Originally published at: Metallica releases new whiskey aged on the sounds of heavy metal | Boing Boing
…
3 Likes
Just props for using the Metallica pinball backglass for the article header image. 
1 Like
This is really nothing new. It has long been believed that the aging process is accelerated by gently agitating the barrels in some fashion. Traditionally I believe this was done manually, by banging on them or rotating them slightly (at least that’s what one distiller told me). A representative from the Hudson distillery in New York told me years ago that their founder didn’t want to go through that process, so installed a huge sound system in the warehouse and blasted bass-heavy hip hop. And apparently other distillers are doing it with EDM.
5 Likes
Barrels!? Pah!
4 Likes
Um, nothing?
Distillers, brewers, and vintners believe a whole lot of horseshit. I’ve had a veteran vintner swear to me that the secret to their process is burying a bull horn in the corner of the field under a full moon each season. This is an actual process from “biodynamic” winemaking. That’s the tip of the iceberg of nonsense that is rampant in these fields. Doesn’t mean they are wrong about everything of course, but the skepticism bar needs to be high.
Science or GTFO.
5 Likes
Biodynamic is some arch BS, but I’ve had some of the wines, and they’re pretty good. Primarily because those practices incentivize you to spend lots of time and energy on your “biodyamic” plants IMHO.
The don’t just bury a bullhorn, it’s also full of manure, then they use that aged manure to do something, iirc make a tea where you have to stir it one direction x number of times, the back the other Y number. It’s pretty amazingly detailed BS.
2 Likes
It may be that, but it may also just be psychological. Double blind studies have shown that about 80% of wine tasting is also bullshit. 
When proper controls are applied, the best experts in the world lose the ability to even distinguish red from white, never mind chocoately finishes and whatever. That’s not to say people shouldn’t enjoy wine in all the ways people currently do, but they should be aware it’s mostly about the mood you’re in that day and the quality experience you’re having overall. There’s little going on chemically that is related to what you taste and smell.
2 Likes
Imbibe while reading the KISS comic book that included drops of their own blood mixed in with the ink.
1 Like
I think most of it was that they refused to put additional sulfites, and that actually does make a difference in taste (not always positive by any means).
Gracefully at eing metalhead and salty ex Metallica fan here…
I’d say that Metallica have shown sufficiently that they’ve lost any semblance of taste in the last 15 years; I absolutely wouldn’t trust them with the sensibilities to produce a half-decent whiskey.
I’m going to download a copy of this whiskey just to piss off Lars Ulrich.
6 Likes
It’s all true. Not only did we invent this, we dialed in the exact frequencies that made the spirits “jiggle” the most like the cup of water in Jurassic Park.
Also, it’s mostly bullshit. Mostly.
Except…
There is absolutely truth in the notion that creating movement at the molecular level will speed up interactions. For instance, the reasons that whiskey extracts reactive compounds from oak is mostly due to diurnal temp/humidity/barometric pressure changes forcing the spirit to penetrate the char and toast layers (ca. 3/16”) of the barrel during warm cycles, denature the wood structure and extract things like cis-oak lactones and acids during cold cycles. It also pulls oxygen in from the atmosphere during contraction phases. These interact with the distillate to produce some of the more complex molecules that provide aged character to whiskey. Causing more motion in the barrel absolutely does accelerate this and sound definitely causes motion, but simply increasing heating/cooling cycles is far more effective. Plus, it’s impossible to get the same vibration into every barrel and just a short blast is definitely not going to do anything useful.
Having said all of that, and despite being from the distillery that innovated most of these short-term maturation concepts, there is simply no substitute for time. Extraction/reaction cycles help get the compounds into the spirit, but you usually get excess extractive flavor (like chewing a popsicle stick) alongside a fairly raw whiskey flavor. Some people have put loads of technology into the concept, but they all end up tasting like over-steeped tea that robs the spirit of its character. The only way to get the to properly marry is time.
Rapid maturation definitely has a place in the industry as it’s nearly economically impossible to bankroll the 4+ years of production required to get to fully matured products, but once a distillery gets to fully matured product, there’s really no point in selling inferior product anymore. These guys seem like they’re using it more as a marketing gimmick, which is just about right, imo.
4 Likes
You’ll get no argument from me there – my only point is that Metallica and friends have neither invented nor pioneered anything here.
2 Likes
They could have called the whiskey, “Whiskey in the Jar II”.
1 Like
Clearly why they didn’t play And Justice For All… at the casks.
2 Likes
This topic was automatically closed after 5 days. New replies are no longer allowed.
