Craft Spirits Podcast

Greg Eidam is the master distiller for Gatlinburg, Tennessee-based Sugarlands Distilling Co. and a recently elected member of the American Craft Spirits Association’s Board of Directors. He oversees the production of Sugarlands Shine, Appalachian Sippin’ Cream, High Rock Vodka and Roaming Man Whiskey, as well as Sugarlands research and development, and engineering projects. In this episode, Eidam discusses the distillery’s growth; the inspiration behind the flavors for Sugarlands’ moonshines and sippin’ creams; the distillery’s partnerships with celebrities like Dale Earnhardt Jr. and brands like Eggo Waffles; his background as a civil engineer; and more.

Our latest guests on The Craft Spirits Podcast are Aleks and Maks Zhdanov, twin brothers and co-founders of 3BR Distillery in Keyport, New Jersey. Drawing inspiration from their grandfather, who was a moonshiner in the Soviet Union, the distillery specializes in pea-based and other unusual spirits. In this episode, the brothers discuss the meaning behind the distillery’s name and their heritage; the realities of operating a distillery in New Jersey; a new spirit; and more.

Our latest guests on The Craft Spirits Podcast are Megan Campbell, Renée Newton and Sean W. Richards—the new owners of Montanya Distillers in Crested Butte, Colorado. In this episode, the trio talks about how they came together to join a partnership; their plans to honor the distillery’s past while also asserting their vision for its future; the current state and future of the American rum industry; and they also tease some upcoming products.

Our latest guests on The Craft Spirits Podcast are Kallyn Romero and Laura Walters of Ironton Distillery & Crafthouse of Denver. Romero is the co-founder and a Colorado native and Walters is a head distiller who studied winemaking at Oregon State University and got her start in the spirits industry at Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey. In this episode, Romero and Walters discuss the benefits of making craft spirits in Colorado; launching Ironton and crafting gin, whiskey and a wide range of spirits; their pride in being a women-owned and -distilled company; and much more.

Our latest guests on The Craft Spirits Podcast are Mollie Lewis and Hannah Lowen of New Riff Distilling in Newport, Kentucky. In June, the distillery announced that next spring, founder and CEO Ken Lewis will retire, and Mollie (Ken’s daughter), Lowen and Denny Gorman will assume leadership. Lowen, who currently serves as vice president of operations, will become CEO. Mollie, currently the sales director, will become president. And Gorman will transition from director of engineering and logistics to COO. In this episode, Mollie and Hannah discuss the leadership transition and maintaining family ownership; how Mollie’s and Hannah’s backgrounds in wine and political organizing, respectively, help them in the whiskey business; new expressions and renovations at the distillery; and much more.

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Murphy Quint of Cedar Ridge Distillery in Swisher, Iowa. As head distiller and director of operations, Murphy oversees the distillery, winery, vineyards, campus grounds and facilities. As Cedar Ridge is one of the few winery and distilleries in the United States, Murphy has gained a unique understanding of how the influence of wine can impact the flavor profile of whiskey. During his tenure at Cedar Ridge Distillery, Murphy has helped the distillery overcome legacy brands to become the number one selling bourbon in Iowa. ​​ In this episode, Murphy discusses the growth of American single malt whiskey; the success of Cedar Ridge’s bourbon; the distillery’s partnership with the band Slipknot; and much more.

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Donnis Todd, the master distiller for Garrison Brothers Distillery in Hye, Texas. With Todd leading bourbon production and hand-selecting each barrel, Garrison Brothers has earned over 400 awards from around the world for its bourbon. That includes the distillery’s vaunted Cowboy Bourbon, an annual release that comes from Todd's and founder Dan Garrison’s favorite barrels. Garrison Brothers will release this year’s 140.9 proof expression this Saturday at a special event at the distillery. In this episode, Todd discusses the latest release of Cowboy; how his grandfather got him excited about distilling; seeking out local spirits while on deployments in the Air Force; his earliest memories of Garrison Brothers; and much more.

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Gina Holman, the president of the American Craft Spirits Association. She is also a founding partner of J. Carver Distillery in Waconia, Minnesota; an ISG certified sommelier; and the vice president of the Minnesota Distillers Guild. In this episode, Holman discusses her start in the spirits industry, the origins of J. Carver Distillery, the evolution of American craft spirits, her priorities as president of ACSA, what drives her to volunteer, and much more.

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Kelly Woodcock of Westward Whiskey in Portland, Oregon. She is a partner and serves as vice president, guest experiences & Whiskey Club, in which she oversees all direct-to-consumer sales programs for the state of Oregon while running Westward’s hospitality program and operations for the whiskey company’s four tasting rooms. And earlier this year, she was elected as the vice president of ACSA’s board of directors. In this episode, Woodcock discusses her road to Westward, launching the distillery’s airport tasting rooms, running the whiskey club, seeking parity for direct-to-consumer shipping of spirits and much more.

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Bruce Tyler, the co-founder of Weldon Mills Distillery in Weldon, North Carolina. Tyler is a former active duty member of the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps who opened the distillery with his friend and business partner Michael Hinderliter at the start of the pandemic in 2020. One year later, the distillery’s corn whiskey, Rockfish, claimed best in show at the Heartland Whiskey Competition. In this episode, Tyler—who is also the vice president of the North Carolina Distillers Association—discusses the surprise of that Heartland honor; the distillery’s bourbon and other products; a second location in Durham; plans for a bed & breakfast near the distillery; an upcoming North Carolina bourbon and spirits festival; and more.

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Jamie Hunt of Fast Penny Spirits, a Seattle-based company that makes amaro. In this episode, Hunt discusses her love of amaro and how her former experience as a vp of digital strategy helped her launch Fast Penny during the pandemic. She also shares details about the company’s Pretty Penny giveback program and becoming a Certified B Corporation. Click below to read more about Fast Penny Spirits in a recent issue of CRAFT SPIRITS magazine. https://issuu.com/americancraftspirits/docs/craftspirits_marapr2023/52

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Lucy Farber, the operations manager for St. George Spirits in Alameda, California. She’s also a board member for the American Craft Spirits Association and one of the tri-chairs for ACSA's education committee. In March, Lucy chatted about her early days at the distillery; being a part of a reinvention when ownership transitioned from founder Jörg Rupf to Lance Winters; some of her biggest challenges throughout the years; her decision to run for ACSA’s board; and her passion for education.

This episode of The Craft Spirits Podcast is part of a special series of conversations with some of the founding members and first board members of the American Craft Spirits Association, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Our guest is Nicole Austin, general manager and distiller of Cascade Hollow Distilling Co., the maker of Tennessee’s George Dickel whiskies. Nicole has been a fierce advocate for the distilling industry. She was a founding board member of ACSA and previously served as co-chair of its Legislative, Convention and State Guild Committees. In this episode, Nicole shared her earliest memories of ACSA, including discussions about defining craft spirits and the road to permanent federal excise tax relief for craft distillers, as well as her move to Cascade Hollow.

This episode of The Craft Spirits Podcast is part of a special series of conversations with some of the founding members and first board members of the American Craft Spirits Association, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Our guest is Paul Hletko, the founder of Evanston, Illinois-based FEW Spirits. Since FEW is part of Samson & Surrey, which was acquired by Heaven Hill Brands in 2022, the distillery is now an alumni member of ACSA. FEW was also a founding member of ACSA, and Paul was on the association’s first board and served as its second president. In this episode, he discusses his early memories of ACSA and FEW’s future.

This episode of The Craft Spirits Podcast is part of a special series of conversations with some of the founding members and first board members of the American Craft Spirits Association, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Our guest is Thomas Mooney, ACSA’s inaugural president, and a founder and CEO of Portland, Oregon-based Westward Whiskey. Tom has led the company through an extended period of growth, expansion and transition, previously as House Spirits Distillery—which was a founding member of ACSA—and more recently as Westward Whiskey. Under his leadership, the company transformed its original flagship product, Aviation American Gin, from a beloved regional brand into a leading American craft gin before selling it to Davos Brands in 2016. In this episode, Tom discusses his path to becoming ACSA’s first president, as well as the past, present and future of Westward Whiskey.

This episode of The Craft Spirits Podcast is part of a special series of conversations with some of the founding members and first board members of the American Craft Spirits Association, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Our guest is ACSA’s first vice president Ted Huber. Ted is the president and co-owner of Huber’s Orchard, Winery and Vineyards in Borden, Indiana, where he’s also the master distiller of Starlight Distillery and head winemaker for the winery. Ted represents the sixth generation of the family owned business that was founded in 1843. His sons Christian and Blake are carrying on the tradition, too. Distilling runs deep in the family’s history, and Starlight was officially founded in 1998. In this episode, Ted reflects on early memories of ACSA and offers some insight into his family business.

Today’s episode of The Craft Spirits Podcast is part of a special series of conversations with some of the founding members and first board members of the American Craft Spirits Association, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Our guest is Ralph Erenzo, who co-founded Tuthilltown Spirits Distillery in 2003 with Brian Lee and his son Gable Erenzo, who passed away in 2021. In this episode, Ralph reflects on the early days of ACSA, the fight for permanent federal excise tax relief, and his days in distilling.

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Mark A. Vierthaler, the head distiller at Tucson, Arizona-based Hamilton Distillers Group—producers of Whiskey Del Bac. He was also elected to ACSA’s board of directors in 2022, and he has experience working at Tenth Ward Distillery and Boot Hill Distillery. In this episode, Mark discusses his journey from a distillery that dabbles in nearly all categories to one that focuses on American Single Malt, including his general path to distilling and much more.

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is David Weglarz, the owner and head distiller at St. Louis-based StilL 630, which celebrated its 10th anniversary earlier this year. In this episode, Weglarz discusses the genesis of the distillery; all of the hidden meaning in the name and logo for StilL 630; his claim to fame of likely being the first distillery to open in a former fast food restaurant; experimenting with whiskey barrels and gin; and much more.

Our latest guests on The Craft Spirits Podcast are Christian and Blake Huber of Starlight Distillery and Huber’s Orchard and Winery. The brothers are seventh-generation members of their family farm in Borden, Indiana. In July, the distillery’s Carl T. Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey earned best of whiskey and best in show at ACSA’s 9th annual judging of craft spirits. In this episode, Christian and Blake discuss Starlight’s single barrel program; how making wine influences Starlight’s whiskey production; and growing up around the craft spirits industry.