Take part in a journey to build a bourbon brand. Brian Beyke sits down with the founders of the top whiskey podcast, Kenny and Ryan of Bourbon Pursuit, to figure out what it takes to bring their whiskey label to life. Experience the highs, lows, and everything in between from investments, filling barrels, and shipping bottles. Special episodes will feature in-depth tasting notes for single barrel releases. It's your chance to have the first ever inside look into the bourbon business and learn about the whiskey industry with Pursuit Spirits.
You didn't think the pursuit was over did you? I'm here to let you know that we've moved Behind The Pursuit into the Bourbon Pursuit podcast. All brand new episodes will be released on Wednesdays at Bourbon Pursuit. Cheers!
24 Sept 2025
097 - Pursuit University Pt. 2
We are continuing in our Pursuit University discussion we began in Episode 094.
Herb Heneman, now an instructor at the James B. Beam Institute for Kentucky Spirits at the University of Kentucky, teaches students about marketing and building a spirits brand from the ground up. Both Ryan and Kenny share a connection with Herb, and not long ago he invited Kenny to guest lecture for his class. The session covered a series of insightful questions about the industry, but unfortunately, it wasn’t recorded. In this two-part episode, we revisit those questions and the conversations they sparked from the inception of Bourbon Pursuit, through it’s now 10-year career, and how they’ve built a Spirits brand out of it.
We hit on:
What advice would you have for someone starting a bourbon brand who is seeking to garner ‘earned’ media attention and PR?
Does a new spirits brand need to be on every platform of social media or would they be better off focusing on one or two?
You all are such an active part of the bourbon and spirits community. Talk about the importance and benefits of building such a strong network to a new brand.
How did you decide to leverage the Pursuit platform to launch the brand? What the heck were you thinking?
What were the biggest challenges in launching United? Did it save you a ton of money being both a media property AND an actual brand? How do you use this combination to sell?
How critical are events like Pursuit Palooza, KBF, or Bourbon & Beyond to build a new brand?
What is your take on awards and medals and how has it changed over the years? How focused should a new brand be on chasing these and how should they use them to drive sales?
and much more.
P.club by Pursuit Spirits puts you in the inner circle. As a member, you’ll unlock exclusive distillery-only releases, VIP access to live virtual tastings with Q&As, 10% off all merch and special perks. Whether you choose free doorstep delivery or distillery pickup, you’ll always be first in line for our newest drops. With a flexible cart and priority access to limited barrels, P.Club isn’t just a membership—it’s your all-access pass to Pursuit. Sign up today.
Come and see us at 722 W. Main Street! Be sure to visit pursuitspirits.com and click on Visit Us to book a tasting or barrel selection experience. For questions or topic requests on upcoming episodes, email us at podcast@pursuitspirits.com.
10 Sept 2025
096 - Kentucky Bourbon Festival Recap 2025
Another year, another festival recap! In this episode of Behind the Pursuit, we share our takeaways from the 2025 Kentucky Bourbon Festival. We dive into how our booth placement shaped the weekend, the activations we brought to the event (and a few others that caught our eye), and the trends we noticed across the festival floor. We also talk about the reception to our expanding lineup, from Cognac Rye to the Mellwood Collection, plus where we see room to keep pushing limited expressions to meet growing demand. All that and more in this year’s festival wrap-up!
We hit on:
00:00 Welcome and Festival Recap
03:24 Kentucky Bourbon Festival Highlights
10:21 Sales and Community Engagement
17:31 Brand Observations and Future Trends
24:07 Exploring Craft Bourbon and Flagship Expressions
27:54 Consumer Experience and VIP Access at Bourbon Fest
30:45 Festival Layout and Vendor Interaction
34:20 New Releases and Trends in Bourbon
39:02 Accessibility and Consumer Preferences in Bourbon
and much more.
P.club by Pursuit Spirits puts you in the inner circle. As a member, you’ll unlock exclusive distillery-only releases, VIP access to live virtual tastings with Q&As, 10% off all merch and special perks. Whether you choose free doorstep delivery or distillery pickup, you’ll always be first in line for our newest drops. With a flexible cart and priority access to limited barrels, P.Club isn’t just a membership—it’s your all-access pass to Pursuit. Sign up today.
Come and see us at 722 W. Main Street! Be sure to visit pursuitspirits.com and click on Visit Us to book a tasting or barrel selection experience. For questions or topic requests on upcoming episodes, email us at podcast@pursuitspirits.com.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
243
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.8 / 5
69 ratings
Spotify
4.8 / 5
28 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 63 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
62
Social presence
0
YouTube
72
Engagement
85
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