The Whiskey Ring Podcast

Episode 10! We're bringing out the big guns now (after Michter's, is there such a thing?) Today's episode is with Lew Bryson, longtime spirits and beer writer, author, taster, and all-around great guy.

Lew is a literal spirit guide for me - his book Tasting Whiskey kickstarted my whiskey tasting journey, and his follow-up, Whiskey Masterclass, gave the deep dive into each part of the process any serious whiskey lover could want. His blog, Seen Through a Glass, chronicles his journeys through whiskey, beer, and the PLCB, his home state's "evil empire" of liquor sales. 

This is as fun an episode as I've had yet - I know you'll love it, too. Thank you to Lew for making time to talk - he had to run afterwards (into the other room, but still) to taste the finalists for Fred Minnick's Ascot Awards Whiskey of the Year!

If you haven’t yet, please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram and Facebook and follow @whiskeyring on Twitter, and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com. 

If you like what you hear, please consider supporting the site and the podcast. You can help out for as little as $2.50 a month on Patreon. Thank you also to our sponsors, Mash and Grape and Cairn Craft. 

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Podbean, Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and most other major podcast platforms. Every subscription and listen helps us get sponsors, secure guests, and ultimately get more content to you.

Thank you for listening and for supporting, and please enjoy my chat with legendary whiskey and beer write Lew Bryson.

We're at episode 8.2! Part 2 of my special 2-part episode with Michter's Distillery's Dan McKee and Andrea Wilson. Couple quick things:

1 - Follow and enter the Michter's barware giveaway on all my social media accounts

2 - Check out Mike's Michter's History article on www.thebourbonculture.com

If you haven’t yet, please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram and Facebook and follow @whiskeyring on Twitter, and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com. 

If you like what you hear, please consider supporting the site and the podcast. You can help out for as little as $2.50 a month at www.patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring. Thank you also to our sponsors, Mash and Grape and Cairn Craft. 

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Podbean, Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and most other major podcast platforms. Every subscription and listen helps us get sponsors, secure guests, and ultimately get more content to you. Thank you for listening and for supporting, and please enjoy part two of my conversation with Dan McKee and Andrea Wilson, Master Distiller and Master of Maturation, of Michter’s Distillery.

Hi Whiskey Ringers, it is episode 8! Thank you so much for listening and please share with your friends, family, and fellow whiskey lovers. 

This is part one of a special, two-part episode with Dan McKee and Andrea Wilson of Michter’s Distillery. I am beyond excited to have both Dan and Andrea on the podcast after just seven episodes. Not only were they generous with their time, they were generous in another way, too…but more on that later.

Side note: I wasn’t able to get my friend Mike Frey on the recording – we ran into some technical issues that will be fixed going forward, but unfortunately, he couldn’t join the one episode I really wanted to have him on. He’ll be a future co-host every now and again for sure, though.

Mike is a huge Michter’s fan. He has the first bottle ever released at the Fort Nelson location, he’s got a large collection, and more recently, he wrote a fantastic longform article all about the history of Michter’s. You can find it on www.thebourbonculture.com, his website he co-hosts with another Mike. If you like this episode, you’ll like the article, and I encourage you to take a read when you can.

Finally, on the day this episode goes live, I will be starting a giveaway just for followers: a full set of Michter’s Copper Barware: a shaker, a bar spoon, a jigger, a julep cup, and two Michter’s glencairns. Thank you to Michter’s for helping with this giveaway. Visit me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and at the whiskeyinmyweddingring website for giveaway rules and details. Listeners will get additional entries using a special code from the middle of this episode.

If you haven’t yet, please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram and Facebook and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com. 

If you like what you hear, please consider supporting the site and the podcast. You can help out for as little as $2.50 a month at www.patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring. Thank you also to our sponsors, Mash and Grape and Cairn Craft. 

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Podbean, Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and most other major podcast platforms. Every subscription and listen helps us get sponsors, secure guests, and ultimately get more content to you. Thank you for listening and for supporting, and please enjoy part one of my conversation with Dan McKee and Andrea Wilson, Master Distiller and Master of Maturation, respectively, of Michter’s Distillery.

Cheers,

David

Hi Whiskey Ringers, it is episode 7! Thank you so much for listening and please share with your friends, family, and fellow whiskey lovers. 

On this episode, I’ve got Paul Coughlin, founder of Taconic Distillery in New York’s Hudson Valley. New York whiskey - bourbon, rye, single malts - is fascinating and deeply personal to me. I love talking to friends and distillers throughout New York about different styles, the history of distilling in New York, and what makes New York unique in the distilling landscape. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is Empire Rye, a non-legal set of standards for New York rye, but that’ll be talked about on a future episode. 

Taconic is probably my favorite New York-based distillery. There might be a product here and there from another place that I like more, but I don’t think another New York distillery has the consistency of product that Taconic has. There’s also no other distillery in New York from which I enjoy nearly every product they make. Are you a New York distillery listening to this and thinking “hey, we’ve got some great stuff, have you tried us?” I’ll be honest, the answer is probably no. And that’s on me, but hey, we’re only on episode 7! If you do want me to try your products, just shoot me an email: [email protected], or reach out to me on Facebook, instagram, or through the website. 

Lastly, this will be a slightly shorter episode - I promise, I’ll be visiting Taconic in person to talk to the full team and get more info out of Brandon and Paul hopefully over the summer.

If you haven’t yet, please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram and Facebook and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com. 

If you like what you hear, please consider supporting the site and the podcast. You can help out for as little as $2.50 a month at www.patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring. Thank you also to our sponsors, Mash and Grape and Cairn Craft. 

You can find Taconic online and on Instagram and Facebook. 

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Podbean, Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and most other major podcast platforms. Every subscription and listen helps us get sponsors, secure guests, and ultimately get more content to you. Thank you for listening and for supporting, and please enjoy this episode with Paul Coughlin of Taconic Distillery. 

Cheers!

Hi Whiskey Ringers! 

It took 6 episodes, but I got to talk to my favorite Scottish distillery, Highland Park. My guest, Martin Markvardsen, is their Senior Brand Ambassador. 

We talk peat, non-chill filtering, how whisky changes over the years, Islay vs Orkney vs other types of smoke/profiles, and more. 

If you haven’t yet, please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram and Facebook and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com. 

If you like what you hear, please consider supporting the site and the podcast. You can help out for as little as $2.50 a month at www.patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring.

You can find Highland Park’s entire lineup at https://www.highlandparkwhisky.com and at @highlandparkofficial on Instagram or with the hashtag VikingSoul. Martin can be found at @hpmarkvardsen on Instagram and on Facebook.

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Podbean, Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and more. Every subscription and listen helps us get sponsors, secure guests, and ultimately get more content to you. Thank you for listening and for supporting, and please enjoy this episode with Martin Markvardsen of Highland Park. 

Cheers!

Episode 5! This one’s a kicker, Whiskey Ringers. A nearly 2-hour conversation with the one-and-only Alan Bishop, Master Distiller of Spirits of French Lick Distillery in French Lick, Indiana.

If you haven’t guessed by now (or this is your first episode), I’m a whiskey nerd/geek and proud of it. Thankfully, Alan is just the person to talk to. Getting into the details of whiskey making - from naming his stills to using different grains - was a thrill. Needless to say, Alan will be back on a future episode.

During the episode, Alan and I talk about Spirits of French Lick’s newest bourbons, the William Dalton wheated bourbon and the Morning Glory Buckwheat Bourbon (I got a chance to taste both!). They’ll be in stores this week! Check them out - they’re worth the buy!

Please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram and Facebook and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com.

If you want to support the site and the podcast, you can help out for as little as $2.50 a month at www.patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring.

You can find Alan at @thealchemistcabinet on Instagram or at spiritsoffrenchlick.com.

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts.

Cheers!

Episode 4! We’re on a roll. This episode, I talk with Dave Schmier of Proof and Wood Ventures.

Proof and Wood is an unabashed non-distilling producer. Dave is transparent that most of his stock is from MGP (with a few exceptions like The Justice), and beyond that he’s transparent about as much as possible in his products. Mashbills, ages, sources, chances are you can find the info on the website or in an interview with Dave.

Since starting Proof and Wood in 2015 and after selling the Redemption brand, Dave has consistently added to Proof and Wood’s portfolio. Covering bourbon, rye, special releases like the DC series, one-offs like The Stranger Polish Rye, Vertigo, and 100 Seasons whiskey are all right in Dave’s wheelhouse…put simply, the man knows how to spot a good chance and take it. Same goes for The Funk Jamaican Rum and finishing it in rye casks.

Please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram and Facebook and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com.

If you want to support the site and the podcast, you can help out for as little as $2.50 a month on Patreon.

You can find Proof and Wood at www.proofandwood.com.

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts.

Cheers!

Episode 3 is here! Coming out on Cinco de Mayo (also known as Cinco de Gato in our household). On this episode, I'm joined by Andy Faris and Jeff Murphy of JK Williams Distilling.

Andy, Jeff, and the JK Williams Team are distilling and producing out of Peoria, Illinois, the former Whiskey Capital of the World. Today, that whiskey history is a long-gone legacy.....or is it? To hear Andy and Jeff talk about it, that legacy was only dormant, and now it's time for whiskey to rise again on the banks of the Illinois River.

Listen for a taste of history, bourbon, rye, and the rise of another distilling legend.

Please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram and Facebook and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com. You can find Jk Williams Distilling on Instagram @jkwilliamsdistilling.

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts.

Cheers!

If you follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring on Instagram, Facebook, or through the website, you know how much I love Japanese whisky. After devoting three full weeks to it, I wanted to bring on a special guest to talk about what makes Japanese whisky unique.  Please welcome Jay Cole, US Ambassador for Kaiyō, as the Whiskey Ring Podcast's second guest. Jay is a native Massachusettsan (yep, that's the real word!) but represents one of the most exciting Japanese whisky producers of the moment. He's also got a Viking-worthy beard that would make Ragnar Lothbrok jealous.

We talk about Kaiyō as a company, its ethos and thinking, the benefits and drawbacks of using mizunara in each of their expressions, the art of "teaspooning", and the new Japanese whisky regulations introduced in Q1 of 2021.  This is a thrilling conversation you won't want to miss. Links to tasting notes on Kaiyō whiskies are included below, as is a link to their website.

Please follow @whiskeyinmyweddingring on Instagram and Facebook and subscribe to the newsletter on whiskeyinmyweddingring.com. You can find Jay on Instagram (@thewhiskypirate) and Kaiyō on Instagram. 

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts.

Cheers!

Welcome to the first Whiskey Ring Podcast, hosted by Whiskey in my Wedding Ring! These podcasts will be all about talking whiskey, spirits, and furthering the whiskey journey.

If you’re listening to this, I’m sure you know how important history is when talking about whiskey. Old and/or longstanding brands take great pains to show their legacy; new brands look for any way to build off a legacy that’s available for the taking. Even for the most forward-thinking brands, the past is never just ignored. Stories of “my grandpa saved this yeast strain and kept it going through Prohibition” are more popular than they are factual.

But what about those spirits that have been around for decades, even centuries, that we just don’t hear about? Enter Olde Tyme Spirits and Will Persons. I got to talk to Will about the company he’s created, but the most fun was just talking about history - his family’s ties to 15th-century Ireland, to spirits that have largely disappeared even in the Irish homeland, to the ways he’s making authentic, regional, cultural spirits that are true to where they come from. We spoke for two hours, and I’ll be honest I think we both were ready to go longer if the dinner bell hadn’t started to ring.

For this first podcast, I want you to be able to hear it raw, lightly edited, and in its entirety. While our format will evolve over time, at the end of the day I want you to hear these conversations just like I did - as conversations. With that, enjoy the show!

Olde Tyme Spirits: Website, Instagram

Subscribe to the Whiskey Ring Podcast on your favorite podcast platform today! We're on Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts.

Cheers!