Barrel Room Chronicles

Whiskey pioneers, Jack & Stephen Teeling are co-founders of Teeling Irish Whiskey. The brothers are committed to Irish whiskey innovation and have dedicated his career to breaking the mold and bringing innovation to the world of Irish whiskey. In their conversation with Kerry Moynahan, the brothers discusses the origins of Teeling Whiskey, the brand's mission to expand the possibilities within the Irish whiskey category, and the creative process behind their unique expressions. With an unwavering commitment to innovation, their vision has led to the creation of a diverse range of whiskeys that cater to enthusiasts seeking distinctive flavors. Don't miss this opportunity to learn from Jack & Stephen's expertise and passion for whiskey innovation!

On this edition of BRC I meet Jeff Mueller, a whiskey aficionado and the creative genius behind the Scotchy Bourbon Boys podcast. Jeff's background in commercial art and management provided the perfect foundation for his transition into the world of whiskey. His passion for creativity and unique artwork, coupled with an initial love for rum, led Jeff to dive deep into the world of whiskey. As part of the Scotchy Bourbon Boys, Jeff shares his whiskey journey, tastings, and engaging discussions with fellow enthusiasts on their podcast.

On this edition of Barrel Room Chronicles, I tour Clonakilty distillery with Founder Michael Scully and taste through their core expressions. Then later in the show I speak with master distiller Oisin Mulcahy about his whiskey journey.  Then lastly, I catch up with Co-founder Sean Scully and talk about their new distribution partner for the US.  

In this episode of BRC...I speak Global Brand Ambassador, Woody Kane about The Busker Irish Whiskey. Plus he takes me on of the Royal Oak Distillery before tasting through the Busker’s core expressions.

The Busker includes all four types of Irish whiskeys (Single Grain, Single Pot Still, Single Malt and Blend). The Busker Triple Cask Triple Smooth is a blend combining the Single Grain with a high percentage of the Single Malt and Single Pot whiskeys. Matured and finished in three different casks (bourbon, sherry, marsala), this whiskey brings three different notes of smoothness. The Busker Single Collection, represented by the three traditional Irish Whiskeys (Single Grain, Single Pot Still and Single Malt), is produced under one roof at the world-class Royal Oak Distillery, one of the country’s largest distilleries proudly located on an 18th century estate in the Ancient East region of County Carlow.

About The Busker

The Busker is an Irish Whiskey that is born out of a modern Ireland, where the contemporary and bold meet at the crossroads of tradition. The Busker is produced at the Royal Oak Distillery, in County Carlow, Ireland, located on an 18th century estate in Ireland's Ancient East region. It is the only distillery in Ireland which offers all three classic Irish styles of whiskey - Single Grain, Single Malt & Single Pot Still, which make The Busker Single Collection. The Busker portfolio also includes The Busker Blend which is a beautiful blend of The Single Collection. The Busker uses different casks during the maturation process of their whiskeys including Bourbon casks, Sherry casks and Marsala casks.

When Master Distiller Graham Coull and his team set out to bring the Dingle Bash festival to life, they had no idea that it would become so much more than just a celebration of fine whiskey. But as laughter and cheers filled the air, they realized they had achieved something extraordinary - something that would leave a lasting impression on all who experienced it. What could be the unexpected twist in this story? Interviews include Dingle's Master Distiller, Graham Coull, his wife Fay, Steven O'Carroll and Hunter Leese from Hotaling & Co.

On this last episode of the season, we introduce our new Whiskey Business segment where I report on new releases and other current events in the world of whiskey. Then in our Tales from the Still segment, I speak with Ryan Friesen about how he got in to distilling and how that took him from the Midwest, then down to Southern California before crossing the pond.

On this episode of the Barrel Room Chronicles I speak with Alex Conyngham, Earl of MountCharles about the Slane Irish whiskey and the estate it made on.  

For full show notes on this episode please visit BarrelRoomChronicles.com

This being Christmas week, I chose a very special guest to talk to in our Tales from the Still segment. Paul Tuell of Ballotin Chocolate Whiskey, joins me to go over his festive flavored portfolio. Then later in the show we hear from Chef Louise Leonard about what she cooks up with one of Paul’s expressions. Lastly, I’ll share what holiday teat I came up with using Ballotin.

Notes from Chef Louise - Ballotin Chocolate Toffee
I used the Ballotin Chocolate toffee whiskey in a homemade chocolate sauce for ice cream. Made a sundae with fresh cherries soaked in the whiskey as well!

Kerry's Coco made with Ballotin's Original Chocolate Whiskey Swirl chocolate sauce inside a mug, add 1 oz of the chocolate whiskey, 1 cup of steamed milk and top with whip-cream and a cinnamon stick.

This week on Barrel Room Chronicles, I speak with Adrian Covert about his book Taverns of The American Revolution and will find out about some very interesting history including how the term “Bar” came to be.  Then later in the show we’ll see what new releases are hitting the market.

On this episode of Barrel Room Chronicles, I speak with Lia Niskanen, founder of Barrel Strength Talent about how her whiskey journey inspired her to start her own company. Then later in the show I’ll speak with Teeling’s Master Distiller Alex Chasko about his new wonders of wood series in whiskey whereabouts.

This week on Barrel Room Chronicles, I speak with Jesse Parker about his spirits journey and how it led him to becoming the master blender at Doc Swinson’s Whiskey. Then in World of Weezy, Chef Louise Leonard talks about Dorothy Parker and pineapple juicing hacks.  

This week on a special whiskey Wednesday edition of Barrel Room Chronicles, I speak with Jonathan Egan about his family’s Irish Whiskey legacy. Next, in our World of Weezy segment, we learn all about plums? Then later in the show I’ll speak with returning guest Director / producer Greg Swartz about the latest news on his whiskey documentary, The Water of life in this week’s Whiskey Whereabouts.

This week on Barrel Room Chronicles I discover The Bitter Housewife and chat with Co-founder Genevieve Brazelton about her award-winning, all-natural cocktail bitters and ready-to-drink beverages. Then later in the show I catch up with my old friend Andy Smith, founder of The Scotch Club and discuss the history and growth of its chapters.

In this episode of Barrel Room Chronicles, I speak with Kirsty Black and Lauren Oliver of Arbikie Highland Distillery about the Scottish Highland’s 1st commercial Rye whiskey in over 100 years AND the opening of their new visitor’s experience center. Then later in the show Chef Louise Leonard joins me to talk Patty Melts in today’s World of Weezy.

In this episode of Barrel Room Chronicles, I speak with silicon valley engineers and Bespoken Spirits founders Stu Aaron and Martin Janousek.  We chat about their proprietary ACTivation technology which completed spirit maturation in only 3 days. Plus, Chef Louise Leonard tells me about a cookie recipe that might surprise you.

On this episode of Barrel Room Chronicles I speak with John Ralph about his Double Gold award winning Poitin, and the history of the Irish Spirit. Then later in the show I speak with Chef Louise Leonard, about a redheaded Mary.

About Mad March Hare: 

First distilled by monks (God bless you lads), the Irish enjoyed their  poitín for a thousand years before it was banned by the Brits in 1661.  But we’re resilient feckers and poitín never really went away.

It  remained part of Irish drinking culture and was given names like Cratur, Mountain Dew, Mountain Tea and Devil’s Spittle. And you always  knew a man, who knew a man, that could get you a bottle. Now legal  again, poitín can be found on backbars all across Ireland, instead of  under the counter.

At Mad March Hare, we use only the finest,  locally sourced malted barley and distill three times in small copper  pot stills in the traditional way. We then cut the spirit with Irish  spring water to 40% ABV resulting in a drink that is full of character  and exceptionally smooth. Sláinte!

On this episode of Barrel Room Chronicles I speak with Steve Akley, founder of the ABV network about his whiskey journey and how his hobby grew into the network he has today. Then later in the show I speak with Bob White, founder of Kentucky Guides LLC, on how he went from local newspaper reporter to small business tour guide and entrepreneur.

Guest Bios

Steve Akley is the owner of the ABV Network, LLC. We are a bourbon media company that got started in 2016. Our mission is to provide quality content via podcasts and live events for our fans that is both fun and educational. We plan to deliver on this goal by always looking at what we are doing via the approach we had before we ever got into this business... as fans of the products, people, companies and industries we are talking about. As long as we continue to provide the type of fun, educational, entertainment that we were seeking to hear ourselves before we got on the air, it is the belief of our team that we will always exceed your expectations.

Bob White is a native Kentuckian who joined the Bourbon boom in 2011, after a decade reporting small town news in Central Kentucky. That prior experience continues to offer him, and his guests, meaningful background information to best tell the story of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey-making in the Bluegrass State. A planner, guide and commercially-licensed driver, Bob founded Kentucky Guides, LLC with a mission to take bourbon enthusiasts deeper into the science, history and geography behind America’s Native Spirit. Having contracted as a guide for tour operators for years, Bob knew visitors hungered to learn more about this barrel-aged, corn-based whiskey than what a bus driver and basic distillery tour guide has to offer. Launching his micro-tour operation in the beginnings of the Covid-19 pandemic was suitable, since a tour with Kentucky Guides LLC doesn’t rely on gift shops and distilleries to remain open in order to conduct a full-weekend bourbon tour. With love for his home state’s budding tourism industry, Bob received a Governor’s Commission as a Kentucky Colonel following his recognition by Louisville’s Tourism and Convention Commission as an important conductor ‘‘Behind the Scenes.” Being a Kentucky Colonel doesn’t relate to the military, but Bob served in the US Navy right after high school, working in ships‘ engineering departments between 1991-1993. Bob loves showing visitors to his home the best Kentucky has to offer. Like Daniel Boone said, Bob believes ‘‘Heaven must be a Kentucky kind of place.’’  And he’s doing what he truly loves. ‘‘Whether I die tonight, or win the lottery in the morning, I’ll still be guiding tours around Kentucky,’’ he says.

In this episode of Barrel Room Chronicles you’ll get a glimpse of 291 Colorado Distillery when I speak to Michael Myers in Tales from the Still. 291 Colorado Whiskey is a uniquely American story – honoring the Western whiskey of a bygone era, 291 is the passion project of a former New York City fashion photographer and was first created in a small basement from a one-of-a-kind still constructed from old copper photographic plates. 291 is made the Colorado Way®, grain to barrel to bottle, and the distillery’s whiskeys are finished with toasted staves of Colorado aspen trees. 291 has been earning awards and recognition since its first runs off the still in 2011.  Also in this episode I speak with Chef Louise Leonard..... about fly fishing?

On this episode of Barrel Room Chronicles, you’ll get a behind the scenes look at Mrs. Robinson’s Irish Pub in Toluca Lake California in today’s Tavern Talk. I’ll catch up with owner Brett Robinson and talk about how he became the proprietor of the pub and how he has weathered the pandemic. But first, I’ll chat with whiskey filmmaker Bo Cumberland in Tales from the Still.

Bo Cumberland is a video editor/independent filmmaker with over fifteen years of video editing experience, ten of those years focusing on moonshine/bourbon. He specializes in telling the deeper, more personal stories associated with moonshine and bourbon. Bo is well versed in all aspects of video and audio production and works hard to make sure that everything he does is the best that it can be. Bo is inspired daily by his wife and family. In his free time, he is usually touring his new home state of Kentucky with them.

Brett Robinson - After over 25 years in the entertainment business, bought the local Pub and transitioned into the restaurant/bar business. He now owns and operates Mrs. Robinson’s Irish Pub in Toluca Lake California.

On this week's episode of Barrel Room Chronicles, I visit Frey Ranch in Fallen NV. So if you are watching this on www.BarrelRoomChronicles.com, YouTube or Spotify, you are in for a treat! After our in person interview, Colby takes us on a private tour of the distillery and later in the show Chef Louise Leonard dishes out some good cooking ideas with the Frey's Single Grain Oat Whiskey!

On this premiere episode of Barrel Room Chronicles, Bernard Walsh shares  his whiskey journey, while tasting through several expressions from his brand, Writers Tears.  Bernard also talks about his involvement with  Left Bank, a documentary about four remarkable women who made the first publication of Ulysses (by author James Joyce) possible in 1922—and  lastly, he tells us about the recent acquisition of the Walsh Whiskey company by the Amber Beverage Group.

This week's guests on Spirits of Whisk(e)y are Christopher Pellegrini and Stephen Lyman, founders of Honkaku Spirits, US importer of a rapidly expanding portfolio of Japanese spirits, including koji whiskey and a wide range of shochus. Listen and learn how Christopher, a university lecturer turned certified sake and awamori expert, and Stephen, a clinical epidemioligist and medical educator, went from indulging a passion for Japanese libations to pinning their professional future on building a global market for them.

Honkaku Spirits: Founded in 2020 in the midst of a global public health crisis, Honkaku Spirits is the first portfolio devoted exclusively to koji-fermented spirits including honkaku (authentic) shochu, Ryukyu Awamori from Okinawa, and koji whiskey from Japan. Working exclusively with family-run distilleries, Honkaku Spirits is devoted to introducing the best traditional Japanese spirits to America. The company is led by Christopher Pellegrini, author of The Shochu Handbook, the first English language book about Japan’s indigenous spirits, and supported by ambassador Stephen Lyman, author of the James Beard Award nominated Complete Guide to Japanese Drinks. Bruce Gearhart – formerly president of Bacchus Importers, one of the premier fine wine and craft spirits distributors based in the mid-Atlantic – is the Managing Director.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Louise Mc Guane, Founder of J.J. Corry Irish Whiskey and Ireland's first modern whiskey bonder. Listen and learn how this daughter of Irish agriculture enjoyed a career promoting a global portfolio of spirits with the likes of Diageo, Pernod Ricard, and Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton before returning to the family farm to revive the generations-old practice of blending and maturing select whiskeys from across the Emerald Isle.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Mark Reynier, Founder of Waterford Whisky in Waterford, Ireland, the Emerald Isle's oldest city, as well as Renegade Rum Distillery on the tiny Caribbean island nation of Grenada. Listen and learn how this former wine merchant went from resurrecting Islay's long-shuttered Bruichladdich Distillery and helping to revive the tradition of Scottish gin making by introducing The Botanist to converting a former Guinness brewery into Waterford Distillery, makers of more than 35(!) single malt—and single farm—whiskies.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Paul John, Chairman of John  Distilleries in Goa, India, makers of Paul John Indian Single Malts,  some of the world's finest and most award-winning whiskies. Listen and  learn how the company, founded in 1996, grew from an idea to a leading  spirits manufacturer in less than a decade—not just in India, but across  the globe—introducing its first single malt whiskies, to worldwide  acclaim, in 2012.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Harris Cooper, PhD, Professor of Psychology & Neuroscience, Emeritus, at Duke University and author of American History Through a Whiskey Glass. Listen and learn how Dr. Cooper, the editor and author of numerous social science textbooks and an avid student of American history, went from hosting whiskey and music pairing dinners with his wife to becoming an Executive Bourbon Steward and penning an engaging and whimsical book that colorfully illustrates how distilled spirits, domestic cuisine, and popular music shaped a nation.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Matthew Cordiner, Global Brand Ambassador for Single Malts at Scotland's John Dewar & Sons. While this Speyside native grew up in the village of Craigellachie, home to one of the single malt whiskies in his charge, it was a chance summer position as a distillery tour guide that opened his eyes to the possibility of a career in promoting the water of life. Hear Matthew wax both poetic and technical over Aberfeldy and Craigellachie, but two of the five single malts he now represents worldwide.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Joe Beatrice, Founder of Louisville, Kentucky's Barrell Craft Spirits and his newest project, Stellum Spirits. After a successful career in advertising, founding and leading Blue Dingo Digital in the 1990s, the Boston native and New York technology and marketing entrepreneur turned his talents to whiskey and rum, launching Barrell Craft in 2013. Hear Joe, the driving force behind Stellum Spirits, discuss the brand's initial blends, Stellum Bourbon and Stellum Rye, both released in 2021, and how they point to what he believes is the future of American whiskey.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Dave Beck, a 3D digital, game, and new media artist. He's also a professor of game design at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, in Menomonie, Wisconsin. All very exciting stuff, but just why are we featuring him and his work in this space? Well, he created Distilled, a board game of spirited strategy based on his sabbatical research in—where else?—Scotland!

This week's guests on Spirits of Whisk(e)y are the powerhouse trio who quite literally run, distill, and blend Penderyn, the first whisky made in Wales in over 100 years. Listen and learn how CEO Stephen Davies, Distillery Manager Laura Davies, and Master Blender Aista Phillips followed unlikely career paths to producing award-winning single malt whiskies and other spirits at the Welsh Whisky Company and its Penderyn Distillery, in the foothills of the magnificent Brecon Beacons in South Wales. Then hear Chef Louise Leonard talk Welsh culture and cocktails with Rhino Williams, the Wales-born master bartender and owner of Lost Property Bar in Hollywood, California.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Kaitlyn Tsai, Global PR Officer at Taiwan's Kavalan Distillery, recognized by the spirits press as maker of multiple best-in-class whiskies, including the celebrated Vinho Barrique. Listen and learn how Kaitlyn went from a successful career in film production to representing Taiwanese whisky before a global audience, in the process being named Icons of Whisky's 2021 "World Whisky Brand Ambassador." Then hear Chef Louise Leonard wax delicious over pairing Kavalan Classic with Pork Belly Bao—a match made in culinary heaven!

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Donal O'Gallachoir, Co-Owner & US National Brand Manager at Ireland's Glendalough Distillery, in County Wicklow, just south of Dublin. Founded by five friends, including Donal, with a mutual love of Irish whiskey and Irish lore, the distillery is located in a narrow glacial valley—"Glendalough" is Irish for "the valley of two lakes"—in the Wicklow Mountains, the historical and spiritual home of the legendary St. Kevin, whose image graces each and every bottle of award-winning whiskey, gin, and poitín it produces. After the interview, let your taste buds run wild as Chef Louise Leonard discusses pairing Glendalough's Seven-Year Single Malt finished in Porter casks with a whiskey- and beer-fortified Venison Hunter's Stew topped with a Sorrel Chimichurri. St. Kevin approved!

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Seth Benhaim, Founder & CEO of L.A.'s Infuse Spirits, makers of Broken Barrel Whiskey. Listen and learn how this inveterate entrepreneur went from infusing premium vodka with fresh and dried whole fruit to creating a range of whiskeys that employ broken barrel staves in an oak bill unique to each expression. Plus we catch up on what's new with past guest Matt Hofmann, Master Distiller at Seattle's Westland Distillery, in the first edition of "Whiskey Whereabouts." Then savor Chef Louise Leonard's suggestions for pairing Broken Barrel's Fen Walker, a blend of American whiskeys finished in peated Islay cask and Spanish sherry staves, with Salted Dark Chocolate Bread Pudding topped with Dried Cherries and Whiskey Whipped Cream. Yum! 

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Daniel Szor, Founder & CEO of The Cotswold Distilling Company, operators of Cotswolds Distillery in Shipston-on-Stour, a small town in Warwickshire, England. Listen and learn how this native New Yorker went from managing currency investments in Paris and London to making exceptional English single malt whiskies, as well as a range of distinctive gins, in the British Midlands. You can even read about his story in Daniel's 2020 autobiography, Spirit Guide: In Search of an Authentic Life. Then work up an appetite with Chef Louise Leonard's suggestions for pairing Cotswolds Dry Gin with Homemade Potato Chips, Lavender-Citrus Crème Fraîche, and Caviar. Enjoy!

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Dr. Don Livermore, Master Blender at Hiram Walker & Sons Limited. Located in Windsor, Ontario, just across the Detroit River from Motor City, the historic Hiram Walker & Sons Distillery is Canada's oldest—and North America's largest!—and home to a vast range of spirits and brands, including a distinguished quartet of Canadian whiskies: J.P. Wiser's, Lot No. 40, Pike Creek, and Gooderham & Worts. Listen and learn how "Dr. Don," who this year celebrates his silver anniversary at Hiram Walker, parlayed deep agricultural roots and a knack for science into a quarter-century of innovation and dedication to advancing the craft of Canadian whisky. Then delight to Chef Louise Leonard's suggestions for pairing Hiram Walker's rum barrel-finished Pike Creek 10-Year Canadian Whisky with her take on the classic Puerto Rican Mofongo, featuring fried chicken skin, charred pineapple, and pickled habañero onions.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Rob Arnold, Master Distiller at Firestone & Robertson Distilling Co., in Fort Worth, Texas, makers of TX Whiskey. Fort Worth, aka Cowtown, was at one time home to the world's largest horse and mule market. Now, however, thanks to the pioneering work of this third-generation whiskey professional and bona fide Renaissance man, it's a center of whiskey innovation. Listen and learn how the author of Shots of Knowledge: The Science of Whiskey (2016) and The Terroir of Whiskey: A Distiller's Journey into the Flavor of Place (2021) left his native Louisville to blaze his own whiskey trail, in the process earning a PhD in plant breeding and genetics at Texas A&M University. Then whet your appetite with Chef Louise Leonard's suggestions for pairing TX Pedro Ximénez sherry cask-finished Straight Bourbon with an exquisite Spanish flan, featuring flambéed apricots, cherries, and plums. This decadent dessert, which picks up the bourbon's caramel and candied nut notes, makes for a perfect after-dinner treat.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Robin Robinson, author of The Complete Whiskey Course: A Comprehensive Tasting School in Ten Classes. This veteran of the spirits sector has led a full and colorful life in whiskey, traveling the globe as both brand ambassador—Compass Box, anyone?—and whiskey educator, and now he's compiled that expertise and that experience into one handy and remarkably thorough tome. Listen and learn how Robin went from trodding the boards—because he's an actor, of course!—to translating his deep whiskey knowledge for the layman in great and lively detail. Then hear the very first installment of Club Corner, a new segment that spotlights the exceptional individuals who run the world's whiskey clubs, producing events that showcase whiskey's globality and stylistic diversity. First up? David Donahue and Vadim Perlovskiy of The Los Angeles Whisk(e)y & Spirits Guild. 

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is Lisa Roper Wicker, President, Head Distiller, and Blender at Widow Jane Distillery. Located in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, Widow Jane, in addition to making and laying down its own distillates, affectionately named "Baby Janes," sources and blends straight bourbon and rye whiskeys from Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee, and then proofs them with limestone mineral water from New York's Hudson River Valley, home of the historic Widow Jane Mine. Listen and learn how Lisa, a native of Bloomington, Indiana, went from winemaking in America's heartland to whiskey making in the center of the hipster universe. Then here Chef Louise Leonard, for whom Brooklyn figures bigly in her whiskey journey, mix Widow Jane's American Oak-aged Straight Rye Whiskey with Pickett's Ginger Beer Syrup, another Brooklyn product, this one made by her good friends, the Pickett Brothers. The result? A Brooklyn Mule. And yes, it's got a kick! 

This week's guests on Spirits of Whisk(e)y are Woody Kane and Chris McGowan, Global Ambassador and Director of Marketing, respectively, at The Busker Irish Whiskey. Distilled in County Carlow by Royal Oak Distillery, The Busker is a "new to world" Irish whiskey, designed to demonstrate Ireland's three signature styles of whiskey—Single Grain, Single Malt, and Single Pot Still—and leverage its relationship with Disaronno International through its Triple Cask Triple Smooth expression, aged, in part, in Sicilian ex-Marsala casks. Listen and learn how Woody and Chris channeled a way with people and storytelling into a life of evangelizing the world's whiskey drinkers. Then hear Chef Louise Leonard's suggestions for pairing The Busker's Triple Cask Triple Smooth with Irish Soda Bread French Toast, accompanied by Fresh Fruit and Hard Cream. Sláinte!

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is David DeFazio, Founder of Wyoming Whiskey. Located in Kirby, a four-hour drive east of Jackson Hole, Wyoming Whiskey produces a range of outstanding whiskeys, including Double Cask—a straight bourbon finished in Pedro Ximénez sherry casks—and Outryder, a rye-forward, bottled-in-bond, straight American whiskey that's neither rye nor bourbon. Listen and learn how David, an attorney and native of upstate New York, turned a passion for whiskey into a life in whiskey. Then hear how Wyoming Whiskey's Private Stock Straight Bourbon left Chef Louise "Weezy" Leonard craving a bison burger smothered in a mild, gooey cheese, something like a Havarti, with caramelized onions to bring out the sweetness of the spirit, drunken sautéed mushrooms, a few sprigs of arugula for a peppery bite, and a nice grainy mustard.

Spirits of Whisk(e)y explores the wide world of whiskey through high-profile and out-of-the-way makers, blenders, writers, ambassadors, innovators, and pioneers. And Kerry & Philip have been traveling the world virtually to bring these people—and their whiskey journeys—to you. As season one of our podcast approaches its finale, we realize just how many great stories we've put aside to share with you at a later date—and that date is here! Beginning in March, Spirits of Whisk(e)y is offering access to its new VIP Content page to loyal listeners and whiskey lovers who want more. And when it comes to whiskey, who doesn't want more?!

The VIP Lounge opens with The Malting Floor, a new series filled with fantastic audio footage that ended up on the cutting room floor—or in our case, the malting floor. Grand Opening episodes include a chat with Nicole Austin about sour mash, charcoal mellowing, the George Dickel apprentice program, and the hidden meaning behind the numbers 1, 8, and 12. Also available to members is our talk with Fawn Weaver about how she became her own undercover boss, how her ladies-who-lunch date turned into an adventure with private investigators, and death row—plus we learn the true identities of Chick and Rabbit. And deleted content from this week's episode with WhiskyCast's Mark Gillespie also makes its debut on The Malting Floor.

But wait, there's more! The grand opening of our VIP Lounge will also feature three videos of related content, including Kerry's first ever taste of whiskey wash (which we talked about with Laphroaig's Simon Brooking way back on Episode 1), a lost interview from 2015 when Kerry interviewed Jill Kuehler (interviewed with distiller Molly Troupe in Episode 8) when she was just opening Portland's Freeland Spirits, and a sample of Chef Louise Leonard'sCheese Blintzes with Sour Cherry Flambé from Episode 16. And this is just the beginning. We have lots more extra content in store for members of the VIP Lounge.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is distilling legend Gregg Snyder, CEO of Distilled Spirits Consulting. Enjoy colorful tales of a spirited career—including stints at Beam, Brown-Forman, Seagram, White Rock, and Wild Turkey—and learn how the honorary Kentucky Colonel is resurrecting Chicken Cock Whiskey, "The Famous Old Brand" served during Prohibition at Harlem's The Cotton Club.

This week's guest on Spirits of Whisk(e)y is David Blackmore, Global Master Ambassador at Glenmorangie and Ardbeg. Listen as the Edinburgh native shares his colorful whiskey journey, plus enjoy some lively cocktail talk and learn how to pair food with two of Scotland's more storied single malt whiskies.

This week's guest is Becky Harris, President & Chief Distiller at Catoctin Creek Distilling Company in Virginia, the birthplace of American whiskey. Catoctin Creek, producers of multiple expressions of Roundstone Rye—Virginia's most-awarded whiskey—plus an organic rye gin and a collection of limited-release brandies distilled from locally-sourced fruit, was founded by Becky and husband Scott Harris in 2009 and is the first legal distillery in Loudoun County since before Prohibition.