Metallica’s Blackened Rye the Lighting Returns for 2024

As celebrity alcohol brands proliferate, Metallica has announced the 2024 release of their Blackened Rye the Lightning whiskey.

The brand name is inspired by Metallica’s sophomore album, “Ride the Lightning.”

This limited-edition expression follows the 2022 edition of Rye The Lightning.

The 2024 bottling was created by Blackened master distiller and blender Rob Dietrich. It’s a blend of straight rye whiskeys, finished in Madeira wine and Caribbean rum casks for two to fourteen weeks each.

Rye The Lightning is non-chill filtered and bottled at 92 proof. The result is notes of green apple, barn hay, caramel and banana bread on the nose, the company reports, with pear, honeysuckle, muscovado, almond, cinnamon, sawn-wood and waffle cone on the palate. 

“When we launched the first edition of Rye The Lighting in 2022, I knew we had something special,” says Dietrich. “I absolutely love the hay spice and dark earthy notes in American rye whiskey, so it was an adventure to play around with a creative flavor profile through cask finishing. I was thrilled that consumers loved this whiskey as much as we did, and with this limited release, I tried to capture some of the innovative magic of the first expression, but with a slightly new spin by upping the proof a couple of notches, while applying non-chill filtering and using a rye with a different mash bill with different types of Madeira and Rum finishes.”

The makers of Blackened Whiskey also use a production method they call “Black Noise.” Barrels are placed near low hertz sound waves, meant to “cause the whiskey to reverberate at a fast rate, interacting with the oak staves of the barrel, measurably releasing wood compounds and flavors,” the company says.

“They say that lightning never strikes twice, but the second release of Rye The Lightning proves otherwise,” says Metallica’s lead guitarist, Kirk Hammett. “Rob captured the spirit of our ‘Ride The Lightning’ album with the award-winning first batch. And now with the 2024 edition, we are excited to take our fans on that ‘Ride’ once again.”

Rye The Lightning is available now with for a suggested retail price of $69.99 per 750-ml. bottle. To order online or find local retailers, visit BlackenedWhiskey.com.

This follows the release of Blackened Whiskey Cask Strength Volume 01.

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