Botanical Trails

For our latest episode, my guests are affectionately known as “The Outlaws” - Beth Jester, Andy King and Alyssa Jester.  They are also my cousin-in-laws.  And in this episode, we try a couple of gins that I picked up while visiting my cousins in South Carolina.  And as we try these new gins, we talk about the annual documentation of showing who married up, nicknames that we might be able to use for Alyssa, how to avoid conversations at work, and drugs we never tried.

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

My cousin Todd joins us as we try two gins from Detroit, the Arsenal of Democracy as it was known during the Second World War.  While sipping the gins, we talk about the Detroit Lions and their new uniforms, how Todd is related to those who resemble Aaron Rodgers and John Elway, his podcast - “Saturday at Seven”, and we go through our final rounds of gin trivia.

Come for the gin, and stick around to hear how Todd teaches us how to make smoked ice 🎙

Cheers!!

This episode can be found at: https://botanicaltrails.buzzsprout.com, as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music and other platforms.

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

My cousin-in-law Adam joins us as we try two gins from far away places.  During our enjoyment of the gins, we chat about Adam’s love of Disney, whether or not Goofy is a dog, my first exposure to Mr. Bill on Saturday Night Live, a trip to Alaska, and Adam’s experience of being a pilot.  We also follow up on a question about Daffy, the Goddess of Gin.

Come for the gin, and stick around to hear how Adam subtly sneaks in two topics for Off The Beaten Path 🎙

Cheers!!

This episode can be found at: https://botanicaltrails.buzzsprout.com, as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music and other platforms.

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

Drew joins us again to try two French gins as we conclude the Rhine River Chronicles.  While enjoying these gins and putting a wrap on this three-part series, Drew and I discuss if I can actually taste lavender, how he went to Euro Disney at perhaps not the greatest time, why there are pumpkins in Slovenia, his fear and basic avoidance of deep water and nostalgia for some of our favorite comedy movies.

Come for the gin, and stick around to hear his interesting Off The Beaten Path topic 🎙️

Cheers!!

This episode can be found at: https://botanicaltrails.buzzsprout.com, as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music and other platforms.

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

We are incredibly excited to kick off season 2 with a very special guest - my Mom, aka “Maki”.  In the kickoff episode to the season, we pick back up with the Rhine River Chronicles, and in this second installment of the series we try a pair of Dutch Gins.  As we give these two gins a try, we chat about our river cruise this past fall, my mom’s favorite international trip, and I share an old family favorite for my Off The Beaten Path selection.

Come for the gin, and stick around to learn the origin of the phrase “Dutch Courage" 🎙️

Cheers!!

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

In a holiday themed episode, the lovely ladies of Toe Squished Grapes are back to help me put a bow on the first season.  Kelly brings two wines for us to try and has the patience of a saint while dealing with the snarky comments from the peanut gallery.  She also utilizes her bible - “Wine for Normal People” to teach us a bit more about the regions these two wines come from.  As we enjoy the wines, Molly leads our discussion around holiday gift ideas, Christmas traditions, and her love of rabbits.  And it ends up that Kelly loves rabbits as well, but in a slightly different way.

Come for the wine, and stick around to hear the three holiday themed selections for Off The Beaten Path  🎙️🍷🍷🍷 🎄

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

What do you get when you combine a former intern, an AI questionnaire and the Pink Panther?  You end up with episode 21 with Jamie Belt as our guest.  During the episode we sample two blue gin and discuss how robots are now screening your resume, the proper way to prepare a pop-tart, and how seeking a large coffee in Europe might be a search in vain.

Come for the gin, and stick around to hear if Malibu Barbie is the best name to give your daughter 🎙️🍸🍸

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

Episode 20 is the first of our Rhine River Chronicle series, which is a three part series that will stretch into the beginning of season 2.  On this episode, our old friend Brian Place joins us again as we try two gins from Germany that I picked up on a recent river cruise up the Rhine River.  As we try these two local products of Speyer, Germany, we discuss our experiences on separate Viking River Cruises, have Brian push for a corporate sponsor for the podcast, and get our first ever Bar Bathroom story (though it technically does not take place in a bar - but hey, it's a start).

Come for the gin, and stick around to hear as usual Brian abuse his privilege during Off The Beaten Path  🎙️🍸🍸

Episode 20 can be found at: https://botanicaltrails.buzzsprout.com, as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music and other platforms

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails

Are you a fan of pizza?  If so, this might be just what your ordered.  My guest (and Good Samaritan) Lori Wilson and I try a couple of new Italian gins.  One is our first ever listener donated gin, and the other is a fun little discovery.  While sampling these two gins, we chat about our journeys through Italy, the talents of Michelangelo, and how Lori was responsible for my luck in landing the awesome producer for this little podcast.

Come for the gin, and stick around to hear Lori’s story of performing a good deed and ending up in the local news.

My thanks to Darin VanderMolen for helping to produce this podcast.

For questions, comments, or to suggest a new gin to try, feel free to send us a message on our Instagram account: @thebotanicaltrails