Spirits & Distilling Podcast
Episode Archive
Episode Archive
34 episodes of Spirits & Distilling Podcast since the first episode, which aired on March 5th, 2024.
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18: Mark Vierthaler of Whiskey Del Bac Is Pursuing a Distinct Sense of Place, Transparently
October 30th, 2024 | 58 mins 35 secs
arizona, distilling, whiskey
The head distiller and blender in Tucson, Arizona, is embracing the scorching desert climate and local flavor—namely, mesquite-smoked malt—to craft distinctive whiskeys while making transparency integral to the brand.
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17: Blender Jackie Zykan of Hidden Barn and Oduoak Debunks Lazy Assumptions about Whiskey Flavors, Blending, and Sensory
October 15th, 2024 | 1 hr 12 mins
bourbon, bourbon blending, colorado whiskey, distilling, kentucky bourbon, perfume, whiskey, whiskey blending
Zykan, former master taster for Old Forester, current master blender for Hidden Barn and perfumer for Oduoak, joins host Sydney Jones for a rollicking episode of intentionality and shared experience.
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16: Adam Spiegel of Corning & Company and Sonoma Distilling Takes a Reactive and Responsive Approach to an Evolving Spirits Market
October 1st, 2024 | 58 mins 36 secs
black truffle whiskey, bourbon, distilling, espresso martini, rye, smoked malt, smoked whiskey, whiskey
The president of Corning & Company reimagined and reconfigured Sonoma Distilling into a house of brands—some are owned, others are partnerships—but quality and experimentation are still top of mind for this award-winning master distiller.
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15: Maplewood Finds Creative Fermentation, Botanicals, and Finishing Opportunities at the Intersection of Brewing and Distilling
September 17th, 2024 | 1 hr 16 mins
barrel-aged gin, brewstillery, fermentation, finishing casks, gin, single malt, whiskey
This award-winning Chicago brewstillery finds innovative ways to connect their disciplines—and not just for the narrative, but firstly for the flavor.
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14: Nic Christiansen of Barrell Craft Spirits Pieces Together the Blended Whiskey Puzzle
September 3rd, 2024 | 53 mins 43 secs
bourbon, sourced bourbon, whiskey, whiskey blending
As blender and manager of blending operations for Barrell, a brand committed to sourcing and blending rather than distilling, Christiansen finds creative ways to marry distinct flavors in whiskey without muddling their individual characters.
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13: Widow Jane Head Distiller and Blender Sienna Jevremov Directs the Delicate Dance of Urban Distilling and Blending
August 20th, 2024 | 1 hr 4 mins
blending, bourbon, cask finished, distilling, stave finished, urban distillery, urban distilling, whiskey
Producing smaller volumes of craft spirits typically means a location closer to potential customers, but distilling in high-density urban environments is both work-intensive and expensive. Brooklyn’s Widow Jane has found an artful way to create distinct spirits despite—or maybe because of—the challenges they face distilling, aging, and blending in New York City.
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12: Christian Krogstad, Founder of Aviation Gin and Westward Whiskey, Designs Spirits That Stand the Test of Time
August 7th, 2024 | 59 mins 11 secs
aquavit, botanical spirits, brown spirits, distilling, gin, whiskey
Few acquisitions of spirit brands have been as high-profile as Ryan Reynolds’ purchase of the Aviation Gin brand, followed by its sale to Diageo. Yet even before the celebrity-fueled spotlight turned its way, Aviation was the work of an earnest distiller seeking to make the perfect pre-Prohibition-style gin for classic cocktails.
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11: Ken Klehm of 450 North Spirits Loves the Creative Challenge of Distilling an Array of Spirits
July 24th, 2024 | 58 mins 9 secs
agave spirit, brewstillery, distilling, estate corn, fernet, liqueurs, spirits, whiskey
Through his distilling career, Ken Klehm has tackled an array of challenges, like stocking an entire cocktail bar with house-distilled spirits and liqueurs. Now at the helm of the 450 North brewstillery, he’s exploring new opportunities like distilling with estate grain, making American single malt, and more.
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10: Andy Nelson, Cofounder of Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery and Belle Meade Bourbon, on the Life Cycle of a Modern Distillery
July 9th, 2024 | 59 mins 43 secs
bourbon, distillery business, distilling, tennessee, tennessee whiskey, whiskey, whiskey blending
Launching a whiskey distillery is a not for the faint of heart, and balancing the timing, financing, logistics, brand building, quality, creative expression, distillery construction, and legacy has left Andy Nelson feeling as much like a jack-of-all-trades as he feels like a head distiller.
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9: Nicole Austin of George Dickel Takes a Thoughtful and Contextual Approach to Blending Beautiful Whiskies
June 25th, 2024 | 59 mins 15 secs
blending, bourbon, bourbon whiskey, distilling, rye whiskey, tennessee whiskey, whiskey, whiskey blending
There’s no one best way to blend whiskey—but for this award-winning distiller and blender, the key is taking an approach that fits the intended goal.
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8: Clear Creek Master Distiller Caitlin Bartlemay Thrives on the Challenges of Fruit Brandy and American Single Malt
June 12th, 2024 | 1 hr 2 mins
american single malt, brandies, distilling, fruit brandy, fruit fermentation, whole fruit
Distilling fruit brandies from whole fruit is a technical and logistical challenge, but for Caitlin Bartlemay, it’s nowhere near as difficult as educating consumers about the process, ingredients, and history of this storied spirit.
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7: Heaven Hill Master Distiller Conor O'Driscoll is Tackling New Product and Process Challenges in the Biggest Way Possible: Building a New Distillery
May 28th, 2024 | 1 hr 6 mins
american whiskey, bourbon, corn whiskey, rick house, whiskey, whiskey distillate, whiskey fermentation
The seventh master distiller in the history of the storied distillery got his start as a chemical engineer, before finding his way into whiskey. Now, he’s leading the next chapter, as they build and commission the new Heaven Hill Springs distillery, and tackle new processes for making beloved brands.
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6: Andy Garrison of Stone Barn Brandyworks Takes a Value-Added Approach to Distilling Fruits and Vegetables
May 21st, 2024 | 55 mins 35 secs
carrots, distilling, eau de vie, fruit brandy, ramen, schnapps
The self-styled maker of “irrational fever dreams” and “peasant indulgences” shares his principled yet technical approach to making spirits from unusual ingredients like carrots, ramen noodles, and more.
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5: Riley Henderson of FEW Spirits Explores Whiskey’s “Last Frontier”—Fermentation
May 1st, 2024 | 1 hr 5 mins
alternative fermentation, bourbon, distilling, koji, rye whiskey, whiskey
What’s left to do in the world of whiskey? Plenty, if you ask FEW Spirits director of operations Riley Henderson. For him, the secret lies in embracing slower, more flavorful fermentations.
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4: Reade Huddleston of Monster Brewing Shares Perspectives on RTDs, Water Quality, and More
April 17th, 2024 | 54 mins 55 secs
distilling, packaging, rtds, water chemistry, water testing
Through his career, Huddleston has bounced back back and forth in the brewing and distilling worlds, picking up valuable lessons along the way. Here, he shares important perspectives on packaging RTDs for long term stability, understanding the impacts of water chemistry throughout the distilling process, and much more.
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3: Lisa Wicker, Itinerant Distiller, Considers Lessons From Her Past While Looking to the Future
April 2nd, 2024 | 1 hr 2 mins
blending bourbon, blending whiskey, bourbon, corn whiskey, distilling, whiskey
The former president and master distiller for Brooklyn’s Widow Jane took a circuitous route before ending up in distilling, but the lessons in blending, flavor development, and agricultural integration she picked up along the way have informed her approach to distilled spirits to this day.