On this episode I got to spend some time recently - well I say recently but it was actually back in March - with Jason Schneider who has arguably one of the best jobs in the industry. Jason is the Spirits Buyer AND General Manager of the highly respected retailer, Bottle Barn, which is located in the city of Santa Rosa in beautiful Sonoma Wine Country, about an hour from where I live. 

As I was editing this episode it brought back to me what a fascinating and insightful conversation I’d had with Jason. We only got to chat for 20 or so minutes but in that time we covered a LOT of ground. We chatted about Bottle Barn’s history and Jason’s history at Bottle Barn while serving his apprenticeship there.

It was great to go down rabbit holes about spirit sales and how the market has evolved in Jason’s time at Bottle Barn. We talked about how whiskey is now the number one selling spirits category at Bottle Barn and who’s buying that whiskey demographically.

It was a fascinating chat and we managed to squeeze it all in to just over 20 minutes as we both had work to do in preparation for St. Patrick’s Day, which tells you how long ago we chatted!

And we talked about all of this as we sipped on Jason’s Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is the 14 year old Single Malt from Knappogue Castle.

Listen along…

Resources;

Bottle Barn Website

Bottle Barn Irish Whiskey Selection

Visit Santa Rosa

Visit Sonoma County

More about Bottle Barn on Daily Seven Fifty Here

Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

On this episode I got to spend some very special time with the one and only William Grass, better known to some of you online as Nevada Drams or @NevadaDrams.

William invited me to his bar in Northern Nevada back in late January of 2024 as I was starting a six day cross country trip from Reno in Nevada to Daytona Beach in Florida with my son. 

It’s not just any bar, to be fair, as Liam’s Pub, as it’s known, is named in honor of one of William’s old firefighter friends who left us way too soon.

Now you won’t find Liam’s Pub on Google Maps or listed on Yelp and that’s because it’s built in William’s house and it was an honor to sit and chat with him overlooked by over 200 fantastic bottles of fine Irish whiskey.

It’s will be no surprise to you that we chatted for ages and talked about William’s Irish whiskey journey, the growth of the Irish whiskey industry in recent years, Irish whiskey pricing in Nevada and the wider US, and we went down a few rabbit holes too talking about the great work done by Barry Chandler and Stories & Sips and Irish Whiskey Experiences as well as talking about one of the finest Irish Pubs in the US, McMullan’s in Las Vegas. 

And we talked about all of this as we sipped on William’s current Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is the PX Edition from Redbreast, which happens to be one of my favorites too! 

Listen along…

Mentioned by William;

McMullan's Irish Pub in Las Vegas - Details Here

Redbreast PX - Details Here

Barry Chandler - Stories & Sips & Irish Whiskey Experiences

Anthony & Katie - Irish Whiskey Auctions

Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

On todays episode I got to spend some time with Justin Baird back in November. Justin is the manager of Trailhead Liquor in Bend in Central Oregon and he’s a big Irish Whiskey lover. 

I’ve known Justin for a couple of years as we’re regulars at Trailhead Liquor when we visit, and I finally got to sit down with him and get him on the record, so to speak, and we had a great old chat. 

We chatted about Justin, his love of whiskey and spirits and we chatted about Liquor sales and distribution in Oregon as it’s a Control State. We talked about “Truck Chasers” a new expression to me, and how they manage those people at Trailhead who are constantly in search of hard to find or Unicorn bottles.

We talked about some of Justin’s favorite places in the area for a great cocktail and we even went down a rabbit hole of sorts on Rye, Aged Rye, and American Single Malt whiskeys. 

And yes, we talked about Irish whiskey as we sipped on Justin’s Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is the Egan’s Legacy Reserve 15 year old Single Malt. A real treat of a whiskey I might add!  

Listen along...

Mentioned by Justin

O' Kanes

San Simon

Lemon Tree

Bos Taurus

Westward Whiskey - Portland, OR

Westland Distillery - Seattle, WA

Balcone's Distilling - Waco, TX

More about Bend Liquor Stores HERE

Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

On this episode of "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." I got to spend some time back in early March of 2023 with Brian Mast, co-owner along with his wife Jennifer, of the Waits Mast wine label.

I first met Brian, and Jennifer, back in 2010 when I ran the “When Irish Wines are Smiling” event here in the Napa Valley, and it’s been way too long since I got to spend time with Brian in person. 

Ahead of an event in San Francisco Brian and I sat down in the tasting room of the winery where Waits Mast wine is made in the Bayview neighborhood of San Francisco with a dram, or three, in hand and had a grand ole natter. 

We talked about Brian’s family ancestry with his Mum leaving Co. Louth for America in the late 1950’s, Brian’s own journey from the mid-west to San Francisco, their wine story and how Waits Mast came into being. We also talked about their trips back to Ireland and their first trip to Glendalough. 

And of course we chatted about Brian’s first Irish whiskey and some of his favorite cocktails.

And we did all of this talking while sipping on, not one but three Irish whiskeys, with a fun Burgundy barrel finished Irish whiskey from Killarney and 2 offerings from the folks at Glendalough.

Waits Mast Website Here

Cocktails Invented in the SF Bay Area

Killarney French Burgundy Barrel Finish - https://www.irishmalts.com/blended/killarney-1092-tap-room-series-2122-twin-gift-pack

Glendalough Double Barrel - https://www.glendaloughdistillery.com/products/glendalough-double-barrel

Glendalough Pot Still - https://us.glendaloughdistillery.com/pot-still-whiskey

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

Pot Still (Irish) Whiskey / Irish Pot Still Whiskey: This is currently required to be produced using a mash, or mash-bill, containing a minimum of 30% malted and a minimum of 30% unmalted barley. The remainder of the mash can be made up of either malted or unmalted barley, and can include up to 5% of other unmalted cereals (wheat, oats, rye, or corn.)

On this episode of "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." I got to spend some time recently with Gillian Fitzgerald, co-owner of the famed Casements Bar, in the Mission District of San Francisco. I first met Gillian back in the spring of 2023 when I visited Casements ahead of an event to fill my belly with some of their delicious Fish ‘n Chips.  And ahead of another event in San Francisco we sat down in the outdoor snug at Casements with a dram in hand and had a grand ole chin wag. 

We talked about Gillian’s journey to Casements, growing up in Co. Meath, her first dram, the Irish Whiskey renaissance, San Francisco, her trials and tribulations with the Great Recession and more recently the COVID pandemic. We chatted about their focus on Irish hospitality at Casements and how she spent a number of weeks this past summer with her team traveling Ireland doing pop up collabs with other great cocktail bars.  

And of course no chat about Casements would be complete without the full story of Roger Casement himself and all of his achievements. And we did all of this talking while sipping on Gillian’s current favo(u)rite which is the Single Malt Double Barrel from the lads at Two Stacks.

Casements Bar Website

Casements on Instagram

PSBS - Palm Springs Bottle Shop

PSBS on Instagram

Two Stacks Single Malt Double Barrel

The Bars in Ireland where Gillian and her team did those pop-up collabs;

Jackal, Navan

BAR 1661, Dublin

Dick Macks Pub, Dingle

More details and pictures on the Irish Whiskey LAD website here.

Image credit of Gillian - StoriedSF/Michelle Kilfeather

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

On this episode of "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." I got to spend some time back in May with James Doherty, owner, and Graeme Bell, distiller at the Ardara Distillery in Donegal which is home to Sliabh Liag Distillers.

Hands up, it was my first time visiting Donegal, and I suspect I’m not the only Irish person who’s guilty of that. I got there at the end of a wonderful 6 day road trip that took me through Galway, Mayo, Sligo, and then into Donegal and everywhere I went on the road trip the welcome was worthy of the Cead Mile Failte, or One Hundred Thousand Welcomes that were famous for.

Nowhere more so than at the Ardara Distillery where James and Graeme were incredibly generous with their time as we talked about lots of things. The background to Sliabh Liag, the Ardara Distillery, and their Silkie Whiskey Label. How two Englishmen ended up in this beautiful part of Ireland, sometimes referred to as the Forgotten County due to its remoteness. We touched on Donegal's distilling past and James’ ancestry which included some illicit spirit making. We talked about “grains in” whiskey making as Sliabh Liag is currently the only distillery on the island that uses this approach.

And we talked about the future, and what whiskeys we can expect to see from Sliabh Liag in the coming years as their own distilled stocks slowly come to age.   

And we did all of this talking while sipping on the Irish Whiskey that brought me here, The Legendary Silkie, whiskey that’s responsible for my interest in the peated styles of Irish Whiskey.

Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.

Sliabh Liag Distillery Website

Wild AtlanticWay Information

Baoilleach Distillery

Crolly Distillery

Nancys

The Corner House 

The Tavern 

John Joe's Pub

Evelyn's Central Bar 

Rusty Mackerel

More details and pictures on the Irish Whiskey LAD website here.

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

On todays episode I got to spend some time recently, actually it was back in January, with Rory Lynch who lives here in the Napa Valley and whose folks hail from Cahirsiveen, in Co. Kerry, and Macroom, in Co. Cork. Rory was raised here in the Bay Area and is fierce proud of his Irish ancestry.

We had a grand ole chat about Rory, his folks journey to this part of the world, his trips back to Ireland, his forty something cousins, The Napa Valley and where he lives in Angwin. And yes we talked about Irish whiskey as we sipped on his Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is the Jameson Caskmates Stout Edition which we discovered is a great Irish whiskey to use in an Irish Coffee. Listen along...

Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with fellow Dub’s Michelle and Gareth McAllister the owners of Ahascragh Distillery in the village of the same name which is in East Galway. When I visited, in mid-May of 2023, Michelle and Gareth were deep in preparation for the opening of their distillery in a converted water mill. 

We talked about their dream to one day distill in Ireland, the styles of whiskey that they will be producing, where they’ll source their grain, and the style of Single Pot Still Irish whiskey that they will ultimately produce. And we talked about their commitment to sustainability, their plans for future visitor experiences, and of course we talked about some history, because what’s Irish whiskey with some history thrown into the mashbill!

Whiskey? Yes, there was some of that too as we sipped on their Favor(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is their own Uais. Listen along…

Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here. 

Ahascragh Distillery Website

UAIS The Triple Blend

Ahascragh Distillery Diaries on YouTube

More links and pictures on the Irish Whiskey LAD website

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with Sean Quinn. Sean Michael to family and Quinners to his friends, Sean and I both arrived here in Northern California Wine Country in 2008 and it’s been fantastic to watch his winemaking journey in the 14 or so years since then. 

Sean and I talked about wine, travel, sailing, his Irish ancestry, and lots more and of course, we talked about and tasted, his Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is Powers Johns Lane. Listen along…

Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with Walt Averill. Walt is married to the Belfast Born Maire Murphy who I’ve known for a number of years and together, yes they work together, they founded their company Capabunga over a decade ago.

Walt is a keen Irish Whiskey drinker and tells the story of bringing some Redbreast from Belfast to California over 20 years ago. We talked about their business, the pandemic, travel, golf, and lots more and of course, we talked about and tasted, his Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is Powers Johns Lane. Listen along…

Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.

The "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." podcast is listed by Feedspot as one of the Top 5 Irish Whiskey Podcasts online: https://blog.feedspot.com/irish_whiskey_podcasts/