Send us Fan Mail We pour MB Roland’s Kentsylvania, a rare Kentucky bourbon and Pennsylvania rye collaboration, and figure out why it tastes like a completely new whiskey instead of a simple mash-up. Along the way we pair it with aged Briar Fox pipe tobacco, debate how smoke shifts the flavor, and unpack what makes MB Roland such an interesting grain-to-glass craft distillery. • how Kennsylvania is built from two single barrels and why that matters • what MB Roland does differently...

Send us Fan Mail We pour Redwood Empire Haystack Needle and get a high-proof bourbon that drinks surprisingly friendly while still delivering dense, layered flavour. Alongside the whiskey, we light up Cornell and Diehl King Cake and end up talking grains, sourcing, single barrels, and what makes a bottle truly worth the money. • Redwood Empire Haystack Needle overview, Indiana exclusive single barrel and grain to glass context • Tasting notes: burnt caramel, dark syrup, light mola...

Send us Fan Mail We sit down with Blake, founder of Smokeye Hill, to talk about building a blue corn driven bourbon brand in Colorado and why their whiskey can reach serious proof without tasting like a stunt. We get into 30 gallon barrels, multi char blending, the reality of sourcing, and the slow rituals that make whiskey culture worth sticking around for. • Smokeye Hill availability and why growth depends on making more whiskey • Colorado aging conditions and why dry climate ca...

Send us Fan Mail We pour Metallica’s Blackened whiskey and test whether “born in cask forged by sound” is a real finishing technique or just a loud story. We also light up Black House pipe tobacco, swap notes on what we taste, and argue about what makes a celebrity bottle worth buying twice. • Dave Pickerell’s background and why his name adds credibility • How sonic finishing works with subwoofers, bass, and barrel vibration • What “black brandy barrels” likely means and why...

Send us Fan Mail Traveler Full Proof takes everything we found “fine but forgettable” about the 90 proof bottle and turns it into a high proof pour with real punch and better structure. We debate what full proof really means, how Chris Stapleton may have shaped the blend, and why this one drinks hotter than its 120 proof suggests. • full proof vs cask strength and why barrel entry proof matters • Chris Stapleton’s path from bluegrass to Traveler and the Grammy talk • the rum...

Send us Fan Mail We put Eric Church’s Jypsi Explorer under a serious tasting lens and end up surprised by how intentional it feels for a sourced celebrity whiskey. Along the way, the pour opens up into root beer, cream soda, wet forest wood notes, an English pipe tobacco pairing, and a debate about what good taste looks like in public spaces too. • what Jypsi Explorer is and how Outsider Spirits frames the Explorer Series around wood finishes • Eric Church’s involvement story and why this bot...

Send us Fan Mail We chase a California bottle that drinks like it has a wine-world edge, then use it to talk about blending, value, and where American whiskey might be headed. Lost Monarch Cask Strength turns into a bigger debate about sourcing versus distilling, how brands scale, and why we think some “hype” bottles are a bad deal. • music festivals and why smaller venues beat stadium shows • Redwood Empire as a former “no-namer” that is gaining momentum • Lost Monarch, Pipe Dre...

Send us Fan Mail A Fourth of July pour turns into a bigger talk about what it means to live in a 250-year-old country that is still figuring itself out. We taste First West Small Batch, pair it with dark-fired Kentucky tobacco, and connect the flavor to history, technology, and the pace of change. • first impressions of the dark-fired Kentucky tobacco and the bottle’s creek-found blue-glass vibe • reflecting on America at 250 years and how “young country” changes perspective&nbsp...

Send us Fan Mail We crack open a J Rieger Co private stock single barrel bourbon and chase the story behind how it was picked, bottled, and shared. Along the way, we pull on threads from Kansas City whiskey rules to sweet mash fermentation, then land on whether the regular shelf bottle is an easy buy. • what a private select single barrel program looks like at the distillery • filling your own bottle on tour and signing the barrel guest book • the Rieger hospitality center ...

Send us Fan Mail We pour Elijah Craig’s first Barrel Proof Rye and get stuck on one detail that changes everything: 12 years old, “uncut,” and somehow only 108 proof. We chase the science, argue about hype versus reality, and land on why this bottle feels like an outlier even if it is technically what the label says. • why Elijah Craig rye has a reputation as a “barely rye” pour • what makes A925 unusual as a 12-year “barrel proof” rye at 108 proof • how entry proof, warehouse pl...