The Whiskey Ring Podcast

Written by: David Levine
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  • Summary

  • Join Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and my guests to talk about all things whiskey and spirits! Support this podcast: https://www.patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring
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Episodes
  • Ep. 175: Chattanooga Whiskey with Founder Tim Piersant

    Ep. 175: Chattanooga Whiskey with Founder Tim Piersant
    Feb 19 2025

    High Malt Bourbon and Community Support, No LCP Needed: The Story Behind Chattanooga Whiskey

    A few years is a lifetime in craft whiskey, and few brands epitomize this more to me than Chattanooga Whiskey. When I first tried them - most likely their now-gone 1816, which was sourced transparently but not representative of where they are today - I was not a fan. Something was off, and I resisted revisiting the brand for years. Then, The Whiskey Bard himself, Nino Kilgore-Marchetti, reached out asking if I wanted to try their new Islay Cask finish.

    Why not - it's been a few years, and by my estimation, that's time for a retasting. And bravo to Chattanooga - their "new" whiskey, that is their Tennessee High Malt Bourbon, is excellent, and the Islay Cask finishing series release added to that.

    There's a lot to cover in this episode, from uncovering Chattanooga's distilling past to a rip-the-band-aid-off brand transition, all the way to their wins for Craft Producer of the Year 2023 for both the US and the world. Throughout, this episode is a celebration of the craft whiskey movement and the passion driving its revival in Chattanooga. No Lincoln County Process here, folks - this is a Tennessee High Malt Bourbon, loud and proud.

    Thank you to Tim for entering the Whiskey Ring!

    Thanks to our Presenting Sponsor, BAXUS

    Baxus is the world's leading collectible spirits marketplace, with user-friendly options for buyers, sellers, and collectors looking to vault their collections. Use my link below to visit the BAXUS.CO website and sign up!

    • BAXUS Website
    • BAXUS on Instagram
    • BAXUS on Facebook
    • BAXUS on Twitter/X
    • BAXUS on LinkedIn

    _________________________________________________________

    If you haven’t joined the Patreon community yet, please consider doing so at patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring

    There are four (4) spots available at the $25/month bottle share club level. These are the last spots that will ever be opened without a current member retiring - if you've been waiting, now's the time!

    If you haven’t yet, please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn, and subscribe to the newsletter on the website.

    Chattanooga Whiskey

    • Chattanooga Whiskey Website
    • Chattanooga Whiskey on Instagram
    • Chattanooga Whiskey on Facebook
    • Chattanooga Whiskey on YouTube
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    1 hr and 18 mins
  • Ep. 174: Peat and Whisky Author Mike Billett

    Ep. 174: Peat and Whisky Author Mike Billett
    Feb 12 2025

    From Bogs to Bottles: Peat's Unbreakable Bond With Whiskey

    This one's for you, Bill.

    In this episode of the Whiskey Ring Podcast, I had the pleasure of welcoming Mike Billett, a peatland specialist and researcher, to discuss his newly released book, Peat and Whiskey: The Unbreakable Bond. His passion for peat led him to write a popular science book that not only highlights the scientific aspects of peat but also intertwines it with the cultural and historical significance of whiskey.

    There is so much more than can be covered in a single episode or writeup, but we touch on:

    • Peat's significance as a fuel source and how that brought it together with whisky
    • The changing uses and applications of peat as coal and oil overtook peat as a fuel source
    • How peat forms, is stripped, and how it occurs on all 7 continents and a landmass equal to about 3% of the total surface of the earth
    • How regionality of peat in whisky is, at best, a red herring, particularly in modern whisky
    • The importance of peat in climate change, carbon capture, and why conservation and reconstruction of peatlands are crucial to our future

    I cannot recommend Mike's book highly enough. Even if you're not a whisky drinker, you'll have plenty to learn about peat. If you don't love peat, you'll still get a better sense of how the modern whisky landscape developed, through the lenses of taxes, regulations, consolidation and expansion cycles, and the subtle globalization that led Scottish peat to reach Australia, New York, Belgium, and elsewhere all at the same time. Scientifically-interested folks wiil also love the dive into cresols, phenols, and guaiacols. There's more than one PhD thesis I want to read after this interview.

    Pick up the book on Amazon or wherever you get your books!

    Thank you to Mike for entering the Whiskey Ring!

    Thanks to our Presenting Sponsor, BAXUS

    Baxus is the world's leading collectible spirits marketplace, with user-friendly options for buyers, sellers, and collectors looking to vault their collections. Use my link below to visit the BAXUS.CO website and sign up!

    • BAXUS Website
    • BAXUS on Instagram
    • BAXUS on Facebook
    • BAXUS on Twitter/X
    • BAXUS on LinkedIn

    _________________________________________________________

    If you haven’t joined the Patreon community yet, please consider doing so at patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring

    There are four (4) spots available at the $25/month bottle share club level. These are the last spots that will ever be opened without a current member retiring - if you've been waiting, now's the time!

    If you haven’t yet, please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn, and subscribe to the newsletter on the website.

    Peat and Whisky

    • Purchase Peat and Whisky
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    1 hr and 26 mins
  • Ep. 173: Whiskey Lore Volume One with Drew Hannush

    Ep. 173: Whiskey Lore Volume One with Drew Hannush
    Jan 24 2025
    Untangling the Myths and Legends of Whiskey How many distillery tours have you been on? Are you a veteran of the hobby, or a new entrant looking to learn as much as they can, or perhaps someone on a family trip taking a brief trip to a nearby distillery for fun? Whichever of these applies to you, chances are you will hear something (probably multiple somethings) that are apocryphal, stories told so many times and pushed so hard that you believe them upon hearing. Some might have elements of truth, some might even be mostly true. In the world of whiskey, though, the story is almost always more important and pervasive than the truth. Drew Hannush, owner of Travel Fuels Life, host of the now-ended Whiskey Lore Podcast, and author of several books including Experiencing Kentucky Bourbon, has long been someone I've looked to when doing research or trading names of people and distilleries to which I should pay attention. I didn't realize how long I'd been supporting him on Patreon, and it's been well worth it. In his new book, Whiskey Lore: Volume 1: Bourbon, Scotch, Irish Whiskey: The Real Stories Behind the Biggest Myths and Legends, Drew invites us to interrogate these stories and uncover the history behind the tales. Some of the most well-known whiskey legends are questioned: was Elijah Craig really the "father of bourbon"? where did the term "bourbon whiskey" originate from? and our shared favorite, is Jack Daniel's bourbon? Spanning both sides of the Atlantic, the stories behind American, Scotch, and Irish whiskies are investigated with the eye of someone looking for as much of the truth as we can find. While the "real" story isn't always knowable, Drew searches for that gray area between truth and fiction to find, at least, a place where we can feel comfortable going on a distillery tour and not wanting to assail the stories our guides tell us. In the meantime, you may learn the backgrounds of legends and myths you never even knew about. Whether listening in Drew's radio-ready voice or reading the book yourself, you'll come out understanding how marketing and stories are created. Add in the now-ubiquitous AI component we all see on ever search, and Drew creates a context and starting point for his trademark style of research-driven storytelling. "Only" 24 myths and legends made it into Volume One, and by Drew's telling, he's got at least a few dozen more for future volumes. He's also about to revisit Experiencing Kentucky Bourbon with a 31-distilleries-in-10-days-trip and soliciting recommendations for his "Great 48" tour of distilleries in the lower 48 states. Join me and Drew on his (and my!) Patreon to be part of something big - I know you'll love it just like I do. Thank you to Drew for entering the Whiskey Ring! Thanks to our Presenting Sponsor, BAXUS Baxus is the world's leading collectible spirits marketplace, with user-friendly options for buyers, sellers, and collectors looking to vault their collections. Use my link below to visit the BAXUS.CO website and sign up! BAXUS WebsiteBAXUS on InstagramBAXUS on FacebookBAXUS on Twitter/XBAXUS on LinkedIn _________________________________________________________ If you haven’t joined the Patreon community yet, please consider doing so at patreon.com/whiskeyinmyweddingring There are six (6) spots available at the $25/month bottle share club level. These are the last 6 spots that will ever be opened without a current member retiring - if you've been waiting, now's the time! If you haven’t yet, please follow Whiskey in my Wedding Ring and the Whiskey Ring Podcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn, and subscribe to the newsletter on the website. Whiskey Lore Links Purchase Whiskey Lore Volume One Whiskey Lore and Travel Fuels Life WebsiteWhiskey Lore PatreonWhiskey Lore on InstagramWhiskey Lore on YouTubeWhiskey Lore on LinkedIn
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    1 hr and 31 mins

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