Mark Spivak’s second book, Moonshine Nation: The Art of Creating Cornbread in a Bottle, was released by Lyons Press on July 15. Moonshine is corn whiskey, traditionally made in improvised stills throughout the Appalachian South. While quality varied from one producer to another, the whiskey had one thing in common: It was illegal because the […] The post Quench! – Encore Presentation – Moonshine Nation appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

Mark Spivak’s second book, Moonshine Nation: The Art of Creating (http://www.amazon.com/Moonshine-Nation-Creating-Cornbread-Bottle/dp/0762797029/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1402859616&sr=1-1&keywords=moonshine+nation) Cornbread in a Bottle (http://www.amazon.com/Moonshine-Nation-Creating-Cornbread-Bottle/dp/0762797029/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1402859616&sr=1-1&keywords=moonshine+nation), was released by Lyons Press on July 15. Moonshine is corn...

Throughout the centuries, the role of women in the whiskey business has been schizophrenic. Women have primarily taken over distilleries during emergencies, when men in their families died or went off to war. Despite the fact that women in positions of leadership performed as well or better than men, their accomplishments didn’t lead to a […] The post Quench! – Encore Presentation: Women and Whiskey appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

Throughout the centuries, the role of women in the whiskey business has been schizophrenic. Women have primarily taken over distilleries during emergencies, when men in their families died or went off to war. Despite the fact that women in positions of leadership performed as well or better than men, their accomplishments didn’t lead to a situation where they were promoted any faster---at least, not until the recent breakthroughs in the area of equal rights. Mark talks with Fred Minnick...

Canadian whisky has had a rough time in the U.S. over the past three or four decades: derided by many as “brown vodka,” it was shunned by mixologists in favor of spirits that had more dramatic flavors, such as bourbon and Scotch. The trend is now reversing, although progress is slow. Mark speaks with Davin […] The post Quench! – Encore Presentation: The Rodney Dangerfield of Whisky appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

Canadian whisky has had a rough time in the U.S. over the past three or four decades: derided by many as “brown vodka,” it was shunned by mixologists in favor of spirits that had more dramatic flavors, such as bourbon and Scotch. The trend is now reversing, although progress is slow. Mark speaks with Davin de Kergommeaux (http://www.canadianwhisky.org), the world’s leading expert on Canadian whisky, who offers both insights and recommendations. On Bizarre Beverage News, Mark examines the...

The role of sulfur in winemaking—and its effects on consumers—is one of the most misunderstood topics in the world of wine. Many wine drinkers believe that they are allergic to sulfites, that red wines contain more sulfites than whites, that European wines have lower sulfite levels than American ones: the misconceptions go on and on. […] The post Quench! – The Myth of Sulfites appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

The role of sulfur in winemaking---and its effects on consumers---is one of the most misunderstood topics in the world of wine. Many wine drinkers believe that they are allergic to sulfites, that red wines contain more sulfites than whites, that European wines have lower sulfite levels than American ones: the misconceptions go on and on. Mark tackles this subject and reveals the truth, and what he has to say will surprise you. On Bizarre Beverage News, Mark reveals the country’s highest...

Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is one of Italy’s great wines, and the Tuscan winery Avignonesi is perhaps its greatest estate. Americans tend to confuse it with Montepulciano D’Abruzzo, but anyone drinking it for the first time will be charmed by its balance, elegance and value—it sells for roughly half the price of its more famous […] The post Quench! – Avignonesi: The Jewel of Vino Nobile appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is one of Italy’s great wines, and the Tuscan winery Avignonesi is perhaps its greatest estate. Americans tend to confuse it with Montepulciano D’Abruzzo, but anyone drinking it for the first time will be charmed by its balance, elegance and value---it sells for roughly half the price of its more famous neighbor, Brunello di Montalcino. Mark speaks with Virginie Saverys, the Belgian-born attorney who purchased Avignonesi in 2009 and embarked on the task of making...

As you prepare to open that prized bottle of Lafite or Petrus, a dark thought may cross your mind: It might not be Lafite or Petrus at all. Counterfeit bottles were once as rare as fine wine itself, a phenomenon restricted to rogue wine merchants and sommeliers in Europe who were trying to make some […] The post Quench! – Encore Presentation: Fine, Rare, Expensive and Fake appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

As you prepare to open that prized bottle of Lafite or Petrus, a dark thought may cross your mind: It might not be Lafite or Petrus at all. Counterfeit bottles were once as rare as fine wine itself, a phenomenon restricted to rogue wine merchants and sommeliers in Europe who were trying to make some extra cash. In the past decade, however, wine prices have skyrocketed to unprecedented heights---and so have the fakes. Much of the credit for bringing the problem to the public’s attention goes...

Mark reports on a remarkable tasting of aged rums from the Bacardi Facundo Collection: four selections from the family’s private reserve, now released in a limited edition. He also examines the American renaissance in hard cider, revealed in a new website by blogger Tom Wark called The Cider Journal (ciderjournal.com). Turning his attention to wine […] The post Quench! – The Art of Rum appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

Mark reports on a remarkable tasting of aged rums from the Bacardi Facundo Collection: four selections from the family’s private reserve, now released in a limited edition. He also examines the American renaissance in hard cider, revealed in a new website by blogger Tom Wark called The Cider Journal (ciderjournal.com). Turning his attention to wine served at 30,000 feet, he probes the fact that airline passengers spend more money on alcohol than anything else while aloft---despite the fact...

Mark is back from the Telluride Wine Festival, and files a full report on that less-than-satisfying experience. The rest of today’s show is devoted to a collection of the Bizarre Beverage New stories that piled up over the past several weeks. Some highlights include: an all-nude wine festival, coming up on August 16 in (where […] The post Quench! – Bizarre Beverage Roundup appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

Mark is back from the Telluride Wine Festival, and files a full report on that less-than-satisfying experience. The rest of today’s show is devoted to a collection of the Bizarre Beverage New stories that piled up over the past several weeks. Some highlights include: an all-nude wine festival, coming up on August 16 in (where else?) the Poconos; the latest in a series of trademark infringement lawsuits filed by E & J Gallo; the contents of the White House wine cellar; the recent Italian...

A large number of facilities that produce alcohol report ongoing occurrences of paranormal activity. Is there something about these places that attracts ghosts, and keeps those ghosts coming back? Mark speaks with Brock Wagner, one of the owners of Saint Arnold Brewery in Texas, the country’s largest craft brewer, about frequent ghost sightings in his […] The post Quench! – Haunted Breweries and Distilleries appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

A large number of facilities that produce alcohol report ongoing occurrences of paranormal activity. Is there something about these places that attracts ghosts, and keeps those ghosts coming back? Mark speaks with Brock Wagner, one of the owners of Saint Arnold Brewery in Texas, the country’s largest craft brewer, about frequent ghost sightings in his building; he then talks with Amy Preske from Buffalo Trace Distillery in Kentucky, which has had instances of hauntings for many years. Both...

If you fantasize about owning your own winery, you’re not alone—after the desire to open a restaurant, winery ownership is one of the most common fantasies in the human psyche. The cost of admission, however, is steep: between $5-10 million in Napa, and even higher in some parts of Europe. Mark explores the growing category […] The post Quench! – Fractional Vineyard Ownership appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

If you fantasize about owning your own winery, you’re not alone---after the desire to open a restaurant, winery ownership is one of the most common fantasies in the human psyche. The cost of admission, however, is steep: between $5-10 million in Napa, and even higher in some parts of Europe. Mark explores the growing category of fractional vineyard ownership, which allows you to become lord of the manor (although briefly) for a comparatively small amount of cash. He reviews the leader in the...

Mark Spivak’s second book, Moonshine Nation: The Art of Creating Cornbread in a Bottle, will be released by Lyons Press on July 15. Moonshine is corn whiskey, traditionally made in improvised stills throughout the Appalachian South. While quality varied from one producer to another, the whiskey had one thing in common: It was illegal because […] The post Quench! – Moonshine Nation appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

Mark Spivak’s second book, Moonshine Nation: The Art of Creating Cornbread in a Bottle, will be released by Lyons Press on July 15. Moonshine is corn whiskey, traditionally made in improvised stills throughout the Appalachian South. While quality varied from one producer to another, the whiskey had one thing in common: It was illegal because the distiller refused to pay taxes to the US government. In the first half of Moonshine Nation, Mark traces the history of moonshine from the Whiskey...

There’s a mounting body of scientific evidence to indicate that women are better tasters than men—not just of wine, but also of beer, spirits, food and other things. The original research was done in 1999 at the Yale University School of Medicine by Dr. Linda Bartoshuk, who discovered that women have more taste receptors than […] The post Quench! – Are Women Better Tasters? appeared first on WebTalkRadio.net.

There’s a mounting body of scientific evidence to indicate that women are better tasters than men---not just of wine, but also of beer, spirits, food and other things. The original research was done in 1999 at the Yale University School of Medicine by Dr. Linda Bartoshuk, who discovered that women have more taste receptors than men do; she formulated the now-famous theory of the “super taster.” Mark examines this issue from different angles, including personal experience as well as his own...