The Fifth Cup

Where Whiskey Meets the Sacred

It is no secret that I like whiskey, and especially bourbon; I started a podcast called DISTILLD and worked for an award-winning distillery and crafted some award-winning spirits myself. While some see whiskey as fire in a glass, ready to throw punches and as Eric Church so eloquently put it, “… kicked my ass again last night,” I see it as a sacramental. Something that when seriously studied can help bring one deeper into understanding their faith. Am I foolish? Have I had a dram or two too many? Perhaps. But as a good friend said, “you have walked the cloister and the aging room,” and from both, I have learned valuable lessons that drew me into my faith.

The mash. Chaos. The blending and breaking down of grains under heat to release their enzymes that convert their carbohydrates into sugar. Much like our own lives. So often to be purified, we must first be broken down. Old habits stripped away and changed into new ones. Our ego and spirits broken to bend the knee before God in humility as we ask for forgiveness. And this is the first step in conversion along the path to holiness.

After mashing in, when enzymes have converted the carbohydrates into sugar, the distiller introduces yeast. Yeast does two things: it eats sugar and expels alcohol and CO2. In distillation, we don’t care much for CO2, but the alcohol is another matter. After fermentation, this new product, the wash, can be anywhere from 8% alcohol by volume (abv) to about 18%. As we seek the Sacraments, our sinful ways are replaced with grace. Grace fills us and we may feel repulsed by sin and seek our higher calling and so begin the laborious process of growing in holiness through refinement, as a whiskey goes through distillation.

When whiskey is distilled, it usually goes through three distillations. The first, a stripping run, is to strip out as much water as possible and boost the alcohol content from about 8-18% abv. to over 30% abv. called, “low wine.” Alcohol, both methanol and ethanol, are lighter and require much less heat than water to evaporate. Much like our own lives, when we start the path to holiness, we must strip away those things that weigh us down so our spirits may be lifted to God. The next two distillations are spirit runs, aimed at creating a purified product. The low wine and spirit must undergo immense heat and pressure to be purified of all foul-tasting compounds called congeners. We too will often undergo trials of fire and pressure to achieve holiness. But the distillation isn’t the end, and neither is our purification.

After the final distillation, the cuts must be made. Jesus Himself said he would let the goats go the left, and the sheep to the right. The foreshots, or heads, must be caught and diverted so as not to taint the final product. These can be dangerous in large quantities and taste and smell of acetone. The goal of any distiller is to get to the heart of the spirit they are distilling. At about 160° proof, or 80% abv, it is sweet, cool, and pure. There is a bit of science to this part, but mostly art and a good palette. It requires patience, and timing. We never know when God calls us home. It is all in His timing, whether we feel we are ready or not.

But again, this is not the end of the road for whiskey. Next comes the aging in oak casts in a warehouse or rick-house until the distiller feels the barrel is just right. Just like our own purgation we must endure before we enter Heaven. While we may die in a state of grace, we still bear the marks and scars of sin, and nothing from sin may enter into God’s presence. This is what purgatory is for- helping us heal from our sins, until we are ready. Just like a barrel of whiskey, we are all on our own path. Some are ready before others, and some need a little extra time. And that is OK. The distiller loves and cares for all his barrels, as God loves and cares for all of us.

And then that special moment arrives. The distiller gives the ok, and a barrel is dumped, blended with pure water to reach its ideal proof for bottling, and gets to be enjoyed by those who pour a dram, just like we finally get to enter into God’s presence in the kingdom of Heaven. Every bottle opened and poured is a cause for celebration, just like every soul that enters Heaven. So, when you pour a dram tonight, lift your glass and a prayer, to those holy spirits who have gone before us.