Key In The Lake Whiskey Podcast

We finally got the whiskey power couple. The Rosentreters, Eric and Susan, joined us at Delilah’s to chat about a variety of topics. They reminisce about working and meeting at Delilah’s, and how working at such a coveted whiskey bar developed their skillsets of educating and developing brands. Susan shares her 20 years of working in a male-dominated industry, and how she’s earned the respect of b...

Live from Malloy’s Finest, proprietor Steve Malloy shares his Rare Character Amburana Rye single barrel. Steve shares how he forged a relationship with RC to purchase the first Illinois single barrel from the company. Also, listen to the very, very end, you might be surprised. Guests: Steve Malloy & Eric Rosentreter Host: Jake Hukee Listen to more episodes and read stories at keyinthelake.com...

John Chesney of Slightly Toasted shares their latest single barrel from Old Forester. John is always looking for the best whiskey he can find for their extensive single barrel program. As an operator of the on-premise, he and his business partners tussle with the idea of adding their single barrels to cocktails or serving them neat, but damn, this Old Forester can be enjoyed any way you desire. It...

Our beloved brothers from Wiscy City, USA lead us off on the 12 Days of Barrel Picks this year. Matt Brown explains their single barrel approach and highlights a delicious, unique pick from Malloy’s Finest in Chicagoland. Guests: Matt Brown & John Chesney Hosts: Jake Hukee Listen to more episodes and read stories at keyinthelake.com Key In The Lake

Alex recently became an ambassador for Teeling Whiskey. He shares a brief history of the acclaimed Irish distillery and how it relates to the history of whiskey produced in Ireland. Alex also explains how the roots of the distillery were involved in the revival of Teeling, and how they’re integrating an innovative approach to making modern Irish whiskey for their core collection and single barrel...

John is the GM and Operator of Slightly Hospitality.. Slightly Toasted is one the best modern whiskey bars in Chicago. John shares his perspective of building/running bars and restaurants during the height of the whiskey and revived cocktail booms. He discusses his method of working with distributors to build a prestige back bar, handling relationships with spirits reps., and being a guide—from be...

Steve Malloy of Malloy’s Finest and Eric Rosentreter of Old Elk join me for an industry check-in. We debate consumer fatigue of spending money on limited whiskey releases and single barrels vs. the overall fatigue of spending money for expensive items. We also chat about what “makes” a speakeasy. And, AND, we reveal Steve’s lead on purchasing a goddam BOOKER’S single barrel. Guests: Steve Malloy &...

J. Henry & Sons is a beloved brand on this podcast. We’ve had our dear friend Joe Henry, cofounder and son of the family-owned distillery, on multiple times, but, now, we get to hear from the matriarch. Cofounder Liz Henry (Joe’s mom) comes on live at Wisconsin Whiskey Fest. She shares how the distillery changed her life and her family, her experience working with Nancy Fraley, and how proud s...

Susan Rosentreter of Samson & Surrey joins me live from the Wisconsin Whiskey Fest. We go over her 20 years in the industry, including her time running one of the greatest whiskey bars in Chicago, Fountainhead. We also chat about pride of developing/working with small whiskey brands and how they’re stacking up against big brands. And of course, we discuss the future of single barrels in Americ...

We head back to see our friends in Wiscy City, USA. Nick Maas and his band of brothers, who operate Dancing Goat, share the updates of their distillery, including the expansion of their Presents Series. We also discuss the legacy of the DG, acquiring and leveraging distilleries, and brand building by “owning your backyard.” Towards the end, we forecast the future of small distilleries. We speculat...

Assistant Distiller Ted Wolfe and Sales Director Brett Bauer are on the show, and they’re not here to just talk whiskey. Sagamore is launching a new Amaro. Ted explains the intricate process of developing the herbal liqueur, and Brett shares the market execution of launching the Amaro in a Black Manhattan campaign across the US. Ted also shares his experience of studying astrophysics to developing...

Chris Blatner, Steve Malloy, Eric Rosentreter and Wilson Torres join me for a roundtable discussion on a variety of topics. We primarily focus on the single barrel scene for small distilleries, and the overall growth of small distilleries. We discuss the approach of these distilleries discovering their identity while developing, in the moment, and following nontraditional routes to customers. Gues...

Chris Blatner and Wilson Torres are back to reimagine the current state of Bourbon…and to drink a lot of Bourbon. We chat about the abundance of distillery collaborations with breweries, vineyards and even with other distilleries, and the longterm impact these collaborations will have on whiskey. We also discuss the recent purchases of small distilleries by larger spirits portfolios; revisioning t...

My boss and Starward Whisky Founder David Vitale is back. Dave is moving back to Australia after building Starward in America during the past five years. We talk about the successful strategies of launching our whisky in The States, along with the struggles of building a relatively unknown brand, and the our future projections of our whisky—whisk(e)y, in general—in America. Guest: Dave Vitale Host...

Callum is embarking on a new journey in New York, subsequently, a friend I love like a brother is leaving the podcast. Callum was a catalyst to continuing the podcast during covid and in low moments of my personal life when I questioned quitting the show. He inspired me to continue by bringing great guests, enthusiastic conversation and most importantly, love. Hosts: Jake Hukee & Callum O’Donn...

Callum and I share our perspectives of the current state of the Bourbon industry. We discuss the future of exportation and how the next generations of drinkers will appreciate America’s Native Spirit. Hosts: Jake Hukee & Callum O’Donnell Listen to more episodes and read stories at keyinthelake.com

We’re back at Warehouse Liquors with Zak Rye, Eric Rosentreter and Chris Blatner. We continue our conversation on, “Are Single Barrels Dead?” Then we head into a variety of conversations: including; how to separate pure capitalism from creating a culture as a whiskey brand/retailer; the consequences when brands are purchased and their relationships with accounts, but also how more innovation comes...

Are Single Barrels Dead? Good friends Chris Blatner and Wilson Torres join me for a conversation and debate if the heyday of whiskey single barrels is coming to an end in America. Guests: Chris Blatner & Wilson Torres Hosts: Jake Hukee Listen to more episodes and read stories at keyinthelake.com Key In The Lake

Buzzard’s Roost Founder and Master Blender Jason Brauner, along with Sales Manager Omar Elayan join the show to share the brand story of their whiskey. Jason also shares stories of opening Bourbon Bistro, 18 years ago, while being one of the first single barrel customers for many distilleries in Kentucky. He also shares Buzzard’s Roost intricate method of back engineering the barrel-aging process...

Live from Warehouse Liquors in Chicago, IL, I’m joined by Callum, Eric Rosentreter and Zak Rye for a in-depth industry discussion on whiskey. We discuss the etiquette of whisky tastings; along with customer etiquette in retail stores and how to build a relationship with retailers. Eric and Zak also throw-in their two cents on how to get yourself banned from a bar/retail shop. We also ponder about...

Our precious Matt Brown of Dancing Goat Distillery returns to the show. We discuss the over saturation of whiskey brands and the effects that has on the consumer; along with an in-depth conversation on distributor relations with whiskey brands. We also taste through some new whiskeys from DG and shares some laughs. Hosts: Jake Hukee & Matt Brown Listen to more episodes and read stories at keyi...

I share a story… When my grandfather was laid to rest, and the first conversation my family and I had about him was his service. My uncles, my cousins and I passed around a bottle of Woodford Reserve, and as the bottle emptied, our hearts were grew more full from the pervasive memories of our hero. Host: Jake Hukee @KeyInTheLake Listen to more episodes and read stories at keyinthelake.com

Chris Blatner and I select our second Pinhook Bourbon Single Barrel. This year’s Vertical Series hails from the Kentucky distillery’s eight-year-old stock of MGP barrels that the owners purchased years ago to begin their company. This year, Chris and I are selecting the barrel for Malloy’s Finest, and owner Steve Malloy sits down with us in his swanky office to taste through the three samples that...

Jake is joined by old friends Chris Blatner and Wilson Torres to celebrate National Bourbon Day. The guys discuss the ever-changing notion of how Bourbon is legally defined, yet evolving new subcategories of the Native Spirit. They sip on a Leopold Bros. Bourbon single barrel, a couple new Bardstown releases and the newest hot item from Penelope. Hosts: Jake Hukee , Chris Blatner & Wilson Torr...

Live from Delilah’s we celebrated World Whisky Day with our good friends from six distilleries from across the world. On Part 2, we get started with Eric Rosentreter of Old Elk, then we flip the script and Chris and Matt interview me about Starward Whisky (00:36:40). And to bring the house down, our spirit sherpa Nick Brady Maas of Dancing Goat closes the show (01:03:10). Listen to the personal st...