Bourbon Pursuit

Bourbon Pursuit

The Official Podcast of Bourbon! The best in news, reviews and interviews with people making the bourbon whiskey industry happen. Join hosts Kenny Coleman, Ryan Cecil, and Fred Minnick as they talk with prominent guests and provide insight on American whiskey 3 times a week. Catch all new episodes every Thursday with special Whiskey Quickie reviews on Tuesday and get caught up on bourbon news with This Week in Bourbon on Friday.

  1. 1d ago

    TWiB: Southern Glazer’s to pay a 12.5M penalty, More Canadian liquor tariffs, Booker’s Bourbon The Reserves 2026

    It's This Week in Bourbon for September 18th 2026. Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits will pay a 12.5M penalty, More tariffs and bans of canadian liquor into the US, and Booker’s Bourbon The Reserves 2026 and Little Book The Infinite, Edition III.Show Notes: Kentucky Bourbon Festival announces dates for 2027 event in Bardstown Evan Williams expands college football presence with tailgates and collegiate bottles Bluegrass Distillers launches quarterly Bottle Club membership program Southern Glazer's pays $12.5M penalty to resolve federal trade practice investigation President Trump announces plans to remove 10% tariff on Irish whiskey Crown Royal avoids Canadian spirit import ban via bulk shipping strategy Shady Rays and Pappy & Co collaborate on limited-edition sunglasses and giveaway Charlotte Bourbon Society announces 9th Annual Bourbon Hearts Dinner Benefit Mark Pringle releases The Whiskey Taster's Flavor Guide reference book MGP debuts Chapter One 10-Year Straight Bourbon as flagship brand Neeley Family Distillery debuts PaPaw’s Legacy Reserve 10-Year Triple Pot-Stilled Bourbon Koopers Whiskey releases repackaged Prodigal Son Bourbon for Bourbon Heritage Month Breckenridge Distillery debuts Broncos-themed commemorative whiskey lineup and seltzer Joseph Magnus returns to rye whiskey with 10 Year Cask Strength release Penelope Bourbon releases Cigar Sessions Chapter 2 in collaboration with Alec Bradley Buffalo Trace and Van Winkle announce 2026 Van Winkle Whiskey Collection lineup Wilderness Trail debuts exclusive whiskeys for Hall of Fame induction of co-founders Angel's Envy announces Cellar Collection Volume 6 Straight Rye Whiskey release Ingram Distillery debuts Batch 6 of river-aged Flagship Kentucky Straight Bourbon Buffalo Trace debuts Elmer T. Lee 40th Anniversary Edition uncut bourbon Brother Justus Whiskey Company releases Brother Justus Founder’s Reserve IV The Maven Distillery launches flagship 104-proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Garrison Brothers announces Hye tailgate event featuring 2 new cask-strength single barrels Beam Distilling announces Booker’s Bourbon The Reserves 2026 and Little Book Infinite III Knob Creek introduces 12 Year Old Cask Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon Jack Daniel’s launches Tennessee Blackberry mixed with Lemonade canned cocktail Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    TWiB: Southern Glazer’s to pay a 12.5M penalty, More Canadian liquor tariffs, Booker’s Bourbon The Reserves 2026
  2. 2d ago

    PursuitPalooza 2026 AMA Part 2

    We're back with Part 2 of our PursuitPalooza 2026 AMA session. We kick off by tackling the business realities of the RTD boom because we keep punting the idea if we should do one ourselves, and exploring why entering the canned cocktail market is a completely different beast than aging bourbon in a barrel. We talk about some the weirdest tasting notes we've ever pulled like peanut butter and jelly, peach rings, and Grandma's candy jar. Finally, we get personal about what it really takes to run an independent spirits company. We talk about managing operational pressure, our core philosophy of "no problems, only solutions," and some of the wild, unfiltered Palooza memories from over the years. Show Notes: RTDs vs. Aged Whiskey: The hidden challenges of canned cocktails, including shelf-life stability, high R&D costs, and retail distribution hurdles. Sourcing Strategy: Why Pursuit Spirits prioritizes proven legacy distillates over volatile craft profiles to establish consumer trust. Wild Tasting Notes: Recalling the most unusual flavor profiles we've encountered, from PB&J and peach rings to farmyard funky pours. Labeling & TTB Regulations: How slight legal nuances define "straight bourbon" versus finished expressions, and what consumers actually notice. Leadership & Problem Solving: Behind the scenes of scaling Pursuit Spirits, empowering employees, and keeping cool under operational stress. Celebrity Brands & Industry Hype: Our unfiltered thoughts on celebrity-backed spirits, hazmat-proof trends, and the ongoing craze for allocated bottles. Palooza War Stories: Reliving hilarious, late-night Palooza memories, EDM club outings, and keeping the annual event fresh for repeat attendees. Historical Dream Pours: Ryan and Kenny name the iconic figures—including George Garvin Brown and President William Howard Taft—they'd love to share a dram with. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  3. Sep 10

    PursuitPalooza 2026 AMA Part 1

    Today, we are bringing you part 1 of 2 for our Pursuit Palooza 2026 AMA session recorded live with myself and Ryan Cecil. We take a look back at how Palooza originally grew out of having way more whiskey and industry guests than we could ever fit on the podcast and why we decided to start having Palooza. From there, take questions from our fans in the audience about transparency in labeling, dissecting "bottled by" statements, straight bourbon requirements, and whether the average consumer actually cares about production details versus price, story, and flavor. Plus, we address the big question on everyone's mind: has the bourbon boom peaked, or is there still room for category growth? Show Notes: Palooza Origins: How having too many podcast guests and leftover whiskey barrels spawned Pursuit Palooza. Labeling & Transparency: Breakdown of "bottled by" statements, legal requirements, and what consumers actually value on the shelf. Pursuit Archive & Revivals: The story behind Sherry River Rye, keeping an archive of past releases, and future P-Club plans. State of the Bourbon Industry: Addressing market shifts, changing distribution habits, international growth, and the end of truck-chasing. Hard Lessons in Craft Distilling: What we underestimated about packaging, marketing, and navigating the three-tier system when starting Pursuit Spirits. Underrated Distillates: Ryan and Kenny highlight hidden-gem producers like Tennessee Distilling Group, Woodinville, Still Austin, and Southern Distilling. The Reality of Organic Bourbon: Why large-scale organic grain production faces massive hurdles with pests, weeds, and high costs. Palooza War Stories & Blending Dreams: Recalling wild Palooza mishaps, dream blending-room collaborators, and the ultimate death row food and pour pairings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  4. Sep 3

    Enthusiast to Entrepreneur Journey with Mike Hinds of Nashville Barrel Company

    There's a time when whiskey enthusiasm takes it to the next level. I've lived through it. I was a stone cold hobbyist, and I still am, but then I started a podcast and now Ryan and I have Pursuit Spirits. We don't know how to stop taking a hobby too far. And our guest today is no different. Mike Hinds is co-founder of Nashville Barrel Company, Mike takes us back five or six years to NBC's humble beginnings, starting with local charity picks for cancer research, hunting down Jack Daniel’s, Weller 12, and Willett single barrels, and making frequent runs to Bardstown to learn the ropes. When he decided to start Nashville Barrel Company there were plenty of operational headaches like sourcing whiskey and dealing with shady brokers but a few mismatched samples unexpectedly got them a hit they kept on playing with Kelvin barrels. Since then they have been expanding into downtown Music City, and have now opened a new spot in NuLu called the Louisville Rickhouse Company. Instead of chasing cheap inventory or relying on marketing gimmicks, Mike shares how their focus cask-strength single barrels built consumer trust and whiskey clubs kept their growth soaring. We also talk about Stella, the official company dog, their VIP club, and how Mike has been one of the few lucky people in history to pick a single barrel of Pappy Van Winkle 15. Show Notes: How a passion for bottle shares, charity picks, and barrel hunting birthed Nashville Barrel Company. Early sourcing realities: broker blunders, mismatched samples, and launching with rye instead of bourbon. Pivoting during COVID from third-party co-packers to brick-and-mortar locations in Nashville and Louisville. The strategy behind building a brand on cask-strength single barrels and authentic community trust over gimmicks. Inside NBC's special releases, including a Pappy 15 single barrel, "The Compromise" blend, and their VIP club. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

4.8
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928 Ratings

About

The Official Podcast of Bourbon! The best in news, reviews and interviews with people making the bourbon whiskey industry happen. Join hosts Kenny Coleman, Ryan Cecil, and Fred Minnick as they talk with prominent guests and provide insight on American whiskey 3 times a week. Catch all new episodes every Thursday with special Whiskey Quickie reviews on Tuesday and get caught up on bourbon news with This Week in Bourbon on Friday.

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