Influential men in whiskey

How did Cincinnati’s James Levy & Bro. Change American Whiskey History?

(This post follows the previous one involving Lew Rosenstiel’s Origins with Schenley.) Schenley’s origin story is incomplete without the inclusion Cincinnati’s James Levy & Bro. The company was founded in […]

How did Lew Rosenstiel Come to be a Founding Member of Schenley?

Posted on: July 24, 2026American whiskey , Cincinnati , History , Influential men in whiskey , Pre-Prohibition , Reference

The following are posts from my @AmericanWhiskeyHistory page on Facebook. The posts have been separated into 2 parts here, and follow up posts are forthcoming. Part 1- Introduction Most whiskey […]

W.A. Haller & Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa.

Posted on: July 20, 2026Blends , famous whiskey brand , History , Influential men in whiskey , Non Distiller Producers , Pennsylvania rye whiskey , Post-Prohibition , Pre-Prohibition , Prohibition , rectifiers , Reference

Collectors of antique whiskeys are familiar with the name W.A. Haller & Co., mostly due to the company’s “County Fair” brand of bourbon whiskey. Haller’s County Fair bourbon was bottled […]

Remembering Chester “Chet” Franklin Zoeller, Jr.

Posted on: March 10, 2026March 10, 2026Bourbon , famous whiskey brand , History , In memoriam , Influential men in whiskey

In my opinion, Chet Zoeller is one of the finest bourbon whiskey historians of all time. He wasn’t just a prolific recorder of historic information, he was also an incredibly […]

Patrick J. Lamphear, 19th Century Whiskey Brand Rep

Posted on: March 8, 2026March 8, 2026American whiskey , Bourbon , Famous Whiskey Drinkers , History , Influential men in whiskey , whiskey and culture

We tend to see the newest bourbon boom as being this unique phenomenon, and that all the experts and notable critics of whiskey are a modern invention. I assure you, […]

The Chemists That Changed American Whiskey

Posted on: February 23, 2026February 23, 2026American whiskey , Art and whiskey , Distillation , History , Influential men in whiskey , Production , Prohibition , Reference , straight whiskey , Taxes , Whiskey laws and regulations , whiskey politics

We tend to think of distillers as chemists or scientists, even if Pappy Van Winkle adamantly refused to acknowledge the value of chemistry in his distillery. There’s no denying that […]

Stitzel-Weller in 1972: Notes on a Slideshow

Posted on: February 6, 2026February 17, 2026advertising , American whiskey , Barrel entry proof , Barrels , Bourbon , Distillation , Distilleries , famous whiskey brand , History , Influential men in whiskey , Master Distiller , Post-Prohibition , Production , Reference , slide show , slideshow , Wheat , Whiskey Facts

1972 Stitzel-Weller Slideshow (click on title to view slideshow) The following notes were written in addition to the original, 1972 Stitzel-Weller-provided script. The exact words from the original script are […]