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One great bourbon story can change your whole drinking life, and Ed Blake’s starts with a bottle he avoided for years. After a bad early run-in with bourbon, he returns to it later through a Pappy Van Winkle 15 and suddenly the rabbit hole opens. From there, we follow the real path from enthusiast to trusted palate: learning how to taste, learning how to talk about flavour, and learning how to help other people find what they actually like.

Ed (Rising Tide Spirits) shares how barrel picks and community feedback sharpened his selection skills, including the practical reality of tasting barrels in winter, when whiskey can show harsher edges before it warms up. We also get into what it’s like building brands as a non-distiller producer, how Old Stubborn came to life through a strong distillery relationship, and why he’s committed to small production and high quality instead of chasing shelf space.

Then we go deep on rye whiskey, especially MGP rye. We unpack the dill pickle note that turns some drinkers off, how fermentation timing can influence it, and why longer aging often brings more caramel sweetness, richer oak, and a smoother balance. If you’re curious about Old Swagger, Old Stubborn, premium bourbon packaging, or what separates a hype bottle from a genuinely great pour, you’ll leave with a clearer buying compass and a better vocabulary for your own palate.

Subscribe for more whiskey conversations, share this with a rye or bourbon friend, and leave us a review with the best bottle you’ve had this year. What tasting note instantly makes you want another sip?

We sit down with Ed Blake of Rising Tide Spirits and trace the real steps from bourbon fan to respected barrel picker and brand builder. We dig into how he sources and blends Old Stubborn and Old Swagger, why his packaging is part of the experience, and what he’s learning from rye whiskey as the market shifts.
• Ed’s early bourbon misfire and the moment Pappy brings him back
• Building a whiskey community and learning through shared pours
• The liquor store “help a shopper” moment that turns into a job
• How private barrel picks create trust and demand
• Sourcing as an NDP and why winter barrel samples can mislead
• Designing premium packaging that matches premium whiskey
• Staying small by choice while releases sell out fast
• Rye whiskey education, MGP dill notes, and how age softens them
• Barrel aging plans in Kentucky and a teased higher-aged release

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