Spirits & Distilling Podcast

Make and drink great spirits.

About the show

Enjoy and learn from conversations with leading distillers as co-hosts Sydney Jones, head distiller for FEW Spirits in Chicago, and Molly Troupe, master distiller for Freeland Spirits in Portland, Oregon, explore the technical and creative processes behind award-winning and storied spirits. It’s a podcast by distillers, for distillers, that covers the broad world of finely crafted spirits—botanical and herbal spirits, fruit distillations, agave spirits, grain spirits, and more. Listen as the hosts discuss every aspect of the process, from ideation and ingredient selection through conversion and fermentation, distilling, aging, finishing, proofing, and packaging. Subscribe to this bi-weekly podcast for tips and techniques that will help you make better spirits.

Episodes

  • 47: Steven Grasse Connects the Dots from Wild Ideas to Realistic Strategies for Selling Spirits

    December 9th, 2025  |  54 mins 20 secs
    distilling, gin, rum spirits brands

    The creative force behind brands such as Sailor Jerry and Hendrick’s and the founder of New Hampshire’s Tamworth Distilling talks about originality, differentiation, and what today’s distillers need to know to survive and succeed in a saturated market.

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    46: Owen Martin of Angel’s Envy Applies Strategies from Scotch to Signature Kentucky Bourbon

    November 25th, 2025  |  59 mins 20 secs
    bourbon, distilling, innovation, scotch, whiskey, whiskey blending, whisky

    How do finishing casks impact bourbon flavor development in a way that enhances rather than distracts? Angel’s Envy master distiller Owen Martin shares his approach to consistency and refinement without sacrificing bold presence.

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    45: John Angus Explores the Science and Chemistry of Spirits Flavor

    November 11th, 2025  |  47 mins
    aroma, chemistry, distilling, flavor, science

    John Angus approaches the mechanics of flavor creation in spirits through the lens of a chemist but with the soul of an educator, breaking down complex processes and cutting-edge science in practical ways that spirits makers can use and drinkers can understand.

  • 44: Dave Smith of St. George Spirits Captures Sense Memories in a Bottle

    October 28th, 2025  |  1 hr 23 mins
    distilling, gin, shochu, umeshu, whiskey

    Recreating the distinct aromas and flavors that evoke particular places, times, and experiences is a focus that transcends spirit style for this California distiller.

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    43: Anne Brock of Bombay Sapphire Is Bullish on the Future of Gin

    October 14th, 2025  |  51 mins 48 secs
    botanicals, distilling, gin

    As master distiller at Bombay Sapphire, Anne Brock combines creative interest in botanicals with the scientific approach of an organic chemist, testing various ingredients and distillation methods while prizing consistency of flavor.

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    42: Alex Castle of Augusta Distillery Embraces New Challenges in Old Bourbon

    September 30th, 2025  |  58 mins 10 secs
    aged bourbon, bourbon, distillery build-out, distilling, sourced bourbon, whiskey

    From distillery build-outs in historic buildings to process concerns with calcium-rich water and building a flavor through-line in sourced-bourbon releases, Castle shares lessons learned over 15 years of distilling in Kentucky and Tennessee.

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    41: John D.E. Jeffery Wants You to Balance Science and Intuition When Crafting Spirits

    September 17th, 2025  |  54 mins 47 secs
    distilling, distilling science, intuition, nalewka, whiskey

    As a journeyman master distiller and now a consultant, Johnny Jeffery has left his mark on American craft spirits and learned from unusual experiences along the way. Here, he shares some of his best advice for craft distillers trying to succeed today.

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    40: Joe O’Sullivan of Minden Mill Controls the Variables in Dry-Climate Whiskey Maturation

    September 2nd, 2025  |  1 hr 3 mins
    american single malt, blending, bourbon, distilling, estate grain, nevada, rye, whiskey

    With estate grain and a climate-controlled rickhouse, Minden Mill’s team is exploring the impact of terroir on their spirits while taking a slow, measured approach to predicting how the environment impacts their maturation and flavor-focused blends.

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    39: Jarrad Huckshold of The Cask Takes a Winemaker’s Approach to Whiskey Maturation and Blending

    August 19th, 2025  |  1 hr 29 secs
    australian whisky, blending whiskey, whiskey, whisky, wine cask aging

    Understanding the dynamic way casks interact with the liquid inside and the environment around them is key to producing the components of a great whiskey blend.

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    38: Jonathan Goldberg of Black Velvet Seeks Harmony through Thoughtful Blending

    August 5th, 2025  |  57 mins 4 secs
    blending, continuous still, cooperage, distilling, dynamic blends, pre-blending

    The master distiller for Alberta, Canada’s Black Velvet embraces the challenge of blending dynamically different distillates into a cohesive whole, with a process focused on consistency, quality, and repeatability.

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    37: Staying Sane and Happy in the Spirits Industry—a Panel Discussion with Maggie Campbell and Jennifer Wren

    July 22nd, 2025  |  1 hr 13 mins
    burnout, distilling, networking, setting boundaries, toxic productivity, work

    Get your bugout bag ready! In this special episode, co-hosts Molly Troupe and Sydney Jones reunite to swap advice with American Cane CEO Maggie Campbell and Jennifer Wren, an industry veteran who now specializes in coaching women on professional development.

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    36: Todd Leopold Designs and Distills Spirits that Have Something to Say

    July 9th, 2025  |  1 hr 24 mins
    brandy, chamber still, distilling, fruit brandy, maryland rye, rye, still, stills, vinegar

    Todd Leopold of Leopold Bros in Denver is part historian, part tinkerer, part creative muse, and part sounding board for the broader craft-distilling world—and his multi-stream approach to experimentation in the service of flavor over style is more relevant than ever.

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    35: American Cane Tells Expressive Stories in Regionally Relevant Rum

    June 24th, 2025  |  53 mins 13 secs
    american rum, distilling, rum

    Great rum is a magical thing, and when all the elements come together—ingredients, culture, fermentation, maturation, and story—there are few spirits that can match its joie de vivre. Today, Maggie Campbell and Chaz Vest are aligning these forces of flavor to cast light on rum’s legacy in America, and telling that story through American Cane.

  • 34: Brent Looby of Desert Door Summons the Spirit of Sotol

    June 10th, 2025  |  1 hr 4 mins
    agave, austin, distilling, sotol, spirits, tequila, texas

    Agave may get the lion’s share of distillers’ love, but it’s far from the only game in town when it comes to distilled Mexican and Southwestern spirits. Desert Door, on the outskirts of Austin, is out to show the beauty and range in sotol—made from the desert spoon plant and sustainably harvested from wild plants.

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    33: Stranahan’s Tyler Glasser Distills with Artful Efficiency

    May 27th, 2025  |  55 mins 13 secs
    demand planning, distilling, forecasting, planning, procurement, single malt, whiskey

    The journey from art student to distiller may strike some as unusual, but for the plant operations administrator at Denver’s Stranahan’s, creativity matched with effective and disciplined execution is the key to successful spirits.

  • 32: Aged Whiskeys and Citrus-Flavored Spirits Heat up for St. Augustine Distillery and City Gate Spirits

    May 13th, 2025  |  1 hr 2 mins
    bourbon, distilling, florida, macerated spirits, moonshine, whiskey

    Distilling in Florida’s hot and humid environment, and producing spirits specifically tuned for cocktails in a tourism-driven locale—those are the major guideposts for the creative direction of these sibling distilleries, as well as for their methods of barrel aging and adding flavor.