At Grasp of Malt we love music and we love whisky so we particularly like it when music and whisky collide. Common readers will learn about musicians Felipe Schrieberg and Paul Archibald – aka The Rhythm and Booze Mission – whose gigs combine music with whisky appreciation. At one level they constructed a bass drum out of a Scotch whisky cask – that’s their stage of dedication to rhythm and booze. And now the dynamic duo have launched their first whisky by way of their newest enterprise, Rhythm & Booze Information (a document label and impartial bottler multi function) which has simply landed at Grasp of Malt.

In addition to being a prime musician, Schrieberg can also be a whisky author of some word having written for Whisky Journal, Forbes.com, and the Grasp of Malt weblog! He received the 2022 Icons of Whisky Communicator of the 12 months award, and can also be a Keeper of the Quaich no much less. In the meantime Archibald isn’t any slouch as he’s executed a PhD on the historical past of jazz drumming. Good. 

Felipe Schrieberg: author, musician and now whisky baron

The story of a particular sherry cask

However again to the whisky. This primary launch is a blended malt whisky that spent 13 years in an oloroso sherry cask and has been bottled at 50% ABV. Past that, we don’t have plenty of info as to its provenance: “we’re not even positive if it was a mixture of new makes, present aged malts, or a mixture of these. It positively did spend 13 years within the sherry although,” Schrieberg informed us. He did assume, nonetheless, that the malts most likely got here from the identical steady as a really well-known Speyside single malt. Eh-oh!

He continued: “We had tried just a few totally different samples from totally different casks, trying to find one thing that might match the music nicely. This cask was far and away the winner, filling each the temporary of being scrumptious and applicable for the sound we’re bringing”. You see this whisky doesn’t simply need to style good, it has to suit with the bluesy sound of The Mission. As Archibald defined: “We create a reasonably gritty, raucous sound, and in our performances we would like our viewers to be part of that and revel in it. We felt that the profile actually manages to seize that in alcohol kind. It’s fairly wealthy and strong, but in addition surprisingly straightforward to drink.”

You’ll find out for yourselves if the music suits the whisky as a result of the band has launched a brand new EP to take heed to alongside it. Moderately than have to move right down to Our Value (I’m exhibiting my age now) to purchase a document, by way of the magic of sensible telephones you possibly can scan the QR code on the bottle and obtain the EP. Schrieberg stated: “We would like every of our releases to be a novel creative assertion for the ears, nostril and palate. You received’t discover these songs on any streaming website for a really very long time after we launch this new bottle.”

Paul Archibald moonlights as a Latin instructor within the Fifties

Tasting Rhythm & Booze Information #1: 13 12 months Previous Single Sherry Butt Blended Malt Whisky 

So the Rhythm and Booze lads assume it goes with their music, however how does it style within the Grasp of Malt sensory laboratory examined underneath rigorous scientific situations?* Fairly rattling good, it must be stated. As you may anticipate, it majors on the sherry with rum and raisin kind notes on the nostril. The palate is equally wealthy with chocolate, toffee and walnuts however there’s a salty edge to it that implies that there could be a peaty ingredient to the mix. It’s wealthy however fantastically balanced – you possibly can see why they went for it instantly. 

It’s the primary of a collection of releases from Rhythm and Booze however they’re not nearly whisky. The subsequent bottle goes to be a rum. We predict it is going to be nicely price tasting. 

Rhythm & Booze Information #1: 13 12 months Previous Single Sherry Butt Blended Malt Whisky 50cl is accessible from Grasp of Malt. Click on on the hyperlink for costs and to purchase. 

Tasting Notice by The Chaps at Grasp of Malt

Nostril: Wealthy nostril with malt extract, molasses, orange peel and dried fruit, some darkish cherry too. Sherried malt followers will love this.

Palate: Fragrant and spicy on the palate, black and pink peppercorns, there’s a salty ingredient right here too – as if there could be one thing smoky within the mix – with a refreshing edge to it.

End: Walnuts, toffee and chocolate on the end. Very good.

*Sipped in entrance of the telly watching repeats of The (American) Workplace.