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You can watch the video version of this episode on YouTube.

In this episode, we sat down with Mike Gilmore, founder of Roaming Road Spirits, to go behind the scenes at one of the newest independent rum bottlers in the U.S.

Roaming Road first got on our radar last year when they came out of the gate hot with an impressive slate of initial rum releases that included a memorable <>H Hampden rum, among others. With Roaming Road's second wave of releases now out (which we tasted through on a recent bonus episode), we figured now was the right time to get their full story.

We chatted with Mike about:

His journey from liquor store owner to rum bottler

Why he thinks store barrel picks have gotten worse in recent years

Why he travels thousands of miles to sample casks in person (rather than receiving samples by mail)

His tasting process

What he looks for in a great rum

How he ended up bottling a 17-year-old rum from Spain (and details on where it came from)

The impact of cask finishes

And much more!

You can learn more about Roaming Road on their website.

This episode was sponsored by the Key West Rum Fest. You can get more info on their website.