The Whiskey Ring Podcast

Old Dominick isn't the oldest distillery in Tennessee, but it's no spring chicken either. The brand itself - including a stint as a whiskey blending house - goes back to 1866, the same year a Mr. Jasper "Jack" Daniel was setting up his own stillhouse a few hours east. 

158 years later, D. Canale & Co. no longer has a food distribution business, but they do have a thriving distillery. Ov...

Whiskey Jypsi's newest release - Explorer - seeks to show how the core identities of French and American oak species affect flavor in whiskey. They take the consumer on a world tour, stopping both in Eric Church's backyard (North Carolinian American white oak near to where Church grew up) and French oak from the Tronçais forest. 

Neither wood is entirely new to American whiskey drinkers (especially...

Raj's return brings news about Amrut, the king of Indian Single Malt. It is no longer the only Indian Single Malt on the market like it was in 2004, but neither has Amrut been sitting on its laurels. 

With Ashok Chokalingham at the helm as head distiller - a post he gained after many years in sales and production - Amrut is promoting the idea of Indian Single Malt while simultaneously pushing the bound...

I have a general rule when given the opportunity to interview NDPs on the podcast - they must do something with the whiskey other than buying stock and slapping their own label on it. Otherwise, how many times can you talk about the same MGP bourbon or rye? (Yes, I know there are other sources now, but the point remains). 

With Filmland Spirits, they are doing some of their own blending, proofing, and - down ...

Copperworks Distilling is making whiskey from grain. Simple, right? I mean, from a legal sense, that's quite literally what every other whiskey-maker is doing. 

That's where the similarities end. Jason Parker, co-founder and longtime brewer, is experimenting with barley in ways that are different not only from other distillers but singularly unique from release to release. 

I first got to t...

The Spring 2024 Collection launches today, March 27! 

We first met Lost Lantern Spirits way back in Episode 53 - they are "shining a light on the independent spirit", bringing the tradition of independent bottling (and blending!) to American whiskey. 

In the two-ish years since, co-founders Nora Ganley-Roper and Adam Polonski have grown and grown, now with a physical space in Vermont and reach across the ...

There are certain things we take for granted with whisky - American whiskey will mostly be new charred oak, Scotch will be ex-bourbon or ex-sherry, and the rest of the world will likely use ex-bourbon casks as a default for maturation. This leads to a generalization of taste, an expectation that certain flavors will always be there. 

When starting Starward Whisky, one of the first Australian whisky distilleries ...

When you think Jamaican rum, you think funk. Funny thing is, most Jamaican rum by both volume and number of distillers is not funky. 

BTW - funky is the unscientific way of saying ester content. All those fruity, dark, tropical, funky notes are esters, the interactions and transformations of acids and alcohols and aldehydes into the familiar flavor compounds we love. 

Hampden Estate, however, is the funkiest of them all...

Just in time for Bottled-in-Bond month! 

Long Island Spirits - Long Island's first craft distillery - is quietly leading the way in my own backyard. Situated about an hour and a half outside of NYC, LI Spirits is making field-to-glass whiskies, brandies, vodkas, and more using the local land for its grains, grapes, and potatoes (not the rum, sorry - sugar doesn't grow well here!) 

I got to ...

Makers of the only vodka I enjoy. And also the first rye from Scotland in 100+ years. 

Arbikie Highland Estate is in the forefront of the new Scotch whisky movement. Focused on sustainability, flavor, and locality, Arbikie is betting big on the future. 

They're making a single malt, but waiting 18 years to release it (some might be released early, but don't count on it).

Their strawberry vodka takes nearly a year to produce from ha...

Peerless in the 1800s and Peerless today. 

Kentucky Peerless Distilling Co., founded by Henry Kraver in the late 19th century, is in a class by itself. The lone sweet mash distiller in Louisville with the most distinctive bottle in the state, Peerless built itself back up through rye and its story. 

Several years later, they're thriving. Single barrels abound of both rye and bourbon, with all the maturity you want from the oak with...

Knock, knock, knocking on Heaven's Door? 

I'm joined by Alex Moore, head blender for Heaven's Door to talk about their entire spirits lineup, the plan to start distilling in Kentucky, and how much of a role Bob Dylan plays in all of this (spoiler: he's actually quite involved!). 

Here's an admission: I don't really know much about Bob Dylan's music. I don't know if it's not my style or I just haven't been exposed to it, but for wha...

Let's start with the basics: Hard Truth is putting out some incredible ryes from Indiana. And none of it came from MGP. 

There's so much more, though. Using a sweet mash technique, Hard Truth is developing ryes, bourbons, and finished whiskies, always with an eye to standing out. They've got a 325-acre property on which you can stay, taste, tour, make your own moonshine, and "get lost" adventures. 

Hard Truth also puts its money wh...

River Roots Barrel Company, out of Cleveland, Ohio, has been making some serious waves in the whiskey world. Their hazmat proof bottlings on Seelbach's flew off the virtual shelves, and the upcoming port barrel bourbon is on my to-do list as soon as it's live. 

As always, though, there's more to the story, including partnerships with barrel brokers and celebrity chef Michael Symon. At first glance, River Roots seems like an indepen...

Nelson's Green Brier Distillery - NGB for short - has been around for quite a while. It's older than Jack and George, and at one time produced more than both of those by several magnitudes. And then, like so many others (and unlike its younger peers), Prohibition put an end to Charles Nelson's distillery, which his wife Louisa led for 18 years after his passing and until statewide Prohibition in 1909. 

NGB was then lost to history ...

A Boot Hill is a burial ground for the unclaimed, the poorest, and those hanged for misdeeds. For some, a Boot Hill was necessary - it got them the first few steps to heaven. And Dodge City, the fabled town of the old west, has the original Boot Hill. 

Boot Hill Distillery isn't located on top of the hill, exactly (it's quite close), but it is built on those stories. Images of Wyatt Earp and other famous lawmen and outlaws grace th...

Sangam World Whisky is the newest release from the Rampur line of Indian whiskies. While there is some Rampur distillate in there, this is much more - a blend of Indian, European, and New World whiskies into a cohesive, slightly smoky (unusual for the Rampur lineup), and highly enjoyable bottling that expands what you may think about Indian whisky into a new category altogether. 

The idea, while exciting, is not new to Rampur. Back...

Highline Spirits is women-led, women-owned, and women-operated - but that's not the story (or the whole story). 

Entering the blending space, Highline - founded by Christi Lower in her home state of Michigan - was inspired by one of the most beautiful places she (and I!) have ever been: the Highline Trail in Glacier National Park. With 3000' up and 3000' down and just enough width for about two people, the trail is challenging, lif...

Anna Axster and Wendelin von Schroder - cousins and veterans of the entertainment industry - have started a whiskey. Just a few weeks ago, that whiskey brand launched as Lodestar Whiskey, a blend of high-rye bourbon and American single malt whiskies aiming for a Southern California vibe. 

This whiskey - and the women behind it - are worth a look. It's a whiskey aimed at multiple audiences with multiple purposes. It can stand up on ...