July 17, 2025 • 10 mins
What happens when an Aussie distiller takes on bourbon on its home turf?
In this episode, we sip and unpack the Larrikin KBF Single Barrel — a true bourbon made by the team at Larrikin, distilled and aged in Kentucky.
We explore the flavour, the story behind the distillery, and whether this cross-continental endeavour delivers the goods. It's Australia meets America in a bottle, and it makes for a bold conversation.
⏱ Chapters:00:00 – Welcome & what’s in the glass 01:00 – Cheers to Larrikin – Aussie spirit, Kentucky roots 02:30 – Colour, aroma and first impressions 04:00 – What is KBF and why Kentucky? 06:00 – Aussie ethos, American distilling 08:00 – Comparing to traditional Kentucky bourbons 10:00 – Would you buy it, gift it, or stash it? 10:30 – Final verdict: bourbon with an accent
Larrikin bourbon, Australian bourbon in Kentucky, KBF Single Barrel, Aussie distillers, Kentucky bourbon, Australian whiskey makers, bourbon podcast, bourbon tasting, bourbon made in Kentucky, Larrikin Spirits
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Incredible flavours, even better stories.
(00:05):
One pour, 10 minutes.
Aussie bourbon lovers, sharingbourbon with Australia.
It was always like atimpani, that cockpop.
It was a pop, it was more of a- A bong.
So good.What are we pouring, E.
We are having some Larrikin Dave.
(00:26):
Some Larrikin Dave?
We're having Larrikin Bourbon.
It's a single barrel.
It's Kentucky Street bourbon whiskey.
And there's some exciting stuffabout this particular bottle.
This particular, so for people playingalong who know what Larrikin is or are
familiar with a little bit of this story,the bottle we're pouring is the Kentucky
Bourbon Festival 2024Distiller's Road Pick.
(00:49):
So this is the barrel pick they did.And it's signed.
It's signed by Greg Keely, themaster distiller, the main man.
And you're right, there'snot just one story.
There's lots of stories.The first one, Can we...
Well, let's start by cheers.
Cheersing to Larrikin.Cheers.
Oh, it's so good.So delicious.
When I do a podcast,I do it with Larrikin.
(01:11):
It's not always true.
I like that the-Whatdoes Larrikin mean, Dave?
What is a Larrikin?
Well, they've got a greatdescription of it on their website.
But a Larrikin is like someone who's a bitfree-spirited, plays by their own rules.
A bit of mischief.A bit of mischief.
Good fun.Yeah, a lot of fun.
(01:31):
Funny.I would say funny.
What else is a Larrikin?
Yeah, that's a great description.
Yeah, but we know that becausewe're the Aussie bourbon lovers.
But the amazing thing is thatthe majority of people who get to drink
and enjoy this, because it's notavailable here in Australia yet.
No, you can't get this one in Australia,even though on the label is a kangoo, and
it's made by an Aussie who- Greg Keeler.
(01:53):
Yeah, Greg lives in Kentucky.
Yeah, and this is their mascot.What's his name?
Do you remember his name?So the kangoo.
The Kangoo, I don't know, but he's anAussie mascot, so he's a Larrikin mascot.
But I said something funny before and now.
I'm trying to remember exactly what I saidabout the fact that you can't make bourbon
in Australia because obviously, it's oneof the rules to bourbon,
(02:13):
it's got to be in America.
But you can't make bourbon in Australia.
But Australians canmake bourbon in America.
And this is an example.
It's like an Aussie bourbon.
It's one of those closest we can get to anAussie bourbon because it can't be
bourbon if it's made in Australia.
But it's an Aussie in America makingbourbon, and it's really delicious.
And we've been holding off on doing thisepisode with this bottle because we've
(02:35):
been trying to make a timewith Greg to do the podcast.
But we've finally discovered that we'regoing to be able to do
other podcasts with him.
Yeah, we're going to meet himwhen we go to-In Kentucky.
Kbf.Yeah.
He's going to be at KBF.
We're finally allowed to drink this andtalk about it, which is so much fun
because we've only gotone bottle in Australia.
I know.It might be the only one here.
It's almost bottle kill.Yeah.
That's what we've been holding on to.
(02:56):
We really love it.
The colours of the singlebarrel label are Purple.
That is because, and this is unequivocallytrue, he's a free mental supporter.
In fact, I think both he and Katie askedfree mental supporters,
and they love Freo.
As a Hawthorn supporter-Thelabels are Fabulous Purple.
I remember when we tasted them, the wholerange at Kentucky Bourbon Festival, it was
(03:20):
really, really difficult to pick onebecause we were limited on
what we could bring home.
We umded out about which was ourfavourite because they were all so good.
Because I'm When we taste a range,there's definitely a standout for us.
We're like, Yeah, we'retaking that bottle.
Whereas with the Larrikins, theywere all so good.
But we chose this one because oneof my favourite colours was Purple.
(03:43):
The purple label is pretty.
For me, it was abouthow good the juice is.
This is an amazing bourbon.
It's so delicious.
I say delicious way too much.
No, it's five years old,but it drinks very complex.
It's a really rich dark colour, too.Yeah.
Look at the colour.It's amazing.
(04:03):
Yeah.Great.
There's a handful of bourbons on ourshelf, including some ridiculously
expensive and hard to get ones thatI think of as really special pores.
And this is one of thoseones that I think of.
This is a really special occasion.
I can have a bit more of that knowing thatI'm not going to be able
to get another bottle.Yeah.
We know we're going back to KBF, so we'regoing to be definitely
(04:24):
getting another bottle.Well, none of that, though.
None of that, though.Yeah, I know.
But of a lurican, which youknow is going to be good.
But I do love the- I'm sure it'll be good.
Getting low on a really good bottle.
It's hard to finish.
I always find it hard to finish becauseyou want to make that
goodness last a little longer.Yes.
A couple of things The interesting thingabout the story about us discovering
(04:47):
Larrikin is that before they rebranded asLarrikin, which was
during Kentucky Burberry Festival in 2024,they were called Lawrenceburg
Burberry Company or Distil Company.
Because that's where they are based.
Yes.
Lawrenceburg, Kentucky,right near Four Roses.
And they said, We found out that they wereAustralian, so we sent an email saying, We
(05:09):
didn't know they wereAustralians making bourbon.
We didn't know this was a thing.
And so we got all excited about it.
Then we arrived at KBF that first day, andthere is a ginormous, maybe let's call
it three-story high inflatable kangoo.
You couldn't miss where the Aussieswere at the Bourbon Festival.
It's just the biggestThat thing, you could stare at it.
(05:31):
It was very funny and cool.
And then was the talk of the town.
And then the juice was so good.
Everyone's talking about thisbottle and the bottle and bond.
And they make really great gin, too.
I'm very excited to try that because,again, I really like the label.
It's a really cute Wombat.
You're not even that muchof a gin maker anymore.
(05:51):
Fat Wombat, I think it's called.Yeah, Fat Wombat.
It's got a really cute label.
So I'm really excited to trythat because I do like my GNT's.
But it's a fun thing, right?
Because bourbon is such an American thing.
Greg's story is that he served in theAustralian military, and then he
served in the US military after that.
And then after that, he's retiredinto-Making some delicious.
Retired, transitioned out ofthe military into distilling.
(06:13):
And it's such a coolstory and a cool thing.
And he is, I think, from what I heard andknow of him, he's a bit of a lyrican
himself and pretty cool characterand certainly making us splash in.
His wife, Katie, is from themilitary in America as well.
So it's like a veteran-owned distillery.
Yes, it's a veteran-ownedveteran distilled on the bottle.
Yeah.
Which is another great story.
(06:34):
You've got great bourbonwith great stories behind it.
Yeah, you really do.
What is it about the...
There's only a handful of people who aredoing, Australians who are doing
things in the bourbon industry.
What is it about Larrikin thatgets you a bit excited, Ece?
I just love, well, they got greatflavours, but I like the,
(06:58):
behind the name, the silliness and the funand the fact that they've taken some
classic Aussie culture and created it as,brought it to the Americans in their
favourite drink, bourbon, oneof their favourite drinks.
But the kangoo and the Wombat,all of that stuff, that they're able to
(07:20):
incorporate that into, obviously,something that can only be
American, which is bourbon.
It's just genuinely good juice as well.That's the other thing.
If you go to the website, they've got whatlooks like a giant Sharon,
NFL football, Sharon.Meat pies.
With Dockers as a hot air balloon, toeinga meat pie as the basket
of the hot air balloon.And then they've got Crockers and emus.
(07:41):
Vegemite, crocodiles.
Over sandman cars with crocodilesand Vegemite jars and blossom.
Emus, all the classic Australian stuff.
Surfboards, the City Opera House gets acameo, and that's just
above the fold on the menu.
But I love the fact that they're bringingsome of the great stories of
Australia to bourbon in America.
I think that's a great crossover.
(08:02):
We can't make bourbon in Australia.
We make good whiskey, but I love bourbon.
The fact that I canget almost like what you call an Aussie
bourbon is really great, andthat tastes really amazing.
And they're great fun on socials.
When I do a podcast, I do it withLarrikin, and they're
doing some fun content.
They're being fairly-Yeah.
(08:23):
If you follow us on Instagram, Dave did avery silly reel of all the fun
things he does with the Larrikin.That's silly.
It's just joining in the fun.Yeah.
But I think it's great to find this thingof there's a nice crossover of that thing,
because I actually think, whatdo you think about this one?
I was thinking about this the other day.I was trying to tell.
(08:44):
I was caught up with an old friend who'sScottish, but he doesn't drink whiskey.
I thought he would drink Scotch,but he's not a Scotch drinker.
I was trying to explain to him that Ithink that the bourbon culture has an
inherently Australiancharacteristic to it.
It's that mateship, I think.
One of the things that really amazed mewhen we first went to Kentucky and started
to get to know different distilleries andthe people involved in making this
(09:08):
amazing, delicious drink was thatthey didn't feel like competitors.
They were all talking about each other'sstuff and, Oh, make sure you try theirs.
They've got a really great one of thesetoasted ones, or, They've got
a really good single barrel.
And it was this reallycamaraderie and mateship that was, I
would say, is a very classic Aussie thing.
I think that's one of it.
(09:30):
But then the other part, and there's lotsof great complexity to what I think of the
bourbon culture and what made us fall inlove with it and why
we're here doing this.
And one of the wild random people whowalked around Australia saying, We
love drinking bourbon neat in a glass.
In Australia, that's such a weird thing.
But theidea that you can drink bourbon exactly
(09:51):
how you like it, that the distillers aretrying to make it so you can enjoy it how
you want it, it's just such a laidbackapproach to what can otherwise sometimes
be thought of as a really tightly wound,highly strung- A little bit snobby.
Category.
Whisky is like- It'slike, how do you have it?
Don't drink it with that.
Make sure you drink it with this.Yeah.
If you're into serious whiskey,you might be a bit more.
Yeah.Slightly offended by what we're saying.
(10:13):
Well, no, this is the bourbonIt's a good thing, though, right?
Yeah, it's drinking how you like it.
And that's what I love.Cool.
Well, we're looking forward togetting to hang out with Greg again.
I know.
I want to go one more over there, we wantto go and check out the distillery and
sample all the new bottlesbecause they've got lots of cool.
There's like a rosewater one, andthey're doing really fun things.
(10:34):
Urban cream, lots of cool things.It's fun.
It's lyrican.
Looking forward to trying more of theirstuff and getting to share some
more stories with you guys.Cheers.
Thanks for listening.
Make sure you're connected with us onTikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, and stay
connected with us by clicking subscribeon your favourite podcast app.
Incredible flavours, even better stories.
(00:05):
One pour, 10 minutes.
Aussie bourbon lovers, sharingbourbon with Australia.
It was always like atimpani, that cockpop.
It was a pop, it was more of a- A bong.
So good.What are we pouring, E.
We are having some Larrikin Dave.
(00:26):
Some Larrikin Dave?
We're having Larrikin Bourbon.
It's a single barrel.
It's Kentucky Street bourbon whiskey.
And there's some exciting stuffabout this particular bottle.
This particular, so for people playingalong who know what Larrikin is or are
familiar with a little bit of this story,the bottle we're pouring is the Kentucky
Bourbon Festival 2024Distiller's Road Pick.
(00:49):
So this is the barrel pick they did.And it's signed.
It's signed by Greg Keely, themaster distiller, the main man.
And you're right, there'snot just one story.
There's lots of stories.The first one, Can we...
Well, let's start by cheers.
Cheersing to Larrikin.Cheers.
Oh, it's so good.So delicious.
When I do a podcast,I do it with Larrikin.
(01:11):
It's not always true.
I like that the-Whatdoes Larrikin mean, Dave?
What is a Larrikin?
Well, they've got a greatdescription of it on their website.
But a Larrikin is like someone who's a bitfree-spirited, plays by their own rules.
A bit of mischief.A bit of mischief.
Good fun.Yeah, a lot of fun.
(01:31):
Funny.I would say funny.
What else is a Larrikin?
Yeah, that's a great description.
Yeah, but we know that becausewe're the Aussie bourbon lovers.
But the amazing thing is thatthe majority of people who get to drink
and enjoy this, because it's notavailable here in Australia yet.
No, you can't get this one in Australia,even though on the label is a kangoo, and
it's made by an Aussie who- Greg Keeler.
(01:53):
Yeah, Greg lives in Kentucky.
Yeah, and this is their mascot.What's his name?
Do you remember his name?So the kangoo.
The Kangoo, I don't know, but he's anAussie mascot, so he's a Larrikin mascot.
But I said something funny before and now.
I'm trying to remember exactly what I saidabout the fact that you can't make bourbon
in Australia because obviously, it's oneof the rules to bourbon,
(02:13):
it's got to be in America.
But you can't make bourbon in Australia.
But Australians canmake bourbon in America.
And this is an example.
It's like an Aussie bourbon.
It's one of those closest we can get to anAussie bourbon because it can't be
bourbon if it's made in Australia.
But it's an Aussie in America makingbourbon, and it's really delicious.
And we've been holding off on doing thisepisode with this bottle because we've
(02:35):
been trying to make a timewith Greg to do the podcast.
But we've finally discovered that we'regoing to be able to do
other podcasts with him.
Yeah, we're going to meet himwhen we go to-In Kentucky.
Kbf.Yeah.
He's going to be at KBF.
We're finally allowed to drink this andtalk about it, which is so much fun
because we've only gotone bottle in Australia.
I know.It might be the only one here.
It's almost bottle kill.Yeah.
That's what we've been holding on to.
(02:56):
We really love it.
The colours of the singlebarrel label are Purple.
That is because, and this is unequivocallytrue, he's a free mental supporter.
In fact, I think both he and Katie askedfree mental supporters,
and they love Freo.
As a Hawthorn supporter-Thelabels are Fabulous Purple.
I remember when we tasted them, the wholerange at Kentucky Bourbon Festival, it was
(03:20):
really, really difficult to pick onebecause we were limited on
what we could bring home.
We umded out about which was ourfavourite because they were all so good.
Because I'm When we taste a range,there's definitely a standout for us.
We're like, Yeah, we'retaking that bottle.
Whereas with the Larrikins, theywere all so good.
But we chose this one because oneof my favourite colours was Purple.
(03:43):
The purple label is pretty.
For me, it was abouthow good the juice is.
This is an amazing bourbon.
It's so delicious.
I say delicious way too much.
No, it's five years old,but it drinks very complex.
It's a really rich dark colour, too.Yeah.
Look at the colour.It's amazing.
(04:03):
Yeah.Great.
There's a handful of bourbons on ourshelf, including some ridiculously
expensive and hard to get ones thatI think of as really special pores.
And this is one of thoseones that I think of.
This is a really special occasion.
I can have a bit more of that knowing thatI'm not going to be able
to get another bottle.Yeah.
We know we're going back to KBF, so we'regoing to be definitely
(04:24):
getting another bottle.Well, none of that, though.
None of that, though.Yeah, I know.
But of a lurican, which youknow is going to be good.
But I do love the- I'm sure it'll be good.
Getting low on a really good bottle.
It's hard to finish.
I always find it hard to finish becauseyou want to make that
goodness last a little longer.Yes.
A couple of things The interesting thingabout the story about us discovering
(04:47):
Larrikin is that before they rebranded asLarrikin, which was
during Kentucky Burberry Festival in 2024,they were called Lawrenceburg
Burberry Company or Distil Company.
Because that's where they are based.
Yes.
Lawrenceburg, Kentucky,right near Four Roses.
And they said, We found out that they wereAustralian, so we sent an email saying, We
(05:09):
didn't know they wereAustralians making bourbon.
We didn't know this was a thing.
And so we got all excited about it.
Then we arrived at KBF that first day, andthere is a ginormous, maybe let's call
it three-story high inflatable kangoo.
You couldn't miss where the Aussieswere at the Bourbon Festival.
It's just the biggestThat thing, you could stare at it.
(05:31):
It was very funny and cool.
And then was the talk of the town.
And then the juice was so good.
Everyone's talking about thisbottle and the bottle and bond.
And they make really great gin, too.
I'm very excited to try that because,again, I really like the label.
It's a really cute Wombat.
You're not even that muchof a gin maker anymore.
(05:51):
Fat Wombat, I think it's called.Yeah, Fat Wombat.
It's got a really cute label.
So I'm really excited to trythat because I do like my GNT's.
But it's a fun thing, right?
Because bourbon is such an American thing.
Greg's story is that he served in theAustralian military, and then he
served in the US military after that.
And then after that, he's retiredinto-Making some delicious.
Retired, transitioned out ofthe military into distilling.
(06:13):
And it's such a coolstory and a cool thing.
And he is, I think, from what I heard andknow of him, he's a bit of a lyrican
himself and pretty cool characterand certainly making us splash in.
His wife, Katie, is from themilitary in America as well.
So it's like a veteran-owned distillery.
Yes, it's a veteran-ownedveteran distilled on the bottle.
Yeah.
Which is another great story.
(06:34):
You've got great bourbonwith great stories behind it.
Yeah, you really do.
What is it about the...
There's only a handful of people who aredoing, Australians who are doing
things in the bourbon industry.
What is it about Larrikin thatgets you a bit excited, Ece?
I just love, well, they got greatflavours, but I like the,
(06:58):
behind the name, the silliness and the funand the fact that they've taken some
classic Aussie culture and created it as,brought it to the Americans in their
favourite drink, bourbon, oneof their favourite drinks.
But the kangoo and the Wombat,all of that stuff, that they're able to
(07:20):
incorporate that into, obviously,something that can only be
American, which is bourbon.
It's just genuinely good juice as well.That's the other thing.
If you go to the website, they've got whatlooks like a giant Sharon,
NFL football, Sharon.Meat pies.
With Dockers as a hot air balloon, toeinga meat pie as the basket
of the hot air balloon.And then they've got Crockers and emus.
(07:41):
Vegemite, crocodiles.
Over sandman cars with crocodilesand Vegemite jars and blossom.
Emus, all the classic Australian stuff.
Surfboards, the City Opera House gets acameo, and that's just
above the fold on the menu.
But I love the fact that they're bringingsome of the great stories of
Australia to bourbon in America.
I think that's a great crossover.
(08:02):
We can't make bourbon in Australia.
We make good whiskey, but I love bourbon.
The fact that I canget almost like what you call an Aussie
bourbon is really great, andthat tastes really amazing.
And they're great fun on socials.
When I do a podcast, I do it withLarrikin, and they're
doing some fun content.
They're being fairly-Yeah.
(08:23):
If you follow us on Instagram, Dave did avery silly reel of all the fun
things he does with the Larrikin.That's silly.
It's just joining in the fun.Yeah.
But I think it's great to find this thingof there's a nice crossover of that thing,
because I actually think, whatdo you think about this one?
I was thinking about this the other day.I was trying to tell.
(08:44):
I was caught up with an old friend who'sScottish, but he doesn't drink whiskey.
I thought he would drink Scotch,but he's not a Scotch drinker.
I was trying to explain to him that Ithink that the bourbon culture has an
inherently Australiancharacteristic to it.
It's that mateship, I think.
One of the things that really amazed mewhen we first went to Kentucky and started
to get to know different distilleries andthe people involved in making this
(09:08):
amazing, delicious drink was thatthey didn't feel like competitors.
They were all talking about each other'sstuff and, Oh, make sure you try theirs.
They've got a really great one of thesetoasted ones, or, They've got
a really good single barrel.
And it was this reallycamaraderie and mateship that was, I
would say, is a very classic Aussie thing.
I think that's one of it.
(09:30):
But then the other part, and there's lotsof great complexity to what I think of the
bourbon culture and what made us fall inlove with it and why
we're here doing this.
And one of the wild random people whowalked around Australia saying, We
love drinking bourbon neat in a glass.
In Australia, that's such a weird thing.
But theidea that you can drink bourbon exactly
(09:51):
how you like it, that the distillers aretrying to make it so you can enjoy it how
you want it, it's just such a laidbackapproach to what can otherwise sometimes
be thought of as a really tightly wound,highly strung- A little bit snobby.
Category.
Whisky is like- It'slike, how do you have it?
Don't drink it with that.
Make sure you drink it with this.Yeah.
If you're into serious whiskey,you might be a bit more.
Yeah.Slightly offended by what we're saying.
(10:13):
Well, no, this is the bourbonIt's a good thing, though, right?
Yeah, it's drinking how you like it.
And that's what I love.Cool.
Well, we're looking forward togetting to hang out with Greg again.
I know.
I want to go one more over there, we wantto go and check out the distillery and
sample all the new bottlesbecause they've got lots of cool.
There's like a rosewater one, andthey're doing really fun things.
(10:34):
Urban cream, lots of cool things.It's fun.
It's lyrican.
Looking forward to trying more of theirstuff and getting to share some
more stories with you guys.Cheers.
Thanks for listening.
Make sure you're connected with us onTikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, and stay
connected with us by clicking subscribeon your favourite podcast app.
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