There’s a time when whiskey enthusiasm takes it to the next level. I’ve lived through it. I was a stone cold hobbyist, and I still am, but then I started a podcast and now Ryan and I have Pursuit Spirits. We don’t know how to stop taking a hobby too far. And our guest today is no different. Mike Hinds is co-founder of Nashville Barrel Company, Mike takes us back five or six years to NBC’s humble beginnings, starting with local charity picks for cancer research, hunting down Jack Daniel’s, Weller 12, and Willett single barrels, and making frequent runs to Bardstown to learn the ropes. When he decided to start Nashville Barrel Company there were plenty of operational headaches like sourcing whiskey and dealing with shady brokers but a few mismatched samples unexpectedly got them a hit they kept on playing with Kelvin barrels. Since then they have been expanding into downtown Music City, and have now opened a new spot in NuLu called the Louisville Rickhouse Company. Instead of chasing cheap inventory or relying on marketing gimmicks, Mike shares how their focus cask-strength single barrels built consumer trust and whiskey clubs kept their growth soaring. We also talk about Stella, the official company dog, their VIP club, and how Mike has been one of the few lucky people in history to pick a single barrel of Pappy Van Winkle 15.

Show Notes:

• How a passion for bottle shares, charity picks, and barrel hunting birthed Nashville Barrel Company.
• Early sourcing realities: broker blunders, mismatched samples, and launching with rye instead of bourbon.
• Pivoting during COVID from third-party co-packers to brick-and-mortar locations in Nashville and Louisville.
• The strategy behind building a brand on cask-strength single barrels and authentic community trust over gimmicks.
• Inside NBC’s special releases, including a Pappy 15 single barrel, “The Compromise” blend, and their VIP club.