The Practical Still Mark Still & Dan Cavallari

If you've paid any attention at all over the last couple of years, you know that I'm a sucker for nice glassware. Wine glasses, coffee cups, and in particular, whiskey glasses are as much a part of my drinking experience as the liquid that is sipped from them.

So, when I ran across Aaron Gooding's work on Instagram @lastcutcrystal, I was intrigued. I've got quite a variety of nosing glasses but the most visceral whiskey-drinking experience comes from my heavy, Waterford crystal old fashioned or rocks glasses I have. I just love the heft and the way it feels as my fingers caress the varied grooves as my clear ice sphere rumbles around in the bourbon as I roll the glass in my hand. I've got a set we received as a wedding gift 32 years ago, I've got a 6-ounce set I used mostly for Boulevadiers and Sazerac cocktails, and a couple of giant double old fashioned glasses that are, of course, my go-to for Old Fashioned cocktails. 

The opportunity to buy glasses hand cut by a creator building a business around art was too compelling to pass up. Having our infamous logo etched in the bottom sealed the deal and I ordered two Old Fashioned glasses with a fairly traditional pattern carved into the crystal. Then I thought, why not see if Aaron wanted to be on the podcast and he did so here's me talking to Aaron Gooding of Last Cut Crystal.

Cheers!

You can see and order Aaron's work from his Etsy Store and watch him in action on Instagram.
Podcast episodes, videos, and livesteams are available at thepracticalstill.com.
Join us for Friday Sips Live, Fridays at 2:30pm MT
All the socials @ThePracticalStill
Questions for us? Email mark@thepracticalstill.com.

Whiskey isn't all we do.
Slow Guy on the Fast Ride
Dawn Patrol MTB
Mental Healthlete

Double oaked and toasted barrel-finished bourbons are quite popular lately. It seems like a similar process to finishing in barrels that previously held other liquids but also different and more like a second maturation than a typical finish. New barrels are expensive so these second-barrel products seem to spend more time in the second barrels than many wine or rum-finished whiskeys. 

For some, like Old Forester 1910, the second barrel is charred to within an inch of oblivion while others use heavily toasted barrels for that second stretch of aging. In either case, just like other finishing techniques, good whiskey going in can make for good whiskey out but the process won't usually save bad whiskey. We've encountered some terrible examples of double oaked bourbons lately and even if this process is popular, it can't save poorly produced whiskey. 

Are you a fan? Is Woodford Double Oaked or even Double Double Oaked your jam? Do you get all the confectionary notes of that super charred second barrel in Old Forester 1910? What about the new kids, Kentucky Peerless, and their Double Oak? Would you spend $175 on a Wild Turkey Master's Keep One and its toasted barrel treatment like I did? It's pretty tasty.  

Or is all of this just marketing hype and sketchy tactics to try and cover up the fact that so many whiskeys come from a giant distillery in Indiana or that grains have less flavor than just a decade or two ago?

Cheers!
Podcast episodes, videos, and livesteams are available at thepracticalstill.com.
Join us for Friday Sips Live, Fridays at 2:30pm MT
All the socials @ThePracticalStill
Questions for us? Email mark@thepracticalstill.com.

Whiskey isn't all we do.
Slow Guy on the Fast Ride
Dawn Patrol MTB
Mental Healthlete

Every year around this time, we look back and ask ourselves what we learned about whiskey. In 2022, the big takeaway is that we should really focus on bourbon, rye, and scotch whisk(e)y that we really like. Saving $5 on a bottle on Elijah Craig Small Batch is no reason to stock up. It isn't going anywhere.

I'd made a pledge not to buy any more pedestrian whiskey until I drank all of the pedestrian whiskey I already had in the house. I'm still drinking but that pledge means I'll end the year with fewer bottles than I started for the first time ... ever. At least I think that's the case. I don't count or keep records of which bottles I'm stocking at home so I could be wrong. It is a change in philosophy for sure whatever the case. 

Bourbon prices continue to rise so it seems to make more sense to refrain from buying bottles that aren't really good and direct some of that budget to the ones we really like. Booker's, Russell's Reserve, Wild Turkey, Barrell, and the like. We aren't suggesting only buying $100+ bottles but as much as we like Wild Turkey 101 and Rittenhouse, Rare Breed Bourbon and Rye are just better so why not live a little?   

Dan had a tough year with his favorite store's club program that requires him to purchase the monthly pick sight unseen. So far, he's 1 for 11 with 1 pick to go. That's not a good ratio so he'll step away from that next year. He's happy to commit to spending every month as long as he can pick what he buys.   

So, 2023 will be about fewer bottles that we choose based solely on the enjoyment factor. We rarely get the chance to buy unicorns but that in-between land of $50-80 feels like a better range to shoot for regularly to ensure every pour is worth the sip.

Cheers!  
Podcast episodes, videos, and livesteams are available at thepracticalstill.com.
Join us for Friday Sips Live, Fridays at 2:30pm MT
All the socials @ThePracticalStill
Questions for us? Email mark@thepracticalstill.com.

Whiskey isn't all we do.
Slow Guy on the Fast Ride
Dawn Patrol MTB
Mental Healthlete

Every year in the fall, whiskey geeks decent upon every store hunting for bottles from Buffalo Trace's Antique Collection (BTAC), Pappy van Winkle, Old Forester Birthday Bourbon, and others. It's like a zombie apocalypse. Many, if not most, of those bottles will never be opened by the original purchaser. Rather, they'll be sold on the secondary market for many times their suggested retail price. Even more folks will work every store lottery, charity auctions, or other program meant to at least attempt to fairly distribute a product in short supply relative to its demand. 

All I want is to be rewarded for being a consistent customer of a store throughout the year, not just for whiskey and not just in the fall. I've found that and  Dan has found that, and maybe it doesn't yield the full-on unicorn bottles but it has allowed us to buy some nice bottles all year long with little fuss and it's what made it possible for both of us to get each other favorite bottles for our own birthdays when there were none on the shelves for sale. 

Why can't it be simpler? Why do whiskey enthusiasts insist on becoming the worst of the worst retail consumer for something that shouldn't be so hard to buy? Do you blame the distilleries, the retailers, or the consumers? Or, do you love the hunt and think this is the most awesome setup for a hobby ever? 

In the end, I guess I don't care. I find delicious bottles all the time that don't cost an arm and a leg even if they cost more than they should. 

Of course, nothing is forcing me to remain a whiskey drinker either if I don't like the system. Coffee is good. Wine is good. There is plenty to drink beyond overpriced, overhyped bourbon and rye whiskey.

Cheers!  
Podcast episodes, videos, and livesteams are available at thepracticalstill.com.
Join us for Friday Sips Live, Fridays at 2:30pm MT
All the socials @ThePracticalStill
Questions for us? Email mark@thepracticalstill.com.

Whiskey isn't all we do.
Slow Guy on the Fast Ride
Dawn Patrol MTB
Mental Healthlete

Jess Graber started distilling in the early 1970s as a hobby. A chance encounter with a neighbor named George Stranahan opened the door to take his moonshine hobby and eventually turn it into Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey. As the co-founder of Stranahan's, Jess was at the start of what is now one of the fasted growing segments in American whiskey, single malt. It was folks asking about whiskey more like a bourbon that got him thinking of what ultimately became TINCUP, a bourbon recipe 'spiced' with a little Stranahan's and cut to proof with Colorado water from Eldorado Springs. A rye whiskey and a 10-year bourbon eventually joined the portfolio of whiskey, both proofed with that famous Colorado water. 

We are thrilled to share our conversation with Jess and hope you find it as entertaining to listen to as we do. Thanks to Jess for taking the time to visit and drink with us.

Cheers! 
Podcast episodes, videos, and livesteams are available at thepracticalstill.com.
Join us for Friday Sips Live, Fridays at 2:30pm MT
All the socials @ThePracticalStill
Questions for us? Email mark@thepracticalstill.com.

Whiskey isn't all we do.
Slow Guy on the Fast Ride
Dawn Patrol MTB
Mental Healthlete

We started The Practical Still as a podcast and then quickly added a video component that began to monopolize our time and then we even decided to produce a weekly live stream of us drinking and discussing whiskey. That stream has turned out to be the most rewarding part of The Practical Still for us, but we miss having a consistent podcast. So, here we are again, drinking some Deerhammer whiskey on an audio podcast while we relax in comfortable chairs without the pressures of lighting a video well or sorting out multiple camera angles. It's just us talking with you.

As you'll hear in this episode, I forgot we'd once had a guest on the podcast. Lenny Eckstein from Deerhammer was on two episodes with us during our May 2021 visit to the Deerhammer distillery. We'll have more guests on and we've already recorded an episode with Jess Graber, co-founder of Stranahan's and the founder of TINCUP Whiskey. Jess is a delightful person to visit with and we know you'll enjoy the conversation with him.

More podcast episodes will come along with more interviews with whiskey world folks. Let us know if you want to be a guest or if you have suggestions for people you'd like to hear from in the spirits industry.    

We've also been busy creating content in the bicycle world, links to which are included below. 

On Slow Guy on the Fast Ride, Dan hosts a podcast with guests from the road and gravel cycling world. Founders, CEO, and athletes talk with Dan about their trades and the cycling industry. SGFR also produces product-based content in the form of Lemme See That and review videos. 

Dawn Patrol MTB is our mountain bike title, launched just a few months ago. Lemme See That and review videos support detailed written reviews and articles about the mountain bike world.

It's easy to get wrapped up in bikes and events and forget that sometimes, it isn't all fun and games for everyone. As in all parts of life, some of us find ourselves a little (or a lot) off track and lost. Our Mental Healthlete podcast looks to call attention to the struggle and remove the stigma related to our mental health so that we are all open to getting and giving the help needed to enjoy the sports we love. Sometimes, just being willing to talk about our own struggles can give others the opening they need to seek help.

As always, we thank you for listening and watching and we sincerely appreciate your attention.

Cheers!

#DeerhammerDistilling #TINCUPwhiskey #StranahansColoradoWhiskey    
Podcast episodes, videos, and livesteams are available at thepracticalstill.com.
Join us for Friday Sips Live, Fridays at 2:30pm MT
All the socials @ThePracticalStill
Questions for us? Email mark@thepracticalstill.com.

Whiskey isn't all we do.
Slow Guy on the Fast Ride
Dawn Patrol MTB
Mental Healthlete