Hear in Spirit

We’ve talked about representation and the changing landscape of the whisky community several times over the last few years on Hear in Spirit, but today we dive just a little bit deeper.  Though, to say that’s what this episode is about, or that that’s all my guest on this episode is about would be a gross misrepresentation. Tracie Franklin has been an invaluable and well-recognized member of the whisky community for years, but more than that, she’s been a pioneer and a voice for change and diversity.  It’s hard for someone who like me, someone who looks like me, who grew up with the privileges I did, to really speak about Tracie with nuanced intelligence or sensitivity because I haven’t experienced the world as she has.  But I’m doing the best I can.  And one thing I will say without hesitation, Tracie Franklin, my guest on Hear in Spirit today is a remarkable human being, possessing not only an savant like appreciation of the spirit and industry, but to reuse the word in another context, possessing a spirit infectious in not only the way it challenges you to think, but in the way it challenges you to smile.  Closing music provided by iRa evRyWhr.  This is her new single "Go Slower" featuring Kyle Bent.  Download on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your music. Learn more about Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey and the Nearest & Jack Advancement Initiative.

Raj Peter Bhakta is a cult of personality to say the least — charming, charismatic, controversial, uncompromising.  But it’s the combination of these traits that make the man one of the most interesting in the spirits world.  I say "spirits" this week specifically, because while Raj is most known for his founding of and much talked about departure from the American whiskey darling Whistle Pig, he’s turned away from Rye, and started a love affair with a different brown liquor - Armagnac.  In typical Bhakta style, his latest release isn’t a traditional armagnac — Bhakta 50 is a premium spirit blended from grapes harvested as far back as 1867 and is finished in Islay Whisky casks.  Raj is inspirited by the idea of American Revival and his passion for this is evident throughout the podcast, plus he gives us a pretty epic story about the legendary Dave Pickerell. Learn more at www.bhaktabrandy.com 

Maryland Rye was once one of the country’s earliest and most sought after expressions of regionalized whiskeys. A flavor profile, a mash bill largely lost to us, but Sagamore Spirit of Baltimore is among a select group of American distilleries attempting to revive this once dominant category.  For me, it’s the perfect example of what localized ryes that have emerged from the East Coast over the last five years should represent. This week on Hear in Spirit, one of the founders, Brian Treacy, joined me remotely to taste our way through the line and talk about the history of Sagamore Spirits and the amazing but elusive category he and his team have dedicated themselves to restoring.

The man who mixes humor and tricks with his whisky to create one of my favorite digital cocktails.  Brian Crompton AKA @Bookersbrye is essentially running a whisky-based variety show out of his kitchen where he personally performs some combination of sketches, balancing acts, trick shots and dirty poetry every day for your viewing and drinking pleasure.  And what’s more, the toughest trick he’s ever pulled off, he’s been able to figure out to how to do this full-time.  I was excited to get a chance to finally get Brian on the show and hear his story but as we recorded this phone call the topics strayed from whisky, so for the second half of the interview, we geeked out about sports, which was particularly insightful into Brian’s personality because before he became the sardonic whisky entertainer of instagram, he was a golf pro. If you miss sports like we do, it's a fun segment.

No sooner had Sam Green - author of the new book "A Beginner's Guide to Whiskey" - scheduled our interview did the world change dramatically and face to face interviews became impossible, but we fought through the logistics. Sam recorded his track in L.A. and I recorded mine in Orange County, and considering, that I’m pretty pleased with the results.  Sam and I discuss his introduction to the ultimate spirit as well as his take on the controversial Whiskey Sommelier program.

Denver Cramer of Denver & Liely & Koray Özdemir of Paul John are two of my guests at my first ever Whiskey Roundtable in San Francisco recorded live at the Nihon Whisky Lounge. We discuss top whiskey drinking glasses including Turkish tea glasses as well as the rise of celebrity ownership and endorsement in the whisky world.

On Hear in Spirit, I’ve had the pleasure of talking to several master distillers and distillery founders, but this week we’re exploring a new area of the whisky world, that of the independent bottler.  Karl Schoen grew up around whisky and entrepreneurship, so when it was time for time to strike out on his own, it was only natural he’d gravitate toward the spirit of life.  But the when he did it and the splash he’s already made is makes for a pretty surprising story.  The Perfect Fifth is the brand he founded, and Karl joined me in the studio last week in Southern California to let me try some of the award winning scotch he’s bottled, but he didn’t drink it with me.  You can find out why this on this episode of Hear in Spirit. Plus, an Old Fashioned Conversation with Saul Zelmanowitz, the mastermind behind the scotchminisz instagram account.  Saul invited me to his home in Queens to view his collection of over 3,000 bottle of mini single malt scotch whiskies.

This week on the podcast, Dan Garrison of Garrison Brothers Whiskey stopped by the studio on a recent trip to Southern California to tell me about how his Texas Bourbon brand was an idea born out the of pain and frustration of watching his years of dedication to another industry vanish overnight. But after buying one of Elmer T Lee’s old stills on a whim and shipping it to Blanco County Texas where the summer thermometer rarely drops below 94 degrees, the differences between the Bluegrass State and the Lone Star State would have deterred most people. But not Dan Garrison, who takes daily inspiration from the lyrics to an old Guy Clark song: “He's one of those who knows that life is just a leap of faith, Spread your arms and hold your breath, always trust your cape”. Plus, Gina Ruccione is a food and beverage industry alum as well as the host of a popular podcast called “A Series of Unfortunate Dates”. She hosted me for a one-sided Old Fashioned Conversation, which will make sense after you listen to the segment, and we chatted about her experiences in the industry and how her crazy idea for a podcast came to be and took off.

The 3rd in my founders series, representing a continued evolution in our whiskey education.  In the early episodes of S1, Allison Parc introduced us to the concept of terroir, how a spirit is influenced by the natural environment wherein it’s produced and what that meant to her and Brenne. Later that season, Colin Spoelman of Kings County dug deep into the importance of regionalization to the future of American Whiskey.  In this episode, I’m talking with Matt Hoffman of Westland Distillery of Seattle who brings things full circle & explains how these two concepts are not only linked from a geological sense, but for Westland, to a cultural and spiritual sense - the Pacific Northwest.

Wally Dyer @scotchnsniff joins me to give us the story of how he got into whiskey, the origins of his YouTube channel and to discuss topics ranging from the peat of Orkney to the Russian oligarchy, which has nothing at all to do with whiskey, but it comes up way too many times.  We also go live on IG WHILE recording the podcast.  It’s a lot of fun trying to keep up with this guy. Wally's weekly show with @drinkingcaveman is called Whiskey Untitled and can be seen every Tuesday night on YouTube.

Laphroaig is my favorite distiller of whisky, and so I was very excited to sit down with a Laphroaig expert, none other than Mr. Simon Brooking, Master Ambassador for Beam Suntory Scotch.  We met up in Brooklyn to share a few drams, talk about his early career, how being a trained theater actor helped him get his start in the world of spirits, and geek-out on Laphroaig.  We do a little more tasting in this episode than I’ve historically put in the podcast, but that’s simply because I couldn’t help myself. 

My interview with Julia Ritz Toffoli, the founder of Women Who Whiskey, a fantastic organization dedicated to debunking the stereotypes and myths around who does and can be a whiskey drinker.  I wanted to talk to Julia because I found her inspirational in that she recognized a need in herself, recognized also that she wasn’t alone in that need, and instead of putting up with it, instead of complaining about it, instead of asking someone to solve it for her, she took action.  I also have an Old Fashioned Conversation and some pizza with Christina Kim.

Colin Spoelman, founder Kings County Distillery, used to bring moonshine back from his home state of Kentucky to his friends in New York.  Eventually, he started making his own whiskey in his apartment in Brooklyn before expanding the operation. Colin and I discuss the history of the distillery, the craft whisky movement and market, what separates it from the major distilleries and conglomerates, and what regionalization means to the future of American Whiskey.

Georgie Bell, the Global Single Malts Ambassador for Bacardi and the co-founder of the @OurWhisky project talks to me about her whisky journey and the face of the modern whisky drinker.  Plus and Old Fashioned Conversation with Chello who used to buy Yamazaki 12 for $40 like it was nothing!

Koray Özdemir of Paul John Single Malt Whisky joins me from the Double Barrel in Beverly Hills (www.doublebarrelbh.com) to talk about how he's "living the whisky life", the birth of the Whisky Monster, Paul John Single Malt Whisky and how to survive the life on the road of a brand ambassador.

Part two of my interview with Linh Do, @WhiskyAnorach. We got a little deeper, we got a little more existential, we got a little more personal. On the show, I talk a lot about the shared experience of the whisky community and how special it is, but whisky is also highly personal experience for each of us and this week Linh really explores that with me.

Denver Cramer of @denverandliely joins me in San Fran for a candid interview about the unique and organic way he and Liely interact with their customers and the intense thought and research, not only into the performance, but also into the experience, that goes into the design of every D&L glass.  We sip on some @stgeorgespirits Dry Rye Reposado Gin, and he tells us about the next great product that you’ll want to hear if you like to get outdoors and have fun.  Follow them at www.denverandliely.com

Part 1 of my 2 part interview with Linh Do @whiskyanorach.  We talk about the ironic story of how she first began to use whisky as her muse, learn about her travels to Scotland and I have an Old Fashioned conversation with avid runner, Jason.

Interview with Jas (@tonightspoison). We talk about his whisky journey and the origins of #positivevibesmonday and geek out over Compass Box Whisky. I also have an Old Fashioned Conversation with Sean. We talk music and dealing with personal demons.

On this week's episode, I talk with Trish Byott, brand ambassador for The Macallan in Hong Kong. Trish's passion led her to give up a career in banking and take a leap of faith half way around the world. I also have an "Old Fashioned Conversation" with David. We reminisce about his father who passed away just before Christmas.

On this episode, I'm joined by Allison Parc, Owner and Founder of Brenne Single Malt Whisky. I also have an "Old Fashioned Conversation" with Dodger fan and new father, Kurt.

Join me to explore Japanese Whisky with George Koutsakis of Dekanta.com. We talk about what makes Japanese Whisky special and why the prices are so high.  I also have an Old Fashioned Conversation with Alexa, a woman who knows her Johnnie Walker and has a nose for whisky you don't want to mess with.

In this first ever episode of Hear in Spirit, I talk with Jenna Elie, AKA @whiskyagogirl on Instagram, popular IG personality and ambassador for the Scotch Malt Whisky Society of America.  Jenna and I discuss her introduction to whisky, how she transitioned that into a career.  We also discuss the whisky community at large. Additionally, I have an "Old Fashioned Conversation" with Chris, a pastor from California.  We share a dram and he explains his theories of where whisky fits in with religion.