S3 #10 Paul Evano (Cognac Pasquet)

Voor deze afleveringen hebben we een levende legende te pakken, de enige echte Bert Bruyneel van Asta Morris!Bert was een van de allerleerste namen die op ons lijstje stond om te gast te vragen in onze podcast. Misschien zelfs de allereerste. Rond Kerstmis 2024 leek het eindelijk te lukken, tot een monsterfile (ergens op de parking!) roet in het eten strooide. Dan maar een Paas Special in plaats van een Kerst Special? Met zijn merk Asta Morris staat Bert Bruyneel bekend als een van de allerbeste onafhankelijke bottelaars van de lage landen. Maar ook ver daar buiten, zoals in Japan, kan je zijn flessen terug vinden in de betere whisky bars. Anno 2025 brengt Bert niet enkel whisky op de markt, maar ook andere spirits zoals rum en cognac. Met spitsvondige namen, zoals Rasta Morris en Asta Maurice, is er altijd wel een leuke knipoog naar waar het allemaal mee begon.

Vandaag hebben we Nicky Verlinden (Alfa Spirits) te gast in onze podcast. Vanuit het mooie Hemiksem verkondigt Nicky het gospel van de cognac. Maar buiten cognac is Nicky ook gepassioneerd door kwaliteitsvolle wijnen. Nicky startte een eigen cognaczaak, maar voegde daar later ook zijn tweede passie, wijn dus, aan toe. Net als een beperkt gamma aan andere spirits. Met Alfa Spirits verkoopt hij niet enkel spirits en wijn, hij importeert ook product en organiseert tastings en masterclasses. Dat Nicky een bezige bij is, bewijst hij met zijn nieuwste concept, Wijndelen! Daarover vertelt hij alles - of toch alvast al veel - in deze podcast!

Our apologies for the people who prefer Dutch episodes, but good news for those who like them in English: we have another international guest! As with most of our international episodes, it was a last minute recording, so again we only have Jeroen as the host for this episode. But as always you won't have to listen to only Jeroen, as he invited a nice guest again: Mister Paul Evano of Cognac Pasquet. Paul joined Pasquet in 2021. His great versatility and adaptability earned him the nickname "the Swiss army knife of the company". He fits in in all aspects of life and work at the estate. Born in Cognac, he followed the path of the first king of France, Francois I to Blois and has now made his way home again as Sales & Export manager for the Cognac brand Pasquet. Thanks to: Nicky Verlinden (Alfa Spirits) and Blue Wave Theory (music)

Another international guest, so it's in English again! As this was a bit of a spur of the moment recording, there's only one Van Dyck today, Meugman Jeroen. But as always, we have a great guest so you won't have to listen to a monologue. Our guest for today is Lucy Coomber, regional sales manager for Isle of Arran Distillers. Lucy's first professional steps in the whisky industry took place when she worked as a tour guide at the Glenfiddich distillery, now more than a decade ago. For the past 6 years she's been working at the beautiful Isle of Arran, bringing great whiskies to the market. As always both the guest and the host(s) bring something to taste. Jeroen found an Arran cask-aged beer in his basement and Lucy brought something for Jeroen that won't be available anymore in the future. We won't spoil it yet, so you'll have to listen if you want to know what Lucy brought.

Today we have Rum Royalty in our podcast! Daniyel Jones of the House of Angostura is one the best known and most liked persons in the rum industry! Even in a podcast he brings the island vibes! In this episode he tells us about his journey, from growing up in Trinidad & Tobago to becoming global ambassador for one of the best rum producers in the world. Luckily for us, he brought some of that great rum. Not just any rum by the way, he opened up the first first bottle in Belgium of a limited release rum that pays tribute the John Georges, the master distiller of Angostura. Thx to: Cinoco and Steigenberger Wiltcher's Hotel Music by: Blue Wave Theory and Bunji Garlin

Are you ready to discover the unexpected world of artisanal grappa? Jeroen had the opportunity to have a talk with Silvia Blasoni, the export manager of Bepi Tosolini. The story of Bepi Tosolini, started shortly after World War II, when Bepi began to transform grappa, a distilled spirit of simple peasant origins, into a preferred product for the most refined and demanding palates. Now, over 75 years later, the company is managed by the grandchildren of Bepi. They still make grappa, alongside some other products, with their grandfather's vision still in mind. In this episode Silvia Blasoni shares her passion for grappa s grappa and reveals how Bepi Tosolini is redefining the industry by focusing on high-quality grapes, careful distilling and unique aging techniques. Let her take you on a virtual trip to Italy! As you probably figured out, it's another English episode! Special thanks to: Baeten Vinopolis Blue Wave Theory

Onze gast van vandaag is Guy Monfort van Vino Positivo. In zijn rol als wijnambassadeur is de hoofdmissie van Guy het positief verbinden van mensen via wijn. Zijn favoriete dagtaak is vooral jonge mensen wegwijs maken in de wereld van wijn. Al doet leeftijd er niet veel toe. Guy is een goede verteller en maakte er zijn job van om andere mensen wijn-mondig te maken. Guy is al meer dan 30 jaar gepassioneerd door wijn en dat kan hij niet onder stoelen of banken steken. Zoals steeds vroegen we aan onze gast om iets lekkers mee te brengen voor ons, en in ruil schenken wij ook iets verrassends voor onze gast. Wat dat deze keer is, dat hoor je natuurlijk in de podcast! Muziek: Blue Wave Theory

Our guest for today speaks many languages but unfortunately Dutch isn't one of them. So, it's another episode in English! Gabriele Tručionytė, born in Lithuania, has been immersed in the whisky industry for almost a decade. Her journey in the drinks industry began even earlier when we worked as a bartender and bar manager, including stints at a whisky bar. Driven by passion, she took it upon herself to learn about every whisky bottle in the bar, eventually becoming a bar manager. Beyond whisky, she dreams of combining her service industry experience with business or even pursuing her childhood dream of becoming an archaeologist, akin to Lara Croft. She was in Belgium for an ambassador training/tasting at the offices of Cinoco, where Jeroen had the chance to record this episode as well. Thanks to: Blue Wave Theory (music) and Cinoco.

In this episode we have international guests yet again, so it's in English again! Today our guests are Stephen Rankin & Gordon Muir of the infamous Gordon & MacPhail. Together with Ellen and Eric from Whisky Warehouse, Jeroen organised an amazing tasting of exclusive Gordon & MacPhail whiskies. Moments before the tasting started Jeroen had the opportunity to talk to Stephen and Gordon about the delicious liquids of Gordon & MacPhail.

Another English episode! Our guest for today is Alistair Walker of the Alistair Walker Whisky Company, known for its range of Infrequent Flyers bottlings. Alistair's whisky journey began in January 1997, when took on a job at the sales and marketing department of Burn Stewart Distillers. At that time Burn Stewart was the custodian of two iconic single malt distilleries: Deanston and Tobermory. In October 2004, Alistair started a new chapter in his professional life, joining The BenRiach Distillery Company. For over twelve years, he played a pivotal role in the company's growth, working with renowned distilleries such as BenRiach, GlenDronach, and Glenglassaugh. In early 2018, Alistair's entrepreneurial spirit led him to establish his own venture, The Alistair Walker Whisky Company. As an independent bottler, under the Infrequent Flyers label, Alistair sources whiskies from various distilleries, from big names to lesser-known distilleries and hidden gems. If you like this episode, be sure to scroll back to season 2 where we had Alistair's father, the legendary Billy Walker, as a guest in our podcast. with special thanks to: Blue Wave Theory (music) TastToe (location)