Spirits & Distilling Podcast

Spirits & Distilling
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Spirits & Distilling Podcast

Enjoy and learn from conversations with leading distillers as co-hosts Sydney Jones, head distiller for FEW Spirits in Chicago, and Molly Troupe, master distiller for Freeland Spirits in Portland, Oregon, explore the technical and creative processes behind award-winning and storied spirits. It’s a podcast by distillers, for distillers, that covers the broad world of finely crafted spirits—botanical and herbal spirits, fruit distillations, agave spirits, grain spirits, and more. Listen as the hosts discuss every aspect of the process, from ideation and ingredient selection through conversion and fermentation, distilling, aging, finishing, proofing, and packaging. Subscribe to this bi-weekly podcast for tips and techniques that will help you make better spirits.

  1. 3 DAYS AGO

    26: Caley Shoemaker of As Above, So Below Explores Character and Texture in Vodka Distillation

    Caley Shoemaker got her start in whiskey at Denver’s Stranahan’s and went on to distill at Hanger One in Southern California before launching her own distillery, As Above, So Below in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 2021. Now, from her home base on the edge of the mountains in a state nicknamed “The Land of Enchantment,” she’s summoning strong spirits with their own particular swagger. In this episode, host Sydney Jones and Shoemaker discuss: • Creating vodka, gin, whiskey, and botanical spirits inspired by place, travel, and experience • Making vodka from a mash with darker grains, for creamy texture and flavor • Aging spirits in the high and dry climate of New Mexico • Managing cuts to balance flavor and character given target aging time and high loss from barrels • Balancing botanicals in gin while prizing flavor over locality • The secrets to her ACSA medal-winning absinthe • Learning through consulting with a potato vodka distillery in Rwanda And more. G&D Chillers: G&D Chillers understands that each distillery’s chilling requirements are unique. On every distillery project, G&D offers the front-end design and engineering your team needs at no cost to you. Hank Pressley, head distiller at Moon Drop Distillery says, “Early on, we made a decision to partner with quality American-made companies. One of those companies was G&D Chillers, and we are proud of that choice. Our equipment from them has run long and strong. We put our first barrel in our rickhouse in September 2021, and in the next 3 years we have put back more than another 540 barrels. What a great decision to team up with a company like G&D Chillers.” Reach out for a quote today at gdchillers.com.

    1h 2m

  2. FEB 4

    25: Gian Nelson of Jano Spirits and Ruins Distillery is Exploring the Possibilities in California Agave

    Tequila and mezcal are top of mind when you think “agave,” but Gian Nelson is working to change that assumption. For the past few years, working through his brand Jano Spirits, he has partnered with growers who cultivate California agave—a much larger cousin of the classic Blue Weber agave used in tequila—to better understand what it takes to cultivate agave plants that translate into fine spirits. In this episode, Nelson and host Molly Troupe discuss: differences in types of agave plants, from Brix to maturation times farming practices that produce better agave wine-like fermentation for California agave with native and commercial yeast managing methanol production in California agave the impact of aeration leaning into inefficiency And more. G&D Chillers: G&D Chillers understands that each distillery’s chilling requirements are unique. On every distillery project, G&D offers the front-end design and engineering your team needs at no cost to you. Hank Pressley, head distiller at Moon Drop Distillery says, “Early on, we made a decision to partner with quality American-made companies. One of those companies was G&D Chillers, and we are proud of that choice. Our equipment from them has run long and strong. We put our first barrel in our rickhouse in September 2021, and in the next 3 years we have put back more than another 540 barrels. What a great decision to team up with a company like G&D Chillers.” Reach out for a quote today at gdchillers.com.

    48 min

  3. JAN 22

    Episode 24: Eli Breitburg-Smith Is Ushering in the Epoch of Rye in Baltimore

    Founded in 2015, Baltimore Spirits is celebrating a decade of distilling in Charm City. Led by cofounder and head distiller Eli Breitburg-Smith, that run has played a notable role in the craft revival of American rye. Their Epoch Reserve has won multiple double golds at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, more recently landing on Fred Minnick’s Top 100 list of American whiskeys in 2024. In this episode, hosted by Sydney Jones, Breitburg-Smith talks about how he got into distilling as a former craft brewer and how Baltimore Spirits was focused from the beginning on bringing pot-distilled rye whiskey back to Maryland. He also discusses: the influence of single-malt on their rye whiskeys making other spirits, including their Shot Tower Gin, unusual apple brandies, and New World amari using Belgian and American ale yeasts to help drive tropical character in the Epoch Rye Baltimore Spirits’ approach to single-malt, and preparing barrels for that spirit what makes Maryland rye whiskey different, including its history the Ja Rule whiskey collaboration, Amber & Opal, featuring honey, smoky tea, and other botanicals making apple brandies aged and blended Solera-style, distilled from smoked apples—and pechuga-inspired, made with smoked ham and seasonal botanicals working with the Maryland Distillers Guild to share technical know-how and push for legislative changes for craft distillers And more. G&D Chillers: G&D Chillers understands that each distillery’s chilling requirements are unique. On every distillery project, G&D offers the front-end design and engineering your team needs at no cost to you. Hank Pressley, head distiller at Moon Drop Distillery says, “Early on, we made a decision to partner with quality American-made companies. One of those companies was G&D Chillers, and we are proud of that choice. Our equipment from them has run long and strong. We put our first barrel in our rickhouse in September 2021, and in the next 3 years we have put back more than another 540 barrels. What a great decision to team up with a company like G&D Chillers.” Reach out for a quote today at gdchillers.com.

    57 min

  4. JAN 8

    23: Morgan McLachlan of AMASS and De Soi Builds Thoughtful Botanical Bases for Both Gin and Nonalcoholic Spirited Beverages

    Morgan McLachlan, the Los Angeles–based cofounder of Amass Spirits and Katy Perry’s nonalcoholic De Soi brand, has a flair for theatrics that’s only fitting for someone who started her career as a camera operator for film and TV. Every nuanced performance is built on layers, some barely noticeable—but understanding the purpose of those creative choices is essential for McLachlan, as she constructs everything from gins and nonalcoholic spirits to fragrances and other botanical-based products. In this episode, host Molly Troupe and McLachlan discuss: McLachlan distilling background, which began in her own bathtub distilling clementine oranges into a citrus spirit using strategies from the fragrance and culinary worlds to produce compelling botanical blends in spirits the varied impacts of house-made and sourced botanical extracts as well as different extraction techniques challenges when working in the nonalcoholic space with water as a solvent how certain terpenes behave through the distillation process for unexpected results managing challenging botanicals such as cardamom creating gin that’s both classically versatile and noteworthy regulatory challenges with specific ingredients And more. G&D Chillers: G&D Chillers understands that each distillery’s chilling requirements are unique. On every distillery project, G&D offers the front-end design and engineering your team needs at no cost to you. Sid Dilawri from Filibuster Distillery says, “From the design and engineering to installation and start-up, G&D was easy to work with. We’ve had great customer service since commissioning our chiller, and I’d highly recommend them for any distillery system.” Reach out for a quote today at gdchillers.com.

    48 min

  5. 12/24/2024

    22: Spirits & Distilling Year in Review Special

    Year one of the Spirits & Distilling podcast is in the books, and in this special year-end look back, hosts Sydney Jones and Molly Troupe recount some of their favorite conversations of 2024, discuss the dramatic changes in their own lives, muse on big issues of the past year like the TTB’s adoption of a definition for American Single Malt, and look at the big issues and conversations they’re focusing in on for the next year. Along the way, they discuss: refereeing between the two wolves inside of you developments in agave spirits favorite spirits they’ve tasted over the past year why meat is the last cool frontier in spirits water and its impact on distilling the benefits of higher proof bottled cocktails impacts of AI on distilling new year’s resolutions And more. Brought to you by: G&D Chillers: G&D Chillers understands that each distillery’s chilling requirements are unique. On every distillery project, G&D offers the front-end design and engineering your team needs at no cost to you. Jim Kuhr, VP of Manufacturing at Red Boot Beverages says, “G&D has been with us since the early days. Their knowledgeable engineers and service techs are there when we need them. We’re in the midst of a large expansion, and they have been right there with us to select chiller solutions for today and the future.” Reach out for a quote today at gdchillers.com

    1h 6m

  6. 12/10/2024

    21: David Fisher of Sydney’s Archie Rose Distilling Prizes Independence and Balance

    David Fisher’s love of spirits started with bartending in London and followed a winding path, eventually passing through pandemic-era New York City into sensory analysis and blending back home in Australia. Now the senior spirits blender at award-winning Archie Rose Distilling in Sydney, Fisher has one of the most respected noses in the business. In this discussion with host Molly Troupe, Fisher shares his thoughts on the importance of confidence to sensory and blending, and knowing your weaknesses as well as your strengths. He also discusses: stopping to smell the flowers (and everything else) in collecting sense memories the aromatic purity of gin botanicals versus the integrated matrix of whiskey the overarching importance of balance bridging New World flavors and Old World elegance the effects of Australian temperature swings on barrel aging backing up sensory data with numbers, and making the connections with production choices making distinctive whiskey with malts smoked by unusual local woods And more. Brought to you by: G&D Chillers: G&D Chillers understands that each distillery’s chilling requirements are unique. On every distillery project, G&D offers the front-end design and engineering your team needs at no cost to you. Jim Kuhr, VP of Manufacturing at Red Boot Beverages says, “G&D has been with us since the early days. Their knowledgeable engineers and service techs are there when we need them. We’re in the midst of a large expansion, and they have been right there with us to select chiller solutions for today and the future.” Reach out for a quote today at gdchillers.com

    52 min

  7. 11/26/2024

    20: Sherrie Moore Uses Data and Experimentation to Understand and Optimize Whiskey Flavor and Consistency

    There aren’t many problems in whiskey that Sherrie Moore hasn’t tackled and solved. Over her 30+ years at Tennessee’s renowned Jack Daniel’s distillery, she’s worked in just about every role imaginable—from chemist and processing manager to barrel warehousing manager and, eventually, director of whiskey production. She’s since directed whiskey production for Nearest Green Distillery, and for the past few years she has expanded her scope to help smaller brands dial in processes, products, and operations. In this episode, Moore and host Sydney Jones discuss: Understanding tradition before getting into experimentation Jack Daniel’s experiments to reduce the angel’s share Managing a distillery through periods of overproduction and rebalancing Understanding the impact of toast versus char Newer research from ISC Barrels on barrel preparation Creating greater consistency, not just quality Understanding the dynamics of barrel warehouses Evaluating with the eyes to understand flavor Collecting data on consumer preference through tasting-room experiments And more. Brought to you by: G&D Chillers: G&D Chillers understands that each distillery’s chilling requirements are unique. On every distillery project, G&D offers the front-end design and engineering your team needs at no cost to you. Jim Kuhr, VP of Manufacturing at Red Boot Beverages says, “G&D has been with us since the early days. Their knowledgeable engineers and service techs are there when we need them. We’re in the midst of a large expansion, and they have been right there with us to select chiller solutions for today and the future.” Reach out for a quote today at gdchillers.com

    57 min

  8. 11/13/2024

    19: A Global Perspective on Gin With Olivier Ward of Everglow Spirits

    Olivier Ward got his start in gin in the mid-oughts, working on projects for Hendricks, and the he hasn’t been able to shake the gin world since. The people, places, and processes captivate him, and building or telling those brand stories has been a major focus for the better part of the past two decades. As chief gin judge for the IWSC, he tastes thousands of gins in any given year and has a context for flavor and approaches that few possess. Now, with Everglow Spirits, he’s taking a fresh approach to both education and consultation, helping distillers (and would-be distillers) articulate their visions and understand the challenges of creating and growing brands. In this episode, Ward and host Molly Troupe discuss: Thinking about gin beyond just flavor Opportunities and risks in direct-to-consumer sales The common mistakes that brands make, and how great brands hone their focuses Finding resonance beyond baseline expectations for quality The variety of creative approaches and tasting profiles around the world Base spirits and their impact on gins Categorizing for competition with process in addition to flavor And more. Brought to you by: G&D Chillers: G&D Chillers understands that each distillery’s chilling requirements are unique. On every distillery project, G&D offers the front-end design and engineering your team needs at no cost to you. Jim Kuhr, VP of Manufacturing at Red Boot Beverages says, “G&D has been with us since the early days. Their knowledgeable engineers and service techs are there when we need them. We’re in the midst of a large expansion, and they have been right there with us to select chiller solutions for today and the future.” Reach out for a quote today at gdchillers.com Modern Process Equipment: Attention all distillers! The MPE Gran-U-Lizer is the precision roller mill that will change the way you approach distilling. The MPE Gran-U-Lizer masters every grain with unparalleled consistency—providing better flavor extraction and a more efficient process. One distiller even saved more than $38,000 a year after switching from a cage mill to an MPE roller mill! This is your key to achieving a perfect grind every time. Learn more on the Modern Process Equipment website: mpechicago.com!

    1h 8m
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5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

Enjoy and learn from conversations with leading distillers as co-hosts Sydney Jones, head distiller for FEW Spirits in Chicago, and Molly Troupe, master distiller for Freeland Spirits in Portland, Oregon, explore the technical and creative processes behind award-winning and storied spirits. It’s a podcast by distillers, for distillers, that covers the broad world of finely crafted spirits—botanical and herbal spirits, fruit distillations, agave spirits, grain spirits, and more. Listen as the hosts discuss every aspect of the process, from ideation and ingredient selection through conversion and fermentation, distilling, aging, finishing, proofing, and packaging. Subscribe to this bi-weekly podcast for tips and techniques that will help you make better spirits.

Information

  • Creator
    Spirits & Distilling
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2025
  • Episodes
    26
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Spirits & Distilling Podcast
  • Show Website
    Spirits & Distilling Podcast

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