Bourbon Pursuit

When your entire professional life revolves around premium spirits, late-night industry events, and endless barrel selections, the lines between work and life don’t just get blurry—they can completely disappear. The bourbon lifestyle promises a lot of camaraderie and incredible pours, but what does it actually cost your health, your calendar, and your family dinner table?

On this week's episode Fred and I sit down for a deeply personal conversation about balancing bourbon with the reality of raising kids. We're not going to be hitting on tasting notes or anything like that but it's a look into our personal lives of school, sports, tracking timeboxes on a calendar, and trying to stay present for our kids as they grow up.
Show Notes:
Navigating school forms and schedule shifts while managing a global spirits brand

The hidden physical toll of the whiskey trail: Managing sleep, health, and late-night industry expectations

Kenny’s calendar timeboxing strategy for forcing boundaries between work and family

Tasting vs. Consuming: Deconstructing moderation and the critical importance of drinking with intent

Radical transparency: How Fred and his wife talk to their sons about alcohol, driving, and fentanyl

Using the grueling discipline of youth wrestling to foster positive peer groups and work ethic

The hidden financial trap of trying to turn a personal bourbon collection into a media business

The reality of tax write-offs, charity auctions, and the true cost of over-collecting

A definitive look at long-term responsibility, family support systems, and the power of being present

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Found North Batch 12 continues the brand's streak of impressive Canadian whiskey releases. This 16-year-old, 128.2 proof blend is rich with brown sugar, butter, cornbread, and sweet oak, while an extra maturation in new American oak barrels adds incredible depth without overpowering the whiskey. Is this one of the best Found North releases yet? Watch our full review to find out.DISCLAIMER: The whiskey in this review was provided to us at no cost courtesy of the spirit producer. We were not compensated by the spirit producer for this review. This is our honest opinion based on what we tasted. Please drink responsibly.
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It's This Week in Bourbon for July 10th 2026. Fawn Weaver and Keith Weaver have been terminated from Uncle Nearest, a new investigation into Canada's ongoing boycott of American alcohol, and Barton now has their 1792 Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey.Show Notes:
Court-appointed receiver terminates Fawn and Keith Weaver from Uncle Nearest, Inc. amidst Humble Baron's collapse

Jack Daniel Distillery partners with USO for national "United We Toast" campaign honoring the Armed Forces

WhistlePig Whiskey sells Moriah Business Park auxiliary facility for over $17,000,000 to Zags 26

Wyoming Whiskey returns to local ownership as WW Partners, LLC acquires an 80% stake from Edrington

Congresswoman Claudia Tenney introduces the "Canada Act" to investigate Canada's ongoing boycott of American alcohol

Country Boy Brewing expands into spirits production with Country Boy Distilling launching this autumn

Shady Knoll Orchards & Distillery fights Washington's direct-to-consumer shipping restrictions in federal appeals court

Kentucky Bourbon Trail expands to 74 total stops by welcoming four new distilleries to the trail

Buffalo Trace Distillery debuts "Camp Buffalo Trace" immersive overnight adult summer camp experience

Knob Creek introduces limited-edition 9-Year-Old Independence Edition with a blue wax seal for America's 250th

Redwood Empire Whiskey officially releases Colonel Armstrong Wheated Bourbon, a premium four-grain blend

Woodinville Whiskey Company launches national rollout of premium Single Barrel Bourbon and 100% Rye program

Sagamore Whiskey announces nationwide launch of its 108-proof High Rye Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Brush Creek Distillery expands 2026 Heroes Edition Straight Bourbon Whiskey release to three barrels

Buffalo Trace Distillery unveils the third limited-edition release of its historic medicinal Prohibition Collection

B.H. James Distillers launches Spirit 76 line of flavored Kentucky Bourbons at 76 proof

Jackson Purchase Distillery debuts its first house-branded Bottled in Bond and Select Bourbons

Barton 1792 Distillery introduces permanent Straight Rye expression alongside ultra-aged 1792 XV Bourbon

Garrison Brothers Distillery announces the return of Laguna Madre alongside a new Cask Strength companion bottle

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Long before the modern bourbon boom, one family bet everything on a credit card cash advance business—and turned a single D.C. storefront into a legendary whiskey empire. On this week’s episode, we sit down with Prav Saraff and talk about an unbelievable immigrant success story that transformed a single, cash-strapped Washington, D.C. storefront into a premier destination for ultra-rare spirits and legendary barrel picks. Prav takes us back to his family’s roots—moving from India to Nepal before grinding through grueling hours in America as dishwashers and gas station attendants to finally buy their first liquor store in 1995. We talk about what it was like balancing high school by day and retail shifts by night, and how a chance encounter with a mentor customer completely shifted their business model away from the low-margin hustle and straight into luxury wine, dusty Van Winkle decanters, and vintage Willett bottles the rest of the industry ignored. Long before the modern bourbon boom, the Saraff family treated hard-to-sell, expensive inventory as a long-term asset, ultimately using their early producer relationships to help put powerhouse brands like Smooth Ambler, Smoke Wagon, and New Riff on the map. Prav breaks down how those foundational single barrel programs revolutionized their operation and laid the groundwork for Dream Spirits—a brand launched to honor his father's ultimate legacy.
Show Notes:
From India to Northern Virginia: The Saraff family’s journey and the early days of American hustle

Betting the future on a 28% interest rate credit card loan to buy a D.C. liquor store in 1995

Balancing high school with retail shifts: How a customer mentor unlocked the world of high-end wine and spirits

Buying what others ignored: Taking early risks on Van Winkle decanters, A.H. Hirsch, and vintage Willett

Treating expensive, slow-moving inventory as long-term liquid gold

How early store picks helped put Smooth Ambler, Starlight, and Smoke Wagon on the map

Launching Dream Spirits: Honoring a father's legacy through independent blending and curation

Inside the new Virginia estate designed for immersive, memory-making barrel pick trips

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Angel’s Envy celebrates 15 years of Cask Strength with one of its most ambitious releases yet. This 117.8 proof port-finished bourbon delivers rich blackberry jam, honey, tobacco, leather, and sweet oak notes that had us rethinking everything we thought we knew about Angel’s Envy.

Is this the ultimate version of a bourbon fan favorite?DISCLAIMER: The whiskey in this review was provided to us at no cost courtesy of the spirit producer. We were not compensated by the spirit producer for this review. This is our honest opinion based on what we tasted. Please drink responsibly.
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