Craft Spirits Podcast

Our latest guests on The Craft Spirits Podcast are Chris Montana and Maria Kustritz of Minneapolis-based Du Nord Craft Spirits. Kustritz is the distillery’s production manager. Montana, who is also ACSA’s immediate past president, founded the distillery in 2013 with his wife, Shanelle. During the unrest of the George Floyd protests in late May of 2020, rioters broke into Du Nord’s warehouse and se...

Our latest guest on The Craft Spirits Podcast is Ashby Marshall of Spirit Works Distillery. For more than a decade, Ashby and her husband, Timo, worked for environmental nonprofits, which included plenty of time at sea. But they eventually grounded themselves, and they later launched Spirit Works Distillery in Sebastopol, California, in 2012. With a commitment to making spirits from grain to glass...

A growing number of American craft distillers are exploring a whiskey category that is not (yet) officially recognized by the federal government. The American Single Malt Whiskey Commission, which is more than 170 distilleries strong, hopes to change that. The group has proposed a standard of identity for the category, and the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) recently announced that...

It’s fair to say that wine took Mississippi native Phillip Ladner around the world, but distilling brought him home. Just out of college, he worked in a wine shop in New York, which he parlayed into a production gig in New Zealand, followed by jobs at well-respected wineries in California. But he eventually found his way to distilling, and a chance meeting with Richard Patrick and Austin Evans—the...

Lew Bryson has been writing about beer and spirits full-time since 1995. He was the longtime managing editor of Whisky Advocate and he currently writes for outlets like the Daily Beast, WhiskeyWash.com and CRAFT SPIRITS magazine (check out his latest column here). He’s also the author of “Tasting Whiskey," “Whiskey Master Class" and four regional brewery guidebooks. Bryson recently joined CRAFT SP...

After starting his career in production and manufacturing positions, Jason Ericson found his way to distilling as a production assistant at Portland, Oregon-based Eastside Distilling in 2014. He was promoted to head distiller in January of 2020. In the latest episode of The Craft Spirits Podcast, the Portland native chatted about his road to distilling; Eastside’s new award-winning limited-edition...

Vowing to make organic spirits from scratch, Sonat Birnecker Hart and her husband, Robert Birnecker, left academic careers to establish KOVAL Distillery in Chicago in 2008. Today the distillery’s products are available across the nation and in 55 export markets. As president, Birnecker Hart spearheads product development, distribution and marketing.  She recently joined Jeff Cioletti for a wide-ra...

Unemployed after the Enron scandal of 2001 bankrupted the software company where he worked, Dan Garrison started writing a business plan during a tour of Kentucky distilleries. Today, his bourbon is available in 32 states and eight countries and Garrison Brothers Distillery has won numerous awards and honors for its bourbon lineup and developed a loyal fan base. In this episode, Garrison discusses...

Rhonda Kallman of Boston Harbor Distillery chats about the origins of her distillery, how Boston Harbor distinguishes itself in the growing American single malt whiskey category, and lessons learned from a career dedicated to craft beverages.

Brooklyn Gin founders Emil Jättne and Joe Santos explore the dynamics of the American craft gin category and share the secret behind the brand's award-winning bottle design.

Abby Titcomb is the vice president and head distiller of 3 Floyds Distilling Co. in Munster, Indiana. In this episode, Titcomb spoke to editor in chief Jeff Cioletti about her journey from brewing to distilling; the distillery's lineup of gin, aquavit, and more; and whether or not legal cannabis is affecting alcohol sales.

March 11 marks the one year anniversary of the World Health Organization declaring COVID-19 a global pandemic. While the pandemic did force many distilleries to permanently shut their doors, startup distilleries forged ahead. One of those is Dog and Shrub Distillery of Lake Mills, Wisconsin. The stills showed up in early February of 2020 and the distillery opened in June. Rob Campbell—a former che...

Lance Winters is the master distiller and president of St. George Spirits in Alameda, California. In this episode of The Craft Spirits Podcast, Winters reflects on 25 years of distilling at St. George. The distillery was founded in 1982 by Jörg Rupf, considered by many to be the godfather of craft distilling in America, and Winters joined the team in 1996. What started as a distillery devoted to e...

Alex Castle is senior vice president and master distiller at Old Dominick Distillery in Memphis, Tennessee. She was the state’s first female head distiller, and last year she was elected as president of the Tennessee Distillers Guild. She also serves on the Craft Advisory Council for the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States and is on the board for The Spirit Hub Independent Distillery Pr...

Mark Shilling is a partner in Big Thirst Consulting, specializing in distillery startup operations and project management. After spending 20 years as a government and regulatory affairs professional (aka "lobbyist"), he founded Revolution Spirits Distilling Co. in 2013. He also helped establish the Texas Distilled Spirits Association in 2012, is a past president of ACSA, and is the ACSA Government...

Amber Pollock is the co-founder of Wyoming-based Backwards Distilling Co. and is extremely active in the distilling world and her local community. She serves on ACSA’s board of directors and she is the vice president of the Wyoming Distillers Guild and the president of ENGAGE, a grassroots organization of 18- to 35-year-olds aiming to strengthen the longevity of Wyoming. And in November, she was e...

Jeff Kanof is the vice president and co-owner of Seattle’s Copperworks Distilling Co. and an ACSA board member and secretary/treasurer. In this episode, Kanof discusses federal excise tax reform; his journey from law to distilling; a passion for beer that he shares with Copperworks co-founders Jason Parker and Micah Nutt; and some recent releases from the distillery, including Copperworks Washingt...

P.T. Wood is the co-founder of Wood’s High Mountain Distillery, vice president of the American Craft Spirits Association and the mayor of Salida, Colorado. In the second episode of The Craft Spirits Podcast, Wood joins CRAFT SPIRITS magazine senior editor Jon Page to discuss his path to making craft spirits and the realities of running a distillery and a city.

Becky Harris, president and chief distiller at Catoctin Creek Distilling Co. and president of the American Craft Spirits Association, joins CRAFT SPIRITS magazine editor in chief Jeff Cioletti to discuss permanent federal excise tax relief and the challenging year ahead for distillers already impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.