Blackened Whiskey Review

Today’s whiskey review, Blackened Whiskey, was pioneered by the late great Dave Pickerell of Maker’s Mark and Whistle Pig fame. He partnered with super-band Metallica to finish and market the whiskey. The spirit is a mix of bourbon and rye whiskeys that get finished in black brandy casks and that’s where Metallica enters the picture. Using their proprietary “sonic-enhancement” system, dubbed Black Noise, they use Metallica’s sound to pummel the whiskey “causing it to seep deeper into the barrel”.

Blackened Whiskey

Since Dave’s passing Rob Dietrich from Stranahan’s has taken over as “Master Distiller” and will be overseeing both the existing process and the creation of new whiskeys and releases as they come out. Which is both awesome and surprising. I wouldn’t have imagined Rob leaving Stranahan’s nor would I have seen Blackened as more than a one-off product. But here we are in 2020 with both Rob and Blackened and I’m intensely interested to see where it goes.

Blackened Whiskey Review: Details and Tasting Notes

In Blackened’s Words:

“BLACKENED™ is a marriage of the finest bourbons & ryes, hand selected by Dave himself. Each of the whiskeys offer unique flavor that play a key role in the final spirit. Predominantly bourbon, the sweetness of BLACKENED™ is paired perfectly with the savory spice offered by the rye.”

Blackened Whiskey Details

Details (price, mash bill, cask type, ABV, etc.)

Region: USA

Distillers: Undisclosed (likely MGP for bourbon and Alberta for rye)
Mash Bill: Mix of Bourbon and Rye whiskey
Cask: New Charred Oak, ex-Black Brandy Casks
Age: NAS
ABV: 45%

Batch: 097

Price: $45*

Tasting Notes

EYE
Amber

NOSE
Plum, golden raisins, brown sugar, oak, vanilla, baking spice and a tad biscuity.

PALATE
Brown sugar, molasses, plum, golden raisins, brown sugar, oak, vanilla, baking spice and a tad biscuity.

FINISH
Medium-long -> Cognac, corn whiskey and butterscotch.

BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Decent balance, medium body and a soft touch that’s a tad oily.

Not a bad whiskey, could easily sip this anytime and be alright with it, but where it seems to shine is in cocktails. I made an Old Fashioned and a Manhattan (the go-to whiskey testing cocktails) and it worked incredibly well. Its inherent sweetness lends to using less sugar/simple syrup in the Old Fashioned and moving to dry Vermouth in the Manhattan.

Blackened Whiskey Review: Overall and Score

Unique with well-balanced cognac and whiskey notes. Aroma is sweet and the grapey brandy notes are readily apparent with the whiskey notes coming through on the lighter side; Palate is a bit darker with more of the dark sweetness coming through along the lines of brown sugar and molasses with the whiskey notes kicking up heavily right before the finish; Finish starts out as cognac and moves to whiskey then fades sweet and butterscotchy.

The cognac does edge out the whiskey a bit but it doesn’t overpower the bourbon notes which leaves the Blackened Whiskey feeling clean and mostly balanced. It slowly gets sweeter as it opens but never gets cloying with the rustic, whiskey-driven, spice and grain and oak notes keeping things in check. A decent sipper.

SCORE: 3/5

*Disclosure: The bottle for this whiskey review was graciously sent to me by the company without obligation. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.

Blackened Whiskey Review