Bourbon Pursuit

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Latest Episodes:

124 - How to Create Barrel Picking Groups with Eddie Noel of The Bourbon Cartel Nov 30, 2017

Show notes

Have you ever wondered what these bourbon barrel picking groups like The Bourbon Mafia, 1789b, T5C, and The Bourbon Cartel are all about? Eddie Noel, who has a history of founding multiple groups, will guide us into what it takes to form a barrel picking group with the types of individuals needed, the commitment of joining one, and the secret to getting private barrel selections when you don't have a store to get you in.

Show Notes:

Eddie, how did you get started with bourbon?
Before we dive in, explain what a barrel picking group does. It should be self explanatory but you know.
We've talked about barrel selections being a great avenue for terrific bourbon, do you agree?
Talk about your history with barrel picking groups
Lets talk about the mentality of barrel picking groups. What do you need to know going into creating one?
How hard is it to create one?
Is it difficult when stores want to keep the barrel themselves?
What do store owners get out of it?
Who are the types of individuals you seek out?
Do they need to be in the same area?
Does it help if the members are from Kentucky? (Local to the distilleries)
Does having a connection to a store owner make it break it?
If you do have that connection, how big should a store be or the volume that needs to be sold to determine how often they can be selected?
Is there ever an over abundance of selections? Could it hurt your pockets if you aren't careful? Can you split barrels with a store so half go to the group?
Are there ways to get barrels without knowing a store owner?
What are some of the rules of the group?
Amy Halter from Patreon: For Eddie Noel, are there ever differences of opinion on which barrel to select, and if so, how does a large group handle that?
Are there certain distilleries that treat barrel picking groups in favor versus traditional store owners?
Talk about some distilleries you are visiting outside of Kentucky
What do you think about finished barrels?
Are craft distilleries easier to get on their select list rather than the big dogs like Wild Turkey, Four Roses or Buffalo Trace etc?

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123 - Retail Pricing Wars... Part 2 Nov 22, 2017

Show notes

In Episode 109 we featured two retailers and discussed if there is such a thing as MSRP pricing and how square footage, location, loyalty, and clientele all boil down into how rare bourbon is priced and sold. Eric Darland, a buyer in the D.C. area sent us an email and told us we completely missed the mark. Eric gives insight into the legalized mafia that is distribution, allocation of store picks, and pricing fairly.

Show Notes:

Let's start with store picks and why are they so hard to get outside of Kentucky?
Do you think it's unfair that if a store sells more lower tier bourbon they should have a shot at choosing barrels?
Are you losing customers if your store doesn't have the top-tier stuff?
Do liquor stores really make that much money on limited releases by selling at 2-5x MSRP?
What's the difference is pricing in the D.C. area vs Kentucky vs NYC?
So you are firm believer in supply and demand and pricing accordingly
So your store reaps the benefit of getting 2-3x value. What happens when Buffalo Trace ups their cost to you by 2-3x? How are you going to feel?
Would new MSRP pricing end the secondary market? Would we see BTAC bottles lined on the shelf at $600 a piece if that happened?
Booker's Rye and WhistlePig Black Prince releases are good examples of proper pricing
Do distiller's even care? The ultra-premium is less than 1% of their actual revenue.
Do you think it's an unfair fight in regards to passion for someone that lives in KY vs DC?
Distribution is problematic. Some people suggested having Amazon being the centralized liquor store. What is an idea of how distribution can be fixed that levels the playing field across state lines?
What's the future of how supply will equal demand?

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122 - Entrapment, Jefferson's Presidential, and Christmas gifts on Bourbon Community Roundtable #14 Nov 16, 2017

Show notes

There's been some sneaky releases lately from Diageo and Jefferson's so we tackle those. If you're short on Christmas gift ideas, we talk about some of those things you can give the bourbon lover in your life.

Shoe Notes:

In recent news, the folks at Diageo slid in a brand new Orphan Barrel release called Entrapment 25 year Canadian Whiskey. Anyone have thoughts on it yet?
Jefferson's also released their 16year Presidential Selection. I heard about this release almost a year ago and completely forgot about it. But this is a unique one because it's not like any other Presidential release. this one has some of the Jefferson's flair where its been double barreled and they call it Twin Wood. Twin Wood got its name after Master Distiller Trey Zoeller chose an 11-year Bourbon to be re-barreled in freshly charred oak for another 5 years. Around 10,000 bottles are available today in markets across the country at an MSRP of $199.
The bloggers on the roundtable did their sleuthing and found out that PVW15's red foil this year was a bottling line mistake. Blake had a special name for it.
The holidays mean one thing, as "the bourbon connoisseur" of your family, your obligated to bring a few bottles over to share with family. What are those bottles?
Christmas season is quickly approaching. Each person gets to discuss what they believe are the top gifts. This could be from a specific bottle, to ice molds, to clothing.
Be on the lookout for a special Black Friday deal on the Bourbon Pursuit facebook page as well!

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121 - The Science Behind Bourbon and Yeast with Dr. Pat Heist Nov 09, 2017

Show notes

Many of us understand Bourbon 101 and 102 knowledge, but what about level 400? Dr. Pat Heist of Ferm Solutions joins the show to explain what is chemically happening when you're producing bourbon and gives an in-depth look at yeast and how it becomes one of the most critical components of the process. You will learn all about the breakdowns of enzymes during mash cooking and species of yeast for distilling. If you're a science buff, this episode is for you.

Show Notes:

What does Ferm Solutions do as well as how big Wilderness Trail Distillery?
What was your first real job out of college and how did that get you into spirits?
Are you tailoring yourself to craft whiskey or do you help with big names on the market as well?
Talk about the science behind corn
Is there really a difference between red corn or blue corn vs the traditional white/yellow corn? Difference in flavor? Economical?
Talk about pesticides and GMO for the grains
What about barley, rye, or wheat? Is the breakdown of the pathogens different or the enzymes?
Go a bit more in depth about what the scientific differences between sour vs sweet mash
How does yeast compete? What about the sanitary levels and how that contributes?
What are the differences in the species of yeast and which ones are typically used in beer and spirits production?
True or False. Does yeast contribute 15% to the flavor of a bourbon?
What are the differences between low-gravity and high-gravity fermenters?
What is the cause of a mutated yeast? Jim Rutledge discovered it at one time when it was a part of some limited edition offerings at Four Roses
When you're monitoring the yeast during fermentation, what are you looking for?
When I was at Castle and Key they talked about doing yeast forensics to find a closely resembled strain. Is this actually possible or just marketing hype?
Gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. What does this even mean?
When does the yeast stop playing a roll? When it's in the barrel? out of the barrel? in the bottle?
Is yeast like a fungi where it can reproduce when it get puts back into a normalized environment?
What about beers that go bad?
One last question about corn, how long do you age corn in a silo to dehydrate corn and remove moisture?

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120 - High Volume Online Retailers with K&L and Ace Spirits Nov 02, 2017

Show notes

Retailers need an edge to stay competitive in today’s market. Listen to Louis Dachis of Ace Spirits and David Driscoll of K&L Wine Merchants on how technology is making their business grow on national level and you get a lesson on distribution and why there are shipping restrictions to different states in the US.

Show Notes:

Talk about your stores and the markets you serve
How have you seen the bourbon market effect your business? What's the good what's the bad?
How does having a very prominent online presence given you an advantage?
Do you see your barrel picks making its way out of state because of online orders? Do you feel that impacts locals?
We know allocated items in bourbon are coveted right now. How are you dealing with this surge? Do you reward continual shoppers, even online shoppers that are out of state?
Is there a better way to get products into the hands of consumers other than the three-tier system?
Why are there so many law restrictions on shipping alcohol across state lines? Why can't we have a uniform federal ruling that allows shipment across state lines?
This goes into global shipping. For example: A Malt like Springbank 21 (700 ml) at Masters of Malt retails for $220ish. Even if I bought only one bottle and paid $40 for ship on the 1 bottle, it is still cheaper than purchasing the 750 ml US version for $390ish. Where do you think a savvy consumer would buy? How will US retail stay competitive in the global marketplace at this rate?
In an ideal world where you can sell more volume online, what do you want to see changed?

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119 - Pivoting from a Coffee Bar to a Bourbon Bar with Matt Landan of Haymarket Whiskey Bar Oct 26, 2017

Show notes

With the current climate of overpriced rare whiskey, how do you turn that into a profitable business? Matt Landan talks about pivoting his coffee shop into Haymarket Whiskey Bar, a staple of bourbon country and Top 40 whiskey bar.

Show Notes:

Everyone who has visited Louisville probably knows but we are going to talk about the history of the bar
Do you think this is becoming a new landmark on the bourbon trail
How are you appealing to the local bourbon community?
You also do something unique with the price of your Van Winkles too
People on the forums also thought you ruined bourbon for maybe 30 minutes last year too
Talk about the new Vintage spirits law and what that means
You’re keeping up with it. what’s the latest news with it and where are they?
What are some potential pit falls?
How do retailers or people like yourself protect themselves from frauds?
What mistakes have you made trying to run a whiskey bar?
What advice would you give to someone?
How do feel about increased competition?

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118 - All Bad News. Murray Names EH Taylor Four Grain is Whiskey of The Year, Media Samples of Secondary Markets, and No More Eagle Rare Picks on Bourbon Community Roundtable #13 Oct 19, 2017

Show notes

Recent whiskey news has really been depressing. There hasn’t been much good that’s come of it so the roundtable spends an hour and complains. We hit on everything from the sadness that is EH Taylor Four Grain being named Whiskey of the Year to the depressing news of no more Eagle Rare store picks in 2018. Read more sorrowing news we talk about in the show notes below

Show Notes:

Whiskey Of The Year according to Jim Murray is the EH Taylor Four Grain
Did anyone actually like it?
Is this a ploy to sell more books?
How is this going to effect next year’s release?
There is a new Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection
Kerry isn’t a fan but Eric does like it. They discuss
David J Montgomery from Professor Cocktail is a moron. He tried selling his BTAC samples on the Secondary Market. Will Buffalo Trace change their sample distribution process now?
Do relationships matter when you live in a control state?
There will be no Eagle Rare store picks in 2018. Kerry explains.
What are UofL fans going to do now with their Pitino and Jurich Maker's bottles?

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117 - The Past, Present, and Future of Bourbon with Chuck Cowdery Oct 12, 2017

Show notes

Is the madness ever going to end? Are those unicorn bottles going to continue to climb in price for the future? How did we end up here? Past guest Chuck Cowdery, a bourbon authority, enlightens us to how the history of bourbon being an unwanted commodity created stocks of well aged whiskey that led us to the market we see today.

Show Notes:

Let's talk about the past and the bourbon, crisis, was it an overall understanding that bourbon might be extinct?
At what point did you come in to see some of this first hand?
How did advertising work for bourbon? How did you get it into the hands of elders?
How did no one see this coming? Like literally no one.
You talk about the resurgence of bourbon was partly because of the lack of drinkers because it led to the unintentional benefit of very well-aged whiskey
What were distillers doing with this better aged whiskey?
Do you think exports are the biggest benefactor?
What were bourbon brands doing at the time to appeal to the Japanese and European markets?
So people are buying whiskey again, how are distillers ramping up production?
Was there a surge of more NDPs and independent bottlers buying sourced whiskey?
Why do you call this a “not so attractive” trend?
At what point did we start seeing the “shortage”? or is there really a shortage?
Have NDPs died off because they can’t source or contract distill now?
Will craft distillers put a dent in the market or are they just looking for their piece of the pie?
Do you think any of these companies will be "under water" on their investments when the bourbon matures for sales in 4-12 years? Especially when they have to compete with the big boys as they are expanding.
Do you think we are going to see people drop off because we don’t have a lot of well-aged whiskey now? We have distillers and craft distillers removing age statements. How will that effect the future?
What’s the key to making this trend last?

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116 - The Visitor Experience at Heaven Hill with Jeff Crowe Oct 05, 2017

Show notes

Have you ever visited the Bourbon Heritage Center in Bardstown or the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience in downtown Louisville? It's time you meet Jeff Crowe who is the General Manager of Visitor Experiences for Heaven Hill. Jeff takes us through what each locations have to offer and gives some insight into how he can fairly distribute Parker's Heritage and William Heaven Hill releases

Show Notes:

Did you come from a hospitality background or whiskey?
Was life a bit less hectic in 2013?
How has bourbonism grown since you have been around?
Has it put more stress on your job
Talk about each theEvan Williams Bourbon Experience EWBE and theBourbon Heritage Center BHC and what you will see in each
Heaven Hill is unique that you don’t actually ever get to tour where the majority of the bourbon is made. Is there plans to open up Bernheim for visitors?
I’ve always told people that they need to visit EWBE to break up the distillery visits because it’s more like a mix of a museum with video projectors. Most distillery visits get pretty repetitive but this breaks the mold. Do you know whose idea it was to build it this way?
Talk about the history of this building because it was owned by the Shapiros at one point too.
What is the wildest thing you’ve seen happen at either location? Someone trying to dive into the large glass of Evan Williams at the entrance?
You also spend time at the BHC in Bardstown. Even though these locations are only an hour away from each other, is there a different vibe or feeling the visitors get from each?
Is there something one offers that the other can’t?

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115 - More Bourbon Trivia with Freddie Johnson of Buffalo Trace Sep 28, 2017

Show notes

Freddie Johnson has a long resume. Previous guest on episode 59, 3rd Generation Employee at Buffalo Trace, and Tour Guide Extraordinaire. He joins to talk about Bourbon Pompeii, who was Thomas H Handy (THH) and other tidbits of random knowledge you only get from Freddie.

Show Notes:

What’s been going on since the last time we talked?
You haven’t been getting a bigger head by reading all those 5 star TripAdvisor reviews have you?
Lets give everyone a little refresher about you and your family history at BT
So who’s going to continue the family tradition and be the 4th generation?
What are the ABCs of bourbon?
What is the origin of “the shot”?
Who was Thomas H. Handy?
Alright, this Bourbon Pompei, lets talk about it.
For some other geeks out there besides whisky geeks, you also took part in a new Buffalo Trace virtual reality tour. talk about that.

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