If you ever have the pleasure of meeting Dave Pickerell, you can say you were warned. The man can spin a yarn a mile long, and while he tells his tales of near death experiences, tenure at West Point, or just the intricacies of doing what he does best (making whiskey), he will have you laughing the whole time.

Over a glass of micro-barrel aged whiskey almost ready for release from Woodinville Whiskey Co., we spent some time chatting about adventures at Tales of the Cocktail, the book he’s working on, and why he seems to be the man in demand, trotting around the country stoking the fires of the Craft Distilling revolution.

DrinkGal (DG) – So, standard question, what brings you to Seattle?

Dave Pickerell (DP) – (laughs) The guys at Woodinville! I love these guys to death. I told them sooner rather than later they are going to have to make a tough decision.

DG – What’s that?

DP – Someone’s going to try to buy them. It’s not if, it’s when. They are that good, and they are great people. When I select the people that I’m gonna work with step one is, are they nice people? Step two, do they have a good business plan? And step three, are they learners? In all three counts, they are right at the top.

DG – That’s a big compliment.

DP – They take aim. There is an old saying if you aim at nothing you’ll hit it every time. All you have to say (to them) is you really oughta try this, and they do it. Sometimes it doesn’t actually pan out right, sometimes it’s an absolute home run, but they are willing to try. This whole row (points to a rack of barrels) here says ‘experimental’ on the face of the barrel. That’s a pretty substantial amount of volume to be investing in experiments. At the end of the day though, we are going to know more about barrel maturation than anyone in the world.

DG – They are experimenting with different size barrels?

DP – Different size and different treatments. I’m going to tell you what I told Tony Abou-Ganim at Tales of the Cocktail. He was telling me he wasn’t all that excited about the craft whiskies that are coming out. I said Tony; you haven’t met my friends from Woodinville Whiskey. They are getting ready for their first release of micro barrel aged whiskey and it is going to compete with the big boys in taste profile.

DG – When can we expect to see it?

DP – This year sometime. That’s all I’m giving you!

DG –  Fair enough. You have projects going all over the country, so I imagine you get to see a lot of this type of thing, as well as an inside look at industry trends before most of us.  Any trends in the cocktail world you are excited about?

DP – Barrel aged cocktails are clearly coming on like gang-busters.

DG – Have you tried any?

DP- Yes. I like ‘em, and it does add and fun element, especially to whiskey cocktails. It also gets bartenders invested in brands, and what better way to get to know a product than to age it?

DG- You might have mentioned that at the Americas New Distilleries seminar at Tales.

DP- I’m glad I went to that one. I enjoyed it a lot, but I hope I wasn’t over the top about the 3-tier system.

DG- I was gonna ask you about that. There was so much talk about it, and it a huge issue here in Washington State.

DP – The way the question was asked made it sound like it was a bad thing, and I didn’t want everyone leaving thinking that’s what we all agreed with. I really honestly believe the worst thing in the world that could happen to craft distilling is for the 3-tier system to end.

DG – Really?

DP- Being able to sell through your own distillery is a nice thing, and it helps out the small guy. But if you tell the small guys you have to go make your own sales to every retail establishment… that would be an absolute nightmare. The only people that (the elimination of wholesalers) benefit are the big boys on the manufacturing side and the selling side, and the result would be less choice available for the average consumer because a lot of people can’t play ball.

DG -So what would (in your opinion) be the ideal situation?

DP- I’m always careful… I understand from a consumer’s point of view it’s less expensive if the state is open because the state takes an awful big cut. Washington is the most expensive state in the union… open states can be more competitive price wise. For me, the best answer is an open market state that still has a 3-tier system.

DG –At Tales you were also talking about the book you’re writing. Can we talk about that?

DP – I’m working on The New Practical Distiller. If you go back in history, to the late 1700’s, there was a fella who undertook the task of writing down the art and craft of distilling. It was called the Practical Distiller, and there was everything from recipes to mash bills to still system designs to how to make things work. When I read it, I found all kinds of useful stuff, like even back when George Washington was distilling they used hops as an antibacterial agent. Where that particular distillery still resides is rife with bacteria, and the one batch that we didn’t use hops in was really nasty.

DG – You’re talking about Mount Vernon Distillery, right?

DP – Yep. The technique still works. And I learned it from The Practical Distiller. So, I aspire to put together a book that is a compendium of practices, both for large and small distilleries, that people can easily understand and digest and learn the art and craft of making whiskey.

DG – Obviously this won’t be a substitute for your services.

DP – (he smiles) Well, it doesn’t have my personality.

DG – You’ve gone from being the distiller of one of the most successful bourbon brands in the nation (if not the most successful) to being a consultant that travels nearly constantly all over the nation to help craft distillers up and running. Tired yet?

DP – People say, isn’t that a lot of travel? I absolutely love it. I love the go-go-go mentality of it. I’ve got some of the coolest clients out there, what’s not to love?

American Whiskey Dave Pickerell whiskey