Flaming Lips Brainville Rye Whiskey Tied to Famous Psychedelic Rock Band

Yes, this is a story about another celebrity-tied whiskey. No, it is not a silly whiskey-bashing session. Why? Because there is a lot more authenticity to the back story of the new Flaming Lips Brainville Rye Whiskey from craft whiskey distillery Few Spirits.

Justin Helton, a well-known music industry designer out of Knoxville, Tennessee, is a longtime fan of The Flaming Lips, a popular psychedelic rock band. He apparently wanted to create “a truly special product” for them, so he approached the distillery to create this one-off whiskey.

The result, Brainville Rye, is presented inside a standard Few Spirits whiskey bottle with a “psychedelic Lips-ian label designed” by Helton. The juice itself is made from a combination of rye, corn and malted barley grown within 150 miles of the distillery. It was fermented using a French wine yeast, and aged in new, charred American oak barrels custom-made in Minnesota.

“Whiskey… it’s such a volatile drink,” said Flaming Lips lead singer, Wayne Coyne, in cryptic fashion. “Upon pouring a drink It’s like accepting that you may become a werewolf … And really… Who doesn’t want to become a werewolf ??? Ha…”

While you ponder that, also ponder this: Brainville Rye, limited to 5,000 bottles and bottled at 80 proof, will be available come October for around $125 a bottle. Very limited tasting notes hint of “whiskey stone-fruit, apple and pear notes over a background of sharp spice.”