EmbellishPod

Over the last few weeks I’ve talked about foundational blocks to the whiskey making process and how they impact the overall outcome of the final product. As you can tell today is about yeast. Yeast is one of those things that gets a highlight at every major distillery you visit. Most distilleries have their own yeast strain that they’ve cared for over the years. There’s even distillers that have captured their yeast from the DNA of a dead yeast strain from a family lineage.Topics/Brands Discussed:Wild YeastAlan Bishop and The Spirits of French LickTodd Leopold and Leopold Bros SpiritsTX Bourbon and Firestone & Robertson Distilling"Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

There’s tons of lore around how the first bourbon came to be. The idea to char the barrel before putting the distillate in it is something that we’d largely like to claim. The use of new oak containers and the laws around bourbon are likely the only things we can legitimatly lay claim to. But we can rely on American Whiskey companies to continue to push the boundaries of what the landscape of offerings will look like. They will continue to innovate on the simple American oak barrel. They will explore casks that contain exotic woods. They will explore different ways for that distillate to interact with wood. If we keep drinking it they will keep making it and that’s exactly what this is all about. Finding new and unique ways to enhance our enjoyment of what some might already dub a perfect spirit. But how will we know it’s a perfect spirit if we don’t keep making more of these offerings to prove ourselves wrong.Topics/Brands Discussed:Buffalo Trace Single Oak ProjectWoodford Double (Double) OakedMaker’s 46Daviess County French OakBroken Barrel Mizunara Cask"Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

In the last episode we spent the better part of 20 minutes talking about estate operations and their attention to detail in regards to stewarding a crop from pre-planning stages and all the way into the barrel. The connection between farming and whiskey, the source of the grain, the care and consideration. It’s all a magnificent part of the development of the United States. This week we’ll pivot to a discussion about what happens after the grain is harvested. The grain being a foundational aspect of the whiskey, and the creation of the mash and how the mash impacts the final product. Topics/Brands Discussed:Jim Beam Rice BourbonKoval Millet WhiskeyDry Fly Triticale Whiskey"Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

Estate distillers are moving to the forefront of craft distilling. It’s a growing sector within the market that is gaining credence. The idea of on farm distilling is turning back the hands of time. To it’s inception the spirits and their true nature. There are a host of challenges and benefits that the estate distiller faces here in the United States and we’ll talk about three different estate brands that navigate these challenges and bring forward innovative products to the marketplace. Topics/Brands Discussed:Far North SpiritsFrey Ranch DistilleryHillrock Estate Distilling"Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

Today we will talk about the brands and bottles that are a result of what many deem to be gimmicky aging techniques. Bourbon godfathers will often say there’s no replacement for time and weather. And largely they are right. These aging techniques in today’s episode aren’t meant to replace time, they are meant to be an experiment to see what happens if you do something different. It doesn’t make anything better, just different. And without folks coloring outside the lines we wouldn’t have single barrel offerings or barrel finished bourbons. We wouldn’t be reaping the benefits of mechanization of bottling operations and a whole host of other options that have been made available to the modern distiller. Topics/Brands Discussed:Jefferson’s Bourbon Aged at SeaIngram River Aged WhiskeyBlackened Whiskey"Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

This weeks episode is born purely out of the confusing and intertwined relationships that play within the Bourbon ancestry of Kentucky. This confusing maze of relationships is birthed from of the necessary and obstructionist nature of litigation and trademark protection. All of that however can create a degree of confusion for the end consumer. It bubbles up the proverbial question…..”What is in a name”. And no we aren’t talking about Four Roses today. The famous quote has transfigured into a much used idiom illustrating a greater weight given to the content of an objects character rather than the given name. In a Marketplace filled with history and ancestry a name can carry great significance. So much significance that they are bought and sold regularly. Large sums of money are doled out to family operations as large corporate conglomerates gobble up market presence and notoriety in service to their bottom lines. Inevitably those large corporate entities eventually start making decisions with finances in mind. Sometimes that approach works, and others….it’s catastrophically a failure. Topics/Brands Discussed:YellowstoneLimestone BranchBeam FamilyLog Still DistillingDant FamilyRolling Fork DistilleryWathen Family"Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

Today’s episode is going to be more of a state of the podcast type offering. I’m going lay out some changes I’m planning to bring to the podcast hopefully for the better. I appreciate each and every person joining me on this journey. Because of your connection to what I am doing here I wanted to take a moment to talk to all 7 of you about the future of this podcast. "Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

Covid and quarantine took a lot of things from us as a population. But it also brought us a new understanding of how community can be created, nurtured and grown. I’ll challenge that nothing can ever be a complete replacement for in human interaction, but with the technology at our fingertips we can continue to interact with people from across the world in a meaningful way. it even presents us with an opportunity to connect with like minded folks that may be more preferential to our tastes than what is available locally.Topics Discussed:Whiskey TribeIt’s Bourbon NightBourbon Junkies"Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

It feels a bit disingenuous to even try and speak with any degree of authority about women in whiskey from a male perspective. The need for groups like Female Whiskey Society and Women Bourbon Society to even exist speaks to the fact that men have largely owned the marketing and educational spaces of whiskey for eons. What has traditionally been “your father’s beverage of choice” has virtually built in a masculine language. I’ve already talked to some degree about Marianne Eaves and her innovation in the whiskey marketplace. I’ve mentioned Fawn Weaver and her instrumental work in the telling of the Nearest Green Story. Anyone would be hard pressed to find any better ambassador to this spirit. But they aren’t alone. Today’s episode is going to be about several others in this space. I’ll talk about some historical figures, some ladies that are trying to create communities for women to gather in and further their understanding of whiskey and finally some women who are actively participating in the production of the spirit. We are celebrating their achievements in a hyper-masculine marketplace. And why shouldn’t we. Women scientifically are far better suited to lead this industry. They have better palates, better organizational skills and a stronger fortitude when it comes to adversity. So today’s episode is the queens of bourbon….or maybe distillHer."Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from PagefireLicensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from PagefireLicensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com

Joining this hobby can be incredibly daunting for anyone that does not already have a tie into a mentor. It leaves you with the need to seek out some degree of guidance. Just randomly selecting a bottle off a shelf is a terrible way to explore what you want to learn. Price ranges vary greatly and if you pay attention to the news or anything online you’ll know that you aren’t really a part of the community until you start the hunt for allotted bottles. And I think that’s where it all breaks. Allotted bottles are often like unobtainium and are very expensive. It leaves someone who is new to bourbon with a search for something they might never find, and if they do find it they’ll shell out quite a few dollars without even having any remote idea of whether or not they’ll like it. Topics Discussed:Bourbon Bourbon ClassholesBourbon Hipsters"Grave Robbers With a Degree" - Andri from Pagefire
Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/grave-robbers-with-a-dregree?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“Pushing The Pianist Down the Stairs” - Andri from Pagefire
Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0https://soundcloud.com/nerdymetalhead202/pushing-the-pianist-down-the-stairs-free-download?in=nerdymetalhead202/sets/nerdys-creative-common-free-to“So Glad I Found You”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com“Oh Lord”Music By The Passion HiFiwww.thepassionhifi.com