373 - Bold Innovations And Not Following Trends with Will Schragis of Barrell Craft Spirits

It's only been in the past 10 years that we have seen bourbon go through true innovation. Barrel finishes and blending different distillates weren't as common as they are now. Barrell Craft Spirits has been a pioneer in this space. In this episode we're joined by Will Schragis the Chief Product Innovation Officer for Barrel Craft Sprits. Will has been around since the beginning of Barrell and he tells how they approach innovating new products and the stories behind some of their most highly acclaimed and in-demand product extensions like Dovetail and Seagrass. Show Notes: Above the Char with Fred Minnick (@fredminnick) talks about blending subpar whiskey What were the early days like trying to establish the Barrell Bourbon brand? How do you deal with UPC code sprawl? What challenges do you experience with this business model of doing so many unique things? How do you scale Seagrass from a finishing standpoint? How do you determine what factors go into process innovation? Does constant customer education play a role with innovation? How can American whiskey move beyond blend being a dirty word? How can you be transparent when barrels need to be reconditioned? Do the micro-blends serve as a training ground for new products? Why has there not been a specifically toasted product yet? Can you explain why $500 gold label demanded the price? Was Stellum a way to introduce a lower price tag into the line? @barrellbourbon Support this podcast on Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices