The Speakeasy

When Ben Branson started Seasn Bitters he knew what he wanted to do: get intense, complex, very specific flavors into a bottle of bitters without using alcohol. He sits down with the gang to talk about how (and why!) he did it, including some very devious chemistry, a passion for strong flavors, and a side quest to taste over 73,000 different species of trees. Plus Damon’s back! Tune in to hear where he’s been and how his 2025 kicked off. Follow Seasn Bitters on instagram at @seasnyourdrinks [https://www.instagram.com/seasnyourdrinks/] Love The Speakeasy but wish there was more? Check out Bottled in Bond, our new Patreon podcast exclusively for you, our best regulars! Join now for sponsor-free listening, video podcasts, access to pre-sales and drink recipes from all our guests. Higher proof and aged to perfection, check it out now at patreon.com/BottledinBond [http://patreon.com/BottledinBond] Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com [http://quioteimports.com/] and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.   Don’t forget to click SUBSCRIBE and RATE the show if you can.  🔥🔥Join us each week as industry leaders, Damon Boelte and Sother Teague, sit down with a wide range of hospitality and spirits experts from around the world to discuss everything that impacts our business.  FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM: Damon Boelte @DamonBoelte [https://www.instagram.com/damonboelte/?hl=en] Sother Teague @CreativeDrunk [https://www.instagram.com/creativedrunk/?hl=en] Greg Benson @100ProofGreg [https://www.instagram.com/100proofgreg/?hl=en] Speakeasy Podcast @SpeakeasyPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/speakeasypodcast/] FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: Sother Teague @CreativeDrunk [https://twitter.com/creativedrunk?lang=en] SpeakeasyRadio @SpeakeasyRadio [https://twitter.com/speakeasyradio?lang=] Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support The Speakeasy by becoming a member [http://heritageradionetwork.org/donate]! The Speakeasy is Powered by Simplecast [http://simplecast.com/].

Dani Zig is back for the first time since the pandemic to talk about what she’s been working on at Coconut Cartel! Since last we left our hero she’s been working on a blanco rum to compliment the aged rum she introduced a few years back, and where that one was very mellow this one highlights some delightful pot stilled funk! She sits down with Sother and Greg to talk about proofing down rum with coconut water, the hunt for the perfect funky rum and striking the right balance between trusting the data and going with your gut when it comes to launching a new product. Plus, is Bitters & Soda the solution we’ve been waiting for when it comes to splitting the difference on dry January? Sother and Greg discuss. Follow Coconut Cartel on instagram at @coconutcartel [https://www.instagram.com/coconutcartel/] Love The Speakeasy but wish there was more? Check out Bottled in Bond, our new Patreon podcast exclusively for you, our best regulars! Join now for sponsor-free listening, video podcasts, access to pre-sales and drink recipes from all our guests. Higher proof and aged to perfection, check it out now at patreon.com/BottledinBond [http://patreon.com/BottledinBond] Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com [http://quioteimports.com/] and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.   Don’t forget to click SUBSCRIBE and RATE the show if you can.  🔥🔥Join us each week as industry leaders, Damon Boelte and Sother Teague, sit down with a wide range of hospitality and spirits experts from around the world to discuss everything that impacts our business.  FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM: Damon Boelte @DamonBoelte [https://www.instagram.com/damonboelte/?hl=en] Sother Teague @CreativeDrunk [https://www.instagram.com/creativedrunk/?hl=en] Greg Benson @100ProofGreg [https://www.instagram.com/100proofgreg/?hl=en] Speakeasy Podcast @SpeakeasyPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/speakeasypodcast/] FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: Sother Teague @CreativeDrunk [https://twitter.com/creativedrunk?lang=en] SpeakeasyRadio @SpeakeasyRadio [https://twitter.com/speakeasyradio?lang=] Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support The Speakeasy by becoming a member [http://heritageradionetwork.org/donate]! The Speakeasy is Powered by Simplecast [http://simplecast.com/].

We've all seen the news, now what can we do to help? Amanda Gunderson, CEO and founder of Another Round Another Rally and native Angeleno sits down with Greg to talk about her experience with the LA fire and crucially, what you as a concerned citizen can do to help. Follow Another Round Another Rally on Instagram at @AnotherRoundAnotherRally This is where people can donate, apply for aid, or learn how to throw a fundraiser for us [https://disasterrelief.anotherroundanotherrally.org/] This is where people can donate to World Central Kitchen [https://wck.org/donate] This is where people can donate to No Us Without You [https://www.nouswithoutyou.la/donate] This is where people can sign up to volunteer to rebuild our parks and hiking trails [lahikesofficial@gmail.com] This is the PAsadena Humane Society where people can foster a pet [https://pasadenahumane.org/] There is also a gentleman named Daniel Shemtob who is an LA restaurateur and the founder of Snibbs shoes. He is giving. away 600 pairs of work shoes to hospitality workers, They just need to fill this form [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSczABawWF8EnySDbMWlo9gBNQhS50SHChK006tCJFV5jgqdxw/viewform]

Chris and Damola from Spearhead Spirits stop by to talk about their quest to bring African spirits out of obscurity and onto the back bar. With a vodka, a gin made with African botanicals and an agave spirit (much to Greg’s delight) the two are on a mission to introduce the world to a range of flavors they didn’t know they didn’t know about. Together they talk about starting a company right around the time the Suez Canal got jammed, getting agave to grow on a whole new continent, and their plans for the future. Plus, Amor y Amargo is back in its old space and Greg’s old boss is back in the news! One’s good, one’s not so good. You can probably figure out which is which but tune in anyway. Follow Bayab Gin on instagram at @bayabgin [https://www.instagram.com/bayabgin/] Follow Sango Agave on instagram at @sangoafricanagave [https://www.instagram.com/sangoafricanagave/] Love The Speakeasy but wish there was more? Check out Bottled in Bond, our new Patreon podcast exclusively for you, our best regulars! Join now for sponsor-free listening, video podcasts, access to pre-sales and drink recipes from all our guests. Higher proof and aged to perfection, check it out now at patreon.com/BottledinBond [http://patreon.com/BottledinBond] Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com [http://quioteimports.com/] and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.   Don’t forget to click SUBSCRIBE and RATE the show if you can.  🔥🔥Join us each week as industry leaders, Damon Boelte and Sother Teague, sit down with a wide range of hospitality and spirits experts from around the world to discuss everything that impacts our business.  FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM: Damon Boelte @DamonBoelte [https://www.instagram.com/damonboelte/?hl=en] Sother Teague @CreativeDrunk [https://www.instagram.com/creativedrunk/?hl=en] Greg Benson @100ProofGreg [https://www.instagram.com/100proofgreg/?hl=en] Speakeasy Podcast @SpeakeasyPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/speakeasypodcast/] FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: Sother Teague @CreativeDrunk [https://twitter.com/creativedrunk?lang=en] SpeakeasyRadio @SpeakeasyRadio [https://twitter.com/speakeasyradio?lang=] Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support The Speakeasy by becoming a member [http://heritageradionetwork.org/donate]! The Speakeasy is Powered by Simplecast [http://simplecast.com/].

New Year, Same Show, New Apologies! There’s a certain city we’ve been picking on a lot on this show and it’s time to set the record straight, and hear what Des Moines, the greatest city in the entire world, is all about. Joe Hayhoe, the mind behind the Iowan speakeasy Blind Pig sits down with Greg to talk about the latest drinking trends and coolest cocktail bars in the new undisputed center of the universe. Plus, the two crown a new worst city in America. Tune in to hear who we’ll be apologizing to in 2026! Plus, the surgeon general’s call for cancer warnings on alcohol is a big deal for the drinks industry. Greg weighs in with his take on giving people all the info they need. Follow Joe on instagram at @theblindpigbasementpub [https://www.instagram.com/theblindpigbasementpub] Love The Speakeasy but wish there was more? Check out Bottled in Bond, our new Patreon podcast exclusively for you, our best regulars! Join now for sponsor-free listening, video podcasts, access to pre-sales and drink recipes from all our guests. Higher proof and aged to perfection, check it out now at patreon.com/BottledinBond [http://patreon.com/BottledinBond] Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com [http://quioteimports.com/] and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.   Don’t forget to click SUBSCRIBE and RATE the show if you can.  🔥🔥Join us each week as industry leaders, Damon Boelte and Sother Teague, sit down with a wide range of hospitality and spirits experts from around the world to discuss everything that impacts our business.  FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM: Damon Boelte @DamonBoelte [https://www.instagram.com/damonboelte/?hl=en] Sother Teague @CreativeDrunk [https://www.instagram.com/creativedrunk/?hl=en] Greg Benson @100ProofGreg [https://www.instagram.com/100proofgreg/?hl=en] Speakeasy Podcast @SpeakeasyPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/speakeasypodcast/] FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: Sother Teague @CreativeDrunk [https://twitter.com/creativedrunk?lang=en] SpeakeasyRadio @SpeakeasyRadio [https://twitter.com/speakeasyradio?lang=]   Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support The Speakeasy by becoming a member [http://heritageradionetwork.org/donate]! The Speakeasy is Powered by Simplecast [http://simplecast.com/].