The Kentucky Bourbon Festival 2022 Mega-sode

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1:38 Hey, everybody. Welcome into the film. And whiskey podcast. I'm Bob book, I'm Reggie. And we have just returned or half of us. Have just returned from the Kentucky Bourbon Festival. Brad, this was an extravaganza and this episode is going to reflect that fact. Yes, I don't even know if it should be called an episode Bob. I think it's like a mega sewed. It is a mega sewed. So I literally just pulled into my house. This like an hour ago, I am editing the crap out of this episode right now. It will release on Monday the day after the festival wrapped up, Brad is still in the process of traveling. He's staying with some friends and I think everyone else is asleep in the house except for you right now as we wrap up, I'm not go ahead, man. I'm already you are committed, you are committed. So the, the sultry sound of Brad's voice is so low and slow because he's trying not to wake up a bunch of small children in the house.

2:31 So let's talk a little bit about the bourbon. Bowl, Brad, it was our first time there. What were your impressions? Brad explains the Bourbon Festival man. Bob it was an absolute blast to just meet a ton of really cool people like being with the attendees of which we were kind of ones, but yeah, just being able to talk to people being able to meet some cool friends that we've made throughout the years like Chris Blattner and Jackie's, I can A few other people that were just like, man, like we've connected over the internet, you know, the pandemic throws a loop and things, the fact that we have small children throws a loop in like, you know, going to meet people for sure.

3:18 It was it was so cool to just meet a lot of really genuinely authentic. Awesome folks absolutely like this event. So this was a four-day outdoor Festival in Kentucky and mid-september which means it felt like it was the middle of the summer for anywhere else on Earth was very very hot, very good. Good. We did like five or six full interviews that you're going to hear stitch together throughout this episode. We thought about breaking this up into multiple episodes, but we were like, no. We want people to be able to hear what we talked about at the Kentucky Bourbon Festival. So you're going to hear, I think it's either five or six full interviews. And in between each interview you're going to hear from some listeners of the podcast from far and wide that came to the festival and they tell us who they are where they're from and what their favorite movie is Brad.

4:04 Without further Ado, let's get to it, man. Yeah. Dude, I am so excited for you guys to listen to this. If you if you want to talk about the festival, ask more questions about what our experiences like jump onto our Discord. We're on their everyday. We're talking to you guys. So yeah. Get on our Discord, you can find a link to it at the end of our show notes but guys, enjoy this episode, it's going to be a blast All right, everybody, we're here with Dan Callaway. VP of product development at Bardstown bourbon company. A guy, we have not seen in the flesh in like three years since pre covid. Bob, listen, we went down to Bardstown bourbon company in season one of our podcast.

4:48 When we had seven listeners, two of them were our parents. Yeah. And they, this guy Dan, he took such good care. We had like, an 18 course meal. Yeah, he got every appetizer. They had it. Ever came over and was like, what do you want and ends like this and handed in the menu the whole menu? Honestly, Dan we have never forgotten how well you all treated us when we came down to Bardstown and everybody we talk to we tell them if you're going to go somewhere in Kentucky and bourbon company, you got to go to Bardstown bourbon. Yeah thank you. And we are so proud of our Hospitality program. I feel like it's the number one team on the trail and everyone who visits.

5:28 We want to have that same sentiment and thank you to you too. It's awesome to see you on this. Feels like a summer day almost. Yeah. Oh yeah, here in Bardstown. I was going to say the one thing I don't miss about living in Kentucky, 89 degrees in middle of September, just sweating until mid-november. Yes. Oh, yeah, he's exactly. All right. So we're here on site at the Kentucky Bourbon Festival. This is obviously such a big deal for Bardstown bourbon company because it's right in your backyard here. But, you know, in your role when you look at a festival like this, how important is this for the industry? I mean, Sound is so focused on tourism in general and Bardstown bourbon company. Like, you guys have set yourself up to be such a destination.

6:09 So when you look at this Festival, like what does it tell you? It's a great question. Um, well, I think it starts from the beginning, it was an intentional decision to build the distillery in Bardstown, the bourbon Capital, the world 16 miles, there's 11 distilleries right? In that radius, so we could have built the distillery in Miami San Francisco. We wanted to surround ourselves with this bourbon. History and then have a modern take. So for us it's an opportunity for guests to come in and see the bourbon brands of Kentucky and see where we slot in as that innovator. Collaborating with transparency and just see where we fit in the industry.

6:49 Yeah, it's also cool to see how the Kentucky Bourbon Festival itself. Has transformed over the years, right? That like it, almost reflects the state of the industry right now, right? Completely. And I actually sit on the board of the Bourbon Festival, so I'm very close to it. Um it's amazing. The transformation just like you say to have for all these distilleries to develop Hospitality programs, really put an emphasis on the front facing operation. I think the bourbon festivals doing the same thing. It's elevating it. You're seeing more culinary pairings immersive experiences, something really curated to to Modern bourbon fans. Well, I feel like when you look at, if you could put the hospitality portion of the industry on like a curve, It's almost like an exponential growth and it just kind of seems like everyone woke up five years ago.

7:37 And decided like, oh, this is a really important aspect that we haven't been investing enough in to. And from even when we started the podcast, 2019 to now, and look at, like you said, the front facing aspect of some of these distilleries. It's it really does seem like it's just grown in at an insane rate and honestly for the benefit of the consumer like, yeah, like that's solely what it's for. It's not like these companies wanted to Shell out all this money. Make people look nice. They look nice. But they are doing it and it's for our benefit. The people who drink whiskey. It's amazing. Because you're seeing it from both sides. You're seeing it from the newer distilleries as a way to build your brand for us. That was it right? Let's get people in here. Show them different ways to taste bourbon through a cocktail class to a culinary pairing, have a great meal and at the end of the day that's how you connect with Bardstown bourbon company.

8:29 Now we're seeing Hospitality programs from the traditional distillers as a way to maintain their brand. So it's exciting. It's a great time to be in the industry. So share a little bit with our listeners about your specific role at Bardstown and you know what projects do they have you heading up right now that you're allowed to talk about? You know, we're transparent. I can talk about it all. Um, so I oversee product development. So that's the Blends how we're approaching them and then, on our collaborative series, who were working with, so, For example we have some fantastic, barrels aging currently in Foursquare. Rum their first collaboration, Goose Island Bourbon County.

9:11 Stout, you're going to see a really cool experimentation with a Cooperage of the end of this year, with Rye finished in toasted cherry wood barrels. So come on, we just want to stay on the Forefront. And then on our blends with the discovery series, you're just going to see us pushing boundaries on that. And the most exciting thing is beginning of 23. For the first time, you'll see our origin series. 100% distilled aged right on site with a six-year age State. That's incredible, man. That is incredible. So that we've, it's all been building to that. Yeah. All right. I know you guys have the new Chateau Le bad. That just came out, right. It's, we're pouring it right now, a bourbon Fest. We might have to walk over there and have a little faith.

9:54 This interview right now, good talking to you. So I know that, you know, you're good company, man. Like you're gonna say whatever. The newest one is is your favorite but of all of the collaborative and finishes Everything else that you've done. Like what's your favorite one to sit? Well, it's that's I the one I'm working on is the one that's top of mind. Yeah. The new lebara, The Chateau de debod, it was an exercise of really thoughtfully pairing the Armagnac. So the first one, you know, is got a crazy following crazy secondary for the second one. I knew we wanted to make it different, you know, we weren't just trying to replicate the same thing. So it's an exercise in Barrel. Finishing their stored, the first load arrived and we put them on A lower cows to go along floor.

10:34 The red cows to go a long time. The second delivery came on a high floor to get hot. Then it's a blend of Kentucky bourbon and Tennessee made to kind of match that Armagnac profile and its its Stellar. Yeah, Brad. And I have been like hoarding. The last little bit of the very first issue. You guys did of Pfeiffer Babbitt that thing that also, one that Best in Class for finished whiskey in San Francisco. And that's what set the stage. We're seeing a lot of people do it the same way for how we transport barrels, right? Most people rinse out your wine barrels. We leave the residuals in. We keep those drags, we put Argon gas and we ship them immediately so it doesn't sit on a dock.

11:16 It doesn't oxidize you all that freshness carries over into the spirit and that that Pfeiffer pavitt was the first one to take that approach. I'm literally not kidding. This was right before the pandemic started. I showed up at the hospital right after Bob and his wife Had their second kid. And I had a bottle of that. Was that we shared? Yeah, it was a celebratory drinks. That doesn't tell you what we think about, Bartok. Yeah. All right. Dan before we let you go today. You know, we always try to segue into my favorite movie. So wow, I'm putting on the spot. But when I'd say, what is your favorite film? And why, like, what comes to top of Mind here? Okay, this is on the spot.

11:56 So a lot is I should have considered this question so much. Riding on this quick. I love great comedy. Okay, I'm gonna do a wild-card, I love the movie bottle rocket. Oh, at is timing on. This is literally perfect. We're in the middle of a Wes Anderson miniseries. Okay. Currently existed, right? We did Rushmore, I believe, Moonrise Kingdom is coming out in a week and then Grand Budapest and Grand Budapest Hotel. Yeah, awesome. Bottom of the lines in bottle rocket, and just the story behind making that movie? Yeah, it's just, I've just really hits me. It's hilarious. Oh my God, man. It's kind of like when you have that. That that famous artist and you're like oh this is from his early years. Exactly.

12:39 Yeah, I mean and it carries through, right, it's not a Polish film at all but it's just and those actors to see what they went on to do is just got out of this incredible man. Well listen, we're gonna have to have you back on the show to talk about bottle rocket. One of these days I would love to talk movies with you guys, that would be applied to. We could do a showing at The Distillery. Let's do bottle rocket at The Distillery will pair some bourbon. I love it. The dignan Finish would be powerful, man. Right, let's go. All right everybody. Dan Callaway from Bardstown bourbon company. Thank you so much for sitting down with us today. Cheers. Thank you. Yep. Hey, my name is Jessica crayons and I'm from San Diego, California and I really like wild Hearts can't be broken and I would definitely pair it with Widow. Jane All right, everybody, we are here with Brad. If I can speak frankly here to be as honest as you want about a pretty big fish.

13:25 If we're being honest, man, we're talking with Freddy know who is the eighth generation Master distiller at the James. Be beam Distilling Company. I can't believe I'm sitting across from me man. That's not a tent here. So we're sitting here all of us just kind of sweating our asses off on a pretty pretty hot Kentucky day at the Kentucky Bourbon Festival. You guys both chose to wear dark colors. There is a choice. Yeah, Freddie, tell me a little bit about what it's been like for you since. The announcement was made, what four months ago? Now, that means I have to admit, it's been a whirlwind. No, I mean, you know, it was already kind of a whirlwind before that, right? We had just reopened our campus, we got a new restaurant on on site and we got a new distillery named after my dad that I've been heading up the research and production of and then we revamped our tour. So I mean it was a pretty hectic time before it just maybe Shifted to be hectic for a different reason. Right.

14:21 A lot of a lot of interviews people kind of want to know, you know, what's the role changed for me? Kind of mean. But yeah, I mean just a lot more of the same, right? And a lot of a lot more of the things I enjoy doing. Right. Talking about my family, the whiskey that we make. So all good change. Right? All y'all. Good good busyness. Right? Be hundred percent. Yeah. Why do you say you get the promotion because you're good at doing it. I'm doing your job. Don't change at all because they want you to Keep being awesome at what you do Rick right, you're right. Although you ever want to change your industry, you have one of the best radio voices, I think I've ever heard in my life, I've heard them before. Literally, I've heard that before. I have, you know, Wes Henderson that Angels ever used to do radio. I'll have to ask him what he thinks about it. You get it.

15:07 But I have I've heard that. At least you're at least the second. I think, maybe even a third, if I'm trying to remember back, that's funny. Yeah, Brad. And I both have backgrounds working with churches. So we do a lot with A she's trying to keep organizations organizations healthy. And when I look at the situation that you have at Jim Beam now, like a lot of people look at that and say, are they got to master distillers? How's that working out to me? I think that's a sign of a really healthy organization. Yeah, I really clear communication that, you know, one of you doesn't feel like you're getting pushed out and the other one doesn't feel like you're being pushed down. Talk a little bit about how that collaboration Works between the two of you. Yeah, I mean, I think a lot of it, if you look at it, you know, there's a lot of I guess whiskey to be watched Over writer. You know, there's Jim Beam as you mentioned the small batch collection, my granddad created little book hardens Creek, couple other things.

15:58 I've been working on that are coming soon so there's definitely a lot of things to be looked after him. We're already kind of dually working on things. Thank you. Thank you. My friend, just got a little, a little cocktail drive right here jobs. Yeah, so this is a Jim Beam black whiskey. Sour is that right? Josh. Yeah, alright. Now let's cheers to you. Yeah. It's for Today. Yeah, glad to be here. Yeah. So Oh yeah, essentially it was you know, already kind of happening, right? Dad would pitch ideas off me for things, you know, if I had an idea, I would bring it to him and, you know, we'd work with the marketing team generally as well, you know, a lot of where my role as focusing is kind of capturing the quality markers that we've got set. I'm kind of doing some documentation on that more recently but also, you know, how can we, we've got that new distillery to do some research for Innovation, right? It kind of for little book.

16:54 We'll be expanding flavor, profiles of American whiskey, but even for Jim Beam, right? It's how do we do research to enhance the quality of all of our products and it process Improvement? Right. I guess that's if you break it down to its process Improvement. So I've really kind of leaned into that and the quality of our whiskey. I've worked really closely with Shinji and his team at suntory on how could they have a very robust quality system. Yeah, so we kind of really taught each other about Japanese whiskey. How I'll admit. I was very dumb about Out about the product and about the way to make it. So it was an honor to learn from them on that but and then also so we visited there in Japan at their yamazaki will probably visit next year again to another one but just that collaboration is really kind of driven me in a path of making sure our quality markers are kind of locked in place for the long term.

17:46 As you may be seen. We're expanding our facility and with that, right? You use new technology opportunities but making sure what we're doing. For the betterment of the higher quality of the whiskey is kind of where my rose focusing. Now, if you met my dad you know he loves to chat it up and he's coming off of of a procedure where he's kind of immune system with a kidney transplant, but as he's getting back in more into work, he's going to spend more time at the new Visitor Center, cutting it up with, with the guests. And, you know, just telling those stories that I think are so unique whether they have to do with whiskey or I'll tell him. The last night, and my grandmother blowing the oven door, open, the oven Buster batch of Booker's.

18:28 And I've been the story behind that. No, those are just funny stories that people resonate with our family, and then to have a whiskey toute. That's pretty cool. So AB still be sitting up there. Hopefully a lot cutting it up with with the guests and and sharing that that kind of good word of Whiskey from the bean family. Yeah one it's just so cool to see how 20 to 30 years ago and Whiskey's going through what it's going through. All you have time for is to make your main product, right? And now with the Boom, Whiskey. It gives you an opportunity to start experimenting for trying with stuff that might not, you know, make the budget 20 years ago. Now, you're lucky, we have to do this to really stay on the cutter head. Correct, well, a lot of it too, right? I mean, the other side of that with the boom, you know, all of the brands were already making all their got such a demand and Rise as though Industries. Whereas in you know it's kind of still an argument of getting those things.

19:17 It's a little bit easier I'll say that it's I'm probably definitely got a an easier way to going about doing Innovation then. Granddad or dad did because of the, you know, obviously I mean American whiskey is just so polarizing. Now even across internationally so it's a great opportunity and then you know, to be able to have that place where we can make a little bit of whiskey, kind of share that and get people excited about it as its aging. It makes it easier to kind of sell those. So those new whiskey is when you have that there to taste versus trying to sell them on a vision, right? We just had Dan Calloway in here, a few hours ago from hard, Bourbon and we were talking about the industry becoming more front-facing in the last ten years and the hospitality part of it really, you know, taken off. I guess, I got to ask you, what's it like becoming a master distiller, in the sort of new age of being a master distiller? Where, you know?

20:09 Again, 30 years ago, you go hide in the Rick house and take samples of stuff, right? And now you got to be the face of the brand in a lot of ways. It's a balance, right? Yeah. Try to find time to still go find my way into the like the fermentation room like, you know, run around the farm owners and smell them off. Operators. Look at me, I'm worried. What's he doing? Okay. Well, what's wrong? I'm just, you know, getting out of, you know, I'll sit on phone calls a lot and then interviews and things like that, it's aisle and I enjoy it. It's great. I think right smell of the ferment. So it's just what you not see, what it locks you back into a the reality right of what you doing it for, right? So it's always great. It's a good place to get grounded, right? Yeah, I think so. But yeah, I mean, even to your point just going in the warehouse grabbing a couple samples You know, even just kind of, again, wandering around and just the sights and smells that maybe if you're stuck in a conference room or even like festivals, like this are great.

21:03 But I go back to the Distillery. It's a nice quiet place. Yeah, it's kind of work and enjoy the craft that I enjoy doing. So I think it's great, right? Because it gives me the opportunity to really lean into this, right? Like this week. I'm consumer-facing you know front-facing as you say really doing a lot of this stuff you know next week we're actually Booker nodes. Going out of shut down for the summer for cleanup and routine maintenance. So it'll kind of be like, hey, I'm going to go check in and see what's going on. So it's kind of a Switchback enforce that back and forth that I kind of love being able to kind of. Yeah, the play with, right? So and again, it's an opportunity to share stories but still get in there and learn and expand my knowledge of whiskey making definitely. Well, speaking of getting away from the whiskey verse second like let's just forget about whisker second. We'll put you on the spot.

21:55 Oh shit. What's your favorite movie? And why? Whoo, that's a tough one for me. There's so many really good movies. I mean even John related, right? Like when I was younger, I was really into sports movies. I played football and basketball and school, one, a little. This one is a little bit of a throwback called the program. Oh, James Caan. Yeah, I love that movie. Just just because it kind of like it's like that envisionment of what college football was. Yeah, I need these. Right? So I love that one. Let's see another one Super Troopers. I just think it's so funny. I just love the hell out of that movie, right? That tastes like, wow. That's my wife's favorite line into my wife's favorite line. So, you know, I just love it in the mood, right? It's kind of what you're in the mood for like suspense movies as well.

22:48 Drawing a blank on the name of the one is it, it's not White House Down, but Might be, I think it's with Channing Tatum. Was that what was that called? There was two. I'm like yeah that's a good one. When we do the, the Super Troopers podcast and we get to review every time that man, you better come on, I love it, I love it, it's funny. So my wife, when we met she had never seen it and she's like, I just watch a funny movie and I was like you seem Super Trooper. She's like no.

23:30 And, of course, it starts out and she's like, all right, he's like, what the hell is this? Yeah, yeah. Yeah. This, she's filing his saliva did. So, yeah, it's funny. She likes to say on a, I don't know if it was a first date but like, no, no, yeah, was unfortunate. Is it to watch with your girlfriend? Super Troopers is either Grand Slam? Yeah. Or like, Joe it. Well, you don't get to watch much. All right. 15-20 minutes in if you're there and it's still, it's not uneasy. You're good, right? You knew she was the one. Exactly. That's exactly right. Yeah. All right, everybody, this has been Freddie. No, he is the eighth generation Master distiller.

24:10 At the James. Be beam Distilling Company. What a cannot. Thank you enough for sitting down with us. Thank you again, guys. Cheers again, cheers to you. Hey, I'm Liz from Atlanta. My favorite movie is the OG Top Gun and I would pair it with 1792. All right, Brad. We are sitting down with the leaders of Lucca. Mariano yeah. Which if you've been a listener to this podcast for any length of time, you have heard us sing the Praises without getting paid by them. What's that sound? Like no just fans up this whisky had that, I mean they sent us whiskey for free. They did. Which is phenomenal and but a lot of people do that. Yes. Sing. Everybody's praise. We don't and I think it's worth noting too.

24:51 That like we always reserved our favorite whiskies of the season. For those bracket episodes, the end of the year we do. And we did the Luca Mariano lineup. That's easy. Your season for I can't remember man. It's been a long time in a long time, but I remember even at the time, drinking even their 80-proof Rye. Yep. And saying like this is one of the best 80-proof whiskies I've ever had ever had like a level of complexity at that. Level of dilution was just game changing for me. So needless to say we're wildly excited to have you guys on the show? Yeah we're sitting across from Francesco and from David Phillips, who I don't know if this is like the official announcement, they put out the press release at this point but the New master distiller. That's right at Lucca. Mariano official announced and we were making it right here at the Kentucky bourbon with us.

25:37 Oh awesome. Hey, making our rounds today to do this. So this is the official announcement. Yeah, thank you. Congratulations, man for sitting down with us. We've got the press release sitting in front of us, but I want to hear it, you know, straight from the horse's mouth here. So, let's talk a little bit about this, you've been in the industry for a long, long time. And you've come from some of the big boys in the industry. 18, 18 years Tell us a bit about your history day. Yeah. So you know like I say that about 18 years ago I started with Jim Bean work, both the Claremont and the booker. No Distillery had some amazing teachers down there at the time. Got a chance to work with Fred. No you mean they know what they're doing down there. Yeah they've done, they've done. All right.

26:22 So yeah I worked with Fred. No, I worked with Jerry. Dalton who was the then Master distiller? My men. Tour in this business was Larry Walker and moved down to the booker. No Distillery. Where I became senior, supervisor, took them through a pretty, pretty massive expansion down in Boston, and from there went to the bullet Distillery and Shelbyville. So yeah, it's been a long 18 years and yeah, a long climb up and I finally find a guy here. That's, you know, crazy enough to take a chance on me. I absolutely give me the chance to run his place. So exciting. Honestly, you know, we've been talking a little bit off, are about the product that was laid down before you came on. And obviously, we're raving about it now. So, I feel like what's it, like, starting off in this place, where you've got a reputation built up already for yourself of having really great product, and having to carry on that tradition, as recent as that tradition might be, but also trying to put your own spin on things, you know? Well, you know, that's, you know, in the early conversations with Francesco that was the most important part for me was to be able to come in.

27:29 In carry on and build what he has and do it kind of the old school way. You know I told him you're not getting the prettiest face in the industry and you know you're getting a guy that you know may have a little foul language here and there and everything else. But you know, I already was in the whiskey every now every now that happens every now and then that happens, I promised my wife. I would behave while I was down here this weekend. But, you know, so, you know, and that's, that's what he's allowing me to do. Is be boots on the ground hands on Get dirty in the process. And, you know, and and not just build my name in the industry, but also build the brands that he has started and you know, continue the Legacy.

28:11 Absolutely. What's um what's important to note is that David, it was didn't when we interviewed him, he wasn't so much concerned about a title. He just wanted to be the guy that's in here, making things happen and Distilling and making the best quality Bourbon and Rye. Yeah, whiskey, that you. Possibly can. And I, when we when we talked and, like, you know, I'm not going to be the master distiller because that's just, like, me being like a mascot for our branner or me. Yeah, no, I'm not doing the work anymore, I'm doing other things, you know. So I was very important to me that that the person is doing the work that's actually in there every day, making it happen, that there that they get the title of Master distiller.

28:53 They earned it and and and David I couldn't be happier to have David on board. I'm With his experience, expertise and everything that he's accomplished in his life to bring that to Luca Mariano. I mean we're honored and blessed to have them. Yeah well I mean it's it's true in any industry, right? That there are certain people out there who are just a make a name for themselves and then there's people who really love the craft, right? Like I genuinely like yeah I think about movies. I think about Tom Cruise, like he loves the craft of making movies, right? Like if you know anything about him, you know that He is obsessed with the mechanical nature of raw filmmaking and it gets in the character Yeasayer freely. You're the second master distiller that we've had in the Tent today and I feel like it's been a recurring theme with all of our interviews today. About how the industry has become, much more kind of outward facing and forward facing to the public. And how when your master distiller, now you're the face of the brand in addition to being the guy that's hiding in the Rick house.

30:12 So what's it like for you now knowing that in some ways, you're going to be the face of, you know, the distillate that you're producing. It's an awesome. It's an awesome responsibility and it's one, you don't take lightly and that's, and that's where I build off of my experience. These guys, you know, They taught me that part of it, you know. It now it's up to me to like you say be the face and help build that so, you know, hopefully, hopefully, I got that. I told him, you know, I'm not the prettiest but you guys said I'm Tom Cruise, you know, it's easy to be the basis of them when you're Tom Cruise. But you know, I'm passionate about the product. Yeah.

30:52 And and the industry as a whole. And, you know, I think, I think those things are what will show the people, you know, when When we get our feet on the ground and we when we opened the doors for the first time for the public and guys like for you all to come and visit, you know, I think that will generally show to people and yeah, maybe that's where I can bring that side of it, the passion and that I actually love what I'm doing and that and that passion, you're going to feel in, you do feel in our in our, in our, in our product. I mean, What when David talks about all this passion and how much he cares when you when you have somebody like maybe our grandmother or somebody that knows how to cook, they put that love into their Seafood. You can taste a difference in a restaurant or somebody that doesn't care for my grandmother's generation though. It's not just love.

31:45 It's a lot of butter. No. Hit on you kind of hit on something with that. You know I I'm humble and in a big way but but what I feel like is I'm carrying the torch from the guys that taught me. Yeah. And and that's really what I want to do, and that's what I told him. You know, that's what's important to me, is to carry that torch, the history side of it, the old-school side of it. Yeah. And and to be able to tell that story and yeah, well I think that's something that the bourbon industry still does so well.

32:25 Well and I don't have anything against ndp's non distilling producers. Like we've never had a problem with that but their guys, getting into the game now that are, you know, I'm going to throw a bunch of money at this thing and I'm going to put it out and I don't care what it tastes like. I don't care what you know, and then they're really not learn history and I'm gonna get mine, and then there are people who say, I will not put my name on this thing unless I know that it is up to par and it's up to the Quality that I approve of, and I can tell just talking to you. Now that that's the kind of guy you are. Oh, yes, very much. So in, you know, Putting his name on it and everything else. It's true. I guess you aren't you want it to be right? You want it in and that's what I've told him.

33:06 Yeah this is. This is going to be one of the best places in the state of Kentucky and the long-term Vision he has, I keep going back to that, you know, the six seven eight year Vision. He has for this facility it's going to be a destination place. It's going to be something that people want to come and you know really hopefully stay and I think we're not going. Nobody else has, you know, go visit all of them that you want, but we're but our thought is that you're going to come back to us because you like what you have here on this property the absolutely ants and just that Hospitality feel. Yep. Yeah I mean we talked to Peggy no Stevens really early in the podcast history and she talked about forming the Bourbon Trail around. That idea of like we don't want people to just drink whiskey, we want them to experience like what it's like for us here in Kentucky, making the Key.

33:56 And that's I think that's the beautiful thing about the industry, right? That like you don't go to other Industries and experience the family feel that you do when you come. I mean if you just compare whiskey to any other industry sure it's just another big business, big company thing but no you come to Kentucky and you realize, oh no, this is a family industry and there's something endearing about that and important about exactly. It's right and that's what's so important to me is that I don't want to come to the bourbon industry. And copy somebody. Yeah, that that's not who we are. We have our own expression. We have her own taken how we think that we can fit into the bourbon industry and really add value.

34:36 And it's not it's gonna it's gonna complement everybody else, we're not here to compete with anyone. We're doing here to be ourselves, be true to who we are and we think that people will enjoy coming to visit us and enjoying our way of doing things. Absolutely welcome. Well we're going to welcome everybody to our home. Yeah it's like You're sitting around the Italian or My Telling family and eating a good meal. Yeah. Eat more than you can. Yep. In more than you should and and if you have to have a bed for you to spend the night. Yeah. So speaking of bringing your home to us, we've got two bottles of whiskey sitting in front of us, are we? Are we allowed to sample something while we sit here? Yeah, so this is a special release that we did in July that.

35:20 I thought I'd share with you 101st. This is named after my daughter her name is Gian Lorenzo, come on. So, Named it after her. And I developed this in 2010, which back then, it was the first female named whiskey. Wow, Urban. Yeah. So we wanted to pay tribute to the ladies out there and to, you know, not have something that's always named after man. And I was joke that there's so many names that you have to pay attention to in the whiskey world that are just Booker and bada. That's great. They're all, they all have a place in history but we also want to give The ladies, the place in absolutely sure. And then we have Luca Mariano is named after my son and that's his first and middle name and Mariano's my grandfather and so we incorporate his name into it as well. So that's incredible.

36:10 So with that said yeah since my family's name down here and I don't have any investors I have no Venture Capital money behind me. Yeah I will never sell my company because it's this this is my business. Yes, our business together and it's we're building Legacy building a brand that will forever be within our family. That's incredibly exciting. Yeah. Well listen we're going to pour some of these out while we do that, I want to put David on the hot seat here, we always do this. When we bring guests into the tent. We want to hear about your favorite movie. What's your favorite film? And why? Oh wow, let's see.

36:56 I'm gonna go with Apocalypse Now. Oh wow. Yes. Maybe you got heavy on us do? Yeah, I've always for whatever reason have no clue why I've always been fascinated with the Vietnam War have no no you know that's born in 71 so I, you know, I don't know. Maybe. Maybe some carryover from something. Who knows, really? It is one of the more fascinating Wars in all of history. It is, it is and, you know, doing a little little research on the film of some of the craziness that went on sure, filming it.

37:42 And then the the thought that thought, just how deep the thought-provoking provocation, is there? You know the thought process? Yeah, unless, you know, the, you know, Sheen's thoughts and the in That and then, Brando's thoughts, and all of these things going on there. It was just such a fascinating and deep movie that I got into it at a younger age. Yeah. And you know, I think it's some of those that they you know just kind of spark the interest in the back of my mind. Yeah my second choice probably would have been The Shining. Wow we need to get here just choosing all these Enigma you know you love it. But yeah you kind of go away again. That movie scared the hell out of them. And yeah, really wasn't that much really frightening snow in the middle part.

38:32 That's the thing. Is that movie is one of those ones where you don't know what the hell is going on in that movie. That's what's frightening. And I remember watching vertigo when I was, like, 14 or 15 and being terrified, and there's like, not really many scary things in that movie yet somehow, I was just on the edge, but it's, you know, with Apocalypse Now that was it was just, it was just trying to be in those guys. Mind all of them through the whole Venture and yeah. You know, after reading the book that it was based on and everything else is just like, wow this is crazy. No, the twisted and and then once you I said once you get into the some of the history of the stuff that went on during the filming of that, it was like incredible that they ever pulled off that kind of what I thought was a master.

39:16 Absolutely. Yeah. Well as you say, there you go. I was just saying, if listeners don't know about it, go listen to our episode about it first and then secondly, just go every time. The Wikipedia page on Apocalypse Now is like three times as long as any other move. So, here's a thing, they made a documentary called hearts of Darkness back in like 92 or 93 us that I think won the Oscar for like best documentary and that the production of that movie was so crazy that they got like a two-and-a-half Hour full documentary just about the making they made the movie Apocalypse Now. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. It's so right now. French is going. Oh my gosh but what the world of I brought The second thoughts, right? He's a movie star, you know, he's a Bonafide. He's been into movies this year already had his two more movies than anybody who listens to our podcast. That's true.

40:11 But I gotta ask you now. What's your favorite film to watch? Not necessarily the greatest movie ever made, but like, I want to turn this movie on. It's my favorite, I mean, mine are a little bit more light and fluffy. And yeah, it's really easy to come up from Apocalypse Now. Yeah. I have it. Oh, you do have an idea. What do you think, again, they take a good movie night. No, I'm gonna go. I'm gonna guess Hallmark Channel. I've been known to watch those but but no, I mean I you know, when I when I go up north to my house and Northern Michigan, I usually oh You know, when it's been a long time since I've been up there, I'll put on Wedding.

40:59 Crashers. That is love it. I don't know why. I just makes me laugh, did you motorboat them every time? Every time our kids are like, sitting in the other room and like, yelling for my wife. I always just gotta just go mom, the meatloaf. Yeah, I don't know. I like that movie. And I don't, I don't get a chance to watch a lot of TV, my Travel about a third of my time is on the road. Sure. And I've never turn down the TV in my hotel room and probably 67 years. Yeah, time. Yeah, I get when I get back, I just go to bed and I wake up and keep working. So I don't have as much time to watch TV as I used to, but and I love Bill Murray. So I'm a big fan.

41:46 So I like a lot of his movies, but Groundhog Day has always been one of my favorites. It's a great movie. It's, so it's such an incredibly well-crafted movie. Yeah. Like Aye sir, just spectacular. Yeah, speaking of incredibly well-crafted, I don't mean to like awkwardly segue as back into these Whiskey's, bro, but the Gianna Lauren that we just had. So this is a 97 proof Single Barrel rye and hear me when I say this. I'm not saying that this drinks too hot. Yeah. But if you had put that in front of me, I would have said that that had the complexity the punch. Yep. Of a barrel proof ride from any of the other guys, like what they're doing with choosing their proof point and everything else of Lucca, Mariano I can't say enough good things about it spot-on.

42:29 Genuinely guys, I would, we don't both will be nice when we don't like a whiskey, but if you listen to us for long enough, you'll know, you'll know this is, this is not one of those risks. And I personally have found that ride, consistently is my favorite type of whiskey because a lot of times, you get a lot of the decadence that you can get on a bourbon with all sorts of complexity in the Spy, Says and and all sorts of other notes. So that man, that, uh, Gianna, Lauren, thank you. Let's go and this six years now but we're gonna take this up to eight years. Oh wow, that's so that's why we're doing a special release for the next couple of years just to kind of get people excited and what you can learn about was in two years and what be on your doorstep? Yeah.

43:15 Like lining up for a mod rapson, Ohio. Just let us know. For sure. Speaking of which, before we let you guys go today, tell us a little bit about your current distribution. I know, you know, we're on site this weekend people. I can buy bottles here at Kentucky. Bourbon Festival. But where else can we find you? So we're in currently 12 States and we're adding more. We just brought on the same day that David came on board. We also had a friend of mine that I've known since my time at Michigan State, then keep in contact, but our past kept Crossing. And so, we thought it was time to bring him on board, but he, he spent 25 years at Gallo line. Oh, Billy built brands for them and manage brands for ya for 25 years, a big book of business and he's going to help organize your distribution across the United States and take us into the international market as well.

44:08 Now internationally known Luca Mariano I can't wait to see what's next for the brand. I'm really excited. I can't I can't believe you guys are sitting across from us. Now you've been raving about this product. Why long? I was just thinking International like getting into Italy has to be. Yeah. Like that's like the dream, right dream. I'm sure I mean where my family's from. I mean they're all excited, they're all rooting for us and I always am able to they always are amazed because I bring a big suitcase and I have a mi bubble wrapped with as much bourbon as I can fit in there. Yeah, I pay the overage fee because it's more than sure it's 70 pounds or whatever it is but for whatever reason I get through security every time and I get your customs and so they're very happy but they're out.

44:56 I haven't been there since just before covid. Yeah, so I need to get a real time stock. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, guys. We cannot thank you for sitting down with us Francesco, David from Luca Mariano, again, we'll have you on again soon, but beer. Cheers to you guys. Thank you. Thank you for having us. Thank you. My name is Marlowe, I'm from Acworth Georgia. My favorite movie is The Wizard of Oz because I'm originally from the Kansas area and I would pair it with Rabbit Hole bourbon. All right. Brad we're back again today by day to day two of the Kentucky Bourbon Festival.

45:39 I guess. This is technically day three. Yeah it's day two of our recordings. That's right, and we're sitting across the table from Dan McKee. He is the master distiller at Mick ters. It is so good to have you on the show. Thanks for being here. Glad to be here. Yeah, it's great to have you man Victor's. Has continuously been putting out phenomenal product that I have one specific friend who's just like a mixers Fanboy, so he's going to be really Side of the here. This interview tell him, thank you. Yeah, it's always nice to talk with distillers and CEOs and everybody from this side of the industry and talk to them about their favorite movie and cut loose a bit. But there's also a great equalizer in Kentucky and that equalizer is called humidity. Yes, and I'm not super sweaty yet. Dan is looking cool as a cucumber here, but man, it is going to be a hot one out here today. We're just like, it's but it's kind of cool to see like, a master distillers of all these places come sit in our Booth and then just drenched.

46:34 Yes. You know how it's a beautiful Kentucky day. Absolutely. Yeah and give us a little bit of the rundown of your history with the company. I mean, you've come from some of the biggest names in the industry, even Victor's for a little while now. But what's your background in the industry? Sure. Well, we're actually coming up on 17 years. I was very fortunate to start at Jim Beam as Distillery operator for The Distillery supervisor. So I worked both at the Claremont and Booker. No distillery in Boston, Kentucky, so had nine. Great years there. Worked with a lot of great people and then got the opportunity to join the mixers team again coming up on eight years worked with Pam heilman. She was our second master distiller at Victor's, work with her.

47:24 Well, over 10 years, it's just been a great experience. Like I said, I've worked with so many great people just here at MIT. There's a Loan. You think of people like Willie Pride, our first Master distiller, mentioned Pam, Andrea Wilson our Master maturation, which was just inducted into the Kentucky bourbon Hall of Fame. So and and the list goes on and on it's just it's a, you know, it's been a great experience. It's a great industry. It, you know, what, better making bourbon here in Kentucky? I mean, we're 95% of the Bourbons made here in Kentucky. Yeah, it's special. It's, you know, a lot of great people. And that's something I constantly hear that. Like, if you're in any other industry, it would all you'd almost have to be cynical about how often you hear. It said in the whiskey world.

48:11 Oh, I worked with great people. Hmm, you know what I mean? But like, there's this constant reality where everybody that we know who is now. A master distiller, says that exact phrase and that you hear it enough times you're like oh it must be true. There must be some really great people working in this industry. I didn't get here by myself. I can tell you that I you know, my nine years of Jim Beam or on Third shift, very small crew. You know, during summer shutdowns, you get to work with, you know, other people during the days and so forth. I credit a lot of my experience to The Operators. I was working with sitting inside a boiler as they were, you know, doing preventative maintenance during the summer and so forth. And actually having a senior operator, you know, showing me how exactly certain things so that when it's all packaged back together, you actually have a now sound fundamental understanding of how it works. Extending, those are the little things you need to understand those utilities that support.

49:06 The Distillery is not just all fermentation and that's the whole big part of running a Distillery. And yeah, you know, I owe it all to everybody and, you know, it's, you know, surround yourself with successful people. Yeah. But when you've worked with, as many organizations as we have now and all the interviews that we've done, you can always spot a healthy organization and one that has trust kind of built into it. And when I look at the relationship between you and Andrea, you on the distilling side of things in her, in the maturation side of things, I think that really speaks a lot to how trust his kind of built into the structure of mixers that your hand in these barrels off to her. Obviously, there's some collaboration there as well. Very much. So, yeah, now we have a great relationship and but that's even if you go back to, when I started back in late, 2014, the, you know, Willie Pratt everybody's working together because no one person again, as I mentioned is, you know, the completely One person says all and how it goes right, we all have to work together.

50:07 Andrea and I work very well together, we challenge each other, there's a lot of understanding discussions, things like that and it's very rewarding, to be honest with you. And then the see the success that mixers continues to have. Because, you know, the Distillery itself has that very long Rich proud history that dates back to 1753 and Schafer's Town Pennsylvania. But, you know, unfortunately like a lot of distilleries in 1989. The Pennsylvania, Distillery went bankrupt. Abandoned, the trademarks and was lost the time, well, as our current ownership. And then our President, Joe magliocco went through the process of acquiring the trademarks and then bringing the brand to Kentucky to resurrect it and we entered through three phases, you know, phase. One purchasing those matured stocks that we wanted to emulate in the future to face to where we took our Mash, Bill proprietary yeast Education's to a Distillery here in Kentucky, that had capacity that thankfully went well. And then phase 3, our main Distillery and Shively, which is kind of a, you know, a city within a city of Louisville Kentucky.

51:16 That's our main operation. We do everything front to back with the Distillery. One. On-site Warehouse, processing bottling. You know, when I started, you know, like I said, coming up on eight years ago, we were under 10 employees. If you factor in all our three locations were almost to 100 employees. We have our farm in Springfield Kentucky, with working, with a local farmer to grow. Some estate grown grains like corn Rye, barley, we have the beautiful Fort Nelson, distillery in downtown Louisville where it's actually has a fully operational. Distillery, we actually have pot Stills that were used at the Schafer's Town, Pennsylvania to style, right? So three Cypress Wood fermenters, it's a beautiful Distillery to tour through and then we have the world.

51:58 The bar at Fort Nelson, which serves world-class cocktails David. George spirits and cocktail historian held curate part of the classic cocktails and then our local bar team, you know, the rest of them the menu, which is just very exciting is why I say that. But then just as a distiller myself and working with Victor's and their philosophy of kind of this cost, be damned approach when it comes to Quality. We do a lot of things that are not the most efficient. They cost more and you know, whether it's our barrels, being the wood, staves are Air-dried, seasoned minimum 18 months to 60 months. Yeah, we toast all of our barrels before we Char them.

52:39 We enter our distillate into the barrel at a very low 103 proof. That's the lowest that we know of any Distillery of scale. And this is all for all of our products, not just a special release. We again, we enter into those new toasted chart, American White, Oak barrels, and then we also heat cycle and do a custom chilled filtration. So those are like, six key philosophies, you know, It's just amazing. And then, as myself as a distiller, we have 100% copper distillation system made by Vendome here in Louisville. Yeah, I mean it's a beautiful, you know, forty six foot tall, 32 inch diameter. Continuous columns, go to a doubler pot still. Yeah, our doubler actually looks like the pot still?

53:21 Let you see on everything nickers. So this is how you can tell a guy loves his job. Yeah. He's like the height of the thing. Yeah. He's like, you're bringing down the dimensions. I love it, man. And I I have to imagine that somebody that is, as meticulous, as you sit down to watch a movie with just the most critical eye, right? So what I, when I think about what is Dan's favorite movie? I'm sure. It's some, you know, Masterpiece. Yeah, of world Cinema or easily. Right. Dan. What, what is your favorite film? Well, they're masterpieces in their own, right? You know, I kind of thought that before I, you know, before I joined a like, what is your favorite movie? I'm thinking, and I'm like, I'm 48 years old.

54:02 I've seen a lot of movies, not as much recently because it seems, you know, I spend a lot of time with my son and his Sports, and also work, so I'm like what it really is. And then I do love a good comedy, that just makes me laugh and not think about anything. So, you can go to like, a Will Ferrell like stepbrothers. You know, that just makes me laugh. You're speaking bobsleighing. Yeah, I mean more that that actually I do own the DVD for that. That one is funny. It was given as a gift, but if you go old school, I mean, you just can't be Rocky 3. I mean, that he'll probably seen more than all movies together watching the movie with a critical eye. It's funny early on in life.

54:45 I would watch an action movie and I'd get so frustrated when they would do things that weren't realistic. Yeah. My having a son that has worn me down now, because I've seen so many action movies with him that I'm like, okay, just accept it right? And yeah, I actually enjoy a much better. I would have even 15 years ago. So we just did Rocky for, on the show, not long ago. And you know, that talk about suspension of disbelief, you've got like five foot two Sylvester Stallone punching up at, you know, Dolph Lundgren can't even hardly is like 7 feet tall that actually was just on TV. And yes, did I watch most of it? Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. And then I went away and I came back away.

55:25 Saul Rocky 3 on TV again and again, I own the DVDs that and it's like, but I'll sit there and watch it with I'll still, that's how much I enjoy it. So yeah, I know those, you know, again, they're they're masterpieces in their their own, right? Yeah, I mean, the first Rocky is considered a man. Absolutely, I love. Oh yeah. So I mean, I the whole series. It's just, yeah, it's funny. It's a, but a good comedy that just makes me laugh. And yeah, it just has that stupid humor and yeah, you know, we talked about early on in the podcast, some of our favorite comedies of the 2000s and I think the hangover might be one of the last like, Really great. Just pure comedies. Yeah, that has ever come out.

56:05 Oh yeah anymore. It's like you get a movie that is a drama with comedy, or a this with some comedic elements, but there hasn't been like a just a really good silly movie in a while, you know why? Yeah, sure. Well Dan, we can't thank you enough for sitting down with us today, man. It's it's always such a pleasure to talk to people like you and we've never gotten the chance to tell you in person. Yeah big fan. We are of nectar. So thank you for everything you do. Yeah. Thank you for asking Victor's and myself. This is been a pleasure Thank you. I'm Jackie Simmons. And I'm from Johnson City, Tennessee. My favorite movie is the sound of music and I would pair it with angels Envy All right, Brad, we're back with another interview. We are here with Steve Infante. Honestly, I kind of want to let Stephen introduce himself because when he entered it, is this thing down, pat and elegant reduction.

56:55 So Steven you tell us about what you do. Well, glad to be here today, boys, my name is Steve Infante and I'm the national brand ambassador for Yellowstone. Kentucky, Straight Bourbon whiskey. I'm also the right hand to Steven be my manager Barrel House and I take care of all the barrel picks. So, whatever Steve's not doing, is what I do. Yeah, I'm his flunky. He says, I'm bubble gum on a shoe ever since I was seven years old, I've known him so I've hung out with him that long. He's like yeah, I might have changed my shoes. Yeah, just stuck to him. I was just telling but Stephen right before we started here, Yellowstone is one of our favorite brands of whiskey, especially when you're talking about, just the entry level, the Baseline product 80 to 90 Proof.

57:43 Like we never find whiskies in that proof point, you know, 80 to 95. I would say anymore, that knock our socks off. Yeah. Every single time I've gotten Yellowstone, there's a level of complexity there, and it's killer, man. Yeah, it's just, and so, you wouldn't know this about our show, but when we score out whiskies, we do a nose taste finish Balance and then our fifth categories value. Because the average consumer wants to know my getting bang, for my buck here, if I'm spending $22. Is it worth it if I'm spending $52? Is it worth it in the state of Ohio at a thirty five dollar, price point? Hmm, I might even be that much. It might be less than 30 Yellowstone, is just one of the best values on the Shelf. A consistent like eight nine, out of ten value. Yeah, he's LED tastic.

58:27 Thank you so much on behalf of the brand. Let me thank you for such a great product. I appreciate it. I'll pass. That on to mr. Beam. All I do is talk about it. Let's talk a little bit about your role. You said, you you're a flunky your do everything. But specifically, you're managing the barrel house. You're managing Barrel pics. How do you, what's your day-to-day look like in that zone? Well, it starts out early in the morning drinking whiskey. Usually, it's almost cash, track them, but I know we got a group in and they want to do a barrel pair. Can I take them to how to knows bourbons and how to taste bourbons? And, you know, how to break a Down, give them a little bit more complex and intense class on that before we ever do anything. I don't know where the skill level is of the people that are walking, in some people are brand-new, they've never tasted a barrel in their life.

59:15 Some people have been doing it and they've done 360 picks and everything that I tell them, they already know. Yeah. But typically I find out that they learned something. Hmm, even the ones that are experienced have learned something after that. Previously I was a t, Somali a for John, Conti coffee company and imported to tease him all over the world. And did some blends of tea called Conte, iced tea, that took them to almost a national level. And then I was golden cup certified in the industry of coffee, which is the highest certification, especially coffee Association gives for nosing tasting Brewing, standards. In coffee, the time that I received my certification. I was one of like 14 in the nation golden cup certified trainers. That's incredible.

59:56 Yeah, so I did that for a long time and then mr. Beam had me. He had me Stephen theft. He took me to the class. With him. And I got to become an executive bourbon Stewart, which is an urn title. It means that you had to actually distill whiskey, and I don't call myself a distiller, because if you ask me by gunpoint to go in there and distill, some, I'd blow something up, I call myself a national brand ambassador, because that's what I am. I like to talk about it and bring it in in layman's terms to people from all over the world. Exactly what whiskey is all about. Yeah, well honestly, I was, I think it's really cool to hear. Any talk about coffee tea? That's what I because on here. Yeah, we like, we don't talk about this enough, but I have seen how drinking whiskey for the last three years. For this podcast, as I have my palate has grown with whiskey. All of a sudden I'm drinking coffee and I'm like, oh, I'm noticing notes on my coffee that I never would have noticed before.

1:00:52 And so, I can't encourage this highly enough. Like, the more, you drink, whatever you like wine, coffee whiskey, you know, whatever it is. Tequila it will help you enjoy other. Is even more and what a great person to talk to about that than a golden cup kind of guy. So my brother was a president of the specialty coffee Association of America. And he did that for, why is Fontes coffee and Louisville Kentucky, which is a European coffee house. That's absolutely extraordinary. He has a 10 kilo and Becks register along with about a five hundred pound roaster. Yeah, two different Registries in the same area in the same parking lot and heroes coffee's for about 18 to 20 different coffee houses in America. Gotta under their own private labels and he makes Yellowstone Bourbon Coffee for us.

1:01:38 So when you come to the story gift shop you can get a pound of Yellowstone Bourbon Coffee and it's done with 100% Arabica bean coffee at the highest standard in the industry. But yeah, that's what my brother does. My other brother Darryl is the president of the sports commission for the city of Louisville. He is the incoming president right now. He's vice president at the moment. So when are you gonna get a president title? Then it sounds like Dante's are all president wonky. That's all right. I can't delay. This, any longer we've been asking everybody that's sat down across the table from us here to talk about their favorite movie. And the odds of this happening are just absolutely astronomical but Brad's grinning from ear to ear mr.

1:02:20 Fontaine, can you please introduce your favorite film to us? Absolutely, since I was a child, I was taught shipped off to Oklahoma to stay with an uncle on a ranch and he was one quite of a character. As you can imagine one of The last American Cowboys yeah 3,500-acre cattle ranch in a he would take me on Horseback and we would go mend fences together and yeah he was a big character. Did he ever like give you tobacco chewing tobacco when you're way too young? Yes, I took a not just tobacco skull. Yeah. Yeah. Whole mouthful of score on Horseback gives you a buzz like you can never imagine that middle of the Heat and the middle of Oklahoma up in the Ozark Mountains is quite a ride. I definitely Remember that first experience for a long time. Quite vividly.

1:03:06 Yes, I will always remember that experience. Yes, Secondhand Lions is my favorite movie because it is my childhood. It is what I grew up with those crazy uncle's mind hanging out with me. And if you've ever seen the movie, if you've never seen the movie, it's rated G. You need to show your kids this movie. It's a fantastic thing. I continually say that, I think it is one of the greatest coming-of-age films that has ever been made. And we had it on the Podcast at my insistence at some point and I will admit like it looks a little bit like a TV movie. It's not the high production, quality of some films, but the story that you get and how in the world, they got Michael Caine and Robert Duvall to just be themselves.

1:03:52 What I hope they're actually like and give that kind of a performance for such a little movie. I the acting is spectacular in this movie guys. Ordinary, I have watched it. I don't even, I couldn't even tell you 1720, I don't know how many times, but a lot. Yeah, yeah. I keep coming back to the scene. When Haley. Joel Osment is standing at the bottom of the stairs with the candle and Kane and Duvall are just like well son, if we kick off, in the middle of the night, you're on your own and Haley, Joel Osment, just gives the perfect wide-eyed like I think they are going to die tonight. Well mr. Van say we can't thank you enough. For sitting down with us today.

1:04:34 Again like Shameless plug for Yellowstone. Yes. One of my favorites on the Shelf. Yeah, we're super fortuitous just to run into. Yeah. And be able to tell you in person. Yeah. So fastest-growing bourbon brand in the United States is Yellowstone. Kentucky Straight Bourbon whiskey. It's up a hundred and forty-four percent over last year. If you've not tasted it yet, you're one of the few that have it. Yeah, time you taste it and forever bottle of it. That you go through. What happens? A percentage goes back to the national parks Conservancy really? All the Bourbons you're drinking but I guarantee if you drink cause you'll saving Parks. Yeah, I'll break more Yellowstone, that's amazing. What do you guys have anything coming down? The line. What's coming up that? You're excited for a lot of things coming up, I'm excited far.

1:05:17 We got experimental Barrel House out back. That's extraordinary and all these different experiments that mr. Beam is done. There's some things coming in the pipeline. I don't think I'm allowed to talk about him. Yeah, it's okay. But are coming. You got to see. You're going to see an expansion of the line of Yellowstone. On in the near future. I do believe I can't wait for it. Super excited guys, this was Steve Infante from Yellowstone. Thank you so much for sitting with a Steven. Nice to meet you guys. Hi this is Craig from Ohio and my favorite movie is Fatal Attraction and I would pair that with any High Rye because it will leave a long-lasting effect on you. All right.

1:06:01 Brad. We are joined by a He's been on the show before we've named so so excited to have back on the show. We've never met in the flesh because of the pandemic, but was finally sitting across the table from Chris Morris Master distiller, of Woodford. Reserve, you know, a decent brand. One of our favorite whiskies and World Chris. I don't know if we told you this is the first time you were on the show but the whiskey that got us into drinking whiskey. Yeah. Was Woodford. Oo. Mention that? Yes. And that's still the case today. Yeah, we were just talking with Somebody before you came over who bought a case full of Woodford, Reserve to Single Barrel. You all have for sale here, huh? And just singing the Praises of it. Well that's wonderful, right? So there's something to be said for a brand that is as consistently good.

1:06:45 As Woodford was just constantly one of the best Whiskey's out there so Chris, you're killing it. That's what we try to do, appreciate it. I was going to say he's humble enough that he's not going to take the credit for it yet. Literally all the credit belongs to you for that. So thank you for what you've done for our whiskey-drinking live. Together. Yeah, it's important. So it's been about two years since we've had you on the show. Now, catch us up a little bit with the brand major developments that we haven't been able to discuss together. Well, certainly with the the pandemic and its impact is everybody knows his led to supply chain. Issues are difficulties been getting glass bottles, Sugarfoot double oaked in or put would reserve it.

1:07:30 Yeah first out but like all your listeners You know, there's plenty of Woodford. We just don't always have bottles for it but we're finally overcoming that. Isn't it crazy though? Stuff like that? Like I know like when you drink whiskey you don't think about the fact that you're like, oh yeah I guess they do need a bottle to put it out there that you know I just pictured people lining up at the Woodford Distillery and y'all just like labeling it into our mouths and some days that would have been easier. Yeah, but also we took the time over that slow. Period to literally double the production capacity of The Distillery, which has been a long talked in a way that project.

1:08:11 So we have added another set of pot Stills. So, we have two sets of three pot Stills. Awesome. We've added eight more fermenters, literally, doubling the rate we had originally and it's just amazing as we bring online or new old-fashioned equipment, how exciting that is. So, we're gearing up for For continued growth. Obviously we've continued to produce our masters collection and our Distillery series and the innovation of our Woodford. Reserve baccarat. Most expensive Frontline bottle of bourbon in the world continues on covid against load, its Global release down, and now it's picking up steam again. So we haven't done a whole lot of new we're doing, just Or of what we've been doing solutely.

1:09:05 Yeah. And what you've been doing is, you know, it's Woodford, Reserve, what's up? That's all right. Absolutely, I want to talk a little bit about the Woodford Reserve. Distillery and the sort of the front-facing aspects of that because to this day Woodford was the first Distillery I ever toured and I think to this day it's still my favorite of The Distillery tours. Thank you. And we were talking right before we press record about the Kentucky Bourbon Festival and why we all liked it because in a lot of ways, it Let's Kentucky like it's it's a it's a slower, it's a quieter Festival. Yeah. Than some of the louder ones we've seen over the years and Woodford. Reserve as a Distillery, I think that torso reflects the, you know what Kentucky is all about and what ever been to Versailles Kentucky?

1:09:50 Like yeah, we Lisa live in Wilmore, we were not far away and so like, there's just something about having that kind of quietness and it seems to be. So in touch with the land around it, obviously, as the Dillard. I don't know what kind of hand you have in that process but when you look at what you all are doing for the consumer and forward-facing, I'm sure you take great pride in that. Oh, yes, we do. And thank you for your comments on our local community, Woodford, County is a very rural, very rural County, but not the typical Farm. You will find in most other parts of Kentucky. They are some of the finest thoroughbred horse farms in the world. Yeah. So beautiful. Almost landscape part like, yeah.

1:10:33 Agricultural country and Versailles, reflects that it's an old horse Town. Yeah, as well as it is, still in town. So it understands Hospitality entertaining to a great degree and we definitely, as part of the community are in constant contact with our County judge. The sheriff, the, the the citizens of Woodford County. So we work together to maintain that. That environment and atmosphere that we're also proud of. So, it's a great community and to project that Literally globally is important because which Reserve reflects that Community. Yeah, as you noted, its pastoral its historic, it's authentic thoroughbred.

1:11:23 Horses are some of the greatest athletes in the world and our bread, to the highest degree of expertise and Excellence. Think about Kentucky, Derby winner, the Breeders Cup winners, the Irish steaks, you go down and down the list of the great horse races and and That symbolizes Woodford. Reserve again, we like to thank we're at the peak of our sport. Yeah profession. Yeah. Highest quality and all that is also all about longevity. A great Thoroughbred should have a long life yet. Successful life after his or her racing career and Woodford, Reserve were building for the future. That's why we've doubled our production capacity.

1:12:04 We fully expect Woodford to be in it for the long. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. Not to go like too deep here but I was Meaning to a pastor named Tim Keller, talk about the difference of a one generation church and an institution. Oh yeah. And he talks about the differences when a when a church or an organization can Outlast the person who started it and pass on to multiple generations and continue into the future. Like that is an institution and there's something awesome about institution because, you know, that it's a high, it's high-quality enough that it survives the ups and downs of The culture, it lives in and I think Woodford, kind of represents that it's very true and I really get a charge out of talking to, you know, acquaintance, just friends, Etc, who travel say to Spain. And we took a vacation in Spain, three years ago and they didn't have any Woodford.

1:13:04 Now, every bar we went to, in Spain, had wood has herb and she start to see that momentum building and you hear that more and more. We traveled around the world. And when you think about that, if you are sitting at a bar, and that's you Spain. Again, as of our example, because I've had this very personal observation and feeling and I look at that bottle of Woodford, on the Shelf. It's a every bit of that bottle came from home. Yeah. Yes. Yeah, a little bit of Woodford County. Yeah. Sitting on a shelf in Spain. Yeah, they are. Salona makes. Yeah. Really. Safe. Yeah.

1:13:44 And and comfortable that there's a little bit of home here. Yeah, there's not too many Industries are brands of in an industry that you can make that claim. Yeah. I'm a big college, football fan. You know, one of the, you know, major college football programs right now is Clemson University in South Carolina. Their coach Dabo Swinney, he has a mentality that he always says, you know, we're just little Clemson, we're not supposed to be here right now and he's obviously built that into a Powerhouse now, to 10 years Are 500 million dollar contract, you know, but what I'm saying is I think that there's something to be said about a person Chris, in your position. You know, it in a company as large as Woodford. Reserve, that when you go somewhere, like Spain that there's still that perspective, that at the end of the day, it's still, you know, little Versailles Kentucky that's on the shelf and represented worldwide.

1:14:33 And I think that's what we love about talking with people. In this industry is none of you all have seemed to have lost that perspective. Yeah, so we appreciate that. That those of us especially like Freddie you'll Samuels and others who've been in it since they were born. Literally, we've gone through hard times. Yeah, we've gone through times when we thought there wouldn't be a future mmm and we've all worked so hard, not that we haven't loved doing that. But we've worked so hard and fought for the integrity and appreciation of Yeah, of our whiskey bourbon. Whiskey.

1:15:14 Kentucky, bourbon whiskey and I don't think we can ever lose that feeling of Pride. Yeah, see those bottles yeah. Hopefully the next Generation talking about your institution? Yeah, hopefully the next and Next Generation who haven't had to undergo that will still have appreciation because there's a lot of wonderful people coming in our industry. Why? Because we've made it. Yeah. Yeah pop. Yeah. We were literally just talking to somebody a little bit earlier and we and they They said, we work with. I've worked with so many great people that have led me to be what I am today and that's just something we keep hearing in this industry. Like yep I just got to work with the best people that taught me so much and I feel like this industry just I'm is emblematic of this industry. Well, before we let you go, we have to Pivot into movies for obviously, we had you on the show, talking about your two favorite films The Day, the Earth Stood Still, and the Searchers and the timing of this could not be. Be better because Brad and I are about to record a series of films by the director, John Ford, and the Searchers is one of them.

1:16:19 We have not done the Searchers on the show yet. I just watched stagecoach with another movie last couple of weeks that was an early one for the podcast. We did that a while ago, 34, let me check in with you on this. How long has it been since you've seen the Searchers? Okay, because I just watched Hondo last week. Yeah, you're just rotating through all the John Wayne and all the John. Wayne's. I haven't watched The Searchers probably since we were together. Okay. Okay. Alright. So, when I ask you this, what should we be on the lookout for, like, what? What scenes stood out to you which ones really stick with you? So, if you're, if you're telling someone that's watching it for the very first time, be aware of this, or look out for this little thing.

1:17:04 What would you suggest? Well, I got a couple of scenes. But first of all, Watch John Wayne's perform and it's yeah, considered by many to be his finest work. Absolutely, the most emotional performance. So he does a great job. Absolutely. And there's some cotton, there's a lot of comedy and as well that yeah, you wouldn't think about what the such a serious subject matter. But there's a lot of good comedy in the entire movie, but of course the iconic opening scene and the last scene where John Ford, Uses the same door of the cabin of the home of John Wayne's brother for his entry and exit. The sun is silhouette.

1:17:54 It's art. It's yeah, it's like if that does, if you've not seen the Searchers and that doesn't convince you to go watch it, then I don't know what will because that just is a perfect beautiful description of what you're getting and a movie like this and then what they both. Eli's birth. And it's just, yeah. It's it shows that a western could be intellectual. Yeah and artistic as well as exciting. Yeah. The same time. Well I'd be curious to ask her. It's like when you're going into these classic westerns it seems to be your genre of choice. What's like, what's the feel that you're looking for when you get into these westerns that you're like, yeah, this is why I go back to Honda. This is why go back to the Searchers Stagecoach, like what is it?

1:18:39 That draws you back? Time. Well, certainly why in the first place growing up here? That's what my father leaving my grandfather. I mean, when, when Bonanza was on, yeah, shut up. Although I, we grew up with the Western sir and that, that whole genre of this was America. Right. Or wrong. That's what we grew up with. Yeah, and I like number one, like a not to be trite like a good glass of bourbon. I know the westerns going to end up. In a nice place. Yeah, yeah. The good guys.

1:19:21 Yep, unless you're watching one of the new Western. So the modern world, the good guys are going to win. You know, the horse is going to be saved, the woman is going to be hugged. Everything's gonna be happy. Yeah, my wife doesn't like John Wayne movies because the dog always dies. And that, that is a, that's a no-go for her. The dog makes it out. Okay, you're right. So, you know, there's gonna be a happy ending. Yep. Yeah. I'm a App for Happy Endings. I love happy endings. Yeah. And there's going to be a moral story. Usually, I mean, maybe some of the B movies didn't have moral strength. There's a moral story. Yeah, I knew I was, I was literally about to say, high noon, if you want to talk about a moral story in the west about the man standing on his moral ground.

1:20:06 Like, come on, SO original. True Grit, the second trigger trick also, anyway, you know, there's, I don't know, Chris Bob stands by the second True Grit. All this great know, the great. Yeah, but it's a remake of the original jacket regret. Exactly again. So there's going to be a moral story. Their goody Lessons Learned and then hopefully, that happy ending. Yeah. And also beautiful cinematography, yes. Yeah, into the music and the beauty of like, there's so much to love in westerns that. I think a lot of modern people sleep on for sure. I agree. Well, Chris, we can't thank you enough for coming sitting down today with you all.

1:20:47 Yeah, look forward to seeing you around the festival. Again, and thanks for being here. Okay, enjoy. Thank you. Alright. So that was the Kentucky Bourbon Festival. Brad, we will be back next Monday with another regularly scheduled episode, but until then I'm Bob book, I'm Reggie and we'll see you next time.