Liquor and Liqueur Connoisseur  By  cover art

Liquor and Liqueur Connoisseur

By: Matt Birchard
  • Summary

  • Liquor and Liqueur Connoisseur is a podcast for anyone that enjoys distilled spirits! Built on the premise of drinking, discussing, and discovering the world of distilled spirits, each episode features consistent tastings and much more. The featured spirit's backstory is covered, including history of production, marketing, availability, notable events for the spirit, as well as personal stories on enjoyment. This podcast features new episodes at least weekly, and is the work of host Matt Birchard, who created the podcast as a way to keep a new year's resolution to himself - which was to drink more! So enjoy each episode whenever you have time, but it's recommended you enjoy a liquor or liqueur during the show!
    Copyright 2024 Matt Birchard
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Episodes
  • Episode 119: Kentucky Owl Bourbon - Maighstir Edition
    Feb 24 2024

    Episode 119 features Kentucky Owl, Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey - Maighstir Edition. Bottled in 750ml at 50% ABV, or 100 proof and it retails for about $134.

    Enjoy this episode with a pour of Kentucky Owl as you like it.

    Kentucky Owl's official website: https://kentuckyowlbourbon.com/

    Brief Historical Timeline:

    • 1879 - Kentucky Owl is founded by C.M. Dedman.
    • 1916 - Production ends and aging stocks are confiscated by the US government, they are then all "lost in a fire".
    • 2014 - Dixon Dedman, great-great-grandson of the founder, releases Batch #1, resurrecting the brand.
    • 2017 - Stoli Group purchases Kentucky Owl.
    • 2018 - Groundbreaking of the 420 acre distillery complex and brand home.
    • 2023 - Maureen Robinson collaborates with John Rhea in the release of the Maighstir Edition.
    • 2023 - Maureen Robinson is named Master Blender for Kentucky Owl.

    Key Cocktails:

    Simply drink Kentucky Owl as you like it. Neat, on the rocks, with water, or you could mix it if you like.

    References:

    Interview with Kentucky Owl’s Master Blender, Maureen Robinson

    Stoli Group Website

    Coverage of Stoli Group's Purchase of Kentucky Owl

    Kentucky Owl's Distillery Complex Announcement

    Press Release on Maureen Robinson Becoming Master Blender

    Press Release on Maighstir Edition Release

    Maureen Robinson Background

    Keepers of the Quaich

    Story of Kentucky Owl in American Whiskey

    The Whiskey Wash Article on Kentucky Owl

    Forbes Article on Kentucky Owl

    The Beaumont Inn Website

    Contact Information:

    Official show website is: www.liquorandliqueurconnoisseur.com

    Join my mailing list: http://eepurl.com/hfyhHf

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liquorandliqueurconnoisseur

    Instagram:

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    24 mins
  • Episode 118: St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram
    Oct 27 2023

    Episode 118 features St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram. Bottled in 750ml at 22.5% ABV, or 45 proof and it retails for about $30.

    Enjoy this episode with a tiki cocktail using "Pimento Dram" if you like.

    St. Elizabeth doesn't have standalone brand website, but here's the producer's website: https://alpenz.com/product-allspice.html

    Brief Historical Timeline:

    • 1850s - Pimento Dram is thought to have been invented.
    • 1862 - First written reference to Pimento Dram as a commercial product.
    • 1900s - Pimento Dram is fairly common, and finds use in Tiki cocktails.
    • 1980s - Pimento Dram leaves the US market.
    • 2008 - Haus Alpenz creates St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram, bringing Pimento Dram back to the US.

    Key Cocktails:

    St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram works in many tiki cocktails, but try this British concoction from 1937, the Lion's Tail.

    Ingredients:

    • 2 oz. Bourbon
    • 0.5 oz. of St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram
    • 0.5 oz. fresh squeezed lime juice
    • 1 teaspoon simple syrup
    • 2 dashes Angostura bitters
    • Orange twist

    Combine ingredients in a shaker with ice, shake until well-chilled, then strain into a coupe or cocktail glass. Express oil from the orange twist over the top of the drink and discard (the twist, not the drink!).

    References:

    Book: Vintage Spirits & Forgotten Cocktails by Ted Haigh, copyright 2009 revised edition.

    Wikipedia Article on Allspice

    Wikipedia Article on Saint Elizabeth Parish

    What is Pimento Dram by The Spruce Eats

    2008 Article from the San Francisco Chronicle discussing the launch of St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram

    2015 New York Times Article

    Cocktail Society Article on Allspice Dram

    Liquor.com Article on the Lions Tale Cocktail

    Contact Information:

    Official show website is: www.liquorandliqueurconnoisseur.com

    Join my mailing list: http://eepurl.com/hfyhHf

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liquorandliqueurconnoisseur

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/LiquorandLiqueurConnoisseur/

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    20 mins
  • Episode 117: Four Roses Bourbon
    Oct 6 2023

    Episode 117 features Four Roses. Bottled in 750ml at 40% ABV, or 80 proof and it retails for about $25.

    Enjoy this episode with a pour of Four Roses however you like.

    Four Roses official website: https://www.fourrosesbourbon.com/

    Brief Historical Timeline:

    • 1860s - Paul Jones Sr. and Paul Jones Jr. get into the whiskey business in Atlanta, Georgia
    • 1883 - Paul Jones Jr. moves to Louisville, Kentucky and builds his whiskey business there.
    • 1888 - The brand of Four Roses is founded with a legend of a southern belle and a corsage of four red roses.
    • 1894 - Paul Jones Jr. makes his nephews Lawrence Lavelle Jones and Saunders Paul equal partners in the Paul Jones Company.
    • 1895 - Paul Jones Jr. dies.
    • Circa 1910 - Lawrence buys his brother Saunders out of the business
    • 1922 - Lawrence buys the Frankfort Distilling Company during Prohibition and securing a rare license to sell whiskey for "Medicinal Purposes Only."
    • 1941 - Lawrence dies, leaving the company to heirs would almost immediately sell it.
    • 1943 - Seagrams headed by Samuel Bronfman purchases Four Roses and Frankfort Distilling Company for $42 million.
    • 1950s - Seagrams converts Four Roses to a blended whiskey for the US market, reserving straight bourbon versions for export markets.
    • 1990s - Master Distiller Jim Rutledge convinces Seagrams to bring the straight bourbon back to the USA, in Kentucky only.
    • 2001 - Seagrams goes bankrupt and the beverage alcohol brands are sold off. Kirin Brewery Company, Ltd., Four Roses' Japanese distributor buys the brand.
    • 2002 - Four Roses Straight Bourbon Whiskey is bak on US shelves.
    • 2015 - Brent Elliott is named Master Distiller and a $55 million expansion of the distillery begins.
    • 2019 - Distillery expansion is complete, doubling capacity to 130,000 barrels a year.

    Key Cocktails:

    Drink Four Roses as you like, it mixes well in any cocktail calling for bourbon.

    References:

    Book: Four Roses - The Return of a Whiskey Legend by Al Young, copyright 2013

    Wikipedia Article on Four Roses

    Wikipedia Article on the Language of Flowers

    Wikipedia Article on the Pure Food and Drug Act

    Wikipedia Article on V-J Day in Times Square

    Four Roses History Article

    Four Roses History Article on SippingHistory.com

    Difford's Guide Listing for Four Roses

    Contact Information:

    Official show website is: www.liquorandliqueurconnoisseur.com

    Join my mailing list: http://eepurl.com/hfyhHf

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liquorandliqueurconnoisseur

    Instagram:

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    30 mins

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