Rick Beato tours Noble & Cooley's drum factory

Snare drums made from whiskey barrel staves. If that doesn’t make you want to hit play, we’re not sure what will.

Those are the Buffalo Trace 250th Anniversary snares, and they were being built at Noble & Cooley when Rick Beato turned up with a camera crew.

What happened?

Earlier this summer, Beato and his team visited the Noble & Cooley factory in Granville, Massachusetts. As Drumming News Network reported on 14 October, the timing meant he saw the Buffalo Trace snares come together, from barrel staves to finished instruments.

He also looked at the materials and building methods, and asked the staff what makes each drum distinct.

Noble & Cooley saw it as a chance to show its long drum-making tradition to a much wider audience. With Beato’s following, that’s quite an audience.

Watch the tour

Final thoughts

It’s great to see a mainstream music channel give a small American drum maker the spotlight.

If it’s got you thinking about snares, our snare drum buying guide is a good next stop. Or see what Craviotto has been up to in Nashville.

So, who’s your favourite boutique snare maker? Let us know in the comments.