The Whiskey Rocks Podcast

Three bourbons. Three different approaches to the barrel. And, naturally, a whole lot of questions.

This week on Whiskey Rocks, we’re sitting down with Mac Harris from Wenzel Distillery to talk wheated bourbon, toasted oak bourbon, and double oak bourbon. We dig into the story behind the distillery, the decisions that shape its whiskey, and what happens when you start experimenting with different approaches to flavor, oak, and the bourbon-making process.

Then we get to the important stuff: tasting all three expressions and figuring out what makes each one tick. We’ll talk flavor, compare notes, and pair these bourbons with music, because apparently drinking whiskey and having opinions about albums isn’t enough for us anymore.

Whether you’re a bourbon enthusiast, a barrel nerd, or someone who just wants to know what the difference is between toasted oak and double oak, there’s something here for you.

As always, we’re here for the whiskey, the stories, and the people behind the bottle. No hype required.

Pour yourself something good and join us.

Whiskey Rocks, Sip Hard.

Make sure you’re following us on TikTok and Instagram @thewhiskeyrockspodcast for behind the scenes and other fun.

Miles Munroe is back on Whiskey Rocks, but this time he’s writing his own story. After years as a distiller at Westward Whiskey, Miles is embarking on a new adventure with Grimoire Whiskey, bringing his experience, creativity, and passion for whiskey into a venture of his own. We talk about the motivation behind the move, his vision for Grimoire, the freedom to experiment, and what it takes to build something from the ground up. Plus, we explore his former life as a musician, the connection between music and whiskey, and why sometimes the best things happen when you take a chance and trust your instincts.

No spellbook required. Just a good story, a little creative magic, and a whole lot of whiskey.

Whiskey Rocks, Sip Hard.

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What exactly is going on inside Preservation Distillery?

This week on Whiskey Rocks, we’re joined by Kyle Lloyd, Master of Maturation and VP of Operations at Preservation Distillery, for a deep dive into the whiskey behind one of Kentucky’s most fascinating portfolios.

Kyle takes us inside Preservation’s approach to bourbon, vintage whiskey, sourced whiskey, house-distilled whiskey, blending and barrel maturation, including the stories behind expressions like Preservation Estate, Wattie Boone, Old Man Winter, Very Olde St. Nick and Rare Perfection.

We talk about what it means to mature whiskey at the barrel level, how Kyle evaluates barrels, why sourced versus distilled shouldn’t be the entire conversation, and how blending multiple barrels can create something greater than the individual whiskeys.

We’re also joined by Khemarith Kang, Whiskey Manager at Burlington Wine & Spirits, to talk about the other side of the barrel: selecting whiskey, working with distilleries, and the story behind some of the barrel picks we’ve done together, including our Preservation pick.

No big tasting segment this time. Instead, we’re getting behind the bottle and talking about why these whiskeys exist in the first place.

It’s a conversation about bourbon, vintage whiskey, barrel maturation, sourcing, blending, barrel picks and the people who make whiskey more interesting.

Whiskey Rocks, Sip Hard.

Follow us at @thewhiskeyrockspodcast on Instagram and TikTok

What happens when you combine seriously old whiskey, a little patience, a little stubbornness, and just enough swagger?

We sit down with Ed Bley of Rising Tide Spirits to find out.

Ed brings us into the world behind Rising Tide Spirits and the stories behind Old Swagger and Old Stubborn, including a 13-year Bottled in Bond bourbon, a 12-year rye, and a 12-year Old Swagger rye.

We talk about what happens when you let whiskey age, why patience can be one of the hardest parts of the whiskey business, and how two whiskeys the same age can somehow develop completely different personalities.

And because this is Whiskey Rocks, we don’t just talk about the whiskey. We drink it.

We break down all three bottles, talk tasting notes, compare their personalities, and even figure out which bands these whiskeys would be if they showed up at the bar. Spoiler alert: Old Stubborn has some serious Social Distortion energy.

Along the way, Ed shares the story of how he got into whiskey, the philosophy behind Rising Tide Spirits, and what happens when you decide you’re willing to wait for whiskey to become exactly what you want it to be.

It’s old whiskey. It’s rye. It’s bourbon. It’s Rising Tide.

And yeah… there’s a little swagger involved.

Whiskey Rocks, Sip Hard.

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For this episode of Whiskey Rocks, we’re taking the show on the road and heading straight into the heart of Ohio whiskey.

We’re onsite at Middle West Spirits with Steven Frederick from Old Elk for a deep dive into what’s happening in Ohio’s whiskey scene, the story behind Old Elk, and what makes Middle West Spirits such an important part of it.

And, of course, we’re drinking.

We’re tasting our way through the Old Elk 10 Year lineup, including the 10 Year Bourbon, 10 Year Wheated Bourbon, and 10 Year Wheat Whiskey, breaking down what ten years of maturation actually does to a whiskey and how three very different expressions can come from the same age statement.

We talk whiskey, Ohio, blending, aging, music, the whiskey industry, and why maybe everyone needs to stop acting like Kentucky is the only place making great whiskey at scale. Well, that’s simply not true.

So grab a pour, turn up the music, and come hang with us at Middle West Spirits.

Because everyone talks Kentucky.

What about Ohio?

Whiskey Rocks, Sip Hard.

What happens when an Army officer, a few whiskey nerds, and a serious obsession with bourbon get together and decide to start a whiskey company? You get H.K. Young.

This week on Whiskey Rocks, Joel and Chris sit down with Cole Hanna of H.K. Young Bourbon Co. to talk about the journey from Fort Campbell to the bourbon business, the veteran community, sourcing great whiskey, and the question H.K. Young keeps asking: What’s next?

Then we get into what they’re really known for: toasted bourbon. We taste an H.K. Young Single Barrel alongside one of their Toasted Wheated expressions and get nerdy about barrel finishing, toast profiles, oak, and what actually happens when you decide your bourbon needs a second date with a barrel.

Plus, Cole faces the Whiskey Rocks Lightning Round, where things get considerably less sophisticated.

It’s bourbon. It’s toasted. It’s got some Army stories, some questionable decisions, and probably more oak than strictly necessary.

Pour yourself something good and join us. Follow us @thewhiskeyrockspodcast on TikTok or Instagram. Drop us a review on Spotify or Apple too, we’d love to hear from you!

Whiskey Rocks. Sip hard.

What do you get when a nearly forgotten South Carolina heirloom corn meets a couple of obsessive entrepreneurs, a Charleston distillery, and a whole lot of whiskey? You get Jimmy Red.

On this episode of Whiskey Rocks, we sit down with Scott Blackwell, co-founder of High Wire Distilling in Charleston, South Carolina, to hear the incredible story behind Jimmy Red corn and the bourbon that helped bring it back from the brink.

Scott takes us from his unconventional path into distilling to the discovery of Jimmy Red, a nearly extinct heirloom corn that became the foundation for one of High Wire’s signature whiskeys. We dig into the importance of the grain, the farmers and people who helped preserve it, and what makes Jimmy Red Bourbon taste so different.

Then we put three expressions to the Whiskey Rocks test: Jimmy Red, Jimmy Red Bottled-in-Bond, and Jimmy Red Double Oak.

And because this is Whiskey Rocks, we finish with a lightning round covering rock & roll, whiskey, Southern food, concerts, questionable drinking decisions, and whatever else we can get Scott to answer before he escapes.

It’s a story about whiskey, agriculture, Southern history, and the crazy things that can happen when somebody refuses to let a good thing disappear.

Pour yourself something good and join us.

Whiskey Rocks. Sip hard.

Follow us @thewhiskeyrockspodcast on TikTok and Instagram for more

This week on Whiskey Rocks, we’re heading to Little Rock, Arkansas, to sit down with Phil Brandon, founder of Rock Town Distillery.

Phil takes us behind the scenes of building Arkansas’ first legal distillery since Prohibition, what it took to put Arkansas whiskey on the map, the importance of grain-to-glass distilling, and the risks and experiments that helped shape Rock Town into what it is today.

We also taste our way through four Rock Town releases: the Straight Bourbon finished in Oloroso Sherry casks, the four-year Arkansas Single Malt finished in Sauternes wine casks, the Arkansas Golden Promise Straight Bourbon, and the five-year “Let’s Have Another Bourbon, Y’all.”

And because this is Whiskey Rocks, we don’t just talk tasting notes. We figure out what bands and albums these whiskeys sound like.

Make sure you’re following along @thewhiskeyrockspodcast on TikTok and Instagram for more fun, more bottles and plenty of good music.

Whiskey Rocks. Sip Hard.

Back for Another Pour: Thomas Thacker from Southern Grace Actually Came Back to Talk Whiskey with Us!

Thomas Thacker is back…and we’re still trying to figure out why.

When Thomas from Southern Grace Distilleries first joined Whiskey Rocks, we learned the story behind the distillery. This time, we skipped the origin story and went straight down the whiskey rabbit hole.

We dive into barrel selection, fermentation, blending philosophy, whiskey myths that need to disappear, the experiments Thomas still wants to try, and the little details that separate a good whiskey from a great one. Along the way, we settle a few whiskey debates, talk rock music, and prove that once you get a few whiskey nerds around a table, there’s no telling where the conversation will go.

If you’ve ever wanted to hear the conversations that happen after the microphones are supposed to be off, this episode is for you.

To hear our original episode with Thomas tune it to:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2xkU5zJEC4MYLzaDaYpUbc

Pour yourself something good, turn the music up, and join us for another round with one of our favorite returning guests.

Whiskey Rocks…Sip Hard.

Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @thewhiskeyrockspodcast for more behind the scenes, dad jokes and occasional amazing dance moves.

War Trail Spirits: They Risked Everything for Texas Whiskey

What would make you walk away from a successful career, move to Texas, and build a whiskey distillery from the ground up?

In this episode of Whiskey Rocks, Joel and Chris sit down with Laurie and Bernard Quandt, the founders of War Trail Spirits, to hear the incredible story behind one of Texas’s rising craft distilleries. They dive into the risks, sacrifices, and rewards of starting over, what it takes to build a grain-to-glass whiskey brand, and why the Texas Hill Country has become one of the most exciting regions in American whiskey.

Along the way, the crew tastes Broken Halo Bourbon and Broken Halo Barrel Proof, explores what makes Texas bourbon unique, shares plenty of laughs, and uncovers the stories behind the bottles. From building a business as husband and wife to chasing a dream many people only talk about, this conversation is about much more than whiskey.

Whether you’re a bourbon enthusiast, a fan of craft distilleries, or someone who’s ever wondered what it takes to bet on yourself, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

Pour a glass, settle in, and join us for another episode of Whiskey Rocks.

Follow along @thewhiskeyrockspodcast on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube for more videos, pours and a ton of fun.

Pour it…don’t store it!