Distillers Talk

Al Laws of Laws Whiskey House in Colorado joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson on all things grain and terroir. Al guides us through a tasting of their Four Grain Straight Bourbon Whiskey, San Luis Valley Straight Rye Whiskey, Centennial Straight Wheat Whiskey and Henry Road Straight Malt Whiskey. We also discuss production and their upcoming new tasting room.

Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson take on some controversial topics in the spirits industry right now and discuss the future of the market, as well as tips for brands and ancillary partners.

Seth Benheim and Nick Roady of Broken Barrel Whiskey Company join Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson and discuss the importance of packaging and standing out in a market as a craft producer in a developed market. We also get into responsible distribution strategies and working with foreign markets while satisfying your home accounts, as well as upcoming plans and unique collaborative releases.

Ian Verno of Ten-030 Barrels joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to discuss his hybrid barrels

Distillers Talk goes to Yunnan Province, China this week! Evan Villarrubia of MB Distillery joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to discuss his start in the distilling industry in China, as well as the production of some of his products including sugar cane rum and rice based spirits. We’re also going to get into China’s multi-tier system and Chinese distilling culture. Check out our Facebook and Instagram on Monday, February 12th to weigh in on our poll with questions for Evan's next episode with us!

David McIntyre of West Fork Whiskey in Indianapolis joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson this week. We discuss West Fork's beginnings under a small budget and the evolution of its production setup and product line, as well as struggles encountered along the way. This is a great episode for those looking to start up a distillery with a small investment!

Thomas Thacker in North Carolina joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to talk more about his process and operations at Southern Grace Distilleries making Conviction Bourbon and White Dog. Tune in also to learn about their whiskey prison and paranormal tour stories!

Author and host of the Whiskey Lore podcasts, Drew Hannush joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to discuss his new book, The Lost History of Tennessee Whiskey. Order it now through Amazon here.

Andrew Lohfeld of Roulaison Distilling Co in Louisiana joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to discuss some hot topics in rum right now. We get into single estate varietals and Louisiana grown sugarcane, a Louisiana rum designation, rum nomenclature and changes to Louisiana state law for self distribution.

Bobby Demars, Christian Riddout and Christopher Sebastian from Blind Barrels join Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to discuss their unique whiskey service, helping connect their subscribers with American craft distilleries.

Jeff Rasmussen of StillDragon joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to share his more unique experiences helping their clients design more efficient and innovative systems. We also chat about his journey into the industry and some surprises coming up with DragonStill.

Alexis Casimiri of La Mauvaise Graine Distillerie in Lyon, France joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to talk about his introduction to distilling and the industry. We learn more about his spirits and process, particularly his Louise Gin, a tribute to his grandmother and the people of Lyon. Alexis talks about his botanical sourcing from the local area and partnering with wild harvesters.

Christian Kahle of Lucky Sign Spirits joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to chat about his unique spirits, including finocchietto, raki, limoncello and more. We get into standards of identity and communication amongst distillers, as well as the merits of a two chamber still. Christian discusses his corn stalk agricole project and lemonade burrito is our new favorite tasting note.

Christopher Conrad of BadMotivator Legacy Barrels joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson with updates on the company and their innovative barrels, as well as a sampling of some of Christopher's experiments using BadMotivator barrels.

Jeff Wuslich of Cardinal Spirits in Bloomington, Indiana joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to talk about the distillery and its spirits, getting into copackaging, considerations for new brands and so much more.

Ray Hooker of Indian River Distillery in Vero Beach, Florida joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to explore a sampling of several different experimentals and product.

Jesse Wilson from Still It returns again with Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to catch up on his latest experiments. Jesse and Alan introduce a collaboration to honor the late Ben Quady through Bad Motivator's next chapter using barrels that had been provided to them by Ben. We also nerd out on fermentation cultures, and Alan waxes nostalgia with his new affinity for naming still designs after 80's pop culture.

Brian Gelfo of Broadleaf Whiskey joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to discuss the brand as we drink through two batches and even chat about the future of Brothers of the Leaf

Author, food and spirits journalist and sprits educator Steve Coomes joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson to chat about agave based spirits and his impressions from a recent trip to Mexico to explore tequila distilleries

Birk O'Halloran of Rockwell Vermouth and Iconic Wine joins Alan Bishop and Christi Atkinson on Distillers Talk. Birk chats about his lengthy botanical R&D project developing his artisan vermouths using local California botanicals, as well as what sets the products apart from other vermouths on the market. We also get into some upcoming projects, including single cask vermouths.