Hops & Spirits: Neat & Mixed

It's a bourbon Flight Night as we enjoy a two different pours from RD1 Spirits in Lexington — Kentucky Straight Bourbon and French Oak Finish — with Chris Tetterton, VP of Marketing for RD1 Spirits. The crew for flight night includes: D., @vabourbonhunter; and Chris, or @Jefftherabb1t on Instagram. In addition to the pours, we talk about their name, creating new bourbons, the original W.M. Tarr tribute line, where they source from, creating unique finishes and more!

In this Q&A, we chat with Jessy Harding, executive director of the Kentucky Guild of Brewers, and Tyler Madison of the Kentucky Proud program. They talk about what the Kentucky Proud Beer Series is, how the programs work with farmers and brewers, the variety of produce used in the series (butternut squash anyone?!), why they turned this into a month-long event, where to get release information and more.

In this Q&A, we chat with Alan Jackson's Silverbelly Whiskey. Mattie Jackson Selecman, author/sommelier and Jackson's daughter, and Robbie Goldsmith, CEO of Silverbelly, join us to talk about how Alan Jackson got into the whiskey business, the name behind the brand, working with Green River Distillery in Kentucky on the whiskey, crafting a different batch with Alan's songs, how Mattie became an author and sommelier, how Robbie got involved with Silverbelly, potential future releases and more.

In this Q&A, we chat with Rebecca Burnworth, owner of The Stave Restaurant and Bourbon Bar in Millville, Kentucky. She talks about launching the Stave Restaurant, working as an architect/interior designer, designing other restaurants in central Kentucky, the location of The Stave, creating the outside spot The Treehouse, the name, what folks can expect when they visit, a potential new restaurant in Lexington and more.

In this Q&A, we chat with Kim and Tom Bard, co-founders, of The Bard Distillery in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. They talk about Tom's heritage with Bardstown, how they ended up in Muhlenberg, the distillery's site and its history, their former careers, launching The Bard, their products, what's next and more!

It's a craft beer Flight Night as we enjoy a four different pours from Blue Stallion Brewing of Lexington — Kolsch, Bruised Orange Pilsner, Lexipolitan and Dunkel — with head brewer JR. The crew for flight night includes: Emily, Brandon and Derrick. In addition to the pours, we talk how JR got into brewing, his move to Blue Stallion, tweaking recipes, the brand's refresh, upcoming projects and more.

In this Q&A, we chat with Ryan Lang, co-founder and CEO of Middle West Spirits in Columbus, Ohio. Ryan talks about how the industry has changed since Middle West launched in 2008, his family's history in distilling, going from engineer to distiller, why they source locally/regionally as much as possible, collaborating with others on projects, sharing their knowledge with partners, their lineup of spirits and more.

In this Q&A, we chat with Keegan McGee, head brewer at Turtleback Ridge Brewery in Robertson County. Keegan talks about being part of a working farm, how the brewery became part of it, working with other farmers/growers in the area, collaborating with breweries across the state, experimenting with beer styles and flavors, being in Robertson County and what's next.

In this Q&A, we chat with Sara Bradley, owner/chef of the freight house in Paducah and runner-up Season 16 of Top Chef. Sara talks about how she became a chef, how she puts her psychology degree to use, sharing the restaurant with family, having fun on social media, what it was like on Top Chef, returning to Paducah, launching the freight house, the restaurant's booze collection and what's next for her.

In this Q&A, we chat with John King, creator and founder of Drunkwood. John talks about how he got into woodworking, if he's always been creative, being a teacher, how he comes up with designs, working with bourbon barrels, his love of craft beer, being part of the Kentucky Guild of Brewers, how folks kind find his work and more.