Aussie Bourbon Lovers

We’re back at Bardstown Bourbon Company with Jake Sulek in the Heritage Library to taste the Origin Series High Wheat, the newest addition to Bardstown’s flagship lineup.

This one pushes wheated bourbon into a big territory, with 39% wheat and only 53% corn in the mash bill. Jake walks us through what makes a bourbon “wheated”, why wheat tends to drink softer than rye, and the flavour lane he gets from this bottle: stone fruit, bak...

This episode is all about barrels and why they matter more than most bourbon drinkers realise.

While sipping Booker’s bourbon, we unpack our visit to Independent Stave Company in Kentucky. From hand-selecting oak staves to steam-bending barrels with no glue, the craftsmanship behind every barrel blew our minds. We talk through why barrels are built the way they are, how different distilleries specify their own unique barrel profile...

We’re back in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky with Greg from Larrikin Bourbon Company to taste a fresh release that just launched at the Bourbon Festival: Larrikin Cigar Lounge.

It’s a nine-year-old, high-rye bourbon built from five finishing barrels, including French cognac, Spanish Madeira, maple syrup barrels, and Brazilian jackfruit wood, plus the smallest possible “whisper” of Ambarana to make the whole blend snap into place. Greg expl...

We’re kicking off the year with a bourbon that doesn’t come from Kentucky, and that’s exactly why we wanted to talk about it.

This episode features Fray Ranch straight bourbon whiskey from Fallon, Nevada. A true farm-to-bottle operation where every grain is grown, malted, distilled, and bottled on site. That approach gives this bourbon a flavour profile that surprised us straight away, with bright fruit notes, a waxy mouthfeel, and...

This is a different kind of Aussie Bourbon Lovers episode. There’s no pop, no pour, and no whiskey consumed during the recording.

While visiting Michter’s in Shively, Kentucky, we spent the day with Dan McKee and Andrea Wilson and surprised them with something unexpected: Australian chocolate. We brought Cadbury Caramello Koalas and Cadbury Furry Friends and asked them to pair each chocolate with Michter’s whiskeys.

What followed w...

Merry Christmas from Aussie Bourbon Lovers. For this special Christmas Day episode we crack open a gift bottle: an Angel’s Envy Whiskey Hunt Australia single barrel pick.

Angel’s Envy is famous for its port finished bourbon and it’s easy to find in Australia, but this one is different. It’s a single barrel pick chosen by the Whiskey Hunt team, and it arrives in a bottle that just feels made for gifting. We talk about why Angel’s En...

We’re back at the Bardstown Bourbon Company with Jake Sulek, the experience and education manager, recording in the Heritage Library surrounded by dusty bottles and stories from Kentucky’s whiskey past.

We’re tasting the Origin Series Rye, a minimum six year rye that’s produced, aged and bottled at Bardstown Bourbon Company and available in Australia. While the mash bill looks familiar at 95 percent rye and 5 percent malted barley,...

To close out the year we pour a Larrikin single barrel Delta 5 from Kentucky, signed by Greg, and use it as the starting point for a chat about our bourbon highlights from 2025.

The idea was simple. Each of us had to choose a bourbon of the year and then pick a single bourbon memory that fits inside 120 seconds. In practice it was a lot harder, because 2025 has been full of ridiculous opportunities, generous hospitality and moments...

We visit the Blending House in Kentucky and sit down with Ashleigh Barnes, the master blender behind Lucky Seven and Curley. Ashleigh brings us the New Yorker, an Amburana finished bourbon that tastes like hummingbird cake, oatmeal cream pies and dessert in a glass. She explains how she manages such a powerful finishing wood by tasting at day five, pulling liquid at the exact moment it peaks, and reusing the same barrels to create ...

We’re back at Star Hill Farm in Kentucky, sitting in the Heritage Room at Maker’s Mark, joined by Dr. Blake Layfield, the master distiller and head of innovation and blending. It’s the perfect day for bourbon, and Blake takes us through one of the most fascinating tastings we’ve ever done on the show.

In front of us are three glasses that tell the whole story of Maker’s Mark: the classic cask strength expression that represents the...

In this episode of Aussie Bourbon Lovers we crack open Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Revival a barrel finished bourbon that sparks one big question should you drink it or collect it?

We are joined by Denver Cramer from Denver & Liely who tells the story of being paid by Wild Turkey’s owners, Campari not in cash but in bottles, two of every Master’s Keep release.

Together we talk about

• What Master’s Keep is and where Revival f...

In this episode of Aussie Bourbon Lovers, we taste O.H. Ingram River Aged Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey — a bourbon that ages on a floating barge on the Mississippi River.

We discuss how the movement of water, temperature fluctuations, and humidity create a completely different aging environment, producing a rich, smooth, and surprisingly “juicy” bourbon that feels far older than its four years.

From the story of O.H. Ingram to...

Recorded at Michter’s Shively Distillery in Kentucky, this episode features a sit-down with Master Distiller Dan McKee and Master of Maturation Andrea Wilson — two icons of modern bourbon.

We dive into the origins of Michter’s Toasted Sour Mash Whiskey, the innovation that helped spark the toasted barrel movement, and taste it alongside the classic US*1 Sour Mash.

Dan and Andrea share insights on Michter’s meticulous small-batch pr...

In this episode of Aussie Bourbon Lovers, we open a bottle of Buzzard’s Roost Toasted French Oak Bourbon — a whiskey that shows how innovation can live inside tradition.

We dive into the details behind Buzzard’s Roost’s unique toasting and finishing methods, share our tasting notes (think butterscotch, vanilla and warm baking spices), and talk about what makes this brand one of the most exciting in modern bourbon.

Whether you’re a ...

Recorded at Larrikin Distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, this episode features Greg Keeley, the Australian distiller crafting exceptional bourbon in the heart of Kentucky.

We sit down to taste and talk about Larrikin Delta 5, a single barrel bourbon that represents Greg’s mission to merge Australian boldness with Kentucky tradition.

We discuss what makes the Delta 5 single barrel unique, the art of single barrel selections, and h...

Bardstown Bourbon Company has built its reputation as the “modern bourbon maker” — blending, innovating, and crafting for some of the biggest names in the industry. 

In this episode, we sit down with Jake Sulek, Bardstown’s Head of Education and VIP Experience, to discuss the company’s first release in their origin series, their wheated Bottled-in-Bond bourbon, and why it represents a most significant milestone in their history.

Fo...

In this episode of Aussie Bourbon Lovers, we open a fresh bottle of Nulu Maple Brûlée Single Barrel, a Kentucky Bourbon Festival pick that delivers rich, dessert-like flavour in every sip.

We talk through how the maple brûlée process works, the unique way barrels are treated, and why this whiskey has a sticky mouthfeel and dessert-style notes like sticky date pudding, butterscotch, and dark chocolate.

We also share the story of why...

Recorded in the Heritage Room at Maker’s Mark in Kentucky, this episode marks a truly historic moment in American whiskey. We sit down with Dr. Blake Layfield, Master Distiller and Head of Innovation at Maker’s Mark, to discuss the launch of Star Hill Farm Wheat Whiskey.

This is the first new mash bill from Maker’s Mark since 1953, and it represents a turning point in American whiskey history. We cover:

• How Star Hill Farm Whe...