How Middle West Spirits Scales Craft Whiskey Without Losing Its Soul

The Scotchy Bourbon Boys · Jul 8, 2026 · 1h 42m · transcript

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We sit down at Middle West Spirits in Columbus with Steve Frederick to unpack how an Ohio grain-to-glass distillery scales up without losing what makes the whiskey special. Along the way we taste new Old Elk bottles coming out of Columbus, dig into finishes like Armagnac and sherry, and end with a straight-from-the-barrel moment that proves context changes everything.

• Middle West’s growth from small runs to a massive round-the-clock facility

• What “crop to cask” means in practice for Ohio grains and farmer partnerships

• Ethical sourcing choices like free trade vanilla and…