The prohibition era invokes romantic feelings of speakeasies and illicit whiskey, the idea of protesting the government by imbibing in spirits still loved by many. While you might think of the people who were booze runners back in the day as mobsters with machine guns and big cigars, we’re turning to the story of Grandma Sextro who continued to make authentic Templeton Rye in Iowa, during that time all while looking over her shoulder to make sure the federal government wasn’t close at hand.
The story is best told by our guest Heath Schneider from Iowa Legendary, and they honor their grandmother by making historically accurate Rye, and the team is relentless about each step of the process being done exactly as it was in 1931. And I do mean relentless, they have been turning down any offers or ideas to expedite the process or allow larger batch sizes because doing so would compromise being faithful Miss Sextro herself.
We got to taste through the entire lineup of Iowa Legendary from their White Rye all the way to their Patriot, an “experiment gone good” according to Heath, involving what prohibition whiskey makers did with their spirit when they had a bad batch. Heath speaks incredibly passionately about their rye and their product is really a genuine love letter to days gone by.
Click on any of the following links to purchase the spirits. Here is a full list of what we drank:
Iowa Legendary Vodka
Iowa Legendary White Rye
Iowa Legendary Private Reserve Red Label
Iowa Legendary Aged Rye Black Label
Iowa Legendary The Patriot Blue Label
Zuidam Millstone 100 Rye
Lock Stock & Barrel 13 Year Straight Rye
You can always find us at www.CartelHour.com for additional information on the podcast, and of course, you can visit www.CaskCartel.com for America’s largest online premium spirits marketplace.
Follow us on social media @CartelHour where you can find information about upcoming episodes, and live tastings at The Infusery.
And speaking of those live tastings, for those living in or visiting the Los Angeles area that truly are intrigued, if you’re interested in drinking along with us, we would love to have you to come enjoy an evening at the Infusery to drink through a carefully selected assortment of spirits. We offer custom flights and have a robust library of over 700+ spirits to choose from. And you get to drink with Seth and I, pick our brains, learn a ton, and generally have a blast. Visit www.cartelhour.com/join for more information.
And, if you’re a spirits brand that would like to be featured on the podcast, please visit https://www.cartelhour.com/submissions
Thank you everyone for listening and remember to drink responsibly, and in good company.