Who Is Whiskey Rob?
I'm Rob Dietrich. I've been making whiskey for over 19 years and I currently serve as the master distiller and blender for Blackened American Whiskey — Metallica's kick-ass whiskey. I have also collaborated with James Hetfield and Drew Estate founder Jonathan Drew to create a killer cigar brand known as Blackened cigars. Prior to that, I was the whiskey maker and master distiller at Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey for 12 years.
I grew up in Colorado. I've served in combat. I've toured with iconic bands. I've blended whiskeys that people have camped outside to buy. I've collaborated with one of the biggest bands in the world and one of the greatest cigar makers on earth.
None of it was planned. All of it was a path forged from creative curiosity.
U.S. Army, 10th Mountain Division
In 1992, I enlisted in the U.S. Army and served three combat tours with the 10th Mountain Division between 1992 and 1995, deploying to Somalia twice and once to Haiti. I came back with a sense of drive and a very low tolerance for things that don't matter.
That time shaped how I work — methodically, seriously, and with full commitment to the people around me. You don't get to half-ass anything in the Army, and I've never half-assed anything since.
From the Stage to the Barrel Room
After the Army, I ended up in San Francisco and fell into the music business — starting as a stagehand and rigger at Bill Graham Presents and working my way up to tour management. I worked stages at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre, The Fillmore and beyond. I even crewed a Metallica show at Lollapalooza in 1996 and I had no idea then that I'd eventually leave the music biz and one day end up making their whiskey.
The music business taught me how to read a room, manage chaos, and stay calm when everything is on fire. Skills that transfer directly to running a production facility.
Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey
A diesel motorcycle project introduced me to the first head distiller of Stranahan's — Colorado's first legal distillery since Prohibition — and that was it. I joined in 2006 and was named master distiller in 2011.
My 12 years at Stranahan's taught me everything I know about the relationship between grain, yeast, water, wood, and time. I developed the Snowflake annual release — a limited-edition blend that became the kind of thing people drove across the state for — and pushed the brand toward the spirit of experimentation that Colorado craft distilling became known for.
Blackened American Whiskey
Dave Pickerell co-founded Blackened with Metallica in 2017. When Dave passed away in November 2018, it was one of the most significant losses the American whiskey world had experienced in modern times. He was a mentor, a legend, and a genuine original.
I was named his successor in June 2019. I don't take that lightly. Everything I do with Blackened is built on my desire to uphold legacy and embrace curiosity — and pushed forward with the same relentless creativity I’ve brought to every whiskey I have ever made.
I've always loved cigars. Straight out of the womb, the Doc spanked me, then shoved a cigar in my mouth and a whiskey in my hand. Then my Mom snatched them away, smacked the Doc back and made me wait a little longer.
Well, not really, but you get the picture.
I saw the opportunity to create our own cigar during the pandemic in 2020 after spending a lot of time smoking cigars with James Hetfield on his back porch in the Rocky Mountains. The M81 Maduro to the Core and the S84 Shade to Black are the result — two world-class cigars designed to pair with Blackened Whiskey and each other.