Blackened! When Does A Gimmick Become Real Craft?

Welcome And What We’re Pouring

SPEAKER_03 0:09

Welcome to the Whiskey Chasers, where we talk about our passion for whiskey and its history, either amongst ourselves or while interviewing distilleries. Oh, while enjoying a glass. I'm Steve. I'm Nick, and I'm Chris. Please enjoy responsibly while enjoying this week's episode of The Whiskey Chasers.

Blackened Whiskey Basics And Context

SPEAKER_00 0:29

I'm gonna pop this tin, Steve. I'm struggling with it. We're gonna smoke. We're gonna smoke something while we drink something. We are drinking blackened, if we didn't actually say it. Yes. Out loud. Just the regular old blackened. Blackened by Metallica. Yep. This is their well, it's their bottle. Blackened is Metallica's bottle, but made by not Metallica.

SPEAKER_03 0:50

Not Metallica, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 0:52

Surprisingly.

SPEAKER_03 0:52

Dave Pickerel is the master blender of this.

SPEAKER_02 0:56

And Dave, so correct me if I'm wrong, Dave Picker did uh a class. Like he offered before, sorry, before Barstown Bourbon Company did their contract distilling.

SPEAKER_04 1:09

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:10

Uh he went out. Dave did his thing where he went out to distilleries. You could hire him, pretty much do that, where he'd come in, he'd find the match bill, help distill it, and start you off, right?

SPEAKER_03 1:21

Yeah, yeah. So he got his start at Makers Mark way back in the day. So he he was uh in the military, he was in at went to West Point, all that kind of good stuff. He joined Maker's Mark in '94. Now, in 94, Makers Mark is kind of a craft whiskey distillery. Like at that point, they're they're they're fairly small. And he's

Dave Pickerell And Why He Matters

SPEAKER_03 1:40

considered like a crap, he's considered the Johnny Appleseed of craft whiskey because of those classes that you're talking about. So he goes out, he meets with a bunch of people. Uh he found a consulting firm called Oakview Spears. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:54

He did another bottle that we or another company that we did.

SPEAKER_03 1:58

I forget who it was. Yeah, he's done J. Rieger. He worked with them. Uh Copper Fox, Garrison Brothers, all those guys took his class and did that with him. Um, Whistlepig is also another one where he's become pretty famous with them. Um, he was Master Distillery for Hill Rock Estates in New York. So he's done a whole lot of Hillrock? Hillrock, yep.

SPEAKER_02 2:19

Oh, you know who owns Hillrock now, right? Sazerac. They acquired it. No, it so Hillrock, the bottle looks like Caribou Crossing, but it has a horse on the outside of it.

SPEAKER_03 2:28

Oh, really?

SPEAKER_02 2:29

Yeah, like white engraving.

SPEAKER_03 2:30

Yeah. So he also went to work at Mount Vernon to recreate George Washington still uh to do the to that that project that Mount Vernon has done with them. So he's done a lot of the recreation with that, and then he got into this. So when we were talking about doing a celebrity bottle, yeah, I was like, this is the gimmick of all gimmicks. Oh, uh, but and so I was like, I don't want to do this one because it's like this is just like a nonsense thing, especially when we get into the the thing that makes it special. Uh, but then I looked, Dave Picker's the one that creates it. Okay, this is credibility. This is a guy that does a lot of this kind of stuff. Right. This this is something. Um, he's a chemical engineer by trade. Oh, so that's how he got started before he did any of this stuff. But he's from the army, yeah. Uh yeah, he was in the military. Okay, um, got his chemical engineering degree from West Point. Oh, so he was like military military, yeah, yeah, military, military. So, yeah, so he's done like a ton of that kind of stuff. So he knows the molecule kind of stuff, the sciencey stuff. And so then you hear what they do to this bottle.

The Sonic Finishing Room Explained

SPEAKER_03 3:39

Um, and and the thing that makes this bottle special is the uh the finishing process. So during the finishing, uh, this is in black brandy barrels, which I don't I'm gonna look that up. I'm still very curious where Andy is. Um, but uh Metallica is played to it, and so he set up this sonic room for during the finishing where a playlist is played to these barrels. When you say set up the sonic room, do we know what this? I'm curious too. We know a lot about it. What is this sonic room? So it there's a lot of like heavy bass subwoofers in this room, and they're playing their music, playing this music, and the vibrations hitting the barrels, and the the the woofers are like set up next to barrels in certain angles and stuff. I'm all for that. Uh so it's it's actually a little bit more scientific than I thought it was. You also can look up each batch and you can download the playlist.

SPEAKER_00 4:34

That's cool, so you can see what gimmicky stuff goes, they're doing it right because there's a lot of cool gimmicks. It's kind of a fun gimmick, especially if you're into Metallica like I am. Like, like Metallica's legit. Yeah, and I'm guessing fade to black, blackened that's kind of what they're getting after here.

Columbus Finishing And Batch Details

SPEAKER_03 4:51

Also, it's done here in Columbus. So the finishing is done here. So the the the that Sonic room is here in Columbus. They're playing that somewhere in Columbus, yeah. So it's at sweet labor distilling. I looked it up, and it's sweet water distilling is the place, which is probably just a warehouse someplace. Because they're not making the whiskey, they're just finishing. But it's like a they're putting it to sleep, it's like a whiskey lullaby, dude. Metallica come from Columbus. No, I I tried to figure out if there was like a meaning behind it being in Columbus. There's not, it's purely business. We are in the middle of of you know, uh distribution stuff and all that. That's the only reason it's here. It's purely business. Uh, tax reasons, and then so it goes from here and gets bottled and gets shipped out. Yep, it's not even bottled here. I think it is bottled here. I think it's it's finished and bottled here. So it's blended acoustically finished and bottled in Ohio using source straight bourbons and rise. Acoustically finished, yes. You

Lighting Up Black House Tobacco

SPEAKER_03 5:48

ready for that tobacco there, Steve? Yes, what do we got? Catch it, catch it.

SPEAKER_00 5:51

Oh, there it is. So to go along with black and hearth and home, black house, black house, black house. Black house is the pipe tobacco that put hearth and home on the on the the marquees lineup, at least on the map. Okay. They are so back in uh 2011, I believe. Uh 2011, Russ Olette was at the Chicago Pipe Show. They had a contest for who could come up with the closest version of the 25-year-old Balkan Sabrani based on just like memory. Okay. And he comes up with this blend and it wins, overwhelmingly wins. And then they they were like, Well, and then so many people were like, You gotta make it. So he started making it. What the combinations that he used is interesting. Let me look up the blend here. Oh, yeah, and that was the thing, is he developed that really quickly. People were kind of like, wow. So it contains latiquia, obviously, bright, fragrant orientals, sweet Virginias,

Balkan Sobranie Match Origin Story

SPEAKER_00 6:52

a touch of dark-fired Kentucky, which is interesting. And then to help simulate the effects of long-term aging, he used a bit of Parique and unflavored black Cavendish. So, and this has been aged. This tens from at least 2014, I want to say 2015. Um, and it had a good seal on it. So it's been aged a minute.

SPEAKER_02 7:14

By the way, I found something out the other day that Chris, you and Steve might be pissed at if we can't get it. But MB Roland once did a release called Dark Fired Kentucky. Oh, wow. That's amazing. I don't know what is in it, I don't know what it's made of, but they did a release called Dark Fired Kentucky.

SPEAKER_00 7:35

Now, before anybody gets too excited, uh, I like all the marquee lineup, it this is no longer made. So there's that. And I'm not sure. I don't know what Hearth and Home is up to at this point.

SPEAKER_03 7:48

Yeah. I've seen I've I've never seen any of their stuff at a like a shop. I've I've found it in like in used places or or like uh you know to buy off second second hand stuff, or their website, pipes and cigars.

SPEAKER_04 8:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:06

Uh there's a few shops that'll stock it, but for the most part, but the thing is Sutliff was making their stuff. And when Sutliff went out, so did they. So I'm not sure what they're doing. I'm not sure if they're gonna start using. I mean, it's so many companies. Uh look at Seattle Pipe Club. Yeah, same thing. Now that went to Cornell and Deal. I don't think Russellette's gonna sell his stuff, but he needs to find another manufacturer, if that's the case. I don't know what he's gonna do. Or if he I don't think he just gave up. I mean, the dude's too like and everybody loves that dude. And he's really good at

Flavor Notes And Tobacco Punch

SPEAKER_00 8:40

what he does. So I don't know what's gonna happen with that. Oh, this is rich. I got it in a tiny bowl here, and it's really um it's um thick. It is thick, yeah, it's concentrated, and I like it. There's a lot of flavor going. What do you think there, Nick? You're looking at the tin.

SPEAKER_02 8:58

I mean, the the smell alone. It's smelly.

SPEAKER_03 9:01

It does smell.

SPEAKER_02 9:02

It's barbecue. I mean, this is like how do I so to explain my kind of barbecue to the the world, to the listeners. My pork butt and my brisket take a lot of pepper and a lot of herbs and a lot of salt. I mean, a lot of white pepper, a lot of black pepper, so a lot of different types of pepper. This is that when it's done. Even Princess said, so the chef has said uh nosing the seasoning, it's a lot of intense pepper, but by the time it's done, it's this savory with a little bit of peppery and maybe a little bit of sweet barbecue sauce. I mean, that that's this that's the that's the smell of this.

SPEAKER_00 9:47

Like, holy crap. What's interesting is so it's a Balkan Sabrani match, which is a creamier Balkan style English blend, but I don't know if it's the age or what. This is the strongest tobacco I've smoked in a minute. This is pretty strong, flavor, flavor-wise, and and even the effects of even nicotine wise, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 10:08

Yeah, it's it's punching like a it's it's punching pretty good, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 10:12

And I got it in a tight bowl, and I'm saying, and you it looks like your ball's pretty tight there, Steve. Yeah, I think that's the way to smoke a little packed it a little tighter. This thing's really kind of well.

SPEAKER_02 10:21

What's funny is after you guys lit up, the like the smell, I can understand packing a punch. The smell of this is like opening the the smoker after you lit the fire and you let it go and you open it up right away, so all that smoke comes in your face. You're like, I got I gotta I just gotta go through it and see what's going on.

SPEAKER_00 10:42

But it's so pleasant. It is. It's a good this is a really good flavor to back of a tobacco. I would, I did, and the thing is, I know I've had this before, and I don't remember it being like remember it being more uh balk and forward. This is more like the dark fired. Kentucky's kind of hitting a little bit. This is oaky with Atlatiquin's woodsy, yeah. Yeah, woodsy, very woodsy, leather and all the good things with the English blend. But instead of the the Orientals taking over and creaming it out, it's almost like the dark fired's taken over and it's becoming more of a charcoal-y.

SPEAKER_02 11:18

I would agree, yeah. Like a burnt wood kind of thing. Barbecue, yeah. It's really good,

Angels Envy Links And Brandy Barrels

SPEAKER_02 11:24

man. Uh to go back to uh Angels Envy, yeah. Wes Henderson.

SPEAKER_04 11:28

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 11:28

Uh Wes Henderson played a role or did an offering with Black End. He split off soon after that to do his own brand. That I'm sorry to anyone that likes it. It sucks. It's the worst. It's Angels Envy before Angels Angels Envy became good. True story is is is the the brand, and it's uh what Angels Envy used to be price-wise, 90 some bucks for all offerings across the board. Sourced at the wazoo, split from Angels Envy. He's doing his own thing. I don't know why. Port finishes was the main thing for that.

SPEAKER_03 12:04

It's it's he's he's trying to recreate Angels Envy white port line cast was the what they use in a six-year Kentucky Straight Burper was what their their collaboration was.

SPEAKER_02 12:16

The price tag was a little rough for the true story, not for black end.

SPEAKER_03 12:20

Yeah, true story was a little um and that one for for the Wes Henderson one was you was made with uh Rob Diedrich, who was the master distiller and blender for Blacken and co-creator of Metallica. Okay. So this is before Dave joined in. Oh and kind of took it over. Interesting. Okay. Um, so uh yeah, so Dave kind of came in a little bit later and and changed some stuff. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:45

I I think that he did a good job changing some things because I looked at the blackened uh brandy.

SPEAKER_03 12:50

So blackened brandy for that. Uh blackened brandy doesn't is not a real thing. So there is no like marketing, there is no like brandy call blackened brandy. Uh, it's just a dark brandy. Like red grapes? Like a red, like red grapes instead of white grapes for cognac. Uh, the they are standard oak barrels that previously held highly aged dark brandy. Picker specifically sought out barrels that had heavily charred on the inside. So a heavy char and deeply saturated, a rich grape, apricot, and honey fruit notes. Contrast the spicy rye and sweet bourn blend.

SPEAKER_00 13:26

I was gonna say this is a blend of type different types of whiskies.

SPEAKER_03 13:29

No, they are they aged or or finished in the brandy? They're finished in the brandy barrels. Uh, and that's where the sonic thing happens. So it's not during the aging. No, only during the finishing.

SPEAKER_02 13:42

I thought it was throughout the entire aging process.

SPEAKER_00 13:44

No.

SPEAKER_03 13:45

Oh.

SPEAKER_00 13:45

You know what's interesting on the bottle? There's nothing on there that says Metallica. There isn't. Which is kind of amazing considering like that's kind of a plug, and they don't even have like an in, like, there's nothing on there that says Metallica. Uh it other than uh born in cask forged by sound. So it's not even like obvious. You'd have to like know or or look it up. It's not like there's anything on there that says like biometallica, you know what I mean? So that's kind of cool. I think that kind of lends itself to being a little bit more legit.

SPEAKER_03 14:17

I almost got it and I didn't because I wanted to try just their bass offering. But they do have a Rye the Lightning.

SPEAKER_00 14:23

Rye the Lightning.

SPEAKER_03 14:24

Yeah, Rye La Rye the Lightning is just their album. Uh so a Rye the Lightning that also came out, and that was on the shell, it's on the shelves now.

SPEAKER_02 14:33

What do they do differently with that one?

SPEAKER_03 14:35

It's a rye, uh but the same process, same drink. So different casts. Oh, so different casts, different casts, okay. But still the same finishing process. Madeira and rum.

SPEAKER_00 14:47

Yep. You guys heard the the song by Metallica Whiskey in the Jar?

SPEAKER_03 14:52

What? No way. I'm not a Metallica fan. I I I I probably have heard more than I thought I had.

SPEAKER_00 14:59

I don't know if I've heard any. Oh, you'd like that song. Uh Steve, so it's actually it's actually Whiskey in the Jar is an old Irish song. From Metallica? No, it's an old Irish song. Uh and uh that it's been covered by a lot of people. The Dubliners did it, the Dubliners. Uh, a lot of people have done it. If you were to listen to the original Steve, you'd love it. Yeah. Love it. Uh, and literally Metallica took it and did a rock version of it. And it's just, it's freaking awesome because they did it justice. Like it's it's actually like the legit Irish song, but rock version. And both of them are made. I'm gonna make sure you listen to those later. Both of them. Um, they're both great, and I love them. The beginning of the Metallica Whiskey in the Jar uh is such an icon for me. Like, it just brings back massage every time I listen to it. Because that was like my number one song I'd listen to in the gym. It was the first song I ever played. Like, like every every gym session was the first song on my playlist. So kind of got me into like pumped, you know, to to hit the weight. Pump-up songs. Yeah, my pump-up song. Yeah, I've always loved it. And you know, nobody ever talks about that. When something comes in Metallica, they talk about this, that, or the other. I always like whiskey in the jar. Yeah, so good. But anyway, whiskey, whiskey in the jar, Metallica, blackened. That's what we're talking about. American whiskey remastered. That's what it says.

SPEAKER_03 16:24

I do need to make a correction from what I said earlier. I said that Dave Pickerel took over for Rob Dietrich. It's the reverse. Dave Pickerel died in 2018. I wondered if Rob Dietrich took over at that point, which means that this one is made previous to that. Yeah, because it says remastered by Dave Pickerel. Yeah, so so this would be from before 2018. Now I just bought this off the shelves.

SPEAKER_00 16:55

I think that that just because he's dead, they're still making it with his name on it.

SPEAKER_03 16:58

Maybe he came up with it. He came up with it. He came up with it, and then but Rod Dietrich is now the guy taking over and and and doing it. So yeah, so I don't I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 17:07

Because I've seen quite a few offerings of blackened that weren't original. They're they're like the they're like the Wes Henderson. They're yeah, they they did a whole series about that.

SPEAKER_03 17:20

And so they they didn't um uh when they did that, uh, it was called the Masters of Whiskey series. Okay. And so they they did a whole bunch of different different uh companies.

SPEAKER_02 17:33

So the I my mind goes to they lost their main guy and now they're trying to figure it out. But yeah, but that was also back in 2019.

SPEAKER_03 17:43

Yeah, so this is that was a long time ago. Um, so I think you just got a bad bottle, and I think that's all I've got. I've never had one. I I I had the the that one. No, it's the Angels. You got to try it. Okay, yeah. So you tried it.

SPEAKER_02 17:56

So I tried it. I also tried Wes's true story outside of Angel's Land. Yeah, that's another true story is his brand. True story is his brand. Okay, yeah. Uh, yeah, anyhow. Uh no, Blackened has always been one that I have um strayed away from because the story always feels gimmicky, yep, very gimmicky.

SPEAKER_00 18:22

Metallica story? This the black end of the bottle.

SPEAKER_02 18:25

Yeah, because the story the sonic aging and all that kind of stuff.

SPEAKER_00 18:29

There's more gimmicky things though than that. I this is less gimmicky than oceans. Oceans, I think. Now Jefferson's Oceans, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 18:37

Now that you understand the difference between this is aged and then finished, but finished with the Sonic music, whatever the Sonic makes more sense to me because it's breaking up the barrel, you know, and parting that into the mix. If you hear what people normally say is this is aged, aged, not finished, with the sonic waves. This sounds just like Jefferson's. Like, what are we throwing on a boat? And Jefferson's doesn't have a really good band.

SPEAKER_00 19:05

You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_02 19:06

There's also one called Route, yeah, route something, and then it's in a in a pickup truck, yeah, semi-truck, semi-truck. And they just roll around across America and then call it aged. But and there's also one, there's also one local to Ohio that does uh uh railroad, yeah. So what what's what that begs the question of what we should do ours aged underwater?

SPEAKER_03 19:32

Underwater?

SPEAKER_00 19:32

Yeah, yeah. What's gonna be that's unique? Yeah, how about that?

SPEAKER_03 19:36

There you go.

SPEAKER_00 19:36

We're under the water.

SPEAKER_03 19:37

You know what? There's not a lot of room in a submarine, and so like you'd only have a couple of barrels, so those are gonna be awful expensive.

SPEAKER_02 19:45

Do the sailors get to enjoy it, right?

SPEAKER_03 19:48

Yeah. Master Sailor has to be on on the trip. So he he tries it along the way to let them all right, it's ready.

SPEAKER_00 19:55

Let's uh the uh Paul McCartney ought to do that, call it yellow submarine. Yeah, there we go. As far as the taste goes, I'm I'm keeping my mind open.

Tasting Blackened And What Feels Off

SPEAKER_00 20:07

Yeah, I don't I don't like it so far. That being said, I like everything else about it, so like I'm not, you know.

SPEAKER_03 20:15

Oddly, I also don't like it. And the reason I don't like it is because it's pretty heavy on the brandy finish.

SPEAKER_00 20:21

Yeah, and it's kind of light on the whiskey.

SPEAKER_02 20:23

Yeah, don't brandy proof. Hold on.

SPEAKER_01 20:26

You Chris, you don't like it because it's heavy on the brandy finish? This might be a first of its kind. Yeah, but what is going on?

SPEAKER_00 20:32

But if it's in the way of have you ever had have you ever had a Coca-Cola where it was with a cup with ice and you drank most of the Coca-Cola, and a lot of the ice was left over, then the ice melted, and you went back and drank some, and it was extremely watered down Coca-Cola, but there was still enough Coca-Cola in there that was more Coca-Cola than water, but it's not good. You get have you ever had that where you're like it's really water? Like sometimes watered down stuff's fine, but with that Coca-Cola, it's really not because it's also kind of flat at that point, and there's not enough flavor for it to really, it's very watery. So that's in that aspect, I feel like I'd rather have brandy on its own, but when it's put into whiskey like this, the whiskey's not kind of full measure. It makes the brandy taste kind of like that coke. Yeah, a little spread a little too thin.

SPEAKER_03 21:24

Yeah, I would say that maybe the whiskey isn't the best whiskey, and the finishing takes over. And so it's it's too brandy forward, it's too sweet, too fruity. Without any sort of without thing to like back it up, and maybe if it's at a higher proof, it might be better because of that. Because I think that would kind of balance out that that sweetness to it. So maybe the sonic finishing is working too well, too well, yeah. Yeah, I think because I the the science behind it is that it is vibrating it, it's getting more touches on the barrel, it's possibly knocking stuff off. The barrel releasing more of the brandy. So, like what they're saying is supposed to be happening, could be happening, right? Maybe too much.

SPEAKER_02 22:10

But at the same time, could they be reusing these brandy barrels over and over, like over-exhausting?

SPEAKER_03 22:18

I hope so. I hope they do more because now, like I said, this to me, this is too much brandy flavor.

SPEAKER_00 22:23

I I think if you were to overuse a finished barrel, you just wouldn't get any finished product. I think the problem it the the the deficit is with the whiskey itself. Not that it's terrible, it's just not enough.

SPEAKER_03 22:35

And again, maybe a higher proof.

SPEAKER_00 22:36

I think a higher proof or something with stronger flavor, either one. I don't know what blend they're doing, but uh it's not it's not uh it would be like a car with really big tires, but it's kind of a chintzy little frame. Feels weird, right? Like, can you imagine like big old truck tires on like some like like Volkswagen Beetle or something? Like a little overkill, you know what I mean? So like the I think the finish is overkilling the whiskey. Not that the finish is bad, it's just not there's not enough like there's not enough room on the page, you know? And it actually for me it leaves it feeling kind of thin because of it. And it's too spread out, not enough.

SPEAKER_03 23:20

I think it's I think it's a low proof that's causing me the most issue with it.

SPEAKER_00 23:24

And there's not much on the nose at all. You smell yeah, there's there's not much kind of nondescript.

SPEAKER_03 23:30

Yeah, and it's uh it's a combination of bourbons and rice in here. Uh we don't have any idea where they're from. Um, but in Kentucky and Tennessee.

SPEAKER_00 23:40

Yeah, it's the more I drink it, the more the more of that finish I'm getting, and there's just no like precursor to it.

SPEAKER_03 23:47

It just is too sweet because of it, yeah, and yeah, it doesn't have the the backbone to go with it. And so it's it's like drinking juice from concentrate or like added added sugars and added flavors versus 100% juice. Yeah, it's it's lacking.

SPEAKER_00 24:01

Yeah, it almost makes it come across kind of artificial, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_02 24:04

Yeah. So sweet amber distilling company uh sources for this, or they get their bot their sort of yeah, this is a it's a they they buy barrels from sweet amber distilling, or that's the company's people that do this.

SPEAKER_03 24:18

That's sweet amber.

SPEAKER_02 24:19

So they don't officially name their partners, but there is some that uh uh they speculate that it's MGP and Alberta distilling in Canada. That but well, that would be a rye and a bourbon, I mean it makes sense. But if it's from Kentucky and Pitt and Tennessee, I was gonna say, but if it is outside of America, they do have to say Canadian or whatever it is. So it's not Canadian whiskey, but it could be MGP. I mean, but it says Kentucky, Tennessee.

SPEAKER_03 24:55

Yeah, Kentucky and Tennessee is where they source from. So I have no idea. Yeah. And so it's just it's some some bourbon, some rye. Uh, probably different places.

SPEAKER_02 25:05

Uh, my assumption is that they they buy cheap barrels and uh we might be talking 1792 Bardstown or Dickle. Maybe could be some Dickle.

SPEAKER_00 25:17

It says black and a bold collaboration. That's what in the back. It says black and a bold collaboration, the finest hand selected whiskies, an unrivaled composition of craft and creation, born and cast fortune sound. I don't have a problem with this bottle. It's not trying to be anything other than what it is. I wouldn't call it a bold anything though. But I'd like that they don't have Metallica written all over the side. It's almost like they know, like, like, or they feel like they can sell it without that.

unknown 25:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:52

That's a cool thing. What's the price tag? What are we selling for? Uh, it's not very expensive.

SPEAKER_00 25:57

Well, that's good. I figured it'd be like 80 bucks being Metallica. Do you know what the top means? M for Metallica? Is that an M is that an M? Oh, maybe it is. It looked like an IVI, but I think that that's an M. 1v1.

SPEAKER_03 26:11

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 26:12

I think it's that it kind of looks like the neuromanerals uh IVI, which is like what 151 or 151 or 151? I don't know my. I don't know. It looks like my roma neutrals, but it's an M. Now that you said it's like it's one of those optical illusions. Until you said that, I didn't see an M, but now I can't not see an M. So maybe that's it. M for Metallica, which would make sense.

unknown 26:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 26:35

This is batch 149. Do they do every time they put out a batch, they change the so they've only done this a horror 149 times?

unknown 26:42

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 26:43

All right.

SPEAKER_01 26:43

Which might say something.

SPEAKER_00 26:44

They've been out for a minute. It's been a minute, yeah. Okay, well, that you know, that's great. Yeah. I hate to I hate to shit on this. Yeah, I really don't want to. It's not our flavor, it's just not our flavor. That doesn't mean it's bad, and other people would like it. Yeah, I just think it needs more oomph, but I like that they're not billboarding their crap on it. Yeah, I like that there's actually a uh as opposed to what Nick believes. I actually think there's some innov innovation going on here. Yeah, what I believe more than just a gimmick. Yeah, I believe the sound thing. I mean, I I think if you were to put uh you know whiskey in anything and jostle it around in the barrel, we've talked about that, that has an actual effect. Yeah, so the vibrations with the sound, okay. The music part is a little gimmicky, but why not use the bass? Yeah, I like the rhythm, rhythmic uh pulsations might make the you know, I don't know. I don't know crescendo. I I will say different music is gonna make different potentially could make but like scientifically could make batches taste differently. Sure, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 27:46

So I like that. Yeah, when I when I did more research into it, I realized that this was like putting subwoofers, positioning them near the barrels

Vibration Aging Versus Pure Gimmicks

SPEAKER_03 27:55

in order to create the vibrations and stuff. So I get there's actually some science going on here, like there is something happening here that is not just some gimmicky thing. Metallica doesn't seem to have that big of a role in this, like they don't seem to do a lot with it. It's not like they're picking anything.

unknown 28:11

Right.

SPEAKER_03 28:11

I think that they are. I think this is purely a they they represent the brand kind of thing. They're making some money off of it. They're making some money off of it, but they're not they're not part of the process in any way. So they're not like it is this is more of your classic celebrity endorse barrel where it's like they they have nothing to do with it, they're slaping their name on it kind of thing. The Sonic thing is where they're doing something, and just something, something somebody else is playing their music to the work.

SPEAKER_00 28:39

Contributing to it, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 28:40

Yeah, and so um, I am maybe a little bit curious now. There is a company, I think it's in Pennsylvania, that puts the barrels in a garage where they work on motorcycles. Oh, so there's the five o'clock. Yeah, five, something, yeah. Yeah, so there's there's motorcycle engines revving at it and stuff, to which I worry a little bit about gas and fumes and stuff.

SPEAKER_02 29:05

Also drinking alcohol.

SPEAKER_03 29:06

What do you have to worry about?

SPEAKER_02 29:07

Come on.

SPEAKER_03 29:08

I don't want it to taste like gas. You just want to taste it. Yeah, I'm not worried about gas at it. But it's the carbon carbon monoxide diet. If you smell it, you can taste it. So you can get into it.

SPEAKER_02 29:22

Um so if you can smell farts, you can taste farts? For sure.

SPEAKER_03 29:25

You if you don't even taste or taste a fart, if you don't even taste a fart, I don't know what to tell you. Uh so but I kind of want to try that one. Now I don't I need to look at it again to see if it's finishings again, if it's a finishings thing. But if it's a finishing, uh, I'd be curious about it just to see if maybe that it may maybe that adds a little bit of credibility to the whole vibration thing.

SPEAKER_00 29:47

I mean, they've played music uh uh up to plants before, and plants have died. They've played different music up to plants before and they thrived. So, I mean, music does play a part, and I think it's less to do with like the appreciation and more to do with the vibration. Yeah, like scientifically tangent, tangible things like vibration and and cadence, you know what I mean? A rhythm, whatever tune, pitch, tone, whatever it is. Yeah, um, but that goes back way back in the day. They talked about bells were used for healing, different pitches, different tuning forks and vibrations and things would heal. And they still use modern medicine, still uses that for certain things to this day, with uh syncope and uh things with your ear and all that other stuff that they'll use different tones and whatnot. I mean, I don't think you can rule out the fact that that does play an actual effect on physical elements, like like a bottle, like a barrel of bourbon is gonna have an effect with music played on it. I I do think so.

SPEAKER_03 30:45

I don't know how much it's gonna matter what playlist is played.

SPEAKER_00 30:49

No, I don't think so.

SPEAKER_03 30:50

Um, I don't think we're gonna be able to pick apart that that flavor. This one is definitely a thing. This was played by this album, and this one was played by this album. You gotta tell you the difference. Right. I don't think about that. But yeah, but in terms of just vibrations in general, I can maybe see some something with that. And the like the company here in Ohio that does railroad uh stuff, right? I don't know anything about that to know if they're like running on a railroad or if it's just like being aged in a rail in like a box car sitting somewhere.

SPEAKER_00 31:19

Jostling around.

SPEAKER_03 31:20

But if it's jostling around, then I think that there is something to that in the finishing process. I don't think there's enough in the aging process to permit like rust and hobo.

SPEAKER_02 31:33

We start getting into like the uh the whole uh the the whole idea of aging at chi. At sea. We get we get into cheat.

SPEAKER_00 31:44

How much how much do you actually get at chi? I mean at the qi. At sea, you get a lot of jostling. Well, we talked about that. Now the old boats, maybe so much, but not the new boats, maybe less.

SPEAKER_03 31:56

Yeah, maybe there's they're still moving around an old pirate ship and put it in a hole, right? But for aging, there's I don't I think that's too much time and not a like not a uh for finishing, it's a shorter amount of time. Um, you're trying to extract flavors from the barrel. That's kind of your whole goal there. So I I can see where there's maybe some something to it uh in a finishing world. Um, and at least in this bottle, I think it worked pretty well. Yeah, like I said, I think the finishing came out maybe a little too strong for me. Yeah, if anything, it's too finished. The tobacco is very good, like you said, it is strong, yeah, it's a pungent tobacco.

SPEAKER_00 32:35

Um I haven't had one of those for a while. It's nice sometimes to have a really like kick kick you in the face strong tobacco. You because you can kind of forget that like you are smoking, you know what I mean? Sometimes I feel like because you get so used to certain flavors and stuff that you do want it, like something to really like throw you for a loop.

SPEAKER_03 32:56

And I like this because I like I said, I still don't really have much of a palate for smoking yet. I don't have much of a flavor profile for smoking. Usually it's more of uh how it makes me feel than uh like a flavor that I like. So um I like the latiquias and things because they have a bit of a punch to them or the uh the um more obvious flavor. Yeah, more obvious flavor or the the spiciness of a purique. Uh like I can I can taste a little bit of a like a pepper note or whatever going on there, but I can't taste, I can't tell you flavor profiles of a tobacco. Like I couldn't blend a tobacco. Um but uh but something like this that has just more punch to it, I just know there's some depth there and I can taste something. I still don't really know what, but I can taste things in it, and it's got some depth to it.

SPEAKER_00 33:55

I mean it's for me, it's an interesting concept of you know, mixing those English flavors with the Priek and the Darkfired Kentucky. And I don't know if I've ever really had a straightforward English or Balkan blend that was done that way before. And then the Cavendish as well would just add some sweetness, which I think is why it tastes a little bit more barbecue-y. Yeah. But I just love that idea, and I don't think I have tried a whole lot with it. But the idea of an English with a healthy amount of parik and dark fired. I don't I don't know how much of this, those components are in this, um, but they're enough for me to really detect them, you know.

unknown 34:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 34:35

So and it could just be the aging as well, they've married together really well. Yeah, but I I would like to kind of and honestly, if they don't make a blend, a whole lot of blends like that, I might that might be one that I try to blend myself.

SPEAKER_03 34:47

Yeah. So uh I did look up Hearth and Home to see where they might be or what might be going on. They are no more, they have been discontinued.

SPEAKER_00 34:56

So um, but they might come back.

SPEAKER_03 34:58

That doesn't mean they're it was it was the uh the house brand for the major for pipes and cigars is what this was. Yeah, but the tobacco was come came from Selllift. And when production agreements manufacturing setups shifted it to Celllift, Hearth and Home Lineup was was discontinued.

SPEAKER_00 35:15

Does it say what Russ is doing? Because that's the thing, it's just there's a lot of companies that have either sold out or repositioned in the market or whatever, but I got a feeling Russ isn't done. Yeah, he's not gonna quit making his blends. I wouldn't think so. He made some really effing good stuff you can't get anymore. Uh then he made one called an uh arcade uh Acadia. God, that stuff was good. I can't remember the it was a it was a H H, Hearth at Home, Acadia. Boy, that stuff was amazing. Expensive. Yeah. For for the time nowadays, probably even more. But I I got a feeling, I gotta think that they're not completely seasoned, you know. They're gonna have to reposition themselves. But it has been like a year or two or three. So enough time for Seattle to go to uh Cornell and Deal and stuff.

SPEAKER_03 36:08

Russ, uh Russ Olet returned a local brick and mortar pipe shop community in Albert Albany, New York.

SPEAKER_00 36:17

So he just quit?

SPEAKER_03 36:18

He's just blending stuff for a for a pipe shop for local, wow.

SPEAKER_00 36:23

That dude was pipes and cigars, like he was like the for Here and Home, like he was the guy. What older show, but he I mean he was making a lot of videos and everything. Well, Alberta. Well, unless they sell online, but I so it's uh it's a blending counter.

SPEAKER_03 36:38

He it works on a part-time basis.

SPEAKER_00 36:40

So he just retired, that's it.

SPEAKER_03 36:42

Yep, talking shop with local pipe smokers, dispelling blends, and working uh directly with directly with enthusiasts. Son of a uh he is still experimenting and has new independent blending projects in the works.

SPEAKER_00 36:52

Imagine living there, being lucky enough to live there, and he moves in.

SPEAKER_03 36:55

You know, I'd be there every freaking day, dude. This this caught my eye. Uh, he is talking shop with local pipe smokers, dispensing blending knowledge, and working directly with enthusiasts. I wonder if we could have our own blend created by him.

SPEAKER_02 37:10

Maybe we could can we recreate this?

SPEAKER_03 37:12

Because this is amazing.

SPEAKER_00 37:13

And with with a touch more dark fire?

SPEAKER_03 37:16

Yeah, yeah. Just give it I I bet you, me, uh uh just the club could go together and be like, hey, what what what would make a good blend? What would be the things you would be looking for and see if he would make us a blend?

SPEAKER_02 37:31

Can we tobacco in our once you saw our passion for it?

SPEAKER_03 37:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 37:34

Can he age tobacco in our uh bourbon barrel or rye barrel?

SPEAKER_00 37:38

Well, he would just tell us what to do and tell us where to source it from. No, I mean like literally that dude would give you all the tools to the oh yeah, so but also he works there Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays in the afternoons.

SPEAKER_03 37:49

So if we just want to go to this pipe shop and sell it. What would we call it? I I don't know. Whiskey chasers, uh just just basically whiskey tampers.

SPEAKER_00 37:58

Whiskey tampers. Yeah, we'd have to come up with a name.

SPEAKER_03 38:03

Yeah, something like that. Something, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 38:09

Dark fired whiskey chasers.

SPEAKER_00 38:12

And that might be a little bit, I don't know. Yeah, no, yeah, yeah. No, you can take that up. You can take it their own way, I feel like. Go to the no pile.

SPEAKER_02 38:21

I mean, yeah, we'll throw that one in the no pile. I can just imagine this the smell for what you guys are smoking.

SPEAKER_03 38:29

But yeah, so uh that'd be really interesting if he'd be up for doing something like that. That would be cool. Yeah, I think that'd be really, really cool.

SPEAKER_00 38:36

Um, he just threw in the F in town. I mean, a lot of people were getting fed up with it. Yeah, you know, it's the government that's putting a squeeze on everybody. Yep. That's why people like Sutliff for going out.

SPEAKER_03 38:45

It's just I mean the just the taxes and stuff on the city.

SPEAKER_00 38:47

And Mac Baron, when Mac Baron went out, what the F. I mean, there's a lot of Mac Baron blades that I yeah, yeah. And I mean, I got a few, but like when they're gone, they're gone, dude. Like, and nobody's picking those up. I was hoping somebody was gonna pick up um, you know, old dark fired and uh bold Kentucky, especially bold Kentucky, yeah, uh, and some of their HH line. I don't know. There's just only so many companies out there that are still, you know, that are staying above all this stuff. Yeah. I mean, if if I I don't think Cornell and Deal is going anywhere anytime soon, but if for some reason they did, I mean, it's just like cash in. At that point, I think what I would do is I would take probably like 20 grand and just buy up all the pipe tobacco I could, and then never buy another another ounce of pipe tobacco again in my life. No, I would just keep it and smoke. I mean, I gotta have enough to smoke. And I have some, but I'm dipping in. I'm gonna have to restock at some point.

SPEAKER_02 39:41

There's so much I have some, I'm dipping in.

SPEAKER_00 39:46

If I woke up tomorrow and pipe to back pipe smoking was gone, which could happen with today's world, uh, do I have enough? The answer to that is I'll take no thousands.

SPEAKER_02 39:58

You have stuff I can't even find.

SPEAKER_00 40:00

Yeah. Well, there's a lot of stuff I have that people can't, but there's also stuff that I want to have. If I didn't buy that stuff before it was gone, I wouldn't have it now. You get what I'm saying? So I need to buy some stuff now before it's gone. So I just in case. But here's the thing: you bought those before you knew they were done. I just knew, I just had an intuition. It was just same thing with uh Mac Baron. I got some good Mac Baron stuff in there.

SPEAKER_03 40:24

But if we knew where, you know, place people like Russ there that is in New York, like if you can go to those places, you can you can get some blends and stuff, and like that's what I think is gonna happen

Celebrity Bottles And Lasting Power

SPEAKER_03 40:38

is you're gonna have to just find these little pipe shops and travel to them and do them. Do you think and like try their blends?

SPEAKER_02 40:46

Do you think the same will become that'll always be around?

SPEAKER_03 40:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 40:50

Do you think the same will become of stuff like this if we knew where this came from and we knew the quality? So right now we're under the impression this this came about because of someone that started at makers started their own uh project of uh helping others distill. We're under that impression, oh, it's it's gonna be worth it. Now we're not sure because they're gone. Is there a chance at some uh point in the whiskey uh community of the future we have this idea that oh man, this this guy held such a high uh regard that we are going to want their stuff, we're gonna want to seek them out, we're gonna want to go there, we're gonna have them blend.

SPEAKER_03 41:38

Yes and no, I think that uh most people that drink whiskey don't know where their whiskey comes from. That's I I don't think that's they don't know or don't care. Both both. Okay, yeah, okay. I think that they know it comes from makers market, right? They don't know that Dave Pickerel was the master blender or master distiller. So when those guys leave and move on to other places, most of the clientele doesn't go with them. So most people are not saying, I want this, I want, I want this brand because it's it's the master distiller is this. It's the other way around. It's that I like this brand, and the master distiller happens to be this guy. When that guy leaves, uh one, I probably don't even notice. Like I think most people don't notice or care all that much. Um, because the the primary super into it, you know. Yeah, we're talking about the average drinker. Yeah, the average drinker, yeah. Um, because the line is gonna stay the same. That recipe has already been made, they're not gonna change it when a new master distiller comes in. Quality might lose a little bit or maybe whatever, maybe, but but honestly, the main line isn't gonna change at all, it's gonna be all the other little projects that they have. So, like, we know that little book is really cool, and we know that because of the stories between Fred and Freddie No, yeah, and and Booker No and all those guys, like they're the ones that are making that bottle, and we like little book because of the story that is made in the background of Freddie No, Booker No, Fred No, all those guys. Okay. Now, they're also good at their job. We like their product, but part of the reason that we like them is because of that story, and we're following the master distiller more than we are the bean product. Most of the time that's not true. Most of the time you are following a product because it's a bean product, or a Heaven Hill product, or whatever, whatever product it is you like, they come out with something new and you're excited to try it because this brand has a flavor. You just don't put together that that flavor is not the brand's flavor, it's the master distiller's flavor. And when they lose, leave and move on, something changes, but you don't really notice it or care all that much.

SPEAKER_02 43:55

So, with that same mentality, that same understanding, do you think select? Celebrity bottles will die out with a celebrity or live on past them?

SPEAKER_03 44:04

Yeah, I think it depends. I think if I I think that there will be lots of people that buy with that will buy this bottle because it's a Metallica bottle.

unknown 44:11

Right.

SPEAKER_03 44:11

Will they buy travelers because you said Chris Tableton or whatever? Um but if it's not good, they'll only buy it once.

SPEAKER_00 44:21

You know, and I mean I I think it might shift a little. So I don't think he makes any money off of it, but uh Jack Daniels Sinatra. There you go. I mean, Sinatra's not around anymore, but that bottle is still iconic because he was iconic.

unknown 44:36

Right.

SPEAKER_00 44:36

So if they came out with uh something for Elvis Presley and it was legit, yeah, I think people would buy that. So he's timeless, therefore the bottle will be timeless. Metallica, I love them, they're great, they're amazing, but I don't think of them as like a timeless, you know, band. Like the Beatles are probably timeless. Yeah. Well, they are timeless, they're not probably, they are timeless. You know what I mean? They transition through. So I love Metallica, Metallica's great, but is Metallica gonna persevere a hundred years from now? Probably not.

unknown 45:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 45:04

Whereas like people, a hundred years from now, people will still listen to Elvis Presley. It will be like still a legendary sound. Frank Sinatra, same thing. Metallica, not so much. I just don't think so. So if it if it's if it can transcend time and culture and pop culture and norms and you know, popularity and all this stuff, then yeah, I think a bottle in that it with that name on it would would would make it. If but if it's not, then not so much. You get what I'm saying? So like Sinatra, I think Jack Daniels Sinatra is something that's gonna last just as long as Jack Daniels is gonna last.

SPEAKER_02 45:39

So we as a podcast have have created this emphasis on celebrity bottles, celebrity endorsed, right? The rest of the world sounds like we don't really care, unless it's someone like Elvis or or Sinatra or this this black house tobacco. Like we we know who created it, we care, it matters. Is it worth saying celebrity endorsed is not the end all be all in the sense that who cares about the celebrity? It's whether you like it or not. Yeah, or kind of like sourced.

SPEAKER_03 46:16

Yeah, so I think with with like bottles like this one, where Metallica is not involved, um, then it is uh either uh paying tribute to Metallica uh or a money grab. It's one of those, it's one of those two, you know, what in whatever way that shapes out.

SPEAKER_00 46:33

Very seldom would it be just good on its own and then also with a name on it.

SPEAKER_03 46:37

Yeah, exactly. Like it would just go it on its own. Yeah, like Jack Daniels Sinatra is an example of one that is not endorsed by Sinatra. Sinatra was dead before that bottle came out, and like his family didn't.

SPEAKER_02 46:48

His family said, Yeah, go for it.

SPEAKER_03 46:50

Uh so like this is just Jack Daniels paying tribute to somebody that really liked their bottle, and then the master distiller in the background came out with this bottle and like created whatever that was. So uh because of that, it's become a specialty release that if you like Sinatra, you might get, or if you like Jack Daniels, you might get.

SPEAKER_00 47:11

Um yeah, Jack Daniels Sinatra would be good without the Sinatra on it.

SPEAKER_03 47:15

Exactly. Yeah, whereas like this uh this bottle's not meant to be timeless, they're not gonna make Blacken 20 years from now. Like it's not that brand's not gonna be around anymore in 20 years. They're gonna now sweet Amber or whatever, the people behind it. They'll be around. They might be around, uh, but they'll be doing something completely different, right? And it won't be anything related to this at all. Now, if you go back to like Traveler, where it's Chris Stapleton that is heavily involved in it, and he's part of the thing, then it'll be a thing as long as Chris Stapleton is a thing. So, or as long as his music is is well known, because you'll have people that will follow him, and because he's part of it, it's gonna continue to change with him.

SPEAKER_00 48:00

Yeah, I will say that I think the process, this finished process, is something that could could last longer than the bottom.

SPEAKER_03 48:06

So I would agree with that.

SPEAKER_00 48:07

I I could see other people using this, or even the same company for different bands or what whatever it is. Uh, I think the idea, hell, I think there's people that like things that were played with Mozart was played while we're crafting this thing. Uh people like that uh uh aspect, that idea. I I think that makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 48:22

Yeah, but it's also like uh I I this may sound harsh-ish. Blackened, the way you describe it, is the equivalent to McConaughey's version of wild turkey. In the sense that there's a name tied to it without if you didn't if you were not around in the era of commercials, you had no idea that McConaughey was involved with wild turkey. Same with Maton.

SPEAKER_00 48:52

Like you don't know that. There's no crazy weird gimmick going on with Wild Turkey.

SPEAKER_02 48:56

No, but it's the idea that you don't know that some mistake is tied to it.

SPEAKER_00 49:00

Yeah, long branch is good because it's a mesquite. There we go. Uh wild turkey product, it just tastes effing amazing. I think transitions, and I think it'll go longer than Matthew McConaughey. Matthew McConaughey's name will drop off of that bottle, but they will keep making it because it's good, it's a good product. He got lucky that he got his name on a good bottle. It's the same idea. The other way around. Well, this one is kind of the other way around. I think well, I think the idea is good, but I just don't think the whiskey's that good. I mean, uh, if Matthew McConaughey came out tomorrow and said, uh, I believe um, I believe in aliens, um, I am an alien. Uh I I like to um procreate with aliens. Like, like if he said that craziest. If he said the craziest stuff that everybody canceled Matthew McConaughey or whatever it was, uh, I would still drink Long Branch. I like it. Honestly, if Matthew McConaughey came out and did some sort of horrendous thing and everybody was like, Oh, we can't you know, I would still drink long and actually I would love it because it'd probably be cheaper. It's really good. Like, I like that doesn't mean I agree with what if he did something crazy. I wouldn't agree with what he like, you know, what he did. But I would still like the I think the whiskey's better than he is.

SPEAKER_02 50:11

There we go.

SPEAKER_00 50:12

So if this is not if Matt Metallica sucked tomorrow, I'd be like, well, yeah, Metallica sucks now, I guess. And also that whiskey sucks real bad. You know what I mean? Well, here's the thing.

SPEAKER_02 50:22

If this was if this was quality whiskey with the same finishing process, would you be saying the same thing?

SPEAKER_00 50:29

Yeah, if this tasted as good, if I if I enjoyed this the way I enjoyed long branch, I enjoy long branch, then it wouldn't matter. Uh Metallica would be a plus, which is kind of the McConaughey, not the biggest McConaughey. I mean, not saying I don't like McConaughey, but I'm not like, oh my god, Matthew McConaughey. Um, the last real actor that I can be like, oh, I'm such a huge fan is probably Kurt Russell. Like, you know what I mean? Like, I can't think of another actor that I'm like, oh my god, I'm such a fan, you know. Matthew McConaughey, okay, whatever, you know, but I like the whiskey. I do really like Metallica. This sucks, in my opinion. But if if this was great plus Metallica, that's a win-win. Yeah, you get what I'm saying? So I'm really with long branch McConaughey is not really a plus. Yeah, just a side note.

SPEAKER_03 51:14

Yeah, I think that when it comes to celebrity indoor stuff, you will buy it once because of the celebrity, right? Uh, and then if you like it, then you would continue to buy it because the product is good. So the celebrity gets you a fur a first sale, gives you eat your foot in the door. The the bottle gives you the second sale. I think that's kind of how it works. Yeah, and so like and like I I think that the lots of people like this. It's very sweet, it's it's pretty fruity, it's 90 proof, so it's not that easy drinker. It's 50 bucks. Like, I can see why this is still around, and I can see why it's popular. Uh, I they have they have a line of like five different versions of this now, and so and they've partnered up with other distilleries to do it with them. So, and Angel Zenby is a great one to do it with because they're a finishing company, so they do a lot of finishings. So, whether the bottle itself is good or not, that's for you to decide.

SPEAKER_00 52:10

Well, and there's few times that on this podcast that we will shin on a bottle and I'll say this is not good or this is junk, or they made it. I'm actually not saying that with this bottle, I'm not saying it's bad. I'm saying I don't like it. Yes, I really don't think it's a bad product. Um, we've had a lot of products on here that I'm like, that's a bad product. Nobody should drink it. It's not good, it's overpriced, it's this, that, and the other. I could pick it apart. This one, I just specific specifically don't like it.

SPEAKER_03 52:36

It just isn't my flavor.

SPEAKER_00 52:37

It's just not mine.

SPEAKER_03 52:38

Yeah, and so it's not a bad but I don't think it's bad.

SPEAKER_00 52:41

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 52:42

It's just not for us, I think. Uh Nick, I'm assuming you don't like it either because you haven't talked much about it. Uh you might like it.

SPEAKER_02 52:50

No, uh, it's um this this uh this this in my mind might be a step above or below an everyday drinker, no thinker, in the sense that there's not much to it that I like. It's there. Um there's alcohol involved and there's sweetness involved. That that's um about it. I don't I don't want to shit on this. Uh the I know tie to metallic.

SPEAKER_00 53:34

We're not we're not shitting on it. We just don't like it. Well, I I just said I don't like it. There's not much to it. I'm not sure. But but it's not that I it's not that it's bad. I think there's people out there that would like it. Oh, there's people out there that would like to be like, and the price point is not you're gonna be disappointed. Yes. Uh I think the name Blackened is interesting. I again I like that they didn't like push their name on here. Right. But I do I am kind of surprised they didn't do like Inner Sandman or something like that, like one of their better known songs, or even Fade to Black or or something. Um Blackened is cool, but it what I do see that also, I also think of like a fish, you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01 54:10

Blacken seafood.

SPEAKER_00 54:11

Like like a blackened, yeah, fish, or something like that. I what I don't think of, or even like I think of a charred barrel. This has none of that. This has nothing to do with that. It just has nothing to do with it. Well, I guess the barrel the blackened it was black uh uh brandy, right?

SPEAKER_03 54:29

I guess which they made up for the name of this.

SPEAKER_00 54:32

They made it black black brandy.

SPEAKER_02 54:33

You know, uh maybe they should have gone with a brandy and just made a brandy, straight brandy, brandy finished in uh no, just a brandy.

SPEAKER_00 54:40

Maybe yeah, you could you could finish the list of you could finish black brandy, but uh, maybe a brandy would be good. Blackened brandy, that sounds good. That rolls off the tongue. A blackened brandy, sure, a really dark brandy, yeah, yeah. Why not? Uh that might be good. Don't use cognac, yeah. I mean, that would be good. I mean, I'd be all for that.

SPEAKER_01 55:00

Yeah, could be good. I think I struggle at the price tag. 50 bucks.

SPEAKER_00 55:06

I think 50 bucks is too much for this, yes. Yeah, for a celebrity bottle under 80, I think is is way better. Let's take away the celebrity.

SPEAKER_01 55:14

Plus, let's take away celebrity. Well, if you take away celebrity, what are we talking about? There we go.

SPEAKER_03 55:19

Yeah, that this isn't a bottle for us. This is not made for us. Fair. This is not for us. That may that's the struggle I have. This bottle at 50 bucks, because it's a celebrity endorsed bottle, like that's a good price.

SPEAKER_00 55:31

And I think I honestly think if we were talking about this bottle without a celebrity endorsed for 50 bucks, I would still be saying, I like what they're doing. Yeah, it's not for me. Yeah, it's I like what they're doing, I appreciate what they're doing. It's not junk. I don't like how it's sourced, sure. Like beautiful, I don't mind that sourced, but they should probably be a little bit more transparent about where it's going from. About where it's coming from you're very quickly to put on there that it was bottled in Columbus, Ohio by by this brand, by this sweet water, sweetwater, whatever it is. But yeah, which as far as I can tell, is just a shell colour. Put on there. Look, we didn't, I would love a bottle that says we did not make our own shit. Yeah, period. And then at the end, we did get this stuff from these two places, yeah, and we also did some finishing stuff at this place, buy our stuff, like that. Would be fine, just be completely honest. Nobody's gonna look at it. Oh, it was it was sourced from these two places.

SPEAKER_03 56:22

I'm not buying it. There's a really great company doing that called Borrowed Page. I think I've only seen chapters one and two, so it's uh it was a while, long time ago that I like to borrow the page, borrowed page, and on the front they have on it every distillery that's inside of it, and they blend it together. That's great. Nothing wrong with that. And I found it because Watershed was in was in one of it, Starlight has been in it, a bunch of craft distilleries and stuff come together and do this. As far as I know, it's still around. I dropped off of it. Uh whiskey noobs that we dropped off the page. Yeah, I dropped back, yeah. Couldn't finish the book. So uh whiskey noobs introduced me to it way back when when they were still around. But yeah, for this bottle, it's it's not a bottle for us, but that doesn't mean it's a bad bottle. Uh, I'm not I wouldn't I wouldn't even call this one a dud for me. No, like it's nope. I I and I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_00 57:13

I just don't like it. Yeah, I would drink if you pour this for me, I'd drink it and I wouldn't say anything. Unless you asked, Do you like that? I'd be like, eh, not really, you know, it's fine, but it looks rock and roll without being like too over the top. They did a good job with the the presentation, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 57:29

Yeah, in terms of branding, I actually really like it. Like you said, it doesn't scream Metallica, but it does scream rock and roll. Um they're uh rye's green, yes, the rye is green. That'd be cool, yeah. But it's like a militar, like a dark military style green. Like an OD green, like an OD, and so it's like so it so kind of goes along with that. Um, so yeah, I like the branding of it, but yeah, juice inside, not really for me. Uh lots of it, I but I can see why lots of people do like it.

SPEAKER_00 57:59

I can I can appreciate why other people do like it. Especially for the price. I can see this being on a shelf for a lot of people that are people that are just like casual drinkers, I think would be fine with this. Yeah, I you know, I bet Laura would love it. I bet Mary would like this.

SPEAKER_04 58:12

Really?

SPEAKER_00 58:13

Yeah, it's sweeter, and it doesn't have any of the the the the uh girth. You know what I mean? It's it doesn't have any of that like overwhelming flavor. You get what I'm saying? Like it's it's uh more subtle, like overwhelming whiskey, yeah. Whisk the whiskey flavor, yeah. The finished is is present, prevalent, right? Yeah, but the actual whiskey flavor itself, the thing that turns off a lot of people, that real broad flavor, the upfront like bite, doesn't have it.

SPEAKER_03 58:44

All right, well, I think that's the end of our celebrity series. It

Listener Bottle And How To Reach Us

SPEAKER_03 58:48

might have to be for now. For now, we'll find others if you know others. Please there's others out there. Very good celebrity stuff out there. Should we do long branch? We've done have we done Long Branch? Yeah, we do Long Branch for candy. Yeah, we do it a long time. We've done it for things, yep. Because that's a good candy.

SPEAKER_00 59:02

There's other uh bottles. Oh, there's tons of bottles. If you have any ideas, just let us know.

SPEAKER_03 59:06

Yeah, I'm sure we'll send yeah, send us a text, let us know what uh what celebrity bottles we should get.

SPEAKER_00 59:11

Or send us a bottle.

SPEAKER_03 59:13

Or yeah, send us a bottle.

SPEAKER_00 59:14

We did that Peyton Manning thing too. Yeah, Peyton Manning has a bottle.

SPEAKER_03 59:17

Not for the podcast. No, for the photos coke. No, yep. Um yeah, and so uh a listener is sending us a bottle here soon. So once we once we get that, we'll be popping it open here and and and talking about it and talking about him. Gifting something in return? Yeah, we'll we'll send something back to him because you're just gonna send us a bottle. We'll send you something. Does he smoke? I don't I don't I don't know. We have to ask. Here's the thing none of us know this person. That's the coolest part of this. Yeah, I asked Laura, I was like, Do you know this guy? She's like, nah, like I don't need that. That's the coolest part of this, is it's a it's a it's a blank listener. If he does smoke, what do you what are you willing to give, Chris? Because now I'd have to have a conversation. Now he's gonna listen to this, but like that asshole doesn't even remember me. Like, we did meet. We didn't know we did. So hopefully he is a true, like just random listener. So I don't know what his connection to us is, but uh other than just the podcast. So that's really awesome. All right, gents. Well, next week we'll try something else. Until then. Thank you for listening to the podcast. If you want more great content and other perks, be sure to support the show by clicking the link in the show notes. We can be reached on our website, whiskeychaster'sponet.com, with any ideas for the show. Thanks again.