Shaken, Not Stirred: The Jagermeister Machine

CheapHumidors would like to welcome you to a brand new section of our blog. Shaken, Not Stirred will cover all topics beer, wine and liquor related. CH would like to thank guest author Stan Schubridge at Beertaps.com for kicking things off!

Jägermeister actually started out as anything but the drink we know today. The term was introduced in Germany in 1934 as part of the Imperial Hunting Laws. Translated literally, Jägermeister means “hunt-master,” combining Jäger (hunter) and Meister (master).

Cigars and Jägermeister mix pretty well. The rule of thumb still stands: Light cigars go with light tasting liqueurs. Jägermeister is anything but light. In this case, you probably want to light-up a Liga Privada T52 Cigar by Drew Estate or a Perdomo Patriarch Churchill Cigar with your Jäger.

Jägermeister is a top-secret recipe of 56-ingredients. It’s said to include roots, herbs and spices from around the world, including gentian roots, valerian, poppy seeds, ginseng and chamomile blossoms. The various botanicals are individually macerated in neutral spirits for up to 6-weeks. They are then filtered and matured in charred oak barrels for a minimum of one year prior to blending. The liqueur is bottled at 70-proof.

One rumor that has been passed around for many years is that the liqueur also contains elk’s blood. That’s not true. Beyond that, only the distillers know for sure.

Curt Mast, the original maker of the liquor, never imagined The Jägermeister Machine. But in 1974, Mast-Jägermeister of Germany called upon Sidney Frank Importing to help bring the drink to America. Soon after, the machine was born.

Frank had a buddy who loved Jägermeister cold. He realized that this way of serving the drink would add to its appeal in the U.S. As Jägermeister became more-and-more popular in New Orleans, he hired young women to promote it in the bars. Then he thought of keeping the liquor even colder on tap. There were limits with ordinary freezers. They could only keep Jägermeister at around 28-degrees, but with the tap machine, Frank discovered a way to keep the beverage colder for a longer period of time. That’s when he brought into being The Jägermeister Machine.

The same principal as Frank’s first Jägermeister cooler lives on. Only now, you don’t have to go to a pub or bar to get a shot of ice-cold Jäger. Enter the home version of the same game: The Jägermeister Machine. Check out these features:

• It cools down to 10 degrees Fahrenheit
• The Jägermeister Machine is designed to fit in your refrigerator
• It has a tap handle
• Holds and chills up to three one liter or 750 ML bottles of Jägermeister
• Approximate dimensions 11-inches-wide by 19-inches-long by 25½-inches-high when topped with the liter bottles.
• It’s very, very quiet

Frank’s device gave bar patrons a way to get a really cold shot of the liquor. Just as many bars began using the Jägermeister Machine, you can now throw back a few cold ones in the comfort of your own home.

While the latest incarnation of The Jägermeister Tap Machine has streamlined many aspects of the original device, the improvements in cooling-power and less energy use make it so much better than the original. And unlike the original, you can now chill-out at home.