Metallica’s Blackened Whiskey simply launched a brand new bottle as a part of its Masters of Whiskey sequence, and it is perhaps one of the best but from the model. The character of the collaboration is specified by its extraordinarily lengthy identify—Blackened x Rabbit Gap Mix of Straight Bourbon Whiskeys Distilled in Tennessee & Kentucky Completed in Calvados Casks—however a little bit rationalization may assist right here.
In early August, I went to see Metallica play at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, and I noticed at this level of their profession these guys are technicians—they play songs from their deep catalogue with precision and close to automation having performed this a billion instances for about 40 years, however the coronary heart continues to be there. The identical may be mentioned for the parents behind the whiskey, though possibly on a micro scale. The late Dave Pickerell was instrumental in creating the model with the band, and he constructed his profession working with many alternative whiskey tasks together with WhistlePig, Hillrock Property, and Garrison Brothers. The Blackened grasp distiller and blender is now Rob Dietrich, who received his begin and constructed his status at Stranahan’s in Colorado making single malt whiskey. And his collaborator is Kaveh Zamanian, the Bourbon Corridor of Fame whiskey maker and founding father of Rabbit Gap Distillery in Louisville.
Dietrich and Zamanian chosen two whiskeys to mix collectively for this launch: 13-year-old straight Tennessee bourbon with a mashbill of 64 % corn and 36 % rye, and Rabbit Gap Heigold Excessive Rye Double Malt Kentucky straight bourbon, with a mashbill of 70 % corn, 25 % malted rye, and 5 % malted barley. Usually, Blackened is a mix of bourbon and rye that’s completed in brandy barrels that are subjected to its trademarked Black Noise, the place low-hertz sound waves blast the barrels to extend interplay between the wooden and the whiskey inside (and sometimes these sound waves are the dulcet tones of Metallica albums like Grasp of Puppets).
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The brand new Masters of Whiskey mix, nonetheless, was completed in calvados casks, a sort of French apple brandy. And it too was pummeled with Black Noise, a course of the model swears by though others may view it as extra of a gimmick akin to Jefferson’s sending its whiskey on ocean voyages. Whether or not it’s the heavy steel, the whiskeys picked for this mix, the precise casks used to complete it, or all the above, it is a tasty whiskey. There’s a pleasant steadiness of candy and spice on the palate, though possibly it leans a bit closely on the candy facet (this isn’t at all times a foul factor). There are black pepper and cinnamon notes wrapped inside juicy fruit and apple, with a pleasant splash of warmth on end. That’s because of the whiskey being bottled at cask energy of 106.59 proof, which is excessive however not too excessive. The truth that it’s non-chill filtered goes a good distance right here as nicely.
As I’ve written about greater than as soon as earlier than, cask finishes are a ubiquitous pattern in whiskey lately and so they can go very unsuitable (ahem, amburana) or be artfully performed. This new whiskey, fortunately, leans in direction of the latter class. And even in case you weren’t a lot of a Blackened fan earlier than, or Metallica, this bottle is value making an attempt.
Rating: 89
100: Price buying and selling your first born for
Price buying and selling your first born for 95 – 99 Within the Pantheon: A trophy for the cupboard
Within the Pantheon: A trophy for the cupboard 90 – 94 Nice: An excited nod from buddies once you pour them a dram
Nice: An excited nod from buddies once you pour them a dram 85 – 89 Very Good: Scrumptious sufficient to purchase, however not fairly particular sufficient to chase on the secondary market
Very Good: Scrumptious sufficient to purchase, however not fairly particular sufficient to chase on the secondary market 80 – 84 Good: Extra of your on a regular basis drinker, stable and dependable
Good: Extra of your on a regular basis drinker, stable and dependable Under 80 It’s alright: Truthfully, we in all probability gained’t waste your time and ours with this
Each week Jonah Flicker tastes probably the most buzzworthy and attention-grabbing whiskeys on the planet. Test again every Friday for his newest overview.
