The Art of Blending With Black Button
Black Button Distillery is undoubtedly innovating the game when it comes to its grain-to-glass whiskey. But, one of their coolest features for whiskey enthusiasts is their custom blending program. However, while this is a new approach, blending is a time-honored tradition that dates back to the earliest days of whiskey consumerism.
Blending whiskey can be traced back to Andrew Usher in Edinburgh, Scotland, in the early 1860s. Up until then, whiskey was raw, strong, and varied in flavor. However, Andrew discovered that by blending whiskey, he could control the flavors and smoothness of the whisky. By combining batches, he mitigated differences and was able to create a whiskey that was smoother and more on-point with the flavor profile he was looking for.
Quickly, this caught on, and others started imitating this process to have a better and more consistent product. This started a revolution in creating expressions tailored to consumer preferences and tastes. This time-honored tradition is still utilized to this day to create a wide variety of different whiskeys across the world. And Black Button Distillery in Rochester, NY lets you take the driver’s seat in this historic practice.
Black Button has created a custom blending program that is perfect for whiskey groups, bars, restaurants, and liquor stores across the country. They segment their whiskey into different categories, such as “sweet” and “woody.” The distillers and blenders will work with you through a customized “profile quiz” that gives them an idea of what sort of blends might suit your group or establishment’s tastes. They then send you a few customized blends based on these preferences blended from their specialized holding tanks.
One of the coolest parts is tasting these blends to see where your preferences led you. You can then select your blend or further tweak it to your tastes to create a true, one-of-a-kind limited-edition whiskey you’ve crafted. So far, they are the only distillery we know of that does this, and it’s truly a unique experience. The opportunity to work create your own blend and work directly with distillers and blenders is something that should tickle that itch if you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to create your own whiskey expression, and is the closest you can get to legally crafting your own whiskey as a regular consumer.
This experience is worth its weight in gold for whiskey enthusiasts. To learn more about Black Button Distillery, visit their website by clicking here.
Greg Sinadinos started his spirits journey writing a whiskey periodical for Fine Tobacco NYC Magazine. He began answering review requests under a social media page he named “Whiskey Culture,” which quickly merged with Greg’s passion for connecting with others and his interest in history.
Today, Greg travels the country not just looking for great whiskey, but also exploring the history and individuals that the whiskey community is founded upon. He has authored “Whiskey History From Around The World” and is the host of “The Rickhouse” web series.
