This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to Lexington, Kentucky and introduces listeners to RD1 Spirits. He chats with Co-Founder and Shareholder, Barry Brinegar. Barry and Big Chief sit down in front of a live audience at Longhorn Liquor in Beaumont, Texas to discuss how RD1 Spirits got started and discuss the history of the name. They also sample five single barrels with the help of the audience and pick a barrel to be released at Longhorn Liquor locations...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time recording on location at Porch Kitchen & Bar in downtown Louisville, Kentucky with Dan McKee, Master Distiller of Michter’s. Dan was previously a guest on Episode 71 back in June 2021. The guys talk with Dan about his background and prior work experience, both inside and outside of the Bourbon industry, that eventually led him to Michter’s in 2014; the rich history of Michter’s which traces its original roots all...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to Baltimore, Maryland and introduces listeners to Old Line Spirits. He chats with Co-Founder and Owner, Mark McLaughlin. Mark and Big Chief discuss how Old Line got started and how these two Navy aviators wanted to create bold, new spirits with distinct character and unmatched quality. Driven by a spirit of adventure and camaraderie, Old Line’s spirits embody their mantra: Bold Stories, Bold Spirits. These two veterans are...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time hanging out with Mike Sherman, Vice President, of Vendome Copper & Brass Works in Louisville, Kentucky. The guys talk with Mike about his background and his decision at a fairly young age to join the family business, the rich history of the Vendome brand which was started in the early 1900’s by Mike’s great-grandfather, and the incredible growth of the company over the past 25 years and what the future looks like...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to Washington, Pennsylvania and introduces listeners to Liberty Pole Spirits. He chats with Founder and Owner, Jim Hough. Jim and Big Chief discuss The Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 that pitted farmers and distillers of Western Pennsylvania against George Washington and a new nation. Jim shares how his craft distillery takes you back to those meeting houses and taverns of the rebellion and how they serve tavern-style food and...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time hanging out with Conor O’Driscoll, Master Distiller for Heaven Hill, while recording a show in front of a live audience at BourbonCon in Lexington, Kentucky. Conor was previously a guest on Episode 53. The guys talk with Conor about his extremely impressive background and how that led him to become Master Distiller at Heaven Hill, the wonderful history of Heaven Hill Distillery and the Shapira family who own the...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to England and introduces listeners to Never Say Die Bourbon. He chats with Co-Founder, Brian Luftman. Brian shares the story of a thoroughbred foal who was about to die and was given a shot of Bourbon to revive its spirit and a legendary journey would begin for a racehorse and a whiskey brand. Listen to how a Queen watches this American horse that’s 33-1 odds win one of the largest races in England. Throughout the show...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, the Bourbon Life Crew spends some time hanging out together in The Bourbon Life Studios enjoying some great pours and even better conversation. They each make their predictions for what they think we will see as trends in the Bourbon industry in 2024, talk about this weekend’s BourbonCon event in Lexington, and they each share their favorite Bourbons/Ryes from 2023. They also taste and review Chattanooga Whiskey’s Experimental Batch 35 Centenary...

This week on The Whiskey Trip podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to Fallon, Nevada and introduces listeners to Frey Ranch Distillery. He chats with farmers, ranchers, and founders, Colby and Ashley Frey. Colby and Ashley share their story with Big Chief and listeners. They were looking for ways to showcase their farms’ grains and their passion for whiskey. What was born was a brand that has caught the attention of the whiskey community. In the first half Big Chief, Colby and Ashley...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time hanging out with three-time guest, Rebecca Burnworth, Founder & Owner, of The Stave and District 7 Social. Rebecca was previously a guest on Episodes 4 & 61. The guys talk with Rebecca about everything that has been going on at The Stave since she last appeared on the show, including bringing in a new Chef and developing a new menu, the difficulty of running a restaurant through the pandemic and the feeling...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to Chico, California and introduces listeners to Golden Beaver Distillery. He chats with fellow U.S. Coast Guard veteran, Founder, and Owner, Kris Koenig. Mike Kellogg from California Waterfowl Association Veterans Hunt Program also joins Big Chief and Kris. A portion of each Golden Beaver bottle sell goes to support this amazing program.  The Big Man, Kris, and Mike discuss Calrose Rice, the golden beaver, and how both are...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time hanging out with a true Kentucky treasure – 8-time James Beard Foundation Nominee, Chef Ouita Michel from Holly Hill & Co. and the Holly Hill Restaurant Group. The guys talk with Ouita about how her original plan to attend law school in New York City after graduating from the University of Kentucky changed when she decided instead to attend the Culinary Institute of America (where she also met her husband), how...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to announce his 2023 Craft Distillery and Whiskey of the Year with special guest Steve Johnson. I’m the first half Big Chief announces Treaty Oak Distillery in Dripping Springs Texas as his 2023 Craft Distillery of the Year. The Big Man explains that Treaty Oak won it with an overwhelming feel of hospitality and experience. Food, Music and great whiskey is never missing at this Texas Hill Country Gem. In the second half...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time hanging out in The Bourbon Life Studios with Sam Rock, Founder, of Bluegrass Distillers in Lexington, KY. Sam was previously a guest on Episode 102 in January 2022. The guys talk with Sam about all of the changes that have occurred with Bluegrass Distillers in the almost 2 years since Sam was last on the show, including the trials and tribulations of building a brand new Distillery from the ground up, their new side...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride with a Liquor Store and Whiskey Festival. His guest is Michael Wright, General Manager of Longhorn Liquor chain in Southeast Texas and Director of the SETX Whiskey Festival. Michael tells the Big Man about the ins and outs of a liquor store chain and how they manage their allocated whiskey. He also tells Big Chief about his Festival that supports Cure Rare Disease and how last year’s inaugural event raised over $300,000 for...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, The Bourbon Life Crew spends some time hanging out live in The Bourbon Life Studios for their Holiday Spectacular, or as Matt called it their Bourbon Life Crew “Crewza Booza Reviewza Palooza”, aka the “15 Whiskey Blind Challenge.” The Crew also discusses Bourbon Influencers on social media and what each thinks is acceptable and what isn’t when it comes to Influencers and then the Crew presents Mark with a collection of rather interesting Christmas...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride with a lawyer. His guest is Brian Haara, author of Bourbon Justice: How Whiskey Law Shaped America. He tells Big Chief about how he would review old litigation and how he stumbled on an interesting case from the late 1800’s about The Old Pepper Distillery. This led to him finding more and more cases in the Kentucky State archives, which led to Fred Minnick pressuring him to write a book about the stories that marketing...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time hanging out live in The Bourbon Life Studios with Brad Williams, Senior Category Manager for Spirits at Liquor Barn/BevMo/GoPuff. Brad was previously a guest on Episodes 90 & 127.   The guys talk with Brad about what has changed and what has stayed the same with his position over the past year and half since he was last on the show, what it’s like being responsible for picking barrels for over 400 stores across...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to Lewisville, Texas and introduces you to Bendt Distilling Co. He chats with Raleigh Hughes, who is the Head of Sales. Raleigh takes the Big Man through all of this beautiful distillery’s expressions that are all Bottled in Bond and they discuss their unique submarine pot still. This place is the reason Big Chief came back to podcasting. Raleigh and Big Chief start the show with the Bendt No. 5, which is a blend of all...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time hanging out live in The Bourbon Life Studios with Denny Potter and Jane Bowie, Co-Founders, of Potter Jane Distilling Co.   The guys talk with Denny and Jane about their very impressive backgrounds in the industry, the difficult decision to leave what many would consider dream jobs at Maker’s Mark to build their own distillery from the ground up, and what consumers can expect from the new Potter Jane Distilling Co....

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to North Texas and introduces you to Ironroot Republic Distillery. He chats with Robert and Jonathan Likarish and also gets a surprise visit from the Mother of Texas Whiskey, Marcia Likarish. This family tells us their story of how a family reunion and a visit to a distillery got their gears rolling. The brothers traveled the country, visiting other distilleries, learning how to distill their own whiskey. With being a...

In this Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, Matt and Mark spend some time hanging out live in The Bourbon Life Studios with their good friend, Chad Watson, Single Barrel/Operations Manager, for Rare Character Whiskey. You might also recognize Chad as a member of The Bourbon Life Crew. The guys talk with Chad about his background in the world of Big Box retail and how that led him to his current position with Rare Character, the story behind the Rare Character brand and how it all got...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to Tennessee and introduces you to Company Distilling. He chats with Co-Founder, Jeff Arnett, who was the former Master Distiller for Jack Daniel’s.  Jeff tells listeners how he got his start in the food industry as a production manager for Folgers Coffee where he learned sensory sciences. He started at Jack Daniels as their quality control manager for seven years and was hand-picked as Master Distiller of one of the...

This week on The Whiskey Trip Podcast, Big Chief takes you on a ride to Northern Kentucky to introduce you to New Riff Distilling. He chats with Co-Founder, Jay Erisman, who is known as the Whiskey Man. Jay tells listeners how everything started from one of the largest liquor stores in America, The Party Source, where he helped educate costumers about whiskey with his amazing barrel picks. He also introduces the Big Man to New Riff’s new 8-year-old whiskies. Jay and Big Chief start the show...

In this Special Episode of The Bourbon Life Podcast, the entire Bourbon Life Crew spends some time together in The Bourbon Life Studios sharing some great drinks and conversation, as well as their annual “Crewsgiving” meal prepared by Matt. They go a little bit off the rails in the first session and give you some great topics to discuss with your loved ones at Thanksgiving, including Bigfoot, the Yeti, UFO’s, and other unexplained phenomena. Then they move on to discuss whether there really...