Metallica whiskey

Metallica now have their own "Blackened" whiskey

In what is surely a dream pairing for fans of both heavy music and hard liquor, Metallica now have their own whiskey: Blackened American Whiskey. That’s a picture of it above (the soundwave on the bottle is from Metallica’s “Blackened”). They write:

It’s not often that we announce a brand new, never-been-done-before Metallica endeavor, so we’re incredibly excited and super proud to introduce Blackened American Whiskey. Those of you who are whiskey connoisseurs may have heard some rumblings earlier this summer as we’re honored to partner with Master Distiller extraordinaire, Dave Pickerell, to create a unique blend of straight American whiskey available in select U.S. cities later this week and online at thinkliquor.com or spiritedgifts.com.

This collaboration is the perfect match. Legendary in the spirits community, Dave is a chemical engineer who has revolutionized the distilling processes with techniques like solera aging and triple-finishing. He experienced the power of soundwaves during his time as a student and then a Professor of Chemistry at West Point, home to the world’s largest church organ. When the lowest note would reverberate through the halls, “the whole building would tremble, it would really shake your guts,” Dave says. With that in mind, “Blackened” isn’t just the name of a song on …And Justice For All and now on the bottle; it literally helps to shape the flavor! That’s right, the blend of bourbons, ryes, and whiskeys from all across North America, carefully selected by Dave himself, is housed in black brandy barrels and inundated with low hertz sound waves so intense that it actually enhances the molecular interaction and ultimately the finish of the whiskey.

We are fortunate to have a long-time collaboration with Meyer Sound, who have engineered a proprietary subwoofer that amplifies the low frequency sound waves and all the planets aligned. It just so happens that the low-frequency range needed for Dave’s vision was the range you hear in our music and the process of sonic-enhancement we call “Black Noise” was born. A patent-pending process, the playlists that we create helps to shape the flavor of the whiskey.

And you guessed it, the soundwave that fronts the bottle comes from “Blackened” and we’re pretty sure you know why the inaugural batch is labeled 081. Each batch of 5,000 bottles of Blackened American Whiskey will come with an accompanying playlist at blackenedwhiskey.com and on Spotify and Apple Music.

There are tastings/signings with Dave Pickerell in Wisconsin today (8/30), and there’s also a pre-show party at Wando’s on Sunday (9/2) before Metallica’s upcoming Madison show. You can listen to the #081 Spotify playlist below.

Metallica’s tour also includes Austin City Limits, plus stops in Philly, New York, Las Vegas, and much more. All dates here.