producing a total of about 250 million barrels every year. Of course, the biggest name on the Trail, and also one of the biggest names in American whiskey, is Jack Daniel’s. But that didn’t stop this massive brand from participating in the project along with much smaller and lesser-known distilleries, at least to people from outside of the state.

The 12 distilleries that contributed barrels to the Tennessee Collective release are as follows: Jack Daniel’s, Big Machine, Company Distilling (co-founded by former Jack master distiller Jeff Arnett), Leiper’s Fork, Lost State, Nashville Barrel Co., Old Forge, Old Glory Distilling Co., Ole Smoky, Sugarlands Distilling Company, Tennessee Hills, and Tennessee Legend. Not all of the barrels were filled with Tennessee whiskey, however, a category that is defined by the same legal requirements as bourbon with two additional rules: It must be made in Tennessee, and it must undergo the Lincoln County process during which it’s filtered through charcoal before barreling (that’s why this release is being called “American whiskey” instead of “Tennessee whiskey).

All the liquid was aged for a minimum of four years, and master distiller Greg Eidam assembled the final blend at Sugerlands Distilling Company, and bottling it at a cask strength of 119.6 proof. “Blending whiskeys is an artform that challenges the blender to really pay attention to the nuances, notes and characteristics of the barrels,” he said in a statement. “Each participating distillery carefully selected their barrel based on its own unique flavor to meticulously create this collaboration of Tennessee spirits.” We got to try a sample, and this is a big, bold, and tasty whiskey, with notes of oak, maple, burnt vanilla, and spiced apple on the palate, followed by a long, warming finish.

Only about 2,000 bottles have been released, but there are still some available (SRP $80). If you want to try it for yourself, visit the Tennessee Whiskey Trail website to preorder one now, but you have to pick it up in person at Leiper’s Fork Distillery this coming Saturday, December 13. Of course, don’t be surprised if you see some bottles surface on the secondary market at heavily inflated prices sometime in the near future as well.