WhiskyCast

This week, we’re on the road at The Whisky Exchange’s Whisky Show in London. We’ll have highlights from the weekend, including an interview with Dave Broom on his latest book, the third edition of the World Atlas of Whisky. 

U.S. craft distillers are facing a crisis, with an average of one distillery shutting down each week over the past year. Inflation and cutbacks in consumer spending get part of the blame, but there’s also a distribution crisis. Just three companies control the route to market for many craft distillers, and their focus is on high-volume brands as opposed to the low-volume craft distillers. Margie Lehrman of the American Craft Spirits Association is one of the leading advocates for “direct to consumer shipping,” which would allow distilleries to ship their whiskies directly to consumers. The option is only available in 10 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, and wholesalers have vehemently opposed any attempts to expand that number. We’ll talk with Margie Lehrman on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, economic headwinds cut into sales for both Pernod Ricard and Brown-Forman, while Angel’s Envy co-founder Wes Henderson plans to build a $93 million dollar distillery in Kentucky. 

September is National Bourbon Heritage Month, and the folks at Bourbon & Banter have a unique challenge every September. They want Bourbon lovers to taste a different Bourbon each day during the month. If that sounds daunting, Bourbon & Banter founder Pops Garrett says it can be fun, too. We’ll talk with Pops Garrett about the Challenge on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Sweden’s Mackmyra Distillery has filed for bankruptcy, and we’ll get your views on whether this is a sign of things to come for the whisky industry.

Washington’s Woodinville Whiskey is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, and hundreds of people lined up this weekend to get first crack at the distillery’s latest release, an 8-year-old Bourbon that’s the oldest Woodinville release yet. We’ll talk with co-founder Orlin Sorenson on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, a proposed alcohol tax increase in Nebraska has been voted down, while the Justice Department is appealing a Texas judge’s ruling that a ban on home distilling is unconstitutional.

Diageo’s Brora Distillery in the Scottish Highlands celebrated the third anniversary of its revival this summer, and is now pouring new Brora single malt whisky on its tours. The venerable distillery underwent four years of restoration work before reopening in 2011, and its whiskies from the days before 1983 when the distillery closed are becoming harder to find. We’ll talk with Brora’s Andrew Flatt on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, taxes on alcohol are going up around the world, while one of the world’s leading online whisky shops is back in the U.S. business again following its sale. 

Two years ago, the Treasury Department’s Tax & Trade Bureau opened the bureaucratic process for issuing an official definition of American Single Malt Whisky. After a brief public comment period, the agency has yet to act on the proposal, and that has distillers of American Single Malts frustrated with the lack of action. We’ll talk with Steve Hawley, executive director of the American Single Malt Whiskey Commission, about a new campaign to put pressure on the TTB to act. In the news, Diageo reports a sales decline for its fiscal year, while Campari beat analyst forecasts despite economic headwinds. We’ll taste three American Single Malts in the What I’m Tasting This Week Department, and in our Behind the Label segment, we’ll explain why “bottled in bond” doesn’t just apply to Bourbons. 

The wife and husband team of Georgie Bell and Fabrizio Leoni gave up their day jobs last year to launch The Heart Cut, an independent bottler dedicated to finding great drams from all over the world. They’ve released seven single casks so far from distilleries in Israel, Finland, Denmark, and the U.S., and did it all while Georgie was pregnant with twins. We’ll talk with Georgie Bell about The Heart Cut and work-life balance this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Irish Whiskey tourism is up from a year ago, but still below pre-pandemic levels, while sales are lagging at Möet Hennessy and Rémy Cointreau. 

Utah’s High West Distillery moved production operations from its downtown Park City gastropub to a state of the art distillery in nearby Wanship. The mountaintop distillery is producing award-winning whiskies and equally winning awards for its food and bar programs. This week, High West celebrated its annual Protect The West gala to raise money for three regional charities, and raised $100,000.  We’ll visit the distillery and talk with Master Distiller Brendan Coyle on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Buffalo Trace has a French flair for the Paris Olympics, and we’ll look at the latest auction results. 

Speyside’s Dallas Dhu has been a historic site since it closed in 1983, left intact the way workers left it on the final day of production. Now, there are plans in place to revive the venerable distillery, which is owned by Historic Environments Scotland. HES has signed a deal with Murray McDavid owner Aceo Limited to resume production at Dallas Dhu while maintaining it as a historic site. We’ll talk with ACEO managing director Edward Odim on this week’s WhiskyCast about the challenges — and the responsibilities — in taking on the revival of Dallas Dhu. In the news, the Black Bourbon Society has launched a boycott of Molson Coors products, while Pernod Ricard is bringing all of its U.S. brands under one umbrella.

Uncle Nearest Whiskey founder Fawn Weaver spent eight years researching and writing “Love & Whiskey,” the story of Nearest Green and Jack Daniel. During that time, she also launched the Uncle Nearest brand, one of the fastest-growing whiskey brands on the market, and the book also tells that story as well. We’ll talk with Fawn Weaver on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth, and share tasting notes for the Uncle Nearest Rye whiskey in the What I’m Tasting This Week Department. In the news, there’s a deal in place to revive the historic Dallas Dhu Distillery in Speyside, and the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame has announced its Class of 2024. 

Canadian Whisky pioneer J.P. Wiser started making whisky 165 years ago in eastern Ontario, and the brand that bears his name to this day has now released its oldest whisky ever, the J.P. Wiser’s 42 Year Old. We’ll talk with master blender Dr. Don Livermore, who created the new whisky, about Wiser, his legacy, and the new Decades Series that begins with the 42 Year Old. In the news, Ian Macleod Distillers has expanded to India with a new distillery, while Brown-Forman has restored a piece of Bourbon history at Woodford Reserve. 

Heaven Hill’s new $130 million distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky is still about six months away from being finished, but this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth, we’re getting a hard-hat preview tour from Master Distiller Conor O’Driscoll. We’ll also have details and tasting notes for the new Heaven Hill Grain to Glass Collection of whiskies as well. In the news, the Kentucky Bourbon Trail is celebrating 25 years of Bourbon tourism, the owners of Justins’ House of Bourbon have reached a settlement with state regulators, and the International Whisky Competition announces its 2024 winners. 

Kentucky’s Wilderness Trail Distillery has grown over the last decade from a small barrel-a-day distillery to become one of the nation’s largest Bourbon distilleries. Dr. Pat Heist and Shane Baker founded Wilderness Trail as an offshoot of Ferm Solutions, their consulting business that works with distillers and brewers around the world. This week on WhiskyCast In-Depth, we’ll talk with Pat Heist about the origin of Wilderness Trail — in a rock band, of all places, and the circumstances that led to their decision to sell the distillery to Campari in late 2022. In the news, Laphroaig is planning a major expansion, while whisky auction prices have yet to recover from recent declines.

Barry MacAffer is leaving Laphroaig Distillery and his native Islay for a new adventure: building a malt whisky distillery in South Korea. This week on WhiskyCast In-Depth, Barry tells us why he’s making the move now and what he’ll miss most about Islay. In the news, the threat of tariffs hangs over the whisky industry again as the U.S. Presidential election heats up, another new distillery is in the works for Scotland, and Rosebank Distillery opens its doors to visitors for the first time. 

There’s one distillery on Scotland’s Isle of Jura, and Jura master whisky maker Dr. Kirstie McCallum joins us from the island this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth. We’ll talk about Jura’s festival day as part of the Islay Festival of Malt and Music, this year’s Festival bottling, and her 25-year-long career in the Scotch Whisky industry. We’ll also have details on the week’s new releases, tasting notes, and much more!

Many distilleries take great pains to be involved in their surrounding communities, but Scotland’s Glen Wyvis Distillery goes to an extreme. That’s because many members of the Dingwall community are shareholders in the community distillery, which was built with a crowdfunding campaign. The distillery donates a percentage of its profits each year to grants for local community programs, with a goal of improving life for all of Dingwall’s residents. Distillery manager Matthew Farmer joins us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Wild Turkey honors Jimmy Russell with its new visitors center, while Scotch Whisky industry leaders are worried about a potential return to tariffs after the U.S. Presidential election. 

Islay’s Ardnahoe Distillery has released its first single malt since the distillery opened in 2019, and we’ll talk about the journey with Scott Laing of Hunter Laing & Co. on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, longtime Glen Grant master distiller Dennis Malcolm is retiring after 63 years in the whisky business, while Oregon officials have decided not to prosecute six former state liquor regulators for diverting stocks of Pappy Van Winkle whiskies for their personal use.

James Espey and Tom Jago founded The Last Drop 15 years ago with a goal of finding casks of rare whiskies and other spirits and bottling them. Since then, the company has been sold to Sazerac and Tom’s daughter Rebecca is now in charge, but the goal remains the same: finding those unicorn whiskies that may have fallen through the cracks…or just don’t fit into someone else’s plans. We’ll talk with Rebecca Jago about The Last Drop’s 2024 Collection and the difficulty of sourcing those rare casks in today’s market on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, labor problems hit Heaven Hill and Whyte & Mackay, while a longtime Highland distillery manager has retired.

O’Shaughnessy Distilling master distiller Brian Nation arrived in Minneapolis nearly three years ago after leaving Ireland’s Midleton Distillery, and it’s been an interesting transition. We’ll catch up with Brian and learn about the new Keeper’s Heart 21-year-old Irish single malt coming later this summer on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Beam Suntory has changed its name to Suntory Global Spirits, while Buffalo Trace takes a look at global expansion with its first home place in London. 

Dixon Dedman’s family history in the whisky business goes back more than a century. 2XO (for Two Times Oak) is his second act in the Bourbon business after reviving the family’s Kentucky Owl Bourbon brand in 2014. Dedman has just released the latest edition in 2XO’s Icons Series, the Kiawah Blend, named for his family’s favorite vacation spot, Kiawah island in South Carolina. He’ll join us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we’ll have quarterly reports from Pernod Ricard and Remy Cointreau, along with details on “The Badonkadonk” and the week’s other new whiskies.

Beam Suntory has successfully tested the use of green hydrogen as a fuel source for directly-firing stills, and is part of a pilot project to create a hydrogen conversion unit that could be deployed at remote distilleries. We’ll learn more about the potential of hydrogen as a fuel source for distillers on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Laphroaig is looking for a new manager, while R&B Distillers has received planning approval for a new distillery in Campbeltown, Scotland and Dr. Bill Lumsden of Glenmorangie makes a surprising admission about this year’s Ardbeg Day release. 

For 41 years, the Port Ellen Distillery on Scotland’s Isle of Islay sat silent. Last month, a multi-million dollar restoration of the distillery was completed when the first spirit flowed at Port Ellen since 1983. While it’ll be years before we see new bottlings of Port Ellen, the distillery will be open to Islay visitors from around the world. Diageo’s Ewan Gunn was on hand when that first spirit flowed. He’s been part of the revival since it was announced in 2017, and joins us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, The Demeter Collection auction raised £49,000 for the Our Whisky Foundation, while William Grant & Sons is expanding its Blended Scotch portfolio with a new range of whiskies. 

Texas is booming as a whiskey region, with distilleries all over the Lone Star State. That history only goes back about 15 years, when pioneers like Balcones Distilling and Garrison Brothers started out. During the recent 15th anniversary celebrations at Balcones, Texas Whiskey Festival co-founder Jake Clements moderated a panel (and tasting) on the first 15 years of Texas whiskey. We’re bringing you that discussion this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth, with panelists Jared Himstedt of Balcones, Dan Garrison of Garrison Brothers, Ironroot Republic’s Robert Likarish, and Ty Phelps of Andalusia Whiskey. In the news, The Lakes Distillery in England is being sold, while Edrington is selling off its Noble Oak American Whiskey brand.

Louisville’s Michter’s Distillery took top honors in the 2023 Drinks International survey to find the “world’s most admired” whiskey brand. Andrea Wilson is the Master of Maturation for Michter’s, as well as the company’s chief operating officer, and has the final say on any whisky that carries the Michter’s name. We’ll talk with Andrea about the pressure of living up to that reputation, as well as her Hall of Fame whisky-making career, on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Kentucky lawmakers have approved a bill to close loopholes in the state’s Vintage Distilled Spirits Law. We’ll have the details on that and the rest of the week’s whisky news, including a rare collaboration between Australia’s Starward Whisky and Lagavulin. 

James Saxon took on the role as chief whisky maker for Compass Box following founder John Glaser’s sudden departure several weeks ago. It’s a journey that started with a Compass Box tasting Saxon organized as a student at the University of St. Andrews a decade ago. He’ll answer your questions about Compass Box in this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Port Ellen Distillery is alive and humming once again, while Rosebank plans to open its new visitors center in June. Woodford Reserve has created a $15,000 Bourbon to celebrate the 150th Kentucky Derby May 4, and we’ll have details and tasting notes, too. 

Carin Luna-Ostaseski wanted an approachable Scotch whisky for newcomers, so she decided to blend her own. 11 years ago, the first bottles of SIA Scotch Whisky hit the market, becoming one of the first crowd-funded whiskies to successfully go on sale. We’ll catch up with Carin on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Irish Whiskey sales took a hit on 2023, but remains one of the fastest-growing segments of the whisky market. We’ll have the details, along with the rest of the week’s whisky news and much more.

Chivas Brothers recently introduced two new Longmorn single malts. The 18 and 22-year-old malts represent a long-term commitment to the brand, with all future Longmorns to be at least 18 years old. Chivas Brothers blending manager Kevin Balmforth was instrumental in creating both whiskies, and he’ll join us to discuss them and his day-to-day life in the blending lab on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. 

In the news, MGP is suing over two rickhouse projects that have been blocked by local officials in Kentucky, while a new website has been set up to help investors protect themselves from fraudulent cask investment schemes.  

Waterford Distillery founder Mark Reynier has no shortage of opinions about how he feels whisky should be made, and he’s putting those opinions into the bottle. Reynier has butted heads with the whisky establishment many times over the years because of his passion for flavor above all else, critics be damned. He’ll share some of his opinions with us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Compass Box founder John Glaser is stepping down after 23 years, while there’s both good and bad news about whisky exports.

Scotland's Nc'Nean Distillery is one of a handful of whisky distilleries certified as "B Corp" for their sustainability efforts. At Nc'Nean, that goes all the way to the use of renewable energy for the distillery and using recycled glass for its bottles. We'll talk with founder Annabel Thomas about the challenges of making whisky sustainably and organically on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the founder of Bimber and Dunphail distilleries has stepped aside following his arrest on two-decade old charges in his native Poland, while Kentucky lawmakers are trying to close loopholes in the state's Vintage Distilled Spirits law.

Diageo is staking a claim in the growing American Single Malt category with the new Bulleit American Single Malt. This whiskey’s release earlier this month has spawned a lot of questions, and Bulleit master blender Andrew Mackay joins us this week with some answers. In the news, Scotch Whisky exports plummeted in 2023, and major drinks companies are blaming economic headwinds in the U.S. for lagging sales. We’ll have the details, along with the story of a British distiller facing extradition to his native Poland after two decades on the run. 

There’s a unique subset of whisky collectors who spend their spare time scouring obscure liquor stores for vintage bottles. In some cases, the distillers no longer exist or the brands have been sold to their current owners, but in some cases, it’s possible to find vintage editions of today’s classic whiskies. Aaron Goldfarb has been chronicling so-called “dusty hunters,” and his new book “Dusty Booze” will be published on March 5th. He’ll join us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, U.S. spirits sales were flat in 2023, with concerning drops for Irish whiskies and Single Malt Scotches in particular. We’ll have the details, along with a new report showing Kentucky Bourbon generates $9 billion a year in economic impact for the Commonwealth. 

Garrard County Distilling Company is the latest distillery to come on line in Kentucky, and it’s starting out with big ambitions. The producer of All Nations Whiskey has two massive Vendome stills and two rickhouses with plans for 22 more over the next six years. We’ll talk with distillery founder Ray Franklin on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Diageo reports more disappointing sales numbers, while Old Forester names an heir apparent for longtime Master Distiller Chris Morris. 

History changes all the time as we uncover new facts about the past, and historian Drew Hannush’s new book shakes up some of the history of Tennessee Whiskey. For starters, “The Lost History of Tennessee Whiskey” sheds new light on the origin stories of Jack Daniel’s and the Lincoln County Process. We’ll talk with Drew Hannush on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Heaven Hill is closing its bottling operations in Canada, while Irish Distillers is getting out of the beer business. 

This year’s Canadian Whisky Awards produced another surprise winner for the second year in a row. Ontario’s Paradigm Spirits won Canadian Whisky of the Year honors, and we’ll discuss the state of Canadian Whisky with Davin de Kergommeaux. In the news, U-S craft distillers made gains in 2023 despite economic pressures, while Scotch Whisky’s impact on the Scottish economy continues to grow. 

Master Blender Billy Leighton’s recent decision to step aside from day to day work at Irish Distillers gave his longtime apprentice the dream job of a lifetime. Dave McCabe is the new Master Blender for Jameson, Redbreast, Powers, and other Irish Whiskey brands, and we’ll talk with him on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Irish Whiskey exports posted a decline in 2023, while Islay’s Ardnahoe Distillery is shutting down part of its visitors center. We’ll have the details on those and other stories, including another new distillery for Kentucky. 

The week’s top story was the sale of the independent bottler Single Cask Nation to the Artisanal Spirits Company, which also owns the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. The two bottlers will co-exist under one corporate umbrella, with SCN founders Joshua Hatton and Jason Johnstone-Yellin remaining in charge. We’ll talk with them on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, there’s new life planned for a long-closed Speyside distillery and the winners of the 2023 John Barleycorn Awards have been announced. 

A lot happened in the world of whisky during 2023, and with the help of WhiskyCast Community app members, we’ve identified the top ten whisky stories of the year. Join us as we count them down in the news, then listen as Milam & Greene’s Heather Greene shares her lessons on whisky entrepreneurship in WhiskyCast In-Depth. We’ll also have some of your year-end dramming choices in our Community segment, too. 

Alex Chasko is an Oregon transplant turned Dublin whiskey maker. He’s the master distiller and whiskey maker for Teeling Whiskey Company, and his latest creation is a 33-year-old Irish single malt finished in Pineau des Charentes casks. He’ll join us on this holiday edition of WhiskyCast. In the news, European and U-S trade negotiators extend a deal to avoid a return to tariffs on American whiskey exports, while another Scotch Whisky company is building a distillery in China. 

The stories behind the whiskies we drink are almost as enjoyable as the whiskies, and the story behind Never Say Die Bourbon is an intriguing one. There’s a near-death experience, followed by success on horse racing’s grandest stage, and a side story linking it to the founding of The Beatles. Never Say Die co-founder Brian Luftman joins us to share that story on this week’s WhiskyCast. In the news, Chivas Brothers workers approve a new contract, Kentucky Bourbon distillers set more records, and the deadline to avoid European import tariffs on American whiskey is getting closer.

Collaborations between whisky makers and design houses are becoming more common, and this week, we’ll look at a partnership where each side brought their own unique skills to form a successful collaboration. The Grant family’s House of Hazelwood has teamed up with London’s Huntsman Savile Row to create a 50-year-old Huntsman whisky, along with a unique House of Hazelwood tweed for Huntsman’s bespoke suits. We’ll talk with Huntsman creative director Campbell Carey and Jonathan Gibson of the House of Hazelwood on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, strikes against Chivas Brothers have been called off after the company proposed new contract terms, and we have more award winners announced this week. 

Whisky has become more attractive as an investment asset in recent years, but a new report indicates the value of luxury whiskies has declined over the past year. We’ll talk with the report’s author, Duncan McFadzean of Scotland’s Noble & Company, on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, lots of hardware was handed out at this week’s awards ceremonies in Scotland and Ireland, and we’ll have the details. Chivas Brothers faces strikes by its union workers next week, and there’s less than a month left before American whiskies face European import tariffs again.

There was a time when Belfast and the surrounding counties led the world in whisky production. Several factors led to that tradition all but disappearing over the last century, but now, the six counties of Northern Ireland are bringing new life to their distilling heritage. We’ll visit several of the country’s distilleries on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Chivas Brothers faces holiday strikes by distillery and bottling plant workers, while UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has given the country’s distillers a break by freezing excise taxes.

One of the highlights of this week’s New Brunswick Spirits Festival was the food and whisky pairings created by The Spirited Chef, Taylore Darnell. She and the staff at the Delta Fredericton created spirited breakfasts, lunches, and dinners featuring unique combinations of food and whisky. We’ll talk with Chef Taylore about matching food to whisky and how our senses perceive those combinations on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, there’s a new world record for the most expensive bottle of whisky ever sold at auction, and American single malt makers are still waiting for an official definition for their whiskies. 

WhiskyCast celebrates our 18th anniversary this week, and Stephanie Macleod has been the Master Blender for Dewar’s almost as long. She was named Master Blender in 2006, and has won a shelf full of awards for her work since then. Stephanie joins us this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss malts, the relationship between blender and distiller, and her role in bringing along the next generation of women in the whisky industry. 

Balcones Distilling in Waco helped put Texas whiskey on the map when it opened in 2008, and this past weekend, the distillery marked it’s 15th anniversary with a rain-soaked party. We spent the weekend in Waco for the celebration, and sat down with longtime head distiller Jared Himstedt to get answers to some of your questions. In the news, whisky cask investment schemes in the UK are coming under scrutiny, while a charity auction to benefit victims of the recent Irish floods has raised nearly €35,000. 

Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery was once Tennessee’s largest distillery in pre-Prohibition times. The great-great-great grandsons of Charles Nelson revived the family business in downtown Nashville, and have been making Tennessee whiskey along with sourced Bourbons and now, a Rye Whiskey. The distillery underwent a major expansion recently, and we’ll talk with co-founder Andy Nelson on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, time is running short to avoid a return to Europe’s import tariffs on American whiskies, while a new Wild Turkey Bourbon features something different…three generations of Russells on the label. 

What do you call a distillery with no brands of its own? A contract (or custom) distiller creates whiskies for its clients, and many of Kentucky's largest distillers have often sold excess capacity by distilling for others. Bardstown Bourbon Company pioneered the current wave of contract distillers in Kentucky, and co-founder David Mandell is now one of the partners behind the new Whiskey House distillery. It will focus exclusively on custom distilling for its clients, and David Mandell will explain why on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Midleton Distillery's brand-new visitors center is closed after this week's flooding caused extensive damage, while time is running out to avoid a return to tariffs on exports of American whiskies to Europe.

Anyone can blend one whisky, but to blend a whisky with long-term consistency between batches takes a true talent. This week, we'll share an informal blending session with Widow Jane head distiller and blender Sierra Jevremov on WhiskyCast In-Depth, along with tasting notes for Widow Jane's latest release, The Vaults 15-year-old Bourbon. In the news, Kentucky is getting a massive new distillery project, while we were on hand as The Hearach single malt from Isle of Harris Distillery made its U.S. debut in New York City Thursday night. We'll have tasting notes for that one, too, along with the new Glenglassaugh 12-year-old and Bruichladdich's Octomore 14.3 single malts.

Actor Sam Heughan is best known for his starring role on TV’s “Outlander,” but he’s a whisky lover, too. Sam started his own whisky brand, The Sassenach, and he’ll join us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth to talk about his love for whisky. We’ll also hear from the new master distiller at Angel’s Envy, Owen Martin. He’s just unveiled this year’s Angel’s Envy Cask Strength releases, a Bourbon, and for the first time, a Rye. In the news, Pernod Ricard is planning a new distillery on Islay, while Compass Box wants to build one in the Highlands. 

We’ll have a double feature on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth, as Diageo’s Dr. Stuart Morrison joins us to detail this year’s Special Releases series - including a Lagavulin finished in tequila casks - and Donnis Todd of Texas’s Garrison Brothers Distillery gives us a preview of this year’s Cowboy Bourbon. It’s an uncut, unfiltered whopper of a Bourbon at 70.45% ABV! In the news, the TTB avoids being caught up in a U.S. government shutdown after Congress passed a short-term budget extension. Kentucky regulators want to shut down two of the state’s biggest buyers and sellers of vintage spirits over liquor law violations, and Scotch Whisky tourism has recovered from the pandemic. 

It's been three years since Colin Gordon left Islay's Lagavulin Distillery to move down the road and take over for the retiring Mickey Heads at Ardbeg. Since then, Ardbeg has commissioned a completely new stillhouse and visitor traffic has recovered from the pandemic. We'll catch up with Colin Gordon on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the clock is ticking toward a partial U.S. government shutdown that could affect whisky makers and consumers, while Scotland's government is debating an increase in the minimum unit price for whisky and other alcoholic beverages. We'll also hear from Campari CEO Bob Kunce-Concewitz on his company's expansion plans, check in with Wild Turkey's Eddie Russell on the latest expansion of the Russell's Reserve Single Rickhouse Series, and get a preview of this year's Diageo Special Releases from master blender Stuart Morrison.

Ann Marshall and Scott Blackwell founded High Wire Distilling in Charleston, South Carolina 10 years ago this week. They started out with no distilling experience, but have earned the respect of other distillers with their unique Jimmy Red Bourbon distilled from an endangered strain of corn. We’ll talk with them on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, two distilleries were sold to new owners this week, while planning permission has been granted for two more distilleries in Scotland. Former Diageo master blender Maureen Robinson has come out of retirement to lead the Kentucky Owl Bourbon brand, and Sweden’s Mackmyra Distillery marks a milestone.

Women still face huge barriers to equality within the whisky industry, according to a new survey from the Our Whisky Foundation. The survey found high levels of unconscious bias and sexual harassment along with a perceived lack of respect for women working in the industry. We’ll discuss the survey’s findings with Becky Paskin of the Our Whisky Foundation on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Heaven Hill’s new Bardstown distillery reached a major milestone this week, while the Bourbon Women honored this year’s Women in Whisky Award winners. 

There's a lot of data behind the whiskies we enjoy, and analyzing that data can give us some insights into the health of the whisky industry. Martin Purvis and Duncan McFadzean examine whisky data for their Commercial Spirits Intelligence newsletter, and concluded that last week's Scotch Whisky export numbers aren't as bad as they might appear on face value. We'll talk with Martin Purvis about the analysis on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we have details on this year's crop of annual releases from Four Roses, Heaven Hill, and Old Forester, along with the rest of the week's new releases. We'll also have our Community segment and explain in Behind the Label why you can't get a Kentucky Bourbon Trail passport stamped at one of the Commonwealth's most popular distilleries.

Valuations for rare whiskies have started to slow down after being one of the best performing alternative investments over the last ten years. The latest Knight Frank Luxury Investment Index shows a four percent decline year-over-year in the value of the rare whiskies that make up the index. Is this the start of a trend? We'll ask rare whisky consultant Andy Simpson, who helps compile the index for Rare Whisky 101.

In the news, Scotch Whisky exports fell during the first six months of 2023 compared to last year, with a sharp 20 percent decrease in volume. Irish whiskey exports rose during 2022, according to a new report released this week, and Hedley Wright, the longtime chairman of Springbank owner J&A Mitchell Co. Ltd. passed away this month at the age of 92.

Whisky and music go perfectly together, but Felipe Schrieberg and Paul Archibald are taking the volume up to 11 with Rhythm & Booze Records. They're combining an independent record label with an independent bottler and making whiskies to match their music, which can be streamed using a QR code on each bottle. We'll talk with Felipe Schrieberg on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth and share tasting notes for their debut release, Rhythm & Booze Records Release #1. In the news, Molson Coors has acquired Blue Run Spirits to expand its presence in the whisky business, and we'll talk with David Coors and Blue Run's Mike Montgomery about the deal. David Beckham is splitting with Diageo's Haig Club Scotch Whisky brand, and there's a new Elijah Craig Bourbon out to celebrate next month's Ryder Cup.

Thousands of illicit distilling sites exist around Scotland. Derek Alexander and his team of archaeologists at the National Trust for Scotland have barely scratched the surface of the country’s bothys, but their recent digs have uncovered some rare artifacts of illicit distilling’s past. We’ll catch up with Derek on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, The Balvenie’s longtime Malt Master, David Stewart, is standing down after 47 years in the post. The UK, Australia, and New Zealand all raised liquor taxes this week, and Suntory is celebrating its 100th anniversary with a “tiny house” tour of America. 

The 128-year-old family-owned independent bottler stunned the whisky world this week with news that it will stop sourcing new make spirit from other distillers starting next year. Instead, Gordon & MacPhail will focus on single malts from its two distilleries, Benromach and The Cairn in the future. With decades of maturing whisky on hand, the change won't be felt for at least 12 to 15 years and Gordon & MacPhail will continue bottling older whiskies for decades to come. We'll discuss the change in philosophy with G&M managing director Ewen Mackintosh on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. On Behind the Label, we'll celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Excise Act of 1823, which directly led to today's Scotch Whisky industry, and we'll have tasting notes for whiskies from Bunnahabhain, Lost Lantern, and Dràm Mòr, too.

When Rosebank Distillery's stills went silent in 1993, many whisky lovers assumed the Falkirk distillery was gone forever - especially after thieves stole the copper stills for scrap a couple of years later. Now, after 5 and a half years of work, Rosebank has come back to life, and the team at Ian Macleod Distillers filled the first casks of Rosebank since 1993 this week. We'll talk with Ian Macleod's Gordon Dundas about the revival of Rosebank on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth.

In the news, the whisky world pays tribute to the Bon Accord's Paul McDonagh after the legendary Glasgow whisky bar's owner passed away this week. Speyburn Distillery in Scotland is opening its doors to visitors for the first time starting next week, and we'll have the details. We'll take a look at sweet mash and sour mash distilling on Behind the Label, and our tasting notes this week include whiskies from Amrut and Arran distilleries.

The Scotch Whisky Experience on Edinburgh's Royal Mile celebrates its 35th anniversary this year, and this week launches an all-new multimedia tour highlighting the production of Scotch Whisky. We'll talk with CEO Susan Morrison on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, unique one of a kind whiskies are going on the auction block for charity this October, Bruichladdich cuts its carbon footprint with a new recycled glass bottle for the Classic Laddie, and The Dead Rabbit's expansion plans took two big steps this week. We'll have the rest of the week's whisky news, tasting notes, and more!

Back in 1888, Paul Jones Jr. started selling Bourbon under the Four Roses brand. 135 years later, the brand is stronger than ever, and to mark the anniversary, Four Roses is releasing a first-ever tasting kit with all 10 of the distillery’s unique recipes. We’ll talk with Master Distiller Brent Elliott about the anniversary, and what makes each of those 10 recipes different, on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. 

In the news, new distilleries are opening up in Japan, Wales, and Pennsylvania this week, while Sazerac has won a counterfeiting lawsuit against a company that was selling miniature bottles of its W.L. Weller Bourbon online. 

The collapse of Washington’s Skagit Valley Malting last month left distillers and brewers alike searching for new suppliers of malted barley. The craft maltster had more than 270 customers when it closed unexpectedly, including Seattle’s Westland and Copperworks distilleries. We’ll talk with Copperworks co-founders Jason Parker and Jeff Kanof this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth, along with Kate Bernot, who’s been covering the story for Good Beer Hunting. In the news, the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame gets eight new inductees, while Woodford Reserve is teaming up with Kentucky farmers to develop the state as a rye-producing region. We’ll have all the week’s whisky news, tasting notes for whiskies from the U.S., Japan, and India, and much more on this week’s WhiskyCast. 

The Scotch Whisky industry is roaring along, setting new records for sales every year as the global demand for whisky continues to grow. The last "golden age" for Scotch Whisky is generally considered to be the late 1800's, when distilleries flourished all over Scotland. That begs the question: are we in a new golden age for Scotch Whisky? Veteran whisky writers, historians, and consultants Charles Maclean and Ian Buxton take on that question and other key issues in an extended WhiskyCast In-Depth conversation this week.

In the news, a Pacific Northwest malting house has left distilleries and brewers in the lurch after suddenly closing this week, while Speyside Distillers is being questioned about the location of casks sold to investors more than 20 years ago.

Westland Distillery co-founder Matt Hofmann is leaving the Seattle distillery at the end of the month to pursue new adventures. With no specific plans for the future, Matt and his successor as production manager, Tyler Pederson, join us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss Matt’s move and how the distillery will ensure continuity going forward. We’ll also have tasting notes for Westland’s new Colere American single malt and the new Clermont Steep American single malt from Beam. In the news, the company administering Scotland’s controversial Deposit Return Scheme is on life support, while The Dalmore is preparing to double production capacity with a new stillhouse. We’ll have the details and much more on this week’s episode of WhiskyCast!

Wyoming Whiskey marked its 10th anniversary last December, and this April, Edrington took majority ownership of the Cowboy State's first distillery. That ended the run of David DeFazio as Wyoming Whiskey's president, but he remains the brand's global ambassador and a part-owner of the distillery. We'll talk with him about the changes since then, along with what the future holds, both for him and the brand. We'll also catch up with Wyoming Whiskey's first master distiller, Bourbon Hall of Famer Steve Nally and master blender Nancy Fraley on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, too. In the news, the drinks industry is mourning the death of Diageo CEO Sir Ivan Menezes this week, while Brown-Forman has won a trademark lawsuit challenge at the U.S. Supreme Court.

With some parts of Scotland facing another long, dry summer, distilleries are making plans to cope with expected water shortages from the lochs and rivers that provide essential water for distilling. Wick's Old Pulteney Distillery has already announced plans to shut down production for eight weeks this summer after losing much of the last two summers to drought. We'll talk with distillery manager Malcolm Waring on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Balmenach Distillery has received a £4 million upgrade to make the distillery more energy-efficient, a bottle of the rare 81-year-old The Reach from The Macallan is up for grabs in British Columbia, and there's a host of new whiskies being released in time for Father's Day.

At one time, Campbeltown was Scotland's whisky capital with more than 35 distilleries. That number dwindled to just three over the years, but now, planning approval is being sought for up to three new distilleries. The latest project is the Witchburn Distillery to be built on the former RAF Macrihanish site, and we'll talk with project manager and master distiller Andrew Nairn on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also hear from Beam Suntory's Daryl Haldane following the auction Friday of a one-of-a-kind Bowmore single malt to raise money for projects on Islay. In the news, Stirling Council has rejected plans for the proposed Wolfcraig Distillery for a second time, Scotch Whisky Association leaders continue their push to reserve an excise duty hike planned for August, and Jack Daniel's lost a trademark infringement case in the U.K. to a pair of comedians. 

Whisky lovers around the world celebrated World Whisky Day Saturday. The holiday was created a dozen years ago by whisky writer and consultant Blair Bowman, and we'll check in with him on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. He's been involved in several major controversies affecting the Scotch Whisky industry, from protesting the planned Deposit Return Scheme now scheduled to take effect next March to fighting a proposed series of marketing and advertising restrictions for whiskies and other alcoholic beverages. In the news, we'll have an update on new whiskies released for World Whisky Day, while the owners of Justins' House of Bourbon have paid $3,000 in fines to settle charges brought by Washington, DC liquor regulators. We'll also have tasting notes for new whiskies from Jack Daniel's, Michter's, and Glenglassaugh.

Blended American Whisky has been ignored by connoisseurs for many years, largely because the category has been dominated by cheap blends using grain neutral spirits. Now, there's a new era for Blended American Whisky as blenders explore the flexibility the category offers, from being able to blend Bourbons and Ryes with other styles of whisky to being able to use whisky matured in used barrels. We'll talk with master blender Ari Sussman about the trend in this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Australian distillers are in a dispute over what should be called a "single malt," Russian officials raid a factory producing counterfeit Scotch Whisky and other spirits, and we'll learn what not to do when your golf bag catches on fire. In our Behind the Label segment, we'll look at what researchers say is the proper amount of water to add to your whisky, and our latest Community poll asks whether you'd prefer to try a 50-year-old whisky or a 10-year-old bottled in 1920.

Bourbon's construction boom in Central Kentucky is raising concerns in Nelson County, home to Bardstown, the "Bourbon Capital of the World." County officials have reached a compromise with whiskey makers for a 90-day moratorium on planning approval for new warehouses in agricultural zones. Nelson County Judge Executive Tim Hutchins wants a review of current ordinances allowing virtually unfettered development of warehouses without public input, while allowing projects in areas zoned for industrial use to move forward. We'll talk with Judge Hutchins on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth about the moratorium and the impact of losing millions of dollars in barrel tax revenue in the coming years. In the news, Sazerac CEO Mark Brown is stepping aside in a long-planned succession, while Scotland's Parliament has approved new rules to make it easier for whisky makers to borrow against their stockpiles of maturing whisky. We'll also have details on a host of commemorative whiskies celebrating the coronation of King Charles III, along with the rest of the week's whisky releases.

Rye hasn't been widely used by Scotch whisky distillers for decades, but Inchdairnie Distillery is doing something different for its first release: A Scottish single grain distilled from 53% malted rye and 47% malted barley. The distillery contracted local farmers to grow the rye grain, and released its first batch of RyeLaw this week. Inchdairnie managing director Ian Palmer joins us to explain the reasons for starting with a Scottish rye whisky. In the news, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says no to reconsidering a whisky tax hike set for August, while Diageo is joining the growing list of whisky makers eliminating cardboard gift boxes from its whiskies. 

Dr. Bill Lumsden has been experimenting at both Ardbeg and Glenmorangie distilleries. His latest Ardbeg release, Heavy Vapours, involved taking part of the distilling system out of the picture just because he wanted to see what would happen if he did. At Glenmorangie, he has a whole year's worth of projects for his experimental Lighthouse distillery. We'll catch up with whisky's mad scientist on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Scotland's controversial alcohol marketing restrictions have been sent back to the drawing board, while the equally controversial deposit return scheme for bottles has been pushed back to next March. We'll also have details on a new distillery in Kentucky...that was quietly built six years ago.

We're celebrating a major milestone this week with the 1000th episode of WhiskyCast! To mark the occasion, Mark went back through the archives to pick some memorable moments and interviews from the past 18 years for this special episode. You'll hear from legends like the late Parker Beam and Michael Jackson, along with Jimmy Russell, Jim McEwan, Maureen Robinson, Fawn Weaver, and Richard Paterson...just to name a few. This episode is a lot longer than usual, and there's plenty more that we could have included. In the news, Scotch Whisky Association leaders are hoping to persuade Parliament to reject a tax increase on whiskies and other distilled spirits, while local officials in Kentucky are looking at moratoriums on new distillery construction following the phaseout of the state's barrel tax.

Many have tried, but the Glencairn whisky glass remains the preferred choice of whisky blenders and savvy whisky lovers. There's more to Glencairn Crystal than just its iconic glass, though, and we'll talk with Glencairn founder Raymond Davidson on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Campari is investing $160 million to build a second distillery at Wild Turkey in Kentucky. We'll have details on that and the rest of the week's headlines, and in our Behind the Label segment, we'll explain why some whiskies can taste soapy and what causes it.

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society is marking its 40th anniversary in 2023, and we'll talk with founder Pip Hills on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. The 82-year-old Hills started the Society as a cask-share scheme with his friends...and their friends...and so on, until now, the Society's membership stands at 37,000 whisky lovers worldwide. In the news, Diageo CEO Ivan Menezes is retiring, Kentucky state lawmakers have passed the barrel tax phaseout bill into law, and Whisky Magazine handed out its annual awards this past week.

There's very little Dennis Malcolm hasn't seen in his 62 years of making whisky, and the longtime Glen Grant distillery manager joins us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth to answer some of your whisky questions. Dennis was in New York City for the global launch of the new Glen Grant 21 Years Old, and we'll have tasting notes for it as well. In the news, Kentucky lawmakers are running out of time to pass a bill ending the barrel tax this year, while the U.S. Supreme Court held oral arguments on a trademark case involving Jack Daniel's...and dog poop.

1983 was a very bad year to be in the Scotch Whisky business. Sales had dried up in the face of changing consumer tastes and economic woes, and the industry was sitting on a "whisky loch" of millions of gallons of whisky no one wanted to buy. That led to the permanent or temporary closings of 14 distilleries, along with blending and bottling plants throughout Scotland. 40 years later, the industry has recovered - but have the lessons from 1983 been remembered? We'll talk with historians Charles Maclean and Dr. Nick Morgan about the circumstances that led to mass closings back then, and what's different today.

In the news, UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has slapped Scotch Whisky with a 10.1% increase in excise duty, and industry leaders are fighting back claiming broken promises. Kentucky state lawmakers are trying to get a bill passed in the next few days that would phase out the state's barrel tax on maturing whiskey, and David Beckham is reported to be stepping away from his bespoke whisky brand.

Mark Kent left the UK's diplomatic service 14 months ago to become the new CEO of the Scotch Whisky Association, and admits he didn't know much about Scotch when he started. With the industry in a state of flux over issues ranging from a potential marketing and advertising ban in Scotland to free trade and climate change, it's been a busy 14 months for Kent. He'll join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss the state of the Scotch Whisky industry and those key issues it faces. In the news, Islay distillers are scrambling to find new sources of peated malt after Diageo's Port Ellen Maltings stopped supplying outside customers. We'll also look at record U.S. spirits exports, even though some key markets are still recovering from the impact of trade tariffs, and on this week's Behind the Label, we'll look at the role enzymes play in mashing and why many distillers use a small amount of malted barley in their mashes.

Melissa Rift's career path is anything but traditional for a whisky maker. She started out as a family therapist before discovering her passion for Bourbon, and it's led her to become the new master taster for Old Forester. We'll explore her journey and her passion for whisky on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Jack Daniel's has been ordered to stop work on one of its new barrel houses after a neighbor sued over whisky fungus problems, while Kentucky distillers are hoping a bill pending in the state legislature could mean the end of the "barrel tax."

There are literally hundreds of whisky clubs around the world, with more being formed all the time. This week on WhiskyCast, we'll hear from some club founders on how they started their clubs, along with advice for those thinking about forming a whisky club. In the news, Russia is planning "grey market" imports of some key whisky brands to evade trade sanctions, while Scotland's controversial bottle deposit program may be in trouble. We're also announcing the launch of the new WhiskyCast Community mobile app this week, too!

Bourbon and many other whiskies must be matured in new barrels by law, but distillers are finding a shortage of available barrels. Cooperages are keeping up with existing demand, but are facing their own supply chain issues with raw logs and can't keep up with distillery expansions across the industry. It all amounts to "the barrel problem," and we'll look at the issue on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Scottish government officials want public comments on whether the sale of peat should be banned, including the whisky industry's use of peat for malting barley. There's a scandal in Oregon, where state liquor board officials diverted bottles of rare Bourbon for their own use, and two veteran distillers join Whisky Magazine's Hall of Fame.

Last month's raid on the Justins' House of Bourbon stores in Kentucky brought a multi-state and federal investigation into the spotlight. Now, authorities in the District of Columbia and at least two other states are investigating potential violations of interstate shipping laws, according to a report this week in the Lexington Herald-Leader. The Herald-Leader's Janet Patton broke the story and joins us this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, distilled spirits sales outpaced beer for the first time during 2022, while Scotch Whisky exports set a new record.

It's hard to believe, but the iconic New York City pub The Dead Rabbit is celebrating its 10th anniversary this month. In that time, it's built a reputation as one of the world's best cocktail bars. We'll talk with co-founder and managing partner Jack McGarry about the first ten years and what the future holds for The Dead Rabbit - including expansion to Austin, New Orleans, and other cities. On Your Voice, listeners like you tell us what makes a pub great, and in our Behind the Label segment, we'll answer a question about the difference between a peaty whisky and a smoky one.

Distillers like to claim the "authentic" label for their whiskies, but how does one define "authenticity" in whisky? Is a "grain to glass" whisky more authentic than one that's mass-produced? Stanford business professor Glenn Carroll and Tulane business professor Cameron Verhaal teamed up to study just what whisky drinkers consider to be authentic, and they join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss their findings. In the news, Irish Whiskey tourism rebounded strongly during 2022 with a 425% gain over the pandemic-affected year of 2021. Diageo shares took a plunge on softness in U.S. Scotch Whisky sales, and a small North Carolina distillery hopes to send barrels of whiskey where no barrels have gone before.

This week's episode comes from the Victoria Whisky Festival in Victoria, British Columbia...where a small Vancouver distillery shocked the Canadian whisky world the other night. Sons of Vancouver won Canadian Whisky of the Year honors at the Canadian Whisky Awards with their "Palm Trees and a Tropical Breeze" rye whisky. It was the highest-scoring whisky in the competition, and it wasn't even close. We'll talk with the distillery's Jenna Diubaldo, James Lester, and Max Smith on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, along with Canadian Whisky Awards founder and chairman Davin de Kergommeaux. In the news, an explosion rocked Alberta Distillers in Calgary this week, while a long-running legal saga has come to an end in Vancouver.

Sarah Burgess has held a lot of different positions during her 25-plus years in the whisky industry, from serving as a seasonal tour guide to running three different distilleries and being a whisky maker for The Macallan. Now, she's taking on a new challenge as the lead whisky maker for The Lakes Distillery in England. We'll talk with Sarah on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, a Scottish government consultation on alcohol sales and marketing has the Scotch Whisky industry crying foul, while Irish Whiskey exports set a new record during 2022.

Whiskies are being released at staggering prices with an eye to investors as well as collectors, but what is the market for these rare whiskies? Duncan Taylor & Co. has just released a £75,000 1969 Macallan, and we'll talk with Peter Currie of Shand Imports about this whisky and its intended market on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth.

Distillers are known for helping each other out, but the team at the Bardstown Bourbon Company is taking that collaborative spirit to new levels. The distillery not only makes its own whiskies, but works with more than 30 other brands to produce their whiskies using 54 different mashbills. Now, Bardstown Bourbon is releasing its own mature Bourbon and Rye whiskies for the first time with the Origin Series. We'll talk with VP of Product Development Dan Callaway about the new whiskies and that collaborative process on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Britain's King Charles is honoring Diageo CEO Ivan Menezes and Islay's Jim McEwan on the New Year's Honours List, Buffalo Trace celebrates a milestone, and we'll have some of your final drams of 2022 and first drams of 2023, too!

We'll wrap up the year with a look at the Irish whiskey industry from both the macro and micro views this week with Denis O'Flynn. He's the former managing director of Pernod Ricard UK, and since 2017 has been a non-executive director of Clonakilty Distillery. That gives him a unique perspective on the state of the Irish Whiskey industry, and he'll share his opinions with us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the marriage between Wild Turkey and actor Matthew McConaughey has split up, with both sides remaining friends. We'll have that story and much more in our final episode of 2022. 

Eddie Russell has been making whiskey for 42 years, and is a Bourbon Hall of Fame member. Still, to many people, he'll always be known as "Jimmy Russell's son." That's what happens when you work alongside a legend, and now that he's established his own legacy, he's passing it on to his son Bruce, and as Eddie put it during our WhiskyCast In-Depth interview this week, "what goes around, comes around." We'll talk with Eddie about his two most recent releases, the Master's Keep Unforgotten edition and the Russell's Reserve Single Rickhouse edition, and how he's still learning on the job after 42 years. 

Is Sweetens Cove a whiskey company with a golf course, or a golf course with its own whiskey brand? That's something the Sweetens Cove team is trying to figure out for themselves, but while they ponder that question, they've released the third edition of their Tennessee Bourbon. We'll talk with Sweetens Cove master blender Marianne Eaves and CEO Mark Rivers on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we'll have details on two new Kentucky distillery projects valued at nearly $350 million and a look at the latest data on the boom in craft distilling.

Six years ago, the wildfire known as "The Beast" devastated Northern Alberta, forcing the evacuations of 88,000 people in the area around Fort McMurray. At the time, Wood Buffalo Brewing & Distilling had to leave behind a pallet of peated malt to escape the fire, but firefighters managed to save both the distillery and the malt, which had absorbed a lot of smoke from the fire. The distillery pre-sold bottles of "The Beast" whisky made from that malt to raise more than $100,000 for local charities in the months following the fire, and while the distillery later closed its doors, distillers Bryce Parsons and Spike Baker returned to Fort McMurray this weekend to deliver on the promise made six years ago. We'll catch up with them on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth.  

During the golden age of Irish Whiskey, Belfast-based Dunville’s was one of the biggest brands on the market. While the brand was almost lost to history, it was revived a decade ago by the family-owned Echlinville Distillery in Northern Ireland. Using vintage sourced whiskies, the Dunville’s brand has been preserved for new generations of Irish Whiskey fans. We’ll talk with Echlinville’s Jarlath Watson about the Dunville’s heritage and building new traditions as the distillery prepares to release its own whiskies starting in 2023. 

Bigger isn't necessarily better, and we have proof of that this week with our podcast recorded on location at the New Brunswick Spirits Festival in Fredericton, New Brunswick. The festival punches well above its weight class to deliver an outstanding event every year, and celebrated its 25th anniversary this weekend. We'll talk with founder and chairman Frank Scott to find out his secrets for success on WhiskyCast In-Depth, and we'll also catch up with another old friend. Martine Nouet has been organizing the festival's food and whisky lunches for years, but is scaling back her whisky work to pursue other passions. In the news, Diageo's venture capital unit has taken a stake in England's Oxford Artisan Distillery, while Canadian Club is out with another record-setting vintage whisky. Finally, Corby's Dr. Don Livermore has coined a new word for whisky lovers, and he'll share it with us on Behind the Label. 

With the holidays coming up, whisky books may be on your gift list. We’ll talk with two noted whisky writers who have new books out this holiday season. Ian Buxton is the author of “101 Whiskies to Try Before You Die,” and Dave Broom’s latest book “A Sense of Place” looks at whisky’s place in Scottish culture. We’ll have tasting notes for a Christmas whisky from Paul John and the new American Single Malt from Jack Daniel’s…and Lochlea’s John Campbell helps us explain how the strength of peated whiskies is measured on this week’s Behind the Label.

Nick Offerman has entertained millions of people with his film and television career, but it’s his whisky career that he’s sharing with us this week. From the early days of featuring Lagavulin on Parks and Recreation to his dozens of Tales of Whisky videos for the brand, Offerman has become synonymous with Lagavulin. He’ll join us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss his Lagavulin origin story, working with blender Stewart Morrison, and cutting peat on Islay with the legendary Iain “Mr. Pinky” McArthur. We’ll also have details on the sales of Wilderness Trail and Balcones distilleries, this week’s tasting notes, and meet a distiller who’s worked on six continents…so far.

Colum Egan had a unique challenge when presented with the opportunity to build a new Bushmills distillery that would complement the venerable existing distillery: take the best technology of today while making the whiskey taste the same way the old distillery has been producing it for decades. The €37 million project went into production a year ago, but few visitors have been allowed inside to take a look at the new distillery. You'll get a first look inside with Colum Egan on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Irish Whiskey exports rose in 2021, but will be pressed to meet that goal in 2022. We'll have the details along with an exclusive interview with former Maker's Mark whisky makers Denny Potter and Jane Bowie, who are now ready to disclose their plans for a new distillery in Kentucky. 

Much has been made of the boom in Irish whiskey over the last decade, but one industry veteran says that boom is only the foundation for greater growth in the future. Walsh Whiskey Company founder Bernard Walsh believes the industry still has some growing pains to go through before the "renaissance" really begins, and he'll share his views with us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. We're in Dublin this week for a series of distillery visits sponsored by the Irish whiskey Association and Tourism Ireland, and we'll also have a crypt keeper's story to share on Behind the Label.

Unless you're drinking a single cask bottling, every whisky you drink has been prepared by a team of blenders. That goes for single malts, too, and Stewart Morrison is the blender behind Lagavulin's latest release: the Offerman Edition Charred Oak. Morrison teamed up with actor and Lagavulin lover Nick Offerman to create the third release in the Offerman Edition series, and he'll join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Islay's distilleries may soon run short of peated malt supplies to meet the island's growing demand, while U.S. whisky exports are rising following the removal of European and UK tariffs. 

There are at least 774 malt whisky distilleries around the world, according to the 2023 edition of the Malt Whisky Yearbook. We'll hear from some of the emerging malt whisky makers, including Dhavall Gandhi of The Lakes Distillery in England and Desiree Reid of New Zealand's Cardrona Distillery, on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. Number 775 could be Jack Daniel's, which unveiled plans this week to release an American Single Malt next June. We'll also take a look at a group of whisky lovers that need special attention from whisky show organizers...those who need wheelchairs to get around.

This week, we're on location in London for The Whisky Exchange's annual Whisky Show at Old Billingsgate. We'll have interviews from throughout the weekend on WhiskyCast In-Depth, including Diageo's Colin Dunn, Oliver Chilton of Elixir Distillers, and Tomatin's Scott Adamson. Tomatin took home top honors at this week's International Wine and Spirits Competition Awards, and we'll have that story in our news segment along with details on a new record for Kentucky's growing Bourbon barrel inventory. We'll also have tasting notes from the weekend, and in our Behind the Label segment, we'll explain the difference between rejuvenated casks and "STR" casks.

Until now, Alfred Barnard's classic book "The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom" was the benchmark guide for whisky historians. Now, a collection of 120 distillery profiles first published between 1922 and 1929 has been published in a Barnard-esque book by James Eadie Ltd. The Distilleries of Great Britain & Ireland is a worthy sequel to Barnard's original book and fills a critical need for whisky history from the early 20th century. We'll talk with Eadie's Leon Kuebler and writer Tom Bruce-Gardyne, who compiled the profiles and wrote the introduction, on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the UK's new Chancellor is freezing whisky excise duties as part of a pledge to cut taxes, and a Virginia ABC employee has pleaded guilty to charges of leaking information on rare bourbon allocations at state run liquor stores. We'll also hear some critical feedback following our interview with Phil Steger of Brother Justus Distilling two weeks ago on Your Voice.

The Cabrach region of Scotland's Highlands has a distilling history that goes back centuries, but The Cabrach has been left behind as other parts of Scotland developed. Now, The Cabrach Trust hopes to create jobs and infrastructure for the region with a single malt distillery, with the profits from its whisky going to fund affordable housing and other projects. We'll talk with the Trust's CEO, Jonathan Christie, and longtime distiller Alan Winchester, who's working as an advisor on the distillery, on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we'll hear from Stoli Group CEO Damian McKinney as work begins on the Kentucky Owl Park distillery development in Kentucky. We'll also have details on the induction of the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame's Class of 2022 and much, much more. 

Phil Steger distills his single malt in the Scottish tradition at Minnesota's Brother Justus Distilling, but he's an outlier in the American Single Malt community. That's because he believes the TTB's proposed standards for American Single Malts would keep him from making his whisky the way he thinks is best. He'll tell us why on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, and he'll also explain his unique process for "cold-peating" his whiskies. In the news, Ireland's Midleton Distillery is expanding again with a new €250 million distillery adjacent to the current facility. We'll also explain what happens to the royal warrants held by several whisky makers following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

September is Bourbon Heritage Month, and while Bourbon can be made anywhere in the U.S., Kentucky is known as "the state of Bourbon." Bourbon makers generate millions of dollars annually for the state's economy, and their taxes help pay for local services and public education. The unprecedented growth of the industry hasn't come without its growing pains, though...and we'll look at some of the issues facing the "state of Bourbon" with Janet Patton of the Lexington Herald-Leader. In the news, Maker's Mark has lost two of its top leaders as Denny Potter and Jane Bowie leave for a new venture, while Blue Run Spirits is planning a new $51 million distillery. We'll have all of the week's whisky news, tasting notes, and look at what may be the world's toughest whiskey trail to visit.

The Scullys of County Cork have been farming the same land for nine generations over 350 years, but only in the last few years have they started distilling whiskey from their own grain at Clonakilty Distillery. While their whiskey has now reached three years of age, it'll be a couple of more years before that whiskey sees a bottle. We'll talk with Sean Scully and head distiller Oisin Mulcahy on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Kentucky's Bourbon community has raised nearly $1.5 million dollars to help the victims of recent flooding in Eastern Kentucky. Scotch Whisky distillers are being hit hard by inflation, and that could mean higher whisky prices in the short-term future. We'll also have details on the week's new releases and look at a rare cask swap between Kentucky and Scotland on Behind the Label. 

Actors Paul Wesley and Ian Somerhalder discovered their friendship and a mutual love of Bourbon on the set of "The Vampire Diaries" television series. Once the show ended, they decided to launch their own Bourbon brand, Brother's Bond, and it's become one of the fastest-growing new Bourbon brands on the market over the last 18 months. While Wesley's acting career now has him portraying the iconic character of James T. Kirk on "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds," Somerhalder is practically a full-time whiskey blender. The Bourbon "brothers" join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame's Class of 2022 has been unveiled, while the state's Bourbon distillers are raising more than a million dollars to help Kentucky flooding victims through a series of auctions and special bottlings. We'll also explain what "a fifth" means in whiskey terms on Behind the Label, too.

Andrew Welford is described as a "truffle hunter" for whisky history, but his best find to date didn't sell for a penny. In fact, he donated an original John Walker & Sons shares ledger from 1944 that he found on eBay to Diageo's corporate archive in Scotland. We'll talk with him and Isabel Graham-Youll of Whisky.Auction, who helped bring together the book with its new home. In the news, the Kentucky Bourbon Benefit auction to help the state's flooding victims is underway with bidding already exceeding $250,000. We'll have that story and much more, including a Major League Baseball team owner's entry into the whisky business.

Scotland's Isle of Islay is known for its distilleries, and construction will begin soon on the island's 12th distillery near the shores of Laggan Bay. The Islay Boys, Donald MacKenzie and Mackay Smith, plan to build the new Laggan Bay Distillery across from Islay's airport on the site of a former RAF World War II barracks. MacKenzie and Smith also own the island's lone brewery, and plan to make Islay Ales part of the Laggan Bay development. We'll catch up with Donald MacKenzie on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Kentucky's Bourbon community is coming together again to help fellow Kentuckians in need following this month's floods. We'll have that story and check in with one distiller affected by the flooding.

Forty Creek master blender Bill Ashburn celebrated his 35th anniversary in the whisky business this week, and he's one of those blenders content to stay out of the spotlight most of the time. Ashburn and John Hall put Canadian Whisky on a new course in 2000 when they released the Forty Creek Barrel Select and Three Grain whiskies, and Ashburn's whiskies have won countless awards since then. He'll join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we have details on the U.S. government's proposal to create an official definition for American Single Malt whiskies, along with Beam Suntory's plans to invest $400 million to expand production at the Booker Noe Distillery in Kentucky. 

Alcohol has been used for medicinal purposes for centuries, even when the healers of history didn't always know they were distilling alcohol when they made their potions. Some of those potions even sound a lot like today's cocktails, and drinks writer Camper English has been studying the links between alcohol and medicine for his new book Doctors and Distillers. We'll explore some of that history with him this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the American Craft Spirits Association has handed out its annual awards, and we'll have the details. We'll also get a preview of this September's Kentucky Bourbon Festival, and on Behind the Label, we'll answer the question "What's in a (distillery) name?" 

Jackie Zykan could have kept the security of her corporate job as the master taster for Brown-Forman's Old Forester whiskies, but she decided the time was right to spread her wings and fly. She's leading the team behind the new Hidden Barn whiskey brand, and their debut Bourbon hits the market this week. She'll explain why she made the move...and why she's nervous about it...on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, local officials have given the green light for Islay's 12th distillery, while two Virginia men are facing felony charges for selling details on the state's allocations of rare Bourbons and a UK retailer has come up with a special whisky to celebrate the departure of Prime Minister Boris Johnson. 

We all have our own whisky stories to tell, and author Shelley Sackier is sharing hers in the new book "Make It a Double." She's gone from hating that first sip of whisky to becoming director of distillery education at Virginia's Reservoir Distillery over the years, and the book combines serious whisky knowledge with her own unique sense of humor. She'll tell us what that first dram was and how she learned to love whisky on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, former Old Forester master taster Jackie Zykan has announced her plans for a new whiskey brand, while her former colleagues have released one of her final Old Forester whiskies. We'll also have details on the whopping $19 million dollar price tag for a single cask of Ardbeg!

The whisky industry depends on quercus alba, the American White Oak, for hundreds of thousands of whisky barrels each year, and that makes preserving White Oak forests a key priority for those concerned about the industry's future. Climate change and other factors are threatening the long-term sustainability of prime White Oak forests in the Midwest, and the White Oak Initiative is bringing together foresters with those who depend on the viability of the forests. This week on WhiskyCast In-Depth, we'll talk with Brown-Forman's Greg Roshkowski. He's responsible for the company's cooperages and its wood management program, and he's also one of the key players in the White Oak Initiative. We'll also have the week's whisky news and tasting notes for a firecracker of a whiskey from Jack Daniel's - one that should come with a HazMat label!

How do our noses help us enjoy whisky? Turns out the nose has a major role to play in our enjoyment of whisky, food, and life in general. The average nose has around 400 receptors that process aromas, and they're far more sensitive than our tongues are. Dr. Paul Wise is a sensory researcher at Philadelphia's Monell Chemical Senses Center, and his work focuses on how the nose and our other senses process chemical inputs present in our daily life. He'll take us deep inside the nose for a unique WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, building a distillery on Islay wasn't enough for Elixir Distillers, which has now purchased Speyside's Tormore Distillery from Chivas Brothers. We'll hear from Elixir's Sukhinder Singh on his future plans for Tormore. We'll also have details on Sazerac's expansion in Ireland with the purchase of Lough Gill Distillery and the rest of the week's whisky news.

The Sazerac is one of whisky's oldest cocktails, and it's also the official cocktail of New Orleans. They're celebrating the history of the Sazerac all this week in New Orleans with Sazerac Cocktail Week, and we'll visit the home of the Sazerac on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. Sazerac House is a free cocktail museum with its own microdistillery producing small amounts of Sazerac Rum and Peychaud's Bitters, and we'll talk with Matt Ray, the head of visitor experiences, about the history of the cocktail and much more. In the news, Scotch Whisky distillers could be affected by a strike targeting one of Scotland's largest glassmakers, Old Forester's Jackie Zykan is leaving for a new opportunity, and there's a new resource available for planning distillery trips. 

Catoctin Creek's Scott and Becky Harris were honored with the Dave Pickerell Memorial Craft Member of the Year Award during last Thursday's Distilled Spirits Council awards luncheon in New Orleans. The Harrises have been leaders in the craft distilling movement for more than a decade, and are perfectly placed to explain the issues many small-scale distillers face in today's crowded marketplace. We'll talk with them on WhiskyCast In-Depth and check in with Nicole Austin of George Dickel on Behind the Label. She was honored with the Emerging Leader of the Year Award, days after shocking a few purists by releasing a 15-year-old underproof spirit under the Cascade Moon label. In the news, a TTB proposal on American Single Malts could be just days away, and we'll hear from TTB Deputy Administrator David Wulf.

More than 100 Irish farmers grow barley exclusively for Waterford Distillery, but Trevor Harris is one of a handful using biodynamic techniques on his farm. Biodynamics takes organic farming to the extreme, using naturally-based soil supplements instead of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. We'll visit Trevor Harris's farm and the distillery on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, U.S. regulators are taking a second look at bottle size standards, and that could open the door to 500ml whiskies in the future. We'll look at addition and subtraction when it comes to whisky's maturation equation on Behind the Label and much more.

This week's webcast features guests Greg Swartz and Ian Logan. Greg's Scotch Whisky film "The Water of Life" is headed for PBS stations around the U.S. this month, and Ian is the senior director of whisky for Duncan Taylor & Company with a lifetime of experience in the Scotch Whisky industry. We'll also have part of Mark's interview for this week's WhiskyCast episode with country music superstar Brad Paisley, too.

Brad Paisley has entertained millions of people with his music over the years. Deep down, though...he's a whiskey geek just like the rest of us. From "dusty bottle" searches on his concert tours to hauling around a trailer full of whiskey for his American Highway Reserve Bourbon, he's learned to enjoy a dram over the years. He'll talk music and whiskey with us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, and we'll have tasting notes for the Route 2 edition of American Highway Reserve, too. In the news, the world's largest bottle of whisky fell short of setting another world record at an auction this week, while a documentary film on Scotch Whisky is heading for PBS stations in June. We'll also talk with another whisky-inspired artist on Behind the Label...one who was inspired to create a piece of whisky furniture. 

Whisky lovers are making the pilgrimage to Islay for the first time in two years as the Islay Festival of Malt and Music gets underway later this week. There have been a lot of changes at the island's distilleries since the last in-person festival in 2019. For instance, it'll be the first Fèis on the island for Julieann Fernandez as master blender at Bunnahabhain Distillery. She'll join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, police are still searching for two suspects in the Glenfarclas Distillery break-in, while a Canadian distillery is rebranding as part of a settlement with the Scotch Whisky Association.

The "Whisky Sponge," Angus MacRaild, joined us on the latest Happy Hour Live webcast. Not only is he known for his outspoken blog on the Scotch Whisky world, but he's also become an independent bottler as well as a collector. We'll discuss his views on the world of whisky, his disdain for NFT's, and answer some of your questions, too. 

Lexie Phillips grew up around Lynchburg, Tennessee watching generations of her relatives go to work at the Jack Daniel Distillery. Now, she's leading the family - and the distillery team as Assistant Distiller alongside Master Distiller Chris Fletcher. She's been in the role for a little more than a year, and has become a role model for other women working at the distillery. We'll meet Lexie Phillips on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, thieves strike at Glenfarclas Distillery's visitors center, while another generation of Beams gets the title of Master Distiller and millions of dollars in whiskies go on the auction block. We'll have those stories and much more on this week's WhiskyCast!

Photographer Ernie Button's new book, "The Art of Whisky," was published this week, and he joined us on last Friday night's #HappyHourLive webcast along with whisky writers Kyle Swartz of Beverage Dynamics and The Whiskey Wash's Nino Kilgore-Marchetti. You can catch our live webcasts on Friday nights at 5:00pm New York time on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

Blue Run Spirits has only been around for a couple of years, but its whiskies have already found their way into the hearts of whiskey lovers. Of course, it helps to have a Bourbon Hall of Fame distiller like Jim Rutledge as part of the team. The latest Blue Run Bourbon release, Reflection, is out now. We'll talk with co-founder Mike Montgomery and Blue Run's new director of whisky, Shaylyn Gammon, this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we now know what Islay's newest distillery will be named, the Spirit of Speyside Festival hands out its awards, and Johnnie Walker floats the idea of whisky subscriptions in the UK. We'll also have May's Whisky Club of the Month and much more.

Mathew and Julie Cooper built Fannys Bay Distillery next to their home in Tasmania, and their small-scale whiskies are just now becoming available in the United States. The Coopers joined us on our latest #HappyHourLive webcast along with Holly Seidewand of First Fill Spirits and Her Whisky Love, who persuaded them to export their whiskies for the first time. We'll also get the first look at two new bottled in bond whiskies from Jack Daniel's that arrived via The Whisky Fairy just before showtime. 

Two years ago, we brought you the story of Jonathan and Cindy Bray. The Canadian whisky importers were arrested by Idaho State Police on charges of illegally selling whisky out of their storage unit in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and spent 24 days in jail until they were released and allowed to return to Calgary. Last September, they pleaded guilty to a reduced misdemeanor charge and were sentenced to six months of probation, and last month, the case was dismissed after they successfully completed their time on probation. We've never heard their side of the story...until now. In his first interview since the arrests, Jonathan Bray explains why they had their Scotch Whisky Advent Calendars in an Idaho warehouse to begin with, and how a series of cascading circumstances and errors led to their arrests. You'll also hear from the prosecutor in the case, too. In the news, Heaven Hill is investing $135 million to build a new distillery in the Bourbon Capital of the World, while Chivas Brothers will spend $88 million to upgrade two of its Speyside distilleries in Scotland. We'll taste a really old and rare Irish whiskey, and a new Jack Daniel's whiskey leads to a question about "Bottled in Bond" whiskies in our Behind the Label segment.

Back out on the road again for our first whisky festival since the pandemic started! While we were in Las Vegas for The Nth, Richard Paterson and Craig Bridger joined us for a special edition of the Happy Hour Live webcast, and you'll hear part of our conversation on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the human resources departments at several distilleries are busy with new hires, and we'll have the details...along with a conversation with Scott Davidson of Glencairn Crystal about supply chain problems affecting whisky makers and how Glencairn is trying to help solve a shortage of glass bottles. We'll also have tasting notes, Behind the Label, and much more!

Colorado's Coors family has been making beer for five generations, but it's also been supplying many of the state's craft distillers with malted barley for more than a decade. Now, the family has decided to make its own whiskey using a blend of Colorado single malt made with its own malted barley and Bourbons from Kentucky and Indiana. It's part of a company goal to expand into distilled spirits, as David Coors explains on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the results from this year's San Francisco World Spirits Competition are in, and whiskies from Australia did extremely well in the judging. We'll have the rest of the week's whisky news, tasting notes, and on Behind the Label, we'll answer a listener's question about his cloudy bottle of whisky.

Chocolate may well be on your mind heading into Easter weekend, and we'll look at how well whiskies pair with artisan chocolates with Scotland-based whisky and chocolate educator Rachel McCormack on this week's webcast! Here's a hint: not all types of chocolate pair equally well with whiskies. For instance, we found that smoky whiskies work better with lighter chocolates than with dark, rich ones. Catch our live webcasts every Friday at 5:00pm New York time on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch. 

In all of his years as Master Distiller at MGP, Greg Metze never had to worry about the blending side of making whiskey. Now, at Old Elk, he's added blending to his portfolio - and has just released a couple of new Master's Blend whiskies that blend Old Elk's unique mashbills. He's also had to learn the marketing side of the business as well, and he'll join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, it's last call for tours at Kentucky's Barton 1792 Distillery even as other distillers continue to ramp up their visitor experiences. We'll have the latest on new releases, tasting notes, and much more on this week's WhiskyCast!

Women have had a long - and under-appreciated role in brewing and distilling for generations. Beer and spirits writer Tara Nurin explored that history in her book "A Woman's Place Is In the Brewhouse," and joined us in-studio to discuss some of that history over a beer and a dram. 

Midleton's Kevin O'Gorman was tapped two years ago to take over for Brian Nation as Master Distiller, and the results of Whisky Magazine's 2022 Icons of Whisky Awards show he's succeeded in his new role. O'Gorman was named Master Distiller/Blender of the Year, and combines both roles with his annual release of Midleton Very Rare. WhiskyCast's Mark Gillespie sat down over drams with Kevin in Dublin just days after the announcement, and you'll hear their conversation on WhiskyCast In-Depth. Mastering also comes into play with the latest Jameson release, a "remastered" version of the old Jameson 15 Single Pot Still release from two decades ago, and we'll have the story behind it along with tasting notes and the rest of the week's whisky news.

The market for vintage whiskies is hotter than ever, but there are few retailers that can carry things like pre-Prohibition whiskies. One of the exceptions is Justins' House of Whiskey. Justin Sloan and Justin Thompson opened their first store in Lexington, Kentucky after state lawmakers made it legal for retailers to buy vintage bottles from individuals, and later opened a second store in Louisville because of the demand. They've also expanded into producing whiskies of their own, such as the Blackwood Bourbon brand they consulted on with Kentucky Derby-winning horseman Guinness McFadden. We'll talk with the three of them on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the UK has agreed to drop its tariffs on American whiskies and other consumer goods after the two countries reached an agreement on steel and aluminum imports. We'll have complete coverage of that story and the rest of the week's whisky news.

Our latest Happy Hour Live webcast features OurWhisky.com co-founder Becky Paskin just after she unveiled the Our Whisky Foundation to increase diversity within the whisky world. We're also joined by first-time guest cocktail and spirits writer Camper English and Scott Brunow from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society and the Scotch Test Dummies for a wide-ranging conversation covering everything from medicinal cocktails to the latest SMWS releases and more. We'll start this episode off with breaking news, though...as the United States and Great Britain have cleared the way for the end of the UK's tariffs on Bourbon and other American whiskies by resolving their dispute over steel and aluminum exports. The 25% tariff has cost US whisky makers millions of dollars in lost export sales while raising prices for UK whisky lovers over the last four years.

This weekend, Kentucky's historic Castle & Key Distillery will release its first Bourbon since the revived distillery opened several years ago. It'll be the first distillery-released Bourbon since what was then known as the Old Taylor Distillery was closed by National Distillers in 1972 and abandoned several years later. We'll tour the restored distillery with founder Will Arvin and master blender Brett Connors this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth, and taste not only Batch #1, but the upcoming Batch #2 from Castle & Key in the What I'm Tasting This Week Department. In the news, Russian whisky lovers are feeling the pinch as trade sanctions dry up the country's supply of imported whisky, while US and British trade negotiators are meeting this week in Baltimore with the UK's Bourbon tariffs on the agenda. We'll also have another installment of our "how I got started" series for people who want to get into the whisky industry.

Longtime whiskey writer and podcaster Fred Minnick joined us the other night on the Happy Hour Live webcast to talk about everything from Kentucky Bourbon and the legislative process to his ties to the music industry, and took some of your whisky questions, too. You can catch our live webcasts every Friday at 5:00pm New York time on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

This Thursday will be Brian Nation's first St. Patrick's Day outside of Ireland. The veteran distiller joined O'Shaughnessy Distilling in Minneapolis last year after years at Ireland's legendary Midleton Distillery, and as he tells us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, "it was a cold winter." Brian and his family survived the cold, though, and he joined us from their spring break vacation in a much warmer Arizona. In the news, Kentucky lawmakers are a step closer to protecting private barrel picks, while Bardstown Bourbon's founders have cashed out in a private equity sale. Diageo will invest millions to build a new carbon-neutral Crown Royal distillery in Ontario, while the spirits giant paid a £1.2 million GBP fine in Scotland for violating environmental laws over a six-year period. We'll also look at one more aspect of sustainable distilling...what to do with the leftover spent grains when the cattle farmers don't need them.

This week, our Happy Hour Live webcast focused on sustainability in the whisky industry. After all, we want to be able to enjoy a dram with our grandchildren when they're adults years from now, right? Shanna Farrell's new book "A Good Spirit" looks at distillers taking sustainability seriously, while Susannah Skiver Barton's latest article for VinePair covers the growing shortage of new whiskey barrels for craft distillers. You can watch our live webcasts every Friday night at 5:00pm on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch. 

Daithi O'Connell thought he wanted to own his own distillery, and almost pulled the trigger on building one. He thought better of it at the last minute, and decided to go the independent bottler route instead. He launched W.D. O'Connell Whisky Merchants in late 2019, shortly before the pandemic, and that turned out to be an even more well-timed move. He'll explain why on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, and I'll share tasting notes for a couple of his whiskies in the What I'm Tasting This Week Department. In the news, spirits companies are pulling out of Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, while U.S. whisky exports are starting to show gains following the troubled year of 2020. We'll also look at an important anniversary for whisky lovers in our Behind the Label segment, too.

Dr. Don Livermore is the master blender at Hiram Walker Distillery in Windsor, Ontario, and the winner of numerous awards for his Canadian whiskies over the years. He's also a whisky nerd, as we proved during our #HappyHourLive webcast the other night. You can catch the fun each Friday night on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

Tickets for this year's Spirit of Speyside Festival go on sale next Monday (March 7), and festival organizers are hoping for a return to normal after two years of pandemic-caused cancellations and postponements. We'll talk with the festival's new volunteer chairman, George McNeil, about plans to hold a traditional Spirit of Speyside Festival from April 27 through May 2, along with some of the changes planned for this year's event. In the news, we'll look at the Ukraine invasion's impact on the whisky business, along with more details on plans for a new Campbeltown distillery.

St. George Spirits in Alameda, California is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, and is one of the pioneers of the U.S. craft distilling movement. In addition, it was one of the first distilleries to make an American single malt whiskey 20 years ago this year - a whiskey that came out of a job interview. We got the story behind that job interview from Master Distiller Lance Winters and Head Distiller/Blender Dave Smith on the latest #HappyHourLive webcast the other night. You can watch our live shows each Friday night on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

It's been more than a decade since Bill Samuels, Jr. "retired" as chairman of Maker's Mark and turned the reins over to his son Rob, but the 82-year-old Bourbon legend seems just as busy today as ever. He joined us from his office at Maker's Mark headquarters for the #HappyHourLive webcast the other night for a wide-ranging discussion of everything from his early days to being a mentor for today's generation of emerging distillers. Join us each Friday night at 5:00pm New York time for our live webcasts on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

It takes guts to put your whisky up against those from around the world in blind tastings and agree to publish the results no matter what, but the verdict is now in for The Judgement of Westland. Around 2,000 people tasted Westland's American single malt against competitors from Scotland, Australia, and India over the last four months, and in the end, all four malts were separated by just a fraction of a point. We'll discuss the findings with Westland's Steve Hawley on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Scotch Whisky exports are starting to recover from the double whammy of U.S. tariffs and the pandemic, while Biden Administration officials want to increase competitiveness in the American spirits industry. We'll have those stories, along with the new leader in the race to bottle the world's oldest whisky.

Time for our annual visit with the guys from "Off Track with Hinch & Rossi" podcast for a virtual whiskey tasting session. IndyCar veterans Alexander Rossi and James Hinchcliffe joined us for the #HappyHourLive webcast, along with producer Tim Durham and their special guest, Marco Andretti. We tasted the Heaven's Door Redbreast Edition Bourbon, the Dickel/Leopold Bros. Rye collaboration, Redwood Empire's Lost Monarch, and the Crown Royal Noble Collection Winter Wheat edition. Join us for our live webcasts every Friday night at 5:00pm New York time on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

Jeff Arnett left Jack Daniel's nearly 18 months ago with a desire to create his own whiskey brand, and that's just what he and his partners have done with the new Company Distilling. With one Tennessee distillery already in operation, a second under construction, and plans for a third in the works, Company Distilling has high hopes for the future. We talked with Jeff about that future and his past at Jack Daniel's on our #HappyHourLive webcast the other night, and you can catch all of our live webcasts every Friday night at 5:00pm New York time on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

It's been nearly two years since Uncle Nearest and Jack Daniel's joined forces to create the Nearest and Jack Advancement Initiative with a goal of creating new opportunities for people of color in the spirits industry. The Initiative's business incubator program has just graduated its first company after working with Du Nord Social Spirits for more than a year. The Minneapolis distillery was damaged by fire in the unrest that followed the murder of George Floyd by police just a few blocks away in June of 2020, but is making a comeback with plans for an all-new distillery in one of the city's historically Black neighborhoods and its own incubator program to help other local entrepreneurs. We'll catch up with Du Nord founder Chris Montana on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Heaven Hill is acquiring craft spirits producer Samson & Surrey to add premium brands to its portfolio, and new economic data shows growing demand for those premium spirits. We'll also look at what happens when a veteran distiller changes jobs -- and has to change their wardrobe at the same time. 

Our live webcast with Clay Risen of the New York Times and Maggie Kimberl of American Whiskey Magazine went all over the place, with everything from winter weather to fake whiskies and much more! Join us each Friday night at 5:00pm New York time (22:00 GMT/UTC) for our live shows on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

Fakes have been plaguing Scotch Whisky collectors for years, but the rising boom in Bourbon's popularity means more demand than supply -- and that's where counterfeiters see a chance to make money. With empty bottles available for sale online, it's not that hard to create a fake Bourbon...until you get a call from Adam Herz. He's a Los Angeles-based whisky collector who's become an expert in the art of uncovering fake whiskies and the people who create them, and he'll share his story with us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Kentucky alcohol regulators say the private barrel selection business is operating in a gray area of the state's liquor laws, and there's a race in the General Assembly to fix the problem. We'll have that story and how similar issues could affect distillers in other states, along with a revival in whisky-related tourism, liquor shortages for Mardi Gras, and much more.

That Boutique-y Whisky Company releases some of the most unique single cask whiskies on the market, and we're joined this week by Sam "Dr. Whisky" Simmons and Dave Worthington for whisky talk, games, and much more! Join us each Friday night at 5:00pm New York time (22:00 GMT/UTC) for our live shows on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

There was a time when farm distillers dominated whisky production until the advent of large-scale commercial distilling more than 150 years ago. Now, the boom in craft distilling has created a whole new crop of "grain to glass" farm-based distillers like Frey Ranch in Fallon, Nevada. Colby and Ashley Frey founded the distillery in 2013 on the farm east of Reno where Colby's family has lived for generations, and they see whiskey as a way to not only showcase their grains, but provide a future for their kids. We'll take an audio tour of the distillery and farm with Colby Frey on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the U.S. and Great Britain have agreed to re-start trade talks that could lead to the end of the UK's tariff on American whiskey imports, while a new report shows Kentucky's distilleries have a $9 billion annual impact on the state's economy. We'll also have details on expansion plans at Glenmorangie and details on new whiskies, along with tasting notes and much more!

Our Friday night #HappyHourLive webcasts are back! This week's show features Billy Abbott, author of the new book "The Philosophy of Whisky," and Canadian Whisky Awards founder Davin de Kergommeaux. Davin handed out the 2022 Canadian Whisky Awards the night before our webcast, and we'll discuss the winners along with the state of Canadian Whisky. Join us each Friday night at 5:00pm New York time (22:00 GMT/UTC) for our live shows on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch. 

A century ago, Masataka Taketsuru was using the lessons he learned during his time in Scotland to build Japan's emerging whisky industry armed with a notebook full of information. While that notebook remains in Nikka Whisky's archives, it's now been translated into English for the first time. Ruth Anne Herd and Professor Alan Wolstenholme teamed up for the translation, and there's a family connection behind the project. Wolstenholme's grandfather was the manager at Hazelburn Distillery in Campbeltown when Taketsuru was doing his "internship" there, and that's one of the stories Alan Wolstenholme shares with us in this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also have the week's whisky news, including the winners of this year's Canadian Whisky Awards, tasting notes, and much more!

The excisemen of Scotland's past never found all of the illegal whisky stills being used around the country, and traces of those illicit distilleries can be found to this day...if one knows where to look. Derek Alexander knows, and he's on a mission to uncover as much of that history as possible in his role as an archaeologist with the National Trust for Scotland. His search started two decades ago with a project to uncover remains of The Glenlivet's original distillery, and that project continues to this day as well, as he tells us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the wood was flying at the Kentucky Cooperage on New Year's Day, but it wasn't from the coopers...a tornado hit the cooperage with 100mph winds. We'll have the details on that and the rest of the whisky news for the first week of 2022, along with tasting notes and a debate over whether liquor stores should be jacking up the price of Pappy Van Winkle and other rare whiskies.

We'll start the New Year off with an anniversary...the 1oth anniversary for the New York Distilling Co. in Brooklyn's North Williamsburg neighborhood. Allen Katz and his partners opened their distillery in what was at the time a fairly run-down neighborhood, only to see gentrification take shape around them. As Allen discloses on WhiskyCast In-Depth for the first time, that's forcing them to make plans to move to a new location in the very near future both to expand production and comply with the city's pending changes to fire safety codes for distilleries. He'll also explain why they decided to focus almost exclusively on making rye whiskies, including a special 10th anniversary single barrel edition of Ragtime Rye selected by legendary bartender Dale DeGroff. In the news, Europe's tariffs on American whiskies are now officially suspended with the arrival of 2022, and U.S. distillers are jumping back into the European market. We'll get an update on construction plans for Penderyn's third distillery in Wales, and noted chef David Burke tells us about next week's Beef and Bourbon Dinners at nine of his restaurants to raise money for Western Kentucky tornado victims.

OK, the headline is a tease...of course Dr. Nick Savage is a whisky maker. In fact, he's been the master distiller and blender at Scotland's Bladnoch Distillery for the last couple of years. He's just created the latest three Bladnoch single malts, and joins us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. Speaking of heroes, though...there are a lot of them in the whisky world, and many of them helped raise $3.4 million to help Kentucky tornado victims in the Kentucky Bourbon Benefit auction. We'll have the details in this week's news, along with a look at one of the groups behind the auction in our Behind the Label segment. It's our final episode for 2021, so pour a dram, relax, and enjoy this week's WhiskyCast!

There are plenty of collaborations between whisky makers and the entertainment world, from singers and bands to actors who want to make their own whiskies. What's the key to making one of these collaborations work? We'll find out from Balcones Distilling's Jared Himstedt, who just released the Tres Hombres Texas Whisky collaboration with the members of ZZ Top. We'll also taste several other "celebrity" whiskies in the What I'm Tasting This Week Department, too. In the news, bidding has already reached $1.6 million in the Kentucky Bourbon Benefit auction to raise money for Western Kentucky tornado victims! We'll have that story, along with the latest update on a new round of COVID-related lockdowns and whisky event changes, and on Behind the Label, the story of one man who found a way to turn his passion for whisky into a profit...without opening a single bottle.

Ian Buxton is back with another edition in his popular "101 Whiskies" series, "101 Craft and World Whiskies to Try Before You Die." This time, he's defining craft whiskies using a similar standard to the classic one for obscenity: "I know it when I see it." Of course, that's tongue-in-cheek, and as Ian points out on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, the line gets blurrier all the time. In the news, Kentucky's whiskey community is coming together to help the victims of this weekend's deadly tornadoes, and we'll have the details on how you can join the relief effort, too. A Canadian cannabis company is entering the Bourbon business with high hopes for the future, and U.S. craft distillers are celebrating real growth in their business. In our Behind the Label segment, we'll look at the classic worm tub and why it's making a comeback at some of Scotland's distilleries.

John Campbell shocked the Scotch Whisky world a couple of months ago when he disclosed his plans to leave Islay's Laphroaig Distillery after 27 years, with the last 16 as distillery manager. At the time, he wouldn't say what his future plans were...but now, he's joined the young Lochlea Distillery as its production director and master blender. John's very first interview after confirming the move was with WhiskyCast, and you'll hear it on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth! In the news, Scotch Whisky distillers raised more than £2.5 million for organizations helping troubled Scottish youth with The Distillers: One of One auction Friday. We'll have the details, along with news on supply chain shortages affecting the whisky industry, plans for a new visitors centre at Ireland's Midleton Distillery, and a delay in expansion plans for another Irish distillery because of something a critic compared to "Rapunzel's Castle."

Bourbon is booming, and perhaps no distiller is riding the waves of the Bourbon boom more aggressively than Bardstown Bourbon Company. Over its first five years of production, it's expanded to the point where the distillery is now one of the ten largest distilleries in the United States and sought out by potential collaborators of all kinds. Those collaborators range from Hall of Fame distillers to winemakers, entrepreneurs, and musicians - including Brad Paisley's new "American Highway" Bourbon. The distillery's Dan Callaway joins us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, there's a debate over who should be allowed to enforce standards for Irish Whiskey, while another British diplomat is leaving the world of foreign policy behind to join the Scotch Whisky Association. 

The grain used to make many of today's whiskies isn't always picked for its flavor, but that's not the distiller's fault. Blame the commodity grain system, in which the largest grain customers determine what types of rye, corn, wheat, and barley are most widely planted by farmers. It's the Golden Rule, in which the one with the most gold gets to call the shots...and distillers aren't the ones with the most gold. Because of that, many grain types distillers would love to use are consigned to "heirloom" status or forgotten entirely. That's what happened to Rosen Rye, a strain prized for generations by Pennsylvania distillers that almost disappeared completely - until a small band of mavericks brought it back to life. Earlier this month, a team of craft distillers gathered at George Washington's Distillery at Mount Vernon to make a batch of Rosen Rye, and we'll have that story for you on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the whisky portfolio for South Africa's Distell Group is being split up in a merger with Heineken, while Pernod Ricard has fired up the stills at its first malt whisky distillery in China and another craft distiller is celebrating its 10th anniversary.

Stock car racing got its start when illicit whiskey makers took their souped-up cars to the track after outrunning the police at night, but Tom and Kim Carter Bard have flipped the script on that story. While they still go racing, they're also making whiskey at The Bard Distillery, and if that name sounds familiar, it's because Tom's ancestors founded Bardstown, Kentucky two centuries ago...though the family never made a drop of whiskey until the Bards opened their distillery in Western Kentucky's Muhlenberg County. We'll talk with them on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth as we celebrate the 16th anniversary of whisky's longest-running podcast series!

Much has been written, and done, about the impact of Scotch Whisky production on climate change over the last decade. Much less has been written about the potential impacts of climate change to Scotch Whisky makers, from distillery water sources drying up in periods of drought to reduced crop yields for barley farmers. As world leaders are gathered in Glasgow for the UN's COP26 climate change summit, a new study by University College London researchers looks at those potential impacts. We'll talk with Carole Martin, one of the lead researchers, and Daniel Sherry of Glengoyne and Ian Macleod Distillers, which funded the study. In the news, there's finally an end in sight for the European Union's retaliatory import tariffs on American whiskies following this weekend's G-20 Summit in Rome. Diageo is breaking ground on its first malt whisky distillery in China, and Scotch Whisky industry leaders are looking warily at the UK Government's new plans for taxing whisky and other spirits starting in 2023. We'll have those stories, and in this week's Behind the Label segment, a look at how one American distillery makes the most of every drop of water it uses.

Northern California is known for its wines, but distillers have been quietly making excellent whiskies there for many years. Now, Sonoma County's Redwood Empire Distillery is releasing its first bottled in bond whiskies: Grizzly Beast Bourbon and Rocket Top Rye, named for some of California's legendary redwood trees. Distillers Jeff Duckhorn and Lauren Patz join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth along with CEO Aaron Webb. In the news, the Heaven Hill strike is over after six weeks, and you'll hear from the union leader who led 420 workers out on strike and back to work starting this week. We'll have the latest whisky news, tasting notes, and another comparison between wine and whisky in our Behind the Label segment.

Independent bottlers buy casks of whisky and sell them under their own labels, and while they're common in Scotland and other parts of the world, independent bottlers are much less common in the United States. Last year, Nora Ganley-Roper and Adam Polonski gave up their day jobs to start Lost Lantern with a goal of bottling some of the best American whiskies available. So far, their whiskies have been a success, and they celebrated their first anniversary with a new release of five different whiskies from distilleries around the U.S. They'll join us on WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss that early success, the difficulties in establishing an independent bottler, and working together as a couple during the pandemic. In the news, longtime Johnnie Walker master blender Jim Beveridge is retiring at year's end, and his successor will break new ground for the 201-year-old brand. Emma Walker will become the first woman to hold the title in Johnnie Walker's long history. Heaven Hill is hiring replacements for its striking workers in Kentucky, and one of Australia's largest distillers is planning a major expansion after its latest acquisition. We'll have those stories and much more...including what can happen when a royal visit to a distillery doesn't quite go as planned.

Today's Buffalo Trace Distillery started out 164 years ago when Daniel Swigert started making whiskey on the banks of the Kentucky River. His distillery didn't really have a name back then, and the site's had many names over the years as part of its history...one that includes legendary names like Taylor, Stagg, Blanton, and Lee. F. Paul Pacult's latest book, "Buffalo, Barrels, & Bourbon" dives deeply into that history, and he joins us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, tariff talks between the U.S. and the European Union are coming down to the deadline again, and that has Bourbon makers nervous. Distillers in Ireland are proposing to update the legal standards for Irish Whiskey, and the world's oldest whisky goes on the auction block. 

Springbank's Findlay Ross and Ranald Watson joined us from Campbeltown, Scotland on the latest Happy Hour Live webcast to answer your whisky questions. We also talked about plans for J&A Mitchell's third distillery to be built in Campbeltown, with a goal of having it open in time for Springbank's 200th anniversary in 2028. There are also new environmental initiatives in the works for Springbank and Glengyle distilleries, along with new whiskies and the return of Springbank's popular whisky school in 2022.

Master Blender Sandy Hyslop usually creates his whiskies and lets someone else worry about the packaging, but for the debut of the Royal Salute Couture Collection, he had the challenge of creating a 21-year-old whisky to match designer Richard Quinn's bespoke decanter. We'll discuss that challenge and the craft of whisky blending on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, longtime Laphroaig manager John Campbell is stepping down, while the Heaven Hill strike in Kentucky is now in its third week. We'll have those stories, along with the latest whisky news and a bit of advice: watch out for desk chairs...they can have a mind of their own!

Colby and Ashley Frey own and operate Frey Ranch Farmers + Distillers, a true "grain to glass" farm distillery in Fallon, Nevada. Not only do they grow all of their own grain, but the only thing the Frey family didn't build themselves was the still - a unique combination of column and pot stills custom-built by Vendome. The Freys did have to assemble the still, though...and that's one of the stories they shared on our Happy Hour Live webcast the other night. We're also joined by Aberfeldy's Gareth Howells and actor Beth Behrs, known for her roles on "The Neighborhood" and "Two Broke Girls." They'll tell us about Aberfeldy's #BarrelsAndBees program to protect and expand critically endangered honeybee habitat, along with Beth's own experiences in both whisky and beekeeping.

Bourbon fermenters are bubbling all over the United States because of unprecedented global demand for "America's Native Spirit." September is Bourbon Heritage Month, and there's a sound argument to be made that history will remember this as one of the brightest periods ever for Bourbon. We'll look at the business fueling that growth this week with Steve Beam of Limestone Branch Distillery in Kentucky, Trey Zoeller of Jefferson's Bourbon, and Craig Johnson of Pernod Ricard USA. His colleagues have been among the most active investors in Bourbon over the last five years, including acquiring Jefferson's 18 months ago. In the news, the U.S. will open its borders for whiskey tourism starting in November, while the Heaven Hill strike continues in Kentucky. In our Behind the Label segment, we'll look at two different methods of distilling whiskey...both involve grain, of course, but that's where the similarities end.

Live broadcasting is sort of like walking a tightrope...most of the time, it works. Then, there are those times when one's walking the tightrope while juggling chainsaws, and that's what happened during our #HappyHourLive webcast Friday night at the American Whiskey Convention. While the live video stream was plagued with technical glitches, our audio backup made this episode possible! Thanks to all of our guests who joined us Friday night, as well as those of you who watched the live video stream. 

Distillers like to say they're laying down whiskies for the next generation, but in many cases, it's their next generation who will be bottling those whiskies. That tradition is being passed on now in the Noe and Russell families, as Freddie Noe and Bruce Russell take on more and more responsibilities at the Jim Beam and Wild Turkey distilleries. Freddie is the eighth generation of his branch of the Beam family tree, and will eventually take over for his father Fred Noe as Beam's master distiller. Bruce is the son of Wild Turkey Master Distiller Eddie Russell, who had to work for decades under his father, the legendary Jimmy Russell...who celebrated his 67th anniversary at Wild Turkey this past Friday. We'll catch up with Freddie and Bruce on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, it's Kentucky Bourbon Festival week in Bardstown, but this year's festival is being hit by both Covid-19 and a strike at Heaven Hill that's forced that distillery to pull out of festival events.  We'll have those stories and in our Behind the Label segment, we'll remember one of whisky's unsung heroes who passed away the other day.

Four Roses is releasing its 2021 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon this month, and Master Distiller Brent Elliott joined us on the latest #HappyHourLive webcast with the details. We're also joined by Darryl McNally. who stepped down as Master Distiller at Ireland's Dublin Liberties Distillery recently to start his own Limavady Irish Whiskey brand and revive his family's distilling heritage in Northern Ireland's County Antrim. Whisky Magazine editor Christopher Coates makes his first appearance on our Friday night webcasts, too. Join us each Friday at 5:00pm New York time for our live webcasts on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch!

On a cold, wintry Scottish day in February of 1940, one of Gordon & MacPhail's Sherry casks was filled with new make spirit at Glenlivet Distillery. That cask lasted through wars, recessions, and a couple of generations of Urquhart family members to become the oldest Scotch Whisky ever bottled: the Gordon & MacPhail Generations Glenlivet 80 Years Old. Stephen Rankin of Gordon & MacPhail joins us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth to share the story behind this rare whisky...and we'll taste it, too! In the news, global shortages of glass bottles and packaging materials caused by the pandemic are about to result in higher whisky prices, while Diageo has opened its new Johnnie Walker experience in Edinburgh and Beam a new distillery in Kentucky. We'll also look at a unique way to add the character of a wood to whisky when it's impossible to actually make a cask from that wood.

Make sure your battery's charged for this one, since we spent nearly two hours talking the other night with longtime Scotch Whisky and Bourbon ambassdors Steve Beal, David Blackmore, and Ewan Morgan, along with Stranahan's head distiller Owen Martin. We covered everything from Steve's ongoing fight against pancreatic cancer to life on the road and Owen's latest distillery exclusive bottling for Stranahan's. Join us each Friday night for our #HappyHourLive webcast at 5pm New York time on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch.

Paul Hletko opened FEW Spirits in the Chicago suburb of Evanston, Illinois in 2011 as part of the explosion of small-scale distilleries around the United States. He became a leader in the craft distilling movement, and is celebrating FEW's 10th anniversary with the release of a commemorative four-grain Bourbon this week. We'll talk with Paul about balancing the art and commerce of making whisky on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, travel restrictions may be going back into effect that could affect whisky tourism, while the owner of a Kentucky distillery has now agreed to plead guilty to charges in the Operation Varsity Blues case and avoid a trial next month. We'll also have news on a new series of whiskies from The Macallan, and on Behind the Label, we'll explain why some distilleries use "The" in their names. 

If there's one thing that whisky teaches us, it's patience. Australians Vanessa Wilton and David Whittaker have learned that lesson over the last four years since they opened the Manly Spirits Company distillery in the Sydney-area beach resort of Manly. They had planned to release their first single malt whisky late last year, but of course, the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns delayed that plan. The Sydney area is back in lockdown again, but they've decided to go ahead and release that first whisky through a ballot that opens this week. I talked with Vanessa and David during a trip to Australia two years ago, and decided to wait until their first whisky was ready to share the interview with you. In the news, Jack Daniel's is doing something it hasn't done since Jack Daniel himself was alive...release a whiskey with an age statement. We have the details, along with an update on events being affected by the pandemic and the rest of the week's whisky news. 

Brian Nation is best known for his work as Master Distiller at Ireland's Midleton Distillery, and he shocked Irish whiskey lovers when he stepped down nearly a year ago to join the startup O'Shaughnessy Distilling Co. in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Covid kept him from making the move with his family until a couple of weeks ago, so he did much of his work remotely from Ireland with occasional trips to Minnesota. Now, the distillery is complete along with Brian's first batch of Keeper's Heart Irish + American Whiskey, a blend of Irish Single Pot Still and grain whiskies with American Rye whiskey. He joined us from the distillery for our #HappyHourLive webcast the other night, along with J. Rieger & Co. co-founder Ryan Maybee. The Kansas City distillery is releasing its first Bottled in Bond Rye Whiskey this week, and it's the first whiskey legally distilled in Kansas City since the end of Prohibition.

Everyone has questions about whisky. Dr. Nick Morgan knows more about whisky than most people, and his second pandemic-era book has just been published in a partnership with The Whisky Exchange. Everything You Need to Know About Whisky (but are too afraid to ask) answers many of those questions. We'll talk with Nick about his new book, along with his recent Master of Malt blog column on the role some Scotch Whisky makers played in the rise of Japanese whiskies. In the news, Beam Suntory is entering the direct-to-consumer whisky business, while Beam's Freddie Noe has written a new chapter in his Little Book series of whiskies. There's also a new chapter in the Parker's Heritage Collection series of whiskies, while a couple of upstarts are starting their own histories in the whiskey world.

Earlier this month, Nick Ravenhall and his brother Alex did something most of us would never dream of trying. They led a small team of swimmers through Scotland's treacherous Corryvreckan whirlpool as part of their Whisky and Waves campaign of open-water swims around Great Britain. The "Whisky Smugglers" are carrying small bottles of whisky during their swim that will be blended and sold later this year to raise money for Sea Shepherd's ocean conservation efforts in New Zealand, where the Ravenhall brothers call home. Nick joined us on the #HappyHourLive webcast along with Horse Soldier Bourbon co-founder Scott Neil. He and his partner, John Koko, were part of the U.S. Army's team of Green Berets that led the post 9/11 invasion of Afghanistan on horseback, a mission that was portrayed in the movie 12 Strong. They've turned to making whiskey now, with plans for a $150 million dollar distillery project in Somerset, Kentucky that is in the final stages of approval, but they still have adventure in their blood as well. 

When you drink a glass of whisky, spare a thought for the lonely Quercus Alba. Without the thousands of American White Oak trees harvested every year, we wouldn't have Bourbon or most other whiskies, since Bourbon barrels wind up at distilleries all over the world. Kentucky claims to make 95% of the world's Bourbon, so one might think the Commonwealth would honor that with its choice for the state's official tree...but no. Lexington-based forestry scientist Tom Kimmerer and some of his colleagues want to change that, and are starting a campaign to persuade state lawmakers to replace the yellow poplar with a much more popular (and logical) choice. We'll talk with Tom on WhiskyCast In-Depth about the logical reasons for choosing the White Oak, along with his op-ed column last week in the Lexington Herald-Leader on how Kentucky could become a destination for "climate change refugees" escaping coastal communities. In the news, the big mystery in whisky circles is what happened to a $5,800 bottle of Japanese whisky given as a gift to former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo two years ago. State Department investigators are trying to find out, and we'll hear from Pompeo himself...who says he wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a $58 bottle of whisky and a $5,800 bottle.

We're going into the #HappyHourLive webcast archives for this episode! Legendary distiller Jim McEwan joined us last February on the webcast, shortly before he announced his retirement from the Scotch Whisky industry, and this was one of his final interviews. He shared stories and answered your questions for nearly two hours that night, and we thought it was worth sharing with more of you. 

Jack Daniel's is arguably America's most well-known whiskey brand, but there's a lot we don't know about the history of Jack Daniel himself. The truth behind some of the mysteries around Jack Daniel's went to the grave with him when he died 110 years ago, and historians have been trying to piece together the details for years. Nelson Eddy is the distillery's official historian, and joins us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth to shed some light on those myths and misconceptions. In our Behind the Label segment, we'll also get the definitive answer from Master Distiller Chris Fletcher to another widely-debated question: should Jack Daniel's be considered a Bourbon? In the news, whisky lovers may think of a cocktail when they hear Manhattan, but that's about to change with the opening of Manhattan's first whisky distillery in 100 years. We'll have that and much more on this week's podcast!

Bob Baxter distills the award-winning Two Brewers Canadian single malts with co-founder Alan Hansen at their Yukon Spirits distillery in Whitehorse, Yukon, and Todd Leopold makes equally renowned whiskies with his brother Scott at Denver's Leopold Bros. Distilling. Bob and Todd joined us on the latest #HappyHourLive webcast to talk about their whiskies, along with the unique three-chamber still now being used at Leopold Bros. We also talked a bit of hockey, shared heritage in the Detroit area, and much more on the webcast, too! 

Nearly four years after Toby Curtsinger was released from prison after serving just 30 days of a 15-year sentence, he's telling his side of the "PappyGate" saga. Curtsinger, his wife Julie, and eight other people were indicted in connection with the thefts of thousands of dollars' worth of whiskey from Buffalo Trace and Wild Turkey distilleries, but Toby Curtsinger was the only one who served any time in prison. He's always maintained that he wasn't responsible for the 2013 theft of nearly 200 bottles of Pappy Van Winkle whiskies, and his story is part of the Netflix documentary series "Heist." We'll talk with "Heist" director Nick Frew on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, tickets for this year's Kentucky Bourbon Festival are sold out, but some Bardstown residents don't see that as a good thing. Whisky events in Europe are starting to require attendees to show proof of Covid vaccination or negative tests, and the push for sustainability has whisky makers looking to the forests. 

The reaction to last week's bonus episode with Stephanie Macleod of Dewar's was so positive that we're doing it again this week! Wes Henderson of Angel's Envy joined us Friday night for the #HappyHourLive webcast, and we talked about everything from the construction underway at the distillery in Louisville to lab-created whiskies and what defines a "master distiller." That's something Wes knows well, since he co-founded Angel's Envy with his father, the late master distiller and original Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame inductee Lincoln Henderson. Wes joined his father in the Hall of Fame two years ago, and answered many of your whisky questions during the webcast, too!

The Scottish town of Dornoch has a lot of history, and the Thompson brothers are adding a new chapter to the town's legacy. Their family owns the historic Dornoch Castle Hotel, and after managing the hotel and its world-class whisky bar for several years, Phil and Simon Thompson decided to open their own distillery near the hotel four years ago. They've only bottled one cask of their own whisky so far as a thank-you for supporters who helped crowdfund the project, and have also started their own range of independent bottlings to keep the business going while their own whisky continues to mature. That's also given them a unique perspective of the whisky industry as connoisseurs, whisky makers, and bar owners...and not everything they've seen in recent years makes them happy. We'll talk with the brothers on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the relaxation of some pandemic-related health restrictions could open up more whisky travel and event opportunities soon, and we'll have the details on the week's new whiskies. We'll also have a tribute to one of the great distillers of his day and tasting notes for a rare whisky sample that slipped through the cracks years ago!

With many people starting to return to the office, we know you may not have as much time to watch our #HappyHourLive webcasts on Fridays. That's why we're trying something new: a podcast version starting with last Friday night's conversation with Dewar's Master Blender Stephanie Macleod. You'll hear everything as it happened on the live show, with minimal editing to remove some audio glitches that come with producing live content on the web. If you have comments, please use the contact form on the WhiskyCast web site to let us know, since we're trying to decide whether to offer these special episodes in addition to the regular podcast episode each week. 

There are lots of things about American history that never make into the history textbooks. For instance, the Mayflower left for America with three times as much beer on board as drinking water, and while George Washington may have been the first U.S. President to become a whiskey distiller, at least two of his successors also owned whiskey distilleries. Harris Cooper digs into some of the things the textbook writers left out in his new book "American History Through a Whiskey Glass," and he'll join us on this week's podcast. In the news, the Scotch Whisky Association is looking for a new leader as chief executive Karen Betts prepares to move on, while British officials may be ready to act on the American whiskey tariff soon. We'll have those stories and much more, and on Behind the Label, we'll explain what the story behind WhistlePig Rye's newest release has in common with a Margarita.

The Ayrshire farm where Scotland's legendary bard, Robert Burns, once worked the fields has now become intertwined with another Burns legacy: his love for whisky. The family-owned Lochlea Farm opened its distillery three years ago next month, taking the barley from those fields and turning it into whisky. Until now, the distillery has kept a low profile, but it's starting to bloom ahead of the first release of Lochlea single malt whisky later this year. Veteran distillery manager Malcolm Rennie is overseeing operations at Lochlea while David Ferguson handles the commercial side of the business, and they'll both join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, South Africa is temporarily banning alcohol sales again with Covid-19 cases on the rise, while global travel restrictions caused the first year-over-year decline for Irish Whiskey sales worldwide in a decade. 

Why do we drink, even though we know drinking too much isn't good for us? Is it human nature...perhaps in our DNA? Since there are people with a genetic mutation that makes them sick when they drink, why hasn't that mutation spread throughout the world? Is that a sign that perhaps evolution recognizes some benefits from the occasional dram? Those are some of the questions University of British Columbia professor Edward Slingerland looks at in his new book "Drunk: How We Slipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization." He joins us this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll expand on the question in Behind the Label with a look at the lack of links so far between whisky and cannabis. In the news, the new Bourbon Alliance is pushing back on Great Britain's American whiskey tariff from both sides of the Atlantic, while whisky is flowing again from one of Scotch Whisky's most historic places.

Is Tennessee Whiskey Bourbon? That argument has divided whisky lovers for years, but Nicole Austin says it is. She's the head distiller and general manager at Diageo's Cascade Hollow Distillery, the home of George Dickel Tennessee Whiskey. To prove her point, she created the new Dickel Bourbon, and she'll make her case on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Uncle Nearest opens up the latest phase of its new distillery in Tennessee, complete with artifacts from the original distillery Nathan "Nearest" Green and Jack Daniel ran following the Civil War. There's a cease-fire on one front in the trade war between Europe and the United States, and that means the end of U.S. tariffs on single malts from Scotland and Northern Ireland. We'll also have details on an upcoming extra-old whisky from Scotland, and on Behind the Label, we'll look at the difference altitude makes when you're making whiskey.

Earlier this year, Japan's whisky makers agreed on a voluntary definition for "Japanese Whisky" after decades of quietly blending their own whiskies with imported whiskies from Scotland, Canada, and elsewhere. That new definition requires "Japanese Whisky" to actually be fermented, distilled, and matured in Japan, while whiskies blended with imports are now to be labeled as "world blends." The change has put Japan's whiskies under increasing scrutiny and demands for transparency, and one American-based upstart launched its whiskies last October with transparency in mind. While Shibui produces "world blends," it also works with distillers on the island of Okinawa to create single grain Japanese whiskies made from rice. Shibui co-founder Nicholas Pollacchi explains the difference on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also talk about Danish Whisky and a Whisky Danish, too...

Brendan McCarron had a safe, secure job as Dr. Bill Lumsden's hand-picked "heir apparent" on the Glenmorangie and Ardbeg whisky creation team, but he was missing something. Earlier this year, he jumped at the chance to get back to distilling when Distell offered him the chance to become master distiller for its Bunnahabhain, Deanston, and Tobermory distilleries. Brendan did his first public appearances for Distell during Bunnahabhain's virtual Feis Ile events this past week, and we'll hear from him on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Islay's distilleries have starting to gradually reopen to tourists as pandemic-related health restrictions are easing, while whisky tariffs may be back on the table as the European Union tries to push Great Britain to follow through on key Brexit agreements. We'll also have the details on Uncle Nearest founder Fawn Weaver's mission to help other minorities succeed in the spirits industry and much more!

Before Prohibition, New York was known for its Rye whiskies distilled from locally-grown grain. Decades later, a new generation of New York State craft distillers came up with the Empire Rye concept as a way to promote both their individual rye whiskies and help encourage farmers to grow more rye in their fields. The first Empire Rye-labeled whiskies came out four years ago, and the six pioneering distilleries now number nearly 30 either bottling their own Empire Ryes or maturing them for future releases. Jason Barrett of Rochester's Black Button Distilling was one of Empire Rye's founders, and he'll join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we'll have details on some of the week's new whiskies from around the world. We'll also have an update on free trade talks between Great Britain and India that could ease the tariff burden on Scotch Whisky exports to India ...and the story of a very good dog helping to sniff out faults in whiskies.

Distillers depend on the environment for every ingredient that goes into making whisky and are under increasing pressure to reduce the environmental impact of making whisky, even at distilleries that have been around for more than two centuries. Glen Garioch Distillery in the Scottish Highlands is one example where sustainability means a return to some of Scotch Whisky's traditional practices. As part of Beam Suntory's "Proof Positive" initiative, Glen Garioch has installed a new direct-firing system for its stills and resurrected the old floor maltings to produce some of its malted barley on-site. We'll get the details from Glen Garioch distillery manager Kwanele Mdluli and Alistair Longwell, who oversees Beam Suntory's distilleries in Scotland, on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the British government is starting a consultation process that could mean the end of the import tariff on Bourbon and other American whiskies, while one of Scotland's legendary distilleries has roared back to life after nearly four decades. 

Ed Belfour has won all kinds of awards during his Hall of Fame hockey career, from the Stanley Cup to an Olympic Gold Medal. Last month, one of the Belfour Spirits rye whiskies he made with his son Dayn and daughter Reaghan won their fledgling whiskey company its highest honor yet - a Double Gold medal in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. We'll catch up with Ed and Dayn Belfour on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, and try to pin them down for a prediction on this year's Stanley Cup playoffs too. In the news, we'll continue the countdown to the doubling of Europe's tariffs on American-made whiskies at the end of this month. There's labor news facing whisky makers in Scotland and the U.S., while Ireland's Dingle Distillery is planning a major expansion. In our Behind the Label segment, we'll look at a patent dispute between Australian distillers that's threatening to become a worldwide problem.

Note: Several hours after this episode was released, the European Union announced that it would temporarily suspend the tariff increase on American whiskies that had been set to go into effect on June 1. We will have complete coverage on the next episode of WhiskyCast and elsewhere here at WhiskyCast.com.

Counterfeit whiskies are becoming more of a problem, but technology might just help provide a solution in the future. Whisky makers are starting to explore the use of blockchain technology to provide a traceable record of their whiskies right down to the bottle, with increased transparency and the potential to show if a bottle has been tampered with. Chris Ratcliff will break the code behind blockchain for us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the deadline for a doubling of tariffs on American whiskies by the European Union and Great Britain is getting dangerously close at a time when federal pandemic economic aid for distilleries is still in its early days. We'll have those stories and later, we'll bust the myth of the so-called "neck pour."

Skinner's Joe Hyman is used to seeing bottles of pre-Prohibition whiskies, and even some going back to before the Civil War. That's what he thought he was looking at when a South Carolina family decided to auction a bottle of Old Ingledew Bourbon that had been in its family for the last three generations. While the story was interesting, carbon dating testing came back with something even more unusual...the whisky had likely been distilled between 1760 and 1803! Joe Hyman joins us with more of the story on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we'll have the real numbers on what Conor McGregor and his partners made for selling their Proper No. Twelve Irish Whiskey brand, and it's nowhere near the $600 million various media reports are claiming. We'll also hear a tribute to Scotch Whisky from Prince Charles and much more!

In our last episode, we looked at how different types of Rye produce different flavors in whisky. While that's relatively new understanding for Rye, it's been common practice for generations among distillers to search out the latest, greatest Barley strains available for making single malts. However, most of those strains are selected not by distillers, but by maltsters looking for yield per acre and not necessarily flavor per dram. Seattle's Westland Distillery has been working with Barley mavericks in Washington's Skagit Valley to explore strains that don't exist in the "commodity system" for several years, and master distiller Matt Hofmann joins us with the story behind Colere, their upcoming single malt series that focuses on those unique strains of Barley. We'll also have the week's whisky news, including a management shakeup on Islay that caught the island by surprise. 

Whisky lovers can probably name at least a few varieties of barley commonly used to make single malts, but rye? Rye doesn't get the same respect for its diversity, even though it's been around for hundreds of years. Mike Swanson of Minnesota's Far North Spirits has led a team of researchers looking into the flavors different strains of rye have when they're distilled into whisky. That study has just been released, and he'll discuss the findings with us on WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also compare some of the whiskies from that study, cover the week's whisky news, and much more!

Bourbons Bistro had everything ready to go for its 15th anniversary dinner in April...of 2020. Of course, the Covid-19 pandemic forced the Louisville landmark to cancel its plans, and there were times when it looked like the bistro might suffer the same fate as many other bars and restaurants that went out of business over the past year. Jason Brauner and his team made it, though, and will celebrate with a 16th anniversary dinner on April 21.  We'll talk with Jason about the events of the past year - and the 15 years before it - on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we now know more about Jeff Arnett's future plans after leaving Jack Daniel's ahead of a formal announcement next week, while Diageo plans a pricey release of rare Brora whiskies next month to celebrate the distillery's reopening. We'll also have details on two charity projects from the Bourbon world and much more on this week's WhiskyCast!

Distillers are always looking to the future. After all, many are laying down casks of whisky for future generations to bottle. Now, more distillers are looking ahead for a different reason...to make sure their distilleries have a minimal impact on the environment. Scotland's Nc'Nean Distillery was named "Sustainable Distillery of the Year" in Whisky Magazine's 2021 Icons of Whisky Awards, and we'll talk with Nc'Nean founder Annabel Thomas on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Scotland's government is slowly relaxing strict public health restrictions, and that's allowing distillery shops to start opening again. We'll also have details on a groundbreaking new Bourbon, the latest innovation from Bruichladdich, the retirement of a longtime whisky blender, and the celebration of a 60-year-long (and counting) career for Glen Grant's Dennis Malcolm.

Virtually every major whisky event worldwide in the past year has been cancelled, postponed, or gone virtual because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, live events are returning in Florida, Texas, and Nevada over the next month as vaccination rates in the U.S. rise, and more event promoters are preparing to return later this year. Is it too soon, and can live whisky events be done safely? Dave Sweet's Whiskey and Barrel Nite event last September in New Jersey was one of the few in-person events that went on as planned, with no Covid-19 cases later connected to the event. Now, his team is preparing to hold what may be the largest whisky event in a year. Nearly 500 tickets have been sold for the Whiskey Obsession Festival in Tampa April 8th, even though many major whisky brands will not be participating. We'll talk with Dave Sweet about the event's health guidelines and his timeline for a "return to normal" on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Ardbeg has opened its new stillhouse, Beam Suntory is reviving some of Glen Garioch's past, and we have highlights from Whisky Magazine's World Whiskies Awards and Icons of Whisky Awards.

Distilling is one of the oldest chemical processes we know of, and many people have made great whiskies without formal training in chemistry. That doesn't necessarily make it an art, though...and Diageo's Lora Hemy recognizes elements of both art and science in her work. She's the head distiller at Roe & Co. in Dublin, but started out as an art student in college and sees a lot of similarities between art and chemistry. We'll talk with her on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth and answer another age-old question: Just what does an Irish Whiskey distiller do on St. Patrick's Day? In the news, new U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai plans to make a priority out of solving the steel and aluminum trade battle with Europe that led to tariffs on U.S. whiskeys...before those tariffs double on June 1. We'll also have the latest from the law and order department as lawsuits pit distillers against each other, the week's tasting notes, and how a common fertilizer used by many farmers can cause problems for whisky makers.

Women make up a growing percentage of whisky industry leaders, from distillers and blenders to spirits company executives. However, a new study from OurWhisky.com shows that women still have a long way to go when it comes to equal treatment in whisky marketing -- especially in social media. OurWhisky.com co-founder Becky Paskin joined us this week on the #HappyHour webcast to discuss the findings as part of our writers' roundtable with Jonny McCormick of Whisky Advocate, and we'll share part of that discussion with you on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, federal help will soon be available for struggling U.S. distilleries, while Kentucky Bourbon Festival organizers are hoping the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic will be behind us by this September's festival. We'll have details on new whiskies and much more on this St. Patrick's Week edition of WhiskyCast.

It's been a year since we took WhiskyCast to New Zealand for the first time to do the show from Whisky Galore's DramFest in Christchurch just before the Covid-19 pandemic shut down worldwide travel. Since then, more distilleries have come on line in New Zealand, with 19 distilleries now making whisky. Now, the distillers have come together to create a set of standards defining New Zealand whisky - with an eye to both protecting the whisky and the country's indigenous culture. Tash McGill of Distilled Spirits Aotearoa (New Zealand's original name) joins us this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth to share that story. In the news, there's a cease-fire in the trade war between the U.S. and Europe, though American whiskey makers are still taking fire from tariffs on their exports. We'll have that story and much more, including the unique method of an award-winning master blender and March's Whisky Club of the Month.

Silicon Valley is the technology center of the world, but Virag Saksena has made the switch from mashing together code to mashing barley. He's a former software engineer and Oracle executive who founded San Jose's 10th Street Distillery in 2017 with his partner, chemical engineer Vishal Nauri. They're exploring a shared passion for single malt whiskies...especially peated single malts, with the goal of creating a "great" California single malt whisky. We'll meet Virag Saksena on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, help  is getting closer for the U.S. hospitality industry to cope with the economic impact of the pandemic, while Scotch Whisky makers are hoping for help from their government when the new budget is announced this week. New Zealand's whisky makers are joining the rush to define the terms for their whiskies, and the pandemic-delayed Canadian Whisky Awards winners are celebrating.

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Japan's whiskies have been getting more attention on the world stage. While some "Japanese Whiskies" are rightly winning awards in major competitions, others with the same label are often Scotch or Canadian whiskies imported into Japan - where there's no legal definition for what is a "Japanese Whisky" and what isn't. Now, Japan's whisky makers are stepping in where the government has so far failed to act, creating an industry-wide definition requiring that whiskies labeled as "Japanese Whisky" must actually be distilled in Japan. We'll discuss the new standards with Makiyo Masa of Dekantā, one of the largest online retailers specializing in Japanese whiskies. In the news, Texas distillers are trying to thaw out after winter weather left many of them without utilities for the last week, while Brown-Forman plans to invest $95 million to expand its flagship distillery in Louisville. We'll have details on the week's new whiskies and look at the latest scientific research on terroir in whisky.

Scotland's legendary whisky island is getting yet another new distillery. Local officials have approved the plans for the new Elixir Distillers project just east of Port Ellen, making it the third new distillery to be built on Islay in the last five years and the 11th overall. Elixir Distillers co-founder Sukhinder Singh has been trying to get the project past the planning stage for nearly three years, and gives us his first interview on the distillery in this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also have reaction from one of the Islay groups that fought against the distillery over its potential impact on the island. In the news, an Australian distiller is in critical condition following a fire at a Tasmanian distillery this past week. We'll also have the latest Scotch Whisky export data that shows a really rough year for the industry with a double whammy from the Covid-19 pandemic and U.S. import tariffs, the week's new whiskies, and why the cocktail of choice for some distillers might just be an "enzyme cocktail."

Mickey Heads retired recently after 13 years as Ardbeg's distillery manager and four decades of work at distilleries on Islay and Jura. Now, Ardbeg has released a special whisky in Mickey's honor, and the label for Arrrrrrrdbeg features him as a pirate! We'll catch up with Mickey Heads on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth and share tasting notes for his whisky, too. In the news, U.S. tariffs on single malt Scotch whiskies have cost Scotland's distillers £500 million in lost sales, and industry leaders are looking to the Biden Administration for help. There may be help on the way for struggling bar and restaurant owners in the U.S. to cover costs from the Covid-19 pandemic, and on Behind the Label, we'll look at one of whisky's oldest questions: Was whisky invented in Ireland or Scotland?

Hong Kong has become a key center for the world's whisky makers, and we had more evidence of that this week. Gordon & MacPhail's new 72-year-old Glen Grant single malt won't hit the market until the end of March, but one bottle went on the auction block Friday at Bonhams in Hong Kong. We'll talk with Hong Kong whisky importer and retailer John Rhodes about that whisky and the growing role Hong Kong plays in the whisky business on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival is joining the growing list of spring whisky events either being postponed or cancelled because of the Covid-19 pandemic, with plans to move this year's festival to November. We'll also have the latest data on how the pandemic and tariffs combined to cut into global whisky sales this year, and why the U.S. market may have been an outlier...and on Behind the Label, some sage advice on how we could all learn a lesson from the help distillers give each other. 

For the second straight year, Islay's biggest party of the year has been cancelled because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Fèis Ile, the Islay Festival of Malt & Music, will be replaced this May by a series of virtual events because of the uncertainty created by the pandemic and travel restrictions within the United Kingdom. We'll talk with Ben Shakespeare of Islay's Fèis Committee about the decision to cancel five months before festival week, along with the threat going ahead with the festival could pose to the island's residents. In the news, MGP is buying Lux Row Distillers owner Luxco and all of its spirits brands for $475 million, while business leaders from both the U.S. and Europe are calling on the Biden Administration and European Union leaders to end their trade disputes. Finally, January 25th is celebrated worldwide as Burns Night honoring the Scottish poet Robert Burns, and we'll take a look at how he might have fit into today's world on Behind the Label.

It's been a little more than three years since Billy Walker and his partners acquired Scotland's Glenallachie Distillery from Chivas Brothers. What had previously been single malts destined for blending use are now on store shelves and bars around the world...with Walker's own unique touch honed by years of making and blending whiskies. Now, the GlenAllachie team is turning to two legacy brands that were part of the distillery deal, McNair's and White Heather, with plans to make them relevant once again. We'll talk with Billy Walker on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. 

In the news, whisky industry leaders are hoping the change in U.S. administrations will lead to a removal of tariffs on whiskies and other spirits, along with economic help targeting the nation's hard-hit bars and restaurants. A Virginia distillery and its founder are facing felony charges after being indicted by a grand jury for allegedly dumping distillery waste water into a stream following a two-year investigation, and on Behind the Label, we'll solve the mystery of a ghostly "whisky mist."

Irish Whiskey makers once dominated the world with their single pot still whiskies, but the collapse of Ireland's whiskey industry a century ago   closed dozens of distilleries and consigned their unique recipes to history. Irish Whiskey historian Fionnán O'Connor has been working with Boann Distillery in County Meath to produce spirit using many of the recipes he's uncovered as part of his doctoral degree research at Dublin's Trinity College. Those recipes will be put to the test in the coming weeks in blind tastings with today's Irish Whiskey distillers, as Fionnán tells us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also have the week's whisky news, tasting notes, and some of your unique ways to describe your favorite whiskies, too!

Welcome to a new year, fans of the Water of Life! That's exactly what we'll be talking about on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. "The Water of Life" is a new Scotch Whisky documentary film that will debut later this month online after having its premiere delayed because of the pandemic. Director Greg Swartz joins us to discuss plans for the premiere, including tasting kits geared to specific parts of the film. In the news, 2020 ended with a busy week whisky-wise as the U.S. Food & Drug Administration tried to hit distillers who produced hand sanitizer during the pandemic with a $14,000 fee - only to get slapped down by the Trump Administration...while the TTB opened up the U.S. whisky market by allowing imports of Europe's standard 700m whiskies for the first time. We'll have all of the news, including a royal honor for "The Nose."

2020 will not be remembered well by many people, but there have been a few bright spots for whisky lovers. One is the arrival of the first official distillery bottling from Kentucky's Castle & Key Distillery, the 3-year-old Restoration Rye. The historic Old Taylor Distillery had been closed since 1972 and left to fall into ruins when Will Arvin and Wes Murry bought the 113-acre site in 2014. Six years, millions of dollars, and a new name later, one of the early landmarks of Kentucky Bourbon is back. We'll talk with Wes Murry and Will Arvin, along with Brett Connors and Jon Brown from the distillery team on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, U.S. President Donald Trump has now signed a massive federal spending and Covid-19 relief package into law, including a permanent reduction in federal excise taxes for small-scale distillers. We'll have the details and the rest of the week's whisky news, including the passing of a Scotch Whisky icon.

We have breaking news heading into the holiday week, as it appears the U.S. Congress will make a federal excise tax break for distillers permanent. The details are still tentative, and we have the latest as of air time. On this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, Dr. Nick Morgan joins us to discuss his new book on the 200-year history of Johnnie Walker, "A Long Stride." We'll also have tasting notes and the answer to a trivia question - which country has more whisky distilleries: Ireland or France!

85 years ago today, the five Shapira brothers and their partners opened Heaven Hill Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky. The Shapira family is still in charge today, with second-generation company president Max Shapira leading the company. We'll talk with Max about Bourbon then and now, including the company's recent expansion into Canadian Whisky with last year's purchase of Black Velvet and its distillery in Lethbridge, Alberta. In the news, the clock is ticking more loudly as the deadline gets closer for Congress to extend a critical federal tax break for small-scale distillers, and we'll talk with one distiller who says the damage may already have been done. There's also hope that a move in London might help ease some of the trade tensions affecting the whisky industry, while new data shows a significant decline in alcohol sales worldwide this year because of the Covid-19 pandemic. We'll have the rest of the week's news and much more on this week's WhiskyCast!

With more people looking at rare whiskies as investments, more of the world's top auction houses are adding spirits experts to their in-house wine teams. That was just one of the moves Sotheby's made over the last two years after whiskies and other spirits started making up a larger share of bidding at its wine auctions around the world. Now, Sotheby's holds separate whisky auctions in London, New York, and Hong Kong - with three auctions last month combining for more than $4.6 million in bids. Jamie Ritchie heads up the Sotheby's wine and spirits team, and joins us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, whisky makers around the UK and Europe are just as nervous about New Year's Eve as their American counterparts, since the arrival of 2021 means the final split between Great Britain and the European Union. As of now, there's no trade deal between the two sides once the final Brexit split happens, and that could lead to all kinds of issues for whisky makers. We'll have that story, along with a new report on what's been a history-making decade for the Irish Whiskey industry, the week's new whiskies, and December's Whisky Club of the Month.

It's never been easier to buy an entire cask of whisky...at least in theory. While more distilleries are offering the opportunity to pick a special cask of whisky, the demand for casks far outpaces the supply - especially when it comes to casks of mature whisky from long-closed distilleries. Chris Ratcliff looks at the cask sales market on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, distillers plan a campaign of their own in Washington this week as the deadline for Congress to extend a federal excise tax cut on distilled spirits gets closer. We'll also have details on the week's new whiskies from around the world...another distillery project in Ireland, and much more!

Craft distillers dream of not only having their whiskies alongside those of the major global brands, but outselling them. For the Quint family of Iowa's Cedar Ridge Winery & Distillery, that dream has become a reality. Earlier this month, Iowa's state liquor agency released sales data showing that Cedar Ridge Iowa Straight Bourbon was the top-selling Bourbon in the state over the previous 12 months - beating the big Bourbons for the first time. We'll talk with Murphy Quint, who was a teenager when his parents opened Cedar Ridge 15 years ago and is now head distiller. In the news, time is running out for Congress and the Trump Administration to extend a critical federal excise tax cut for distillers. We'll have that story and the rest of the week's whisky news on this edition of WhiskyCast!

There's a lot of political turmoil these days, and European Union leaders threw gasoline on the fire with this week's decision to impose new import tariffs on American-made rum, vodka, brandy, and vermouth to go along with the existing 25% tariff on American whiskies. The Trump Administration had previously pledged to respond with additional tariffs on European goods, and that could mean more whiskies are under the threat of new tariffs - in a dispute between allies that has nothing to do with the spirits industry. Could the incoming Biden Administration take a different approach that reduces the rhetoric and leads to the removal of whisky tariffs on both sides of the Atlantic? We'll discuss that with Distilled Spirits Council CEO Chris Swonger, who's been trying to persuade U.S. and European leaders to do just that for more than two years. We'll also have the rest of the week's whisky news, including distillery construction in Scotland and the latest on new whiskies...including one that won't leave you feeling blue!

Marianne Eaves had a bright career path in her future as the first female master distiller at a Kentucky Bourbon distiller when she suddenly decided to leave Castle & Key Distillery 18 months ago - a year before the first whiskies she made there would be ready for bottling. It was a leap of blind faith, and now, she's living in Oregon with her young family, consulting with makers of whiskies and other spirits, and launching another venture - blind Bourbon tasting kits for whiskey lovers. We'll talk with Marianne Eaves about the "Eaves Blind" project, along with the Sweetens Cove Tennessee Bourbon she created for a team of high-profile athletes and investors and her dream of building a mobile blending lab. In the news, Covid-19 has now forced the cancellation of three more major whisky events in the U.S. and the postponement of a major event in Europe. Kentucky Distillers Association leaders are about to get a new look at the need for improvements in diversity and inclusion in the Bourbon industry, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson won't be re-gifting the Scotch Whisky he received as a gift earlier this year...he won't be drinking it, either...his minders took it away from him for violating the UK's limit on gifts.

OK, we're not going talking about politics this week, but whisky has been made in and around Washington, DC for 400 years, including a distillery owned by George Washington himself. There may not be quite enough local whisky available to calm the nerves of politicians awaiting the results of Tuesday's presidential election, but it's a good start. We'll talk with Sid Dilawri of the appropriately-named Filibuster Distillery just outside Washington and Ali Anderson of Joseph A. Magnus & Co., which started out in Washington and is now moving to Michigan where there's room to expand. In the news, Kentucky's Bourbon distillers put in another record year of production, while bars and restaurants in many countries are being hit with another round of Covid-19 lockdowns. We'll also have the week's new whiskies, along with November's Whisky Club of the Month!

Very few Bourbon brands can claim much of a pre-Prohibition heritage, but Brown-Forman's Old Forester can. George Garvin Brown created Old Forester in 1870 in the same way many of today's whiskey entrepreneurs got started - by buying bulk whiskey from several distilleries and blending them together to create his own unique flavor. His great-great grandson Campbell Brown is the managing director of Old Forester today, and joins us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also have the week's whisky news, tasting notes, and on Behind the Label, we'll look at the best whisky advertising money can't buy...because it's literally on the money!

John Glaser and his team at Compass Box Whisky Company are celebrating their 20th anniversary this year. While Glaser has had his disagreements with the Scotch Whisky establishment over the years, he's gone from being a rebel to being one of the industry's most respected whisky makers. He'll join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss the last 20 years of challenging hidebound traditions and what the future holds. In the news, The Macallan now has the distinction of having bottled the world's oldest single malt whisky with a new 78-year-old bottling that's part of the new Red Collection. We'll have that story and the rest of the week's whisky news, including details on the latest Midleton Very Rare release and an even rarer trophy bottling for this year's NBA champions.

England's modern whisky scene only goes back to 2006, when the English Whisky Company started distilling at St. George's Distillery in Norfolk. Since then, it's grown by leaps and bounds, and the first-ever English Whisky Festival will take place this coming weekend online featuring 13 different distilleries. We'll look at not only the growth of England's whisky scene, but how Covid-19 has affected whisky bars and distillery tourism as Chris Ratcliff makes his debut on WhiskyCast as a contributor. In the news, surges in Covid-19 cases are forcing a return to restrictions on pub life around Europe, while bars in Texas can start reopening this week. Jack Daniel's has named its new master distiller - one with a link to the distillery's heritage. We'll also have a story about the legendary Booker Noe on Behind the Label and much more!

Whisky is a universal drink, a pleasure that can be shared by all regardless of gender, color, national origin, disability, age (as long as one is legally old enough to drink), and so on. The trouble is, too many people still hold the stereotype of whisky drinkers as older, male, and White - and that includes some people within the whisky industry. While the recent Whisky Bible controversy brought the issue of diversity and inclusion in the world of whisky into the spotlight, the desire for change has been growing. This week, we'll bring you part of a panel discussion from The Whisky Show on the need to turn that desire for change into reality. The panelists were Tracie Franklin, the first participant in the Nearest and Jack Advancement Initiative's professional development program, Black Bourbon Society founder Samara Rivers, Sorel Artisanal Liquor founder and bartending guru Jackie Summers, and Becky Paskin of OurWhisky.com, while WhiskyCast's Mark Gillespie was the moderator. We'll also have the week's whisky news, including a major distillery expansion in Scotland, new whiskies from around the world, tasting notes, and October's Whisky Club of the Month.

There are literally hundreds of old distillery sites around the eastern half of the United States dating back to the early colonial days. While their stories have largely been lost over time, bits and pieces still exist - and Nicolas Laracuente's mission is to uncover the artifacts, the stories behind them, and put them together in historical context. The "Bourbon Archaeologist" specializes in Kentucky's distilling history, from uncovering distillery ruins to researching the history of enslaved distillers in the pre-Civil War era, and he'll share some of his journey with us on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the Scotch Whisky Association is launching an industry-wide diversity and inclusion initiative that was in the works before the Jim Murray controversy hit the news a week ago. We'll look at the industry's response to allegations of sexism against the "Whisky Bible" author, along with some of your reactions as well.

Every distillery is unique, but there's one in Australia that could redefine your concept of "unique." Belgrove Distillery is on Peter Bignell's farm near Kempton, Tasmania, and he not only grows the grain that goes into his whiskies - but he built the distillery himself, too. There's no other distillery quite like it, and we'll visit Belgrove on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, U.S. craft distillers may get caught in the political crossfire on Capitol Hill between budget talks, pandemic relief, the November election, and now...a Supreme Court confirmation fight. We'll have an update on the effort to extend federal excise tax relief for distillers past the end of this year. The Glenturret has unveiled its new single malts following an 18-month re-branding exercise under new management, while a Kentucky distillery is changing its name after just four years - to the name of the original distillery  that dates back to 1885. We'll have more whisky news, tasting notes, and a rare bit of commentary, too. 

Yeast is one of the three main ingredients in whisky, along with grain and water. While we understand what grain and water contribute to the taste of a whisky, yeast's contributions are far more mysterious. In fact, people were distilling whisky from fermented mash hundreds of years before scientists even figured out that yeast exists, let alone how it works. After our deep dive into the science of oak trees last month, we had requests to do something similar with yeast - and Indiana University biochemistry professor Matt Bochman joins us this week to help. His laboratory research involves studying yeast cells to unlock keys that may help us fight cancer and other diseases, but his informal research focuses on home brewing. He's also a consultant to brewers and distillers on fermentation issues, and shares his expertise with us on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Great Britain and the European Union are at odds over Brexit again. We'll also look at two new programs aimed at improving diversity in the whisky industry, and on Behind the Label, we'll have proof that not everything you may see about whisky on the Internet is true!

Whisky and other alcoholic beverages are some of the most regulated consumer products in the world, and let's be honest...not all of those laws and regulations make a lot of sense. In fact, some of them might make you want to pour yourself a dram. Jarrett Dieterle of the R Street Institute in Washington, DC has compiled some of the finest examples of legislative legerdemain and matched them up with cocktail recipes in his new book, "Give Me Liberty, and Give Me a Drink!" He'll join us to explain just how we got to this point on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Jack Daniel's master distiller Jeff Arnett is stepping down for a new - but so far undisclosed job, while distillery managers on Islay are shuffling jobs without having to leave the island. We'll have details on how the Covid-19 pandemic and tariffs are affecting sales for Chivas Brothers, and distillers in Kentucky are putting their money behind their pledge to improve diversity in the industry.

There are hundreds, if not thousands of species of trees around the world. Why is White Oak - whether from America or Europe, the preferred wood to use for whisky barrels? What makes it so special, and how do we protect the resource for future generations of whisky lovers? Forestry scientist Tom Kimmerer, PhD. is one of the leading experts on White Oaks, and was a guest on our #HappyHour webcast earlier this month. The reaction was so positive that we've brought him back to discuss White Oaks and their preservation on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, US-European trade talks on whiskies and other exports could be delayed by a Covid-19 scandal in Ireland, while that country's pubs remain closed with no targeted opening date in sight. We'll hear from Brent Elliott of Four Roses about this year's Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon and the rest of the week's new whiskies, too.

It's been almost three years since Brown-Forman and the Conyngham family fired up the stills at Slane Distillery on the family's Slane Castle estate near Dublin. While their flagship Slane Irish Whiskey has been made using sourced whiskies since its debut in 2017, the day is coming closer when some of the distillery's own maturing whiskey will be blended into the final product. We'll check in with Alex Conyngham on the distillery's progress in a summer that would have normally been filled with visitors to the distillery and the estate, but it's become clear that 2020 is no normal year. In the news, the coronavirus pandemic continues to plague small-scale distillers in the U.S. with estimates of lost sales now reaching $700 million this year, and the past week also saw more cancellations of whisky events worldwide through the end of 2020. We'll also check the court dockets for updates on several cases involving the whisky industry, and there's a bright spot in the form of new whiskies coming from around the world.

Johnnie Walker is celebrating its 200th anniversary in 2020, and in all that time, there have been only six master blenders. Jim Beveridge is the latest in a line that goes all the way back to founder John Walker, and he leads the team that created four new whiskies for the anniversary. We'll talk with him on WhiskyCast In-Depth about the pressure of blending rare whiskies, setting up a blending lab at home during the Covid-19 pandemic, and which of Scotland's historic distilleries he'd choose to rescue if given a time machine. In the news, the Trump Administration is leaving tariffs on imported single malt whiskies from Scotland and Northern Ireland in place over the objections of whisky makers. We'll also look at the local economic impact in Bardstown, Kentucky following the decision to make this year's Kentucky Bourbon Festival a virtual event, along with updates on the week's new whiskies and a tribute to one of whisky's top distillers. 

This week saw upcoming whisky events in the U.S., England, Ireland, Canada, and Australia either postponed or cancelled outright as the number of Covid-19 cases and deaths continues to rise in many parts of the world. The list includes the Kentucky Bourbon Festival, the Whisky Show in London, and Whisky Live events in Dublin and Adelaide. The pandemic is forcing event organizers to take not only local health restrictions into account, but the bans many whisky makers have imposed on travel and participating in live events. As a result, some festivals are going virtual so whisky lovers can meet with distillers and brand ambassadors online safely, while others are trying to figure out protocols for holding in-person events safely. We'll have details on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the pandemic has already cost Diageo more than $2 billion in lost profits, with significant drops in its Scotch Whisky sales, while Woodford Reserve has rescheduled its annual Kentucky Derby charity Mint Julep campaign to go along with 2020's "fastest two minutes" in September sports.

There's something about whisky that brings out the passion in many people. For David Jennings, his passion for Wild Turkey led him to start a blog and then write what may well be the definitive story of Wild Turkey. His book "American Spirit: Wild Turkey Bourbon From Ripy to Russell" was published this summer and demand from other Wild Turkey lovers has forced his publisher to start working on a second print run. He'll join us to talk about what fueled that passion on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, there's a unified front against the import tariffs on whiskies in the U.S. and Europe. Unfortunately, it's the whisky makers on both sides of the Atlantic that are unified, while the politicians who will decide on whether those tariffs stay in place remain very much divided. We'll also update the disputes between politicians trying to get the Covid-19 pandemic under control and bar owners who face threats to their business from mandated closings. We'll also have a red tape story out of Ireland that may have you shaking your head, along with a Behind the Label that's just a bit corny (pun intended).

Among horse racing enthusiasts, "pinhooking" is the name for investing in a young horse based solely on its pedigree and potential for success, then cashing in when the horse is mature and ready to race. If you can see the parallels between pinhooking with horses and with barrels of young whiskey, then you'll want to listen to our interview with Pinhook Whiskey co-founder Sean Josephs. 10 years ago when he was the owner of Char No. 4 in Brooklyn, he and his partners decided to start buying barrels of young whiskey to mature and bottle - and when they heard about pinhooking from a friend in the horse racing game, Sean realized they had their brand name. Earlier this summer, Pinhook released the first whiskeys distilled at Castle and Key since the historic distillery site reopened in 2017, and Sean will explain how they beat the distillery's owners to market. In the news, the Trump Administration's tariff on imports of single malt whiskies from Scotland and Northern Ireland is under review, but the damage to Scotch Whisky exports has already reached $250 million since the tariff took effect last October. We'll have the details, along with projections of dim prospects for removing that tariff before the November election. We'll also have the latest on new whiskeys, this week's tasting notes, and on Behind the Label, we'll find out why so many whiskey barrels used to be cut into half and turned into planters.

Tourism has become a major part of the Scotch Whisky industry, with two million people visiting distilleries in both 2018 and 2019. 2020, the "Year of the Pandemic," will be much different after distilleries had to shut down their visitors centers for nearly four months because of coronavirus-related public health restrictions. As of July 15, they can reopen with strict limits to prevent a flareup of new Covid-19 cases, but only a handful have put out the welcome mat so far. The Scotch Whisky Experience on Edinburgh's Royal Mile will not reopen until August 17, and we'll talk with Julie Trevisan Hunter about the issues she and her colleagues around Scotland are facing. In the news, the deadline for public comments on the Trump Administration's latest review of tariffs on single malts from Scotland and Northern Ireland is coming up this weekend. Juice boxes are a common sight for kids, but what about a "whisky box" for adults? That's a loosely-defined version of the paper-based "bottles" Diageo plans to test with Johnnie Walker whiskies next year, and we'll go Behind the Label to look at the Texas-grown barley used in the latest Balcones single malt.

Edinburgh's newest malt whisky distillery opened with a bang - or perhaps, a cough. That's because the Bonnington Distillery had barely filled its first few casks with new make spirit before the Covid-19 pandemic forced Halewood Wines & Spirits to close the place down for a deep cleaning to comply with public health restrictions. Bonnington is the home for Halewood's revival of the venerable John Crabbie & Co. Scotch Whisky brand, and we'll talk with Marc Watson on WhiskyCast In-Depth. He oversees distilling and maturation at Bonnington, and started his career making gin before a certain podcast episode prompted him to focus on whisky several years ago - he'll explain that story, too. In the news, South Africa is reviving its nationwide ban on alcohol sales as Covid-19 caseloads start to rise, and one of India's largest whisky distilleries could be affected by a lockdown that takes effect Tuesday while more U.S. states are closing bars again. We'll hear how one Kentucky distillery is trying to keep a Bourbon legend safe while still allowing visitors, and catch up with the results of a special raffle to support an Irish children's charity.

Bars and pubs have reopened in some areas after lockdowns to prevent the spread of Covid-19, only to be closed again when the number of cases spikes as people try to resume a normal life that includes having a drink at the local pub. Public health officials see bars as a prime vector for the spread of the virus, and that will have a long-term impact on bar owners as well as their customers. H. Joseph Ehrlich has owned Elixir, the popular San Francisco whisky bar, for 17 years and is waiting for local and state officials to work out their differences before he reopens - though he already has plans in place to try and give his regulars something close to their pre-pandemic experience. We'll talk with him on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, pubs have now reopened in Ireland, England, and Northern Ireland as police say it's virtually impossible to ensure social distancing. We'll also have details on a new distillery project in Scotland that's moving ahead with construction after months of Covid-19 delays, the week's new whiskies, and something special - a song from the Whisky Bard himself, Robin Laing!

Fred Noe became Jim Beam's seventh master distiller in 2007 when his father, the legendary Booker Noe, retired. 13 years later, he's getting closer to the day when he'll hand things over to his son Freddie - but the Covid-19 pandemic delayed his plans for a "farewell tour" with Freddie this year. Instead, Fred's been cooped up at home in Bardstown, Kentucky, wearing a mask when he leaves the house at the insistence of his family and hoping to be able to go on that tour of Australia and Europe next year. In the meantime, he and his team have revived the Beam family's Old Tub Bourbon brand for a limited-edition release celebrating the 225th anniversary of Jacob Boehm's first whiskey, along with a limited-edition 15-year-old Knob Creek Bourbon. We'll catch up with Fred Noe on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the trade war between the U.S. and Europe is heating up again while England prepares to reopen pubs this coming week as parts of the U.S. close bars as the pandemic flares up. We'll have the latest on new whiskies, say goodbye and thanks to a couple of retiring friends, and look at the way whisky barrels are stored on Behind the Label.

It would have been easy for Chris and Shanelle Montana to close Du Nord Craft Spirits after arsonists set fire to the distillery's warehouse during riots in the wake of George Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis Police four weeks ago. It would have been even easier after more arsonists set fire to their apartment building the next night. They underestimated the Montanas, who not only plan to rebuild their distillery, but their neighborhood as well - and have already raised more than $560,000 with a GoFundMe campaign to help other minority-owned businesses repair their damage and rebuild. We'll talk with Chris and Shanelle on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Sazerac is expanding its portfolio with the acquisition of Canadian Mist and Collingwood Canadian whiskies, the Canadian Mist Distillery in Ontario, and Early Times from Brown-Forman. As coronavirus fever begins to fade, tariff talk is back in Brussels and Washington, while Beam Suntory is reviving part of the Beam family's legacy as the company celebrates 225 years of making whiskey.

Recent protests over racism and police brutality against African-Americans have led to greater calls for diversity throughout American society, and the whisky industry is no exception. American whiskey’s history with diversity has not been a good one, going all the way back to the pre-Civil War era when many distilleries were run with enslaved labor – including the one owned by George Washington after his presidency. We’ll have details on several initiatives announced this week that focus on improving diversity and inclusion within the whisky industry, including plans for the Nearest Green School of Distilling at Tennessee’s Motlow State Community College that had been in the works for the past year. We’ll also talk with Black Bourbon Society founder Samara Rivers, who has just launched Diversity Distilled – with a goal of helping whisky companies recruit and develop African-American talent. We’ll also have the latest on Covid-19’s impact, including the postponement of this fall’s Kentucky Bourbon Festival and plans to gradually reopen pubs in the UK.

This week, we'll wrap up our two-part tour of Gladfield Malt in New Zealand, where Gabi and Doug Mitchell have turned the family's barley farm into one of the country's leading malt suppliers. The Mitchells think a lot about the future, one in which they hope to see their three kids take on key roles in the family business. Gabi Mitchell will share that part of their story with us on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, fundraising campaigns for the Minneapolis distillery and its neighbors devastated by fires during the recent protests over police brutality have raised more than half a million dollars so far, while African-American Bourbon lovers are blasting one whiskey brand for posting racist comments online and other brands for staying silent on the issue. We'll also have the latest pandemic-related event news, including a possible change of plans for this September's Kentucky Bourbon Festival.

Malted barley is critical to the making of many whiskies around the world, and this week, we'll take you inside the malting process with a visit to New Zealand's Gladfield Malt. Gabi and Doug Mitchell founded the maltings 16 years ago as an outgrowth of the family's Gladfield Farm, and has become a key supplier of malted barley for the country's growing craft distilling industry. There's so much to learn that we'll be splitting the tour between this episode and next week's WhiskyCast. In the news, a Minneapolis distillery is in ruins after it was torched by rioters during protests against the death of George Floyd while in police custody, and the distillery's founder is vowing not only to rebuild, but will help his neighbors rebuild their businesses. Some distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail are making plans to reopen to the public for tours and tastings next week following coronavirus-related closings, while we'll also have the latest on new whiskies and much more.

As governments start to relax lockdown restrictions in the fight against the Covid-19 virus, some distilleries are slowly starting to welcome the public back. While tours and tastings are still widely banned, Ireland's Teeling Whiskey Company opened the doors to its distillery shop and cafe this week, and we'll talk with Stephen Teeling about the decision and what it means to be able to get out of the house again. Meanwhile, at least four Kentucky distilleries have also opened their gift shops along with others in states with looser public health restrictions. However, Scotland's Glenfarclas Distillery will keep its visitors center in Speyside shuttered for the rest of 2020 to protect the health of distillery workers after one of its bottling hall workers died from the virus. We'll also have details on two whisky auctions to support those affected by the virus, along with the week's tasting notes and much more!

As parts of the world begin to reopen following lockdowns to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus, bars are likely to be among the last businesses allowed to reopen. The social nature of bars doesn't quite work in an era of social distancing, and that will mean major changes for bar owners - and patrons. Jon Taffer is the host of the reality show "Bar Rescue" and a longtime bar industry consultant. He's been thinking about what the post-pandemic future holds for bars, and it's not a pretty picture - as he tells us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, some distilleries are starting to distill again in Scotland, while Kentucky Bourbon Trail distilleries could start to see a few gift shops reopen this week. We'll also have some of your comments to our poll question on plastic bottles for whisky and a look at research that could make wheat more attractive for distillers in the future.

While world leaders have rightly been focused on the Covid-19 pandemic, the issue of climate change has its own long-term impact on the whisky community worldwide. This week, we'll look at two projects trying to create a sustainable climate for the whisky industry in the future. The "2100 Plan" is a project between the Kentucky Distillers Association and the state's universities to come up with solutions that solve sustainability issues, while Scotland's Bruichladdich Distillery has launched a program to make the entire distillery "carbon-neutral" by 2025. That project could use the waves that pound the Islay coast every day to generate power not only for Bruichladdich, but potentially meet most of the island's electrical demand. In the news, the U.S and Great Britain have started negotiations on a new free trade agreement, and whisky industry leaders want to make sure import tariffs on whiskies are removed as part of any deal. Covid-19 lockdowns don't appear to be ending for bar owners any time soon in Ireland, and this year's Irish Whiskey Awards have been cancelled because of the need for social distancing. We'll also look at a partnership in Texas between Balcones and one of the Lone Star State's legendary breweries and the debut later this month of the "Self Isolation Whisky Festival."

Whisky is what beer dreams of being when it grows up, but the Covid-19 pandemic has left craft brewers with tens of thousands of gallons of beer and no place to sell it with bars across the U.S. closed. Vermont's WhistlePig Farm has been working with brewers from as far away as Texas to give some of that beer a chance to fulfill a higher purpose: being distilled into whiskey! While we're approaching this from a humorous perspective, it's actually cheaper for the brewers and better for the environment to fill tanker trucks with their surplus beer and send it to Vermont than it would be to dump it into local sewer systems. WhistlePig distillery manager Emily Harrison and CEO Jeff Kozak join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, a new survey shows nearly two out of three craft distillers are at risk of going out of business because of the economic impact from the pandemic. We'll have that story along with details on the week's new whiskies and much more, including our latest Whisky Club of the Month!

With tens of thousands of bar and restaurant workers around the world laid off because of mandatory bar and restaurant closings due to the Covid-19 pandemic, some bar owners are resorting to drastic measures to support their teams during the crisis. Bill Thomas of Washington, DC's Jack Rose Dining Saloon and his partners have been selling off the whiskey bar's legendary library of nearly 3,000 bottles - either by the full bottle or single-serving drams - while they evaluate their persona collections to see what makes the cut for the bar's wall when it reopens. We'll talk with Bill on WhiskyCast In-Depth, along with Meredith Meyer Grelli of Pittsburgh's Wigle Whiskey. She's performing the typical small business owner's chainsaw juggling routine of switching from distilling and a tasting room to e-commerce sales while trying to find out why her bank dropped the ball on processing Wigle's paperwork for a federal small business relief program. In the news, the rash of coronavirus-related whisky event cancellations is spreading to Kentucky, where some of this fall's major Bourbon events have already been cancelled while the Kentucky Bourbon Festival's new CEO is hoping to go ahead with Bardstown's big party. Bourbon Street in New Orleans will be quieter this July with the cancellation of Tales of the Cocktail, and in Scotland, police are investigating an attack by hackers that targeted a major online whisky auction this week.

The demand for Japanese whiskies has far outpaced the supply over the last five years, and entrepreneurs are taking advantage of a loophole in Japanese law big enough to sail a tanker ship through - as in a tanker ship full of whisky. There's nothing to stop a clever whisky maker from buying bulk whisky from distillers in other countries and shipping it to Japan, then bottling it as "Japanese Whisky." It's been a common - but not widely discussed - practice among Japan's whisky makers for many years, but with their reputations now on the line, industry and government are discussing how to implement a legal definition for Japanese whiskies. Liam McNulty, who blogs as "Whisky Richard" about Japanese whiskies, broke this story recently and will join us on WhiskyCast In-Depth with an explanation. In the news, we'll have the latest on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on whisky makers, including one who lost out on help from the U.S. government when its bank dropped the ball. 

This is another in our series of special episodes during the coronavirus pandemic to help bring whisky lovers together while staying home, and comes from our live webcast on April 15, 2020. We revived the WhiskyCast Tasting Panel format for this webcast, and our panelists come from the world of IndyCar racing - where there are a number of Bourbon connoisseurs in the paddock. "Off Track with Hinch & Rossi" podcast hosts James Hinchcliffe and Alexander Rossi have had great success on the race track, where Rossi made his mark in history by winning the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 in 2016. Together with their "Off Track" podcast producer Tim Durham, they joined Mark for a tasting of the vintage Ancient Ancient Age 10-year-old, Jim Rutledge's Cream of Kentucky 11.5-year-old, the Elijah Craig 21-year-old single barrel, and a Wyoming Whiskey single barrel bottled especially for the British Columbia provincial liquor stores.

While we're all raising our glasses to honor the health care workers, first responders, and other essential workers risking their lives during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, Uncle Nearest Tennessee Whiskey founder Fawn Weaver is doing something else to help them. For the last couple of months, she's been spending thousands of dollars to buy much-needed N95 respirator masks on the open market at highly inflated prices - and giving them away to those essential workers around the United States. Shipping those masks has kept all of her workers employed, and she's also hiring new employees that have been laid off by other companies. She'll explain her reasoning on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, major whisky companies are projecting sharp sales declines worldwide because of the pandemic, while more events are being pushed back until later this year or cancelled outright. We'll have the details, and we'll also pay tribute to a longtime friend we lost this week.

Spain's tonelerias supply the Sherry-seasoned casks that help give some whiskies their unique character, but those casks are increasingly in demand by whisky makers worldwide. Rafa Cabello is a second-generation master cooper and the CEO of his family's Toneleria del Sur cooperage in Montilla, Spain - and he's become the go-to supplier in Spain for many American craft distillers. One of his clients is Seattle's Westland Distillery, and we spent some time with Rafa Cabello there during the recent World Whisky Forum. You'll hear our conversation on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the unions representing many Scotch Whisky workers are fighting attempts to restart production while the UK remains in a COVID-19 lockdown, while the one state that shut down liquor sales during the pandemic is having problems bringing online sales...well, on line. We'll also have the winners of two recent whisky competitions and name this month's Whisky Club of the Month.

There's still a lot left to discover about whisky, even though the "water of life" has been around for centuries. Scientists are still unlocking the mysteries of whisky, and we'll meet a couple of them on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. Seth DeBolt is the director of the Beam Institute at the University of Kentucky, and is leading a project to decode the DNA sequences that make up the genome of Quercus Alba, the American White Oak tree that many of the world's whisky makers depend on. We'll also talk with Stuart Williams of the University of Louisville's engineering school about his development of a new technique for "fingerprinting" Bourbons - and it's one you can replicate at home (though it may not be appropriate for your kid's science fair project)! We'll also have the latest details on the COVID-19 pandemic and how it's affecting the whisky industry, along with a look at why pot stills may make great whisky, but lousy hand sanitizer. 

The global COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic took full hold on the whisky industry this week, as governments not only shut down bars and limited restaurants to take-out and delivery service, but imposed more bans on large public gatherings such as whisky festivals and even closed liquor stores in at least one U.S. state. That's led to tens of thousands of layoffs throughout the hospitality industry globally and economic stimulus programs aimed at mitigating some of the impact. We'll take a look at the big picture and a close-up view as well, including one Minneapolis distillery where the entire tasting room staff was laid off this week. Chris Montana of Du Nord Craft Spirits is still trying to keep production going while also fielding calls from his colleagues around the U.S. as president of the American Craft Spirits Association. Spirits producers have already donated nearly $2 million to help laid-off bartenders and bar workers, and we'll find out where that money is going and how you can help as well.

Since so many people are working from home, "self-isolating" or more because of the coronavirus crisis, we've decided to produce some extra content to help you pass the time. Earlier this month during DramFest 2020 in Christchurch, New Zealand, WhiskyCast's Mark Gillespie took part in a panel discussion on "the past and future of whisky" with veteran whisky writer Charles Maclean, Michael Fraser Milne of the Whisky Galore shop in Christchurch, and moderator Dave Broom. Their hour-long discussion is a bit too long for one of our regular episodes, but we thought you might enjoy listening to it on its own. The panel covered everything from the collapse of the Scotch Whisky industry in the early 80's to what the future holds given the combination of a growing craft distilling movement, global politics, and climate change. Thanks to Michael and Stella Fraser Milne of Whisky Galore and DramFest 2020 for helping to make this special episode possible, along with the sound crew at Christchurch Town Hall and the staff at Whisky Galore.

Louise McGuane wants to revive a key part of Irish Whiskey's past, but she keeps wrestling with its present-day form in a bid to change the future of Ireland's whiskey industry. The Chapel Gate Whiskey Co. founder has become one of Irish Whiskey's most outspoken voices in recent years and recently spoke at the World Whisky Forum in Seattle. WhiskyCast is the only place where you'll be able to hear her comments on this St. Patrick's week...a week in which the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic has forced Ireland's legendary pubs to close, along with bars and distillery visitor centers around the world. We'll have the details in this week's news, along with updates on whisky festivals and other events cancelled or postponed by the pandemic. We'll also honor longtime Bruichladdich legend Duncan McGillivray, who passed away this past week.

This week, we're on location at Whisky Galore's DramFest 2020 in Christchurch, New Zealand! They've been making whisky in New Zealand since the first Scottish settlers arrived, but after the country's one remaining distillery closed in the early 90's, New Zealanders had to import almost all of their whisky. That changed a few years ago with the growth of a farm-based distilling industry that's a return to the days when farmers turned their crops into whisky.  We'll take a look at this resurgence on WhiskyCast In-Depth, taste a few local whiskies, and get some perspective from whisky lovers in Your Voice. In our Behind the Label segment, we'll meet a Christchurch businessman with a unique hobby - he's amassed one of the world's largest collections of Jim Beam memorabilia!

If you just needed a whisky-related reason to visit Iceland, we have one for you on this week's episode. Eimverk Distillery grew out of the dreams of two brothers who just wanted to be farmers, but found it was cheaper to import grain for cattle feed than grow it themselves. There was also some whisky involved, as Eimverk production manager Eva Mariá Sigursbjörnsdóttir explains on WhiskyCast In-Depth. There were also some sheep involved in at least part of the process, since one of Eimverk's whiskies is smoked not with peat - but with sheep dung! We'll have tasting notes for it, too. In the news, the coronavirus outbreak could cost Diageo as much as £200 million in profits this year and other whisky makers are preparing for losses of their own. The University of Kentucky is not only building an on-campus distillery in Lexington, but a million-dollar donation this week will fund construction of a new barrel "dormitory" as well. We'll have that story and look at how the mavericks at Brewdog are already ruffling feathers in the Scotch Whisky industry. Finally, if you've ever wondered why the hoops on whisky barrels are covered with rust, we'll explain on Behind the Label.

There's an old saying that "sometimes, you choose the whisky business...and sometimes, it chooses you." That could be said for Victoria Eady-Butler, who retired last year after 31 years in federal law enforcement. As it turns out, the great-great granddaughter of Nathan "Nearest" Green inherited some of her ancestor's talent. She was the first member of the Green family to pick barrels for the Uncle Nearest 1884 Small Batch whiskey last year, and was so good at it that she's started a second career as the master blender for Uncle Nearest. She's also made a place for herself in the history books as the first African-American woman to serve as master blender for an American whiskey brand. In the news, another milestone in whisky collecting has fallen with the first million-dollar bid for a whisky in an online auction. We'll have the details, along with highlights from this week's World Whisky Forum in Seattle, the Distilled Spirits Council's conference in Louisville, and a bunch of ba-a-a-ad puns around Ardbeg's latest limited edition release. Yes, we're a bit sheepish about that!

This week on WhiskyCast, we're sharing a special story of strength. Not the kind of strength one can build in the gym, but the inner strength that comes from within. Una Green is the West Coast brand ambassador for the Dewar's single malts, and a year ago last week, she received the kind of news no one ever wants to hear from a doctor - a diagnosis of breast cancer. That inner strength - and the support from her friends and co-workers - helped her manage the pain of surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and all of the side effects. Now cancer-free, she's preparing to return to work after spending this week in Denver for the latest round of Speed Rack's ninth season. Una took part in the national bartending competition for women a couple of years ago, and has made it her goal to help support Speed Rack and its mission of raising money for breast cancer programs. We'll talk with her on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the Trump Administration is holding firm on single malt Scotch Whisky tariffs for now while trade talks continue with the European Union. There's new data showing just how much the U.S. and EU tariffs have cost whisky makers on both sides of the Atlantic, while Kentucky saw a record-breaking number of Bourbon tourists in 2019. We'll also take a look at just how the bottling strength of a whisky can affect its flavor on Behind the Label.

World leaders will be in Glasgow later this year for the United Nations COP26 Climate Change Conference, and Scotch Whisky industry leaders plan to be ready. Not with drams, but with plans for a second decade of adapting whisky production to the needs of the changing climate while not ruining the whisky. The Scotch Whisky Association released its first environmental progress plan in 2009, and is now reviewing progress over the last decade with a goal of setting even more ambitious targets for the future. We'll talk with CEO Karen Betts as part of our year-long look at the impact of climate change on whisky around the world.

In the news, the coronavirus outbreak in China is starting to have an impact on whisky-related events and travel - and there are fears that it could lead to lower whisky sales in the Asia-Pacific region. Ian Macleod Distillers has unveiled the first new Rosebank single malts since plans to reopen the distillery were announced. We'll have the details and an update on construction at the distillery, along with the rest of the week's whisky news and more!

The whisky industry has become collateral damage in the ongoing trade dispute between the U.S. and the European Union, with tit-for-tat trade tariffs making life miserable for whisky companies on both sides. This week, the Scotch Whisky Association estimated annual lost exports from the U.S. tariff on single malts could reach £100 million, and industry leaders are presenting a united front to demand that politicians on both sides work toward resolving the dispute. We'll have an in-depth report on this week's WhiskyCast, along with the rest of the week's news. We'll also announce  February's Whisky Club of the Month and take a look at why some whiskies can smell like burned matches on Behind the Label. 

Is making whisky an art or a science? In "The Amber Light," filmmaker Adam Park makes the argument that Scotch Whisky is an art as important to Scottish culture as writing, music, and other creative endeavours. Park worked in collaboration with veteran whisky writer Dave Broom, who stars in the film and wrote the screenplay. He joined us for this week's WhiskyCast from Santa Barbara, California, where "The Amber Light" had its North American premiere at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. In the news, no new tariffs this week - but the aftermath of Brexit later this week could create even more concerns for whisky lovers. For Australian whisky makers, fires and drought remain very real concerns that make politics look minor - and Aussie distillers are teaming up to help rural communities affected by that country's devastating bush fires. We'll have details on the upcoming Aussie Spirit Auction and how you can take part.

“The Amber Light” Brings Scotch Whisky to the Big Screen”

This week, we're in Victoria, British Columbia for one of the world's best whisky festivals, the 15th annual Victoria Whisky Festival! This year's event also included the 10th anniversary of the Canadian Whisky Awards, and we'll hear from some of the top winners along with other highlights from Victoria on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, whisky industry leaders from Scotland and the U.S. spent much of the week in Washington trying to persuade Trump Administration officials to ease off on a trade tariff targeting whisky imports from Scotland and Northern Ireland. We're already starting to see some of the initial impact from the tariff on Scotch Whisky producers, with word that some smaller companies may be pulling out of one of the world's largest export markets because of the trade dispute between the U.S. and the European Union. That's just one of the stories we'll bring you on this special episode of WhiskyCast from the Victoria Whisky Festival.

Over the course of this year, we'll be looking at the many ways climate change could affect whisky makers - and whisky lovers. Since whisky always starts with the grain, that's where we'll start - and grain farmers are clearly seeing the impact of climate change. So-called "100-year floods" are now an annual occurrence for farmers in the U.S. Midwest's grain belt along the rivers that flow into the Mississippi River, which is already approaching flood stage from Missouri to Louisiana this week. We'll talk with Dr. Chad Lee of the University of Kentucky's College of Agriculture, who's tracking crop and climate change issues affecting whisky makers and the world at large. In the news, this could be a pivotal week for whisky makers hoping to avoid an escalation in the trade dispute between the U.S. and the European Union. We'll have that story, along with details on the first new whiskies of 2020 and much more. 

The last decade was one of progress for women in the whisky industry, with more women than ever working as distillers and blenders. The real change is that women distillers are rarely viewed as a novelty now compared to the past, and we'll hear from three of them this week. Recently retired Michter's master distiller Pam Heilmann, Jeptha Creed's Joyce Nethery, and Widow Jane's Lisa Wicker were panelists at a recent Bourbon Salon discussion with Bourbon Hall of Fame historian Michael Veach at Louisville's Oxmoor Farm, and we'll have part of their conversation on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, local officials have given the green light to Diageo's plans for reviving the Port Ellen Distillery, while the backers of another proposed Islay distillery went back to the drawing board to overcome local objections to their project.

There was no Australian Whisky industry to speak of in 1992 when Bill Lark persuaded the government to give him a license to distill whisky in Hobart, Tasmania. Today, Australian whiskies are found around the world, and Bill Lark has become revered as the "Godfather of Australian Whisky." While he's retired from making whisky himself, he still works with distillers in Tasmania and on the Australian mainland, and he'll join us on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Kentucky Bourbon has lost one of its leaders with the death Christmas night of Four Roses veteran Al Young, and we'll remember his legacy on this week's episode. We'll also have details on the fine levied against Beam Suntory by Kentucky regulators for environmental damage from last July's warehouse fire and a look at the top whisky stories of the year on this final episode for 2019. 

Dhavall Gandhi could have been a highly sought after mergers and acquisitions expert, but he set that potentially lucrative career aside to pursue his passion for making whisky. After a stint at The Macallan, he's now in charge of production and blending at The Lakes Distillery in northwestern England. The distillery celebrated its fifth anniversary this month, and both of Gandhi's two new "Whiskymaker's Reserve" single malts released this autumn are nearly sold out. We'll find out how his career path took him from India to the United States, Scotland, and England on WhiskyCast In-Depth - and have tasting notes for one of his new whiskies. In the news, U.S. distillers are breathing easier after Congress and the Trump Administration approved a one-year extension of a federal excise tax break that has kept many small-scale distillers in business, while industry leaders are gearing up to fight a potential expansion of U.S. tariffs on imported whiskies. We'll also have some of your holiday whisky wishes, too!

Holyrood Distillery became Edinburgh's first malt whisky distillery in nearly a century when it fired up the stills for the first time last September, but to trace its origins, you'd have to travel more than 4,000 miles across seven time zones to Calgary, Alberta. That's where Holyrood co-founder Rob Carpenter makes his home, and where he and his wife Kelly run the Canadian chapter of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. Rob Carpenter's spending most of his time in Scotland these days, and that's where we caught up with him for this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, a tentative budget agreement in Washington means no government shutdown for federal liquor regulators, while another agreement could lead to the end of China's tariffs on American whiskies. That's 2 out of 3 for the industry, but in this case, 2 out of 3 could lead to a worst-case scenario for many small-scale distillers unless Congress can agree this week to extend their federal excise tax cut.

Nicole Austin can be excused for walking on Cloud 9 the other night at Whisky Advocate's WhiskyFest in New York City. The George Dickel master distiller had just received the magazine's Whiskey of the Year award for her George Dickel Bottled in Bond Tennessee Whiskey the day before. We'll have her reaction and other highlights from the evening on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the threat of U.S. tariffs on more European whiskies is back. Trump Administration officials are looking at raising the tariffs already in effect on single malts from Scotland and Northern Ireland, while Congress has less than a month to extend the tax break small-scale distillers have been pushing for over the last two years. 

There's an old saying that "form follows function." It's the idea that a building's design should fit its intended purpose, and over the years, that's been the way whisky distilleries were designed by architects like Charles Doig - who developed the pagoda-like chimney vents that are a sure clue you're looking at a distillery in the distance. There's a boom in distillery construction around Scotland, and architects are taking cues from the past while designing contemporary distilleries that could be around for the next 100 years or longer. Gareth Roberts is one of those architects, with credits that include Ardnamurchan, Lindores Abbey, and Dartmoor distilleries. We'll talk with him on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we'll have the details on this year's International Wine and Spirit Competition-winning whiskies, along with the rest of the week's whisky news. We'll also share some of the things you're most thankful for during the holidays and answer some of your whisky questions on Behind the Label.

This week, we're in Fredericton, New Brunswick for the 24th annual New Brunswick Spirits Festival! We'll talk with one of the leading lights in Canadian Whisky, Canadian Club's Tish Harcus, on WhiskyCast In-Depth. She's in her 32nd year at Canadian Club, and plays multiple roles for the brand from serving as its global ambassador to maintaining 161 years of CC archives and helping lead new product development. For instance, the new Chronicles 42-year-old whisky and the entire Chronicles series came from her insistence on finding a special home for some vintage barrels instead of just blending them away. She's also one of the founders of Women Who Whiskey, and has been a role model and mentor for many of her colleagues industry-wide. In the news, a short-term spending agreement in Washington this week headed off a government shutdown that could have caused problems for whisky makers, while there's still no progress on extending a federal excise tax break for small-scale distillers that expires at midnight on New Year's Eve. We'll have details on the week's new whisky releases, and on Behind the Label, we'll find out how a small-town whisky bar went high-tech to help its customers pick their whiskies.

Scotch whisky history was built on the backs of farmers who worked their fields three seasons of the year and spent the winters turning their grain into whisky. While distilling is a full-time job today for most distillers, Francis Cuthbert does things the old way at Daftmill Distillery in Fife. He and his brother Ian opened the distillery at the family's Daftmill Farm in December of 2005, but Francis is a full-time farmer and only makes whisky when time allows. They waited 12 years before giving the world a taste of the single malt whisky distilled from their own farm's barley, and have received rave reviews so far. Now, Daftmill's single malt is coming to the U.S., and we'll talk with Francis Cuthbert on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also have details on a lawsuit over the word "Magnus," the week's tasting notes, and on Behind the Label, the back story behind an antique still at George Washington's Distillery that dates back to Washington's time!

15 years ago, two Indian entrepreneurs took a few bottles of their single malt whisky to Glasgow, just to see if it would stand up to blind tastings by Scotch Whisky lovers. Rick Jagdale and Ashok Chokalingam survived those initial taste tests, and today, Amrut single malt whiskies can be found all over the world. Now, they're in charge of Amrut's future...Rick Jagdale as managing director and Ashok Chokalingam as the distillery manager. We'll talk with Ashok on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, and we'll also have highlights from this weekend's George Washington Whisky Festival at Virginia's Mount Vernon - where most of this episode was recorded. In the news, whisky and politics are still intertwined as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson pleaded with U.S. President Donald Trump to remove the new 25% import tariff on single malt whiskies from Scotland and Northern Ireland. We're also celebrating WhiskyCast's 14th anniversary this week as Mark gets the tables turned on him!

Want to start an argument among whisky lovers? Just ask whether there's "terroir" in whisky. Terroir is the French term for a "sense of place" where the local environment plays a role in developing specific flavors. It's a well-known concept among farmers, and winemakers have been claiming a place for terroir for years. However, terroir is still a point of contention among whisky makers, with critics making the argument that grain suppliers use so many different farms that there's no way to have terroir in whisky - short of isolating the grain from individual farms as Waterford, Kilchoman, and Bruichladdich have done. During the Julio's Liquors Whisk(e)y Road Show this weekend in Westborough, Massachusetts, the topic of terroir came up during a panel of American Single Malt distillers. You'll hear their debate on WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also announce November's Whisky Club of the Month, hear from some of you on the single malt whisky tariff, and dig deeply into Tennessee's Lincoln County Process on Behind the Label.

Alex Chasko isn't your typical Irish Whiskey master distiller and blender. For one, he isn't Irish. He grew up in Portland, Oregon and found his way to Ireland by falling in love - not with Irish Whiskey, but with the Irish-born woman who became his wife. Alex started out at Cooley Distillery, and when the Teeling family sold it at the end of 2011, he moved on with Jack and Stephen Teeling to start the Teeling Whiskey Company in Dublin. Four years after they fired up the stills for the first time in their Newmarket Square distillery, Teeling Pot Still Whiskey is on the market in Ireland and will soon be available in the United States, while one of their 24-year-old single casks won the World Whiskies Award for "Best Single Malt Whiskey" earlier this year. Even though his last name isn't Teeling, he's become part of the family...as you'll hear on WhiskyCast In-Depth. We'll also have details on this week's record-shattering whisky auction in London and the rest of the week's whisky news, along with some distillery ghost stories to get you in the mood for Halloween!

There's a lot of uncertainty for U.S. whisky lovers after the Trump Administration's new 25% tariff on imports of single malt whiskies from Scotland and Northern Ireland took effect Friday. The only certain thing is that prices for many single malts will rise, depending on whether - or when - whisky makers, importers and retailers decide to absorb the cost of the tariff or pass it along to consumers. One of Islay's smallest distilleries chose to beat the tariff deadline by shipping extra inventory to its U.S. importer by air freight, and Kilchoman Distillery managing director Anthony Wills also plans to eat the cost of the tariff to protect his brand's market share. We'll talk with him as part of our complete coverage of the tariff story...from the impact on distillers to what happens when you come home from a trip to Scotland and are greeted by a Customs agent. In the news, police in Scotland are looking for the thieves who stole £100,000 worth of whisky from a Chivas Brothers facility, while rare whisky collectors are gearing up for a special Sotheby's auction this week in London. There are plenty of new whiskies to talk about, too...and we'll have all the details on this week's WhiskyCast!

The United States is the largest market for Irish Whiskey worldwide, but until now, one of Ireland's legendary whiskeys had never released a special edition just for the American market. Now, a handful of retailers in Massachusetts and California will be getting their own bottlings of Redbreast. Four small batch bottlings will be available at select retailers in Massachusetts and California retailers, and they'll all likely be besieged by calls from people around the U.S. hoping to snag a bottle. Master Blender Billy Leighton and apprentice David McCabe unveiled the new whiskies the other night in Boston, and you'll hear our conversation on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the Trump Administration's 25% tariff on imports of single malts from Scotland and Northern Ireland is scheduled to go into effect Friday, and Scotch Whisky industry leaders fear it could do "irreparable damage" to the whisky industry. We'll have complete coverage of the tariff and its potential impacts, and you'll hear from Wales' leading distiller - Penderyn's Stephen Davies isn't quite sure how U.S. Customs agents will respond when his current shipment of Welsh single malts reaches port after the tariff takes effect. We'll also have details on new whiskies from Bruichladdich, Teeling, The Macallan, and more!

George Remus could never have conceived of the idea of edible "whisky capsules," but if he had, the "King of the Bootleggers" would have figured out a way to make money from it. Remus made - and lost - a fortune during Prohibition, spent time in prison, shot his second wife to death, and managed to successfully convince a jury to acquit him by reason of insanity. This real-life Gatsby is the subject of author Karen Abbott's new book, "The Ghosts of Eden Park," and it may well be the definitive telling of the George Remus story. Karen Abbott joins us on WhiskyCast In-Depth, and we'll also have tasting notes for one of the modern Bourbons named for Remus. There's a lot to talk about in the news, as the U.S. plans to impose a 25% tariff on imports of single malt whiskies from Scotland and Northern Ireland later this month as part of a 15-year-long trade dispute with Europe. We'll have reaction from both sides of the Atlantic and explain just what's being targeted, what's not...and why. We'll also have details on the week's new whiskies and get to the bottom of the story behind The Glenlivet's controversial "whisky capsules" unveiled at London Cocktail Week.

Editor's note: This episode includes content that may not be suitable for all audiences. 

Whisky has been a part of politics since the monks were working their stills in medieval times, helping opposing sides bridge their differences over a shared dram. It's also been a political football, too - from the Prohibition Era to the trade disputes making headlines today. Chris Swonger has been in the middle of a political hurricane in the 10 months since he became CEO and president of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. He's facing trade conflicts, the potential impact from Brexit, and even disagreements over pending deregulatory action in Washington. We'll talk about all of these issues and more with Chris Swonger on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Kentucky firefighters kept a brush fire from becoming a disaster Friday after it came within 100 yards of warehouses full of Heaven Hill and Maker's Mark bourbons. An Irish whiskey maker wants to make filmmaker Martin Scorsese an offer he shouldn't refuse, and we'll have details on the week's new whiskies.

Whisky has been a part of politics since the monks were working their stills in medieval times, helping opposing sides bridge their differences over a shared dram. It's also been a political football, too - from the Prohibition Era to the trade disputes making headlines today. Chris Swonger has been in the middle of a political hurricane in the 10 months since he became CEO and president of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. He's facing trade conflicts, the potential impact from Brexit, and even disagreements over pending deregulatory action in Washington. We'll talk about all of these issues and more with Chris Swonger on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Kentucky firefighters kept a brush fire from becoming a disaster Friday after it came within 100 yards of warehouses full of Heaven Hill and Maker's Mark bourbons. An Irish whiskey maker wants to make filmmaker Martin Scorsese an offer he shouldn't refuse, and we'll have details on the week's new whiskies.

Graham Coull grew up in Speyside spelling "whisky" without the "e" - as any proper Scot would. It didn't help him get his first job in the Scotch Whisky industry at Glenfiddich, nor did it help him get his current job 14 years ago as the manager at Glen Moray. Next month, he'll be leaving Elgin for Ireland's Atlantic coast to become the manager at Dingle Distillery - and it'll mean learning not only new styles of making whiskey...but a new way of spelling it! We'll talk with Graham on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, a last-minute deal has headed off a strike by Diageo workers in Scotland, while the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame welcomed its Class of 2019 this week. We'll also have details on the week's new whiskies and a special collaboration between a Colombian Rum distiller and a Kentucky Bourbon blender. 

Ed Belfour has every honor a hockey player could dream of, including a Stanley Cup, an Olympic gold medal, and the ultimate: being named to the Hockey Hall of Fame. He could have chosen to do anything in his retirement, but decided to make whiskey with his family. Instead of just slapping the Belfour name on a bunch of sourced casks, he and his son Dayn spent five years learning the business from the grain up before bottling their first whiskies. Those whiskies will make their debut later this month in the Dallas area, where Belfour backstopped the Dallas Stars to their only Stanley Cup in 1999. We'll find out why Ed Belfour decided to get into the whiskey business the hard way on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Diageo and its Scottish labor unions will try one final time Monday to work out a new contract before workers begin a series of rolling strikes on Tuesday. In Kentucky, the Bourbon calendar will be even more crowded than usual a year from now when the Kentucky Bourbon Affair moves to September in a partnership with the promoters of Bourbon & Beyond in Louisville - even though it could lead to conflicts with the Kentucky Bourbon Festival. We'll also have details on the week's new whiskies and on Behind the Label, we'll find out how one distillery changed the flavor of its whisky by changing the wood in its barrels.

The Kentucky Bourbon Festival gets underway next week in Bardstown, and while the annual event still draws whiskey lovers from all over the U.S. and the world, there's been a lot of calls for change in recent years. Some of those changes are coming this year, while more will await the hiring of a new executive director later this year. Bardstown-Nelson County Tourism Commission executive director Mike Mangeot agreed to serve as the festival's director on an interim basis this year, and joins us on WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss this year's event and the long-term future. We're in Louisville this time around for the inaugural induction of members into the Order of the Writ, and will have the latest on the impact of trade tariffs on distillers in the news. We'll also update the future for Isle of Arran Distillers and its brands now that the Pernod Ricard-Castle Brands deal is leaving Arran without a U.S. importer.

We're back after spending eight days in Australia and a week in bed fighting the "Roo Flu" virus, and there's a lot to talk about! One of the biggest problems facing Australian whisky distillers has been their relative lack of ability to scale up production to meet demand, but that's gradually beginning to change. Melbourne's Starward Distillery moved to a new building in 2016, and that allowed founder David Vitale the ability to triple production with room for future expansion. In Sydney, Archie Rose Distilling has outgrown its original site after five years, and construction is almost complete on a massive new distillery in Port Bombay that will take production from 120,000 liters per year to three million liters. We'll tour both distilleries on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Pernod Ricard's expansion spree continues with a $223 million deal for Jefferson's Bourbon owner Castle Brands - and a new $140 million malt whisky distillery in China! Trade issues are starting to show a serious impact on the whisky business worldwide, and a Virginia distillery has settled a lawsuit filed by the Scotch Whisky Association over its use of the word "Highland." On Behind the Label, we'll answer the burning question: "just how little maturation time can an American whiskey get away with?" Here's a hint...it probably took you longer to read this!

This time around, we're in Australia as Tasmania's distillers wrap up the third annual Tasmanian Whisky Week. It's been 27 years since the first legal still started producing Tasmanian single malt whisky at the original Lark Distillery, and today, there are nearly 50 distilleries in Australia's island state. We'll meet some of them and tour the award-winning Sullivan's Cove Distillery on WhiskyCast In-Depth, and we'll also talk to some Australian whisky lovers on Your Voice. In the news, Heaven Hill is expanding into Canadian Whisky with a $266 million deal for Black Velvet and its distillery in Alberta, while Ireland's Conor McGregor is likely to face assault charges for punching a Dublin bar patron who didn't want to taste his Proper Twelve whiskey.

"Private Selection" bottlings are the rage today, and it almost seems like an arms race as bars and retailers try to outdo each other with their exclusive bottlings. In fact, some whisky collectors now see the "Private Selection" market as the next big thing for so-called "investment grade" bottlings. During the latest Bourbon Salon at Louisville's Oxmoor Farm, host Michael Veach brought together the owners and managers of several highly regarded Bourbon bars to discuss picking private barrels and other topics, and we'll hear some of the stories behind barrel selections from Joe Head of The Century in Dayton, Ohio, Margo McMillen of Bourbons Bistro, and Larry Rice of The Silver Dollar in Louisville. In the news, Pernod Ricard is expanding its U.S. whiskey portfolio with its second distillery acquisition of the year, while Diageo's plans to upgrade visitors centers at many of its distilleries in Scotland got another boost this week. There's a lot of new whiskies to talk about, and a new Gallup Poll shows whisky and other distilled spirits are more popular than ever.

If the story of Nathan "Nearest" Green and Jack Daniel was made into a movie, critics might describe it as "a feel-good story for the ages" or "a story from the past that's still relevant today." History shows "Nearest" Green was the enslaved distiller who not only perfected the "Lincoln County Process" for filtering Tennessee Whiskey, but also taught the young Jack Daniel how to make whiskey - then went to work with him after the Civil War ended and Green became a free man. Next month, Uncle Nearest Whiskey founder Fawn Weaver will open Phase 1 of the Uncle Nearest Distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee to tell that story, and she'll tell us about it on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the growing potential for a "no-deal" Brexit has Irish Whiskey makers on both sides of the border even more nervous than before. Investors were scared off this week by sluggish earnings for MGP Ingredients, and that raises a question about whether we've reached "Peak Bourbon." We'll also find out the back story behind the "Missouri Bourbon" law, and on Behind the Label, you'll hear how one young distiller started his career with a bang.

It takes a lot to drag distillers away from their stills, but when the stakes are as high as the current debate over extending a federal excise tax cut for craft distillers - that's enough to put them on a plane for Washington. More than 150 distillers from around the country converged on Capitol Hill this week for the annual public policy conference sponsored by the Distilled Spirits Council and the American Craft Spirits Association. It also gave them a chance to put some pressure on their representatives in Congress to extend that tax break currently scheduled to expire at the end of this year. We'll talk with ACSA President Chris Montana of Du Nord Craft Spirits in Minneapolis and several of his colleagues about the politics of making whiskey on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Diageo now faces strike votes by both unions representing workers at its distilleries and bottling plants in Scotland following a breakdown in contract talks. Beam Suntory is reviving an old name for its flagship Jim Beam Distillery in Kentucky as part of a $60 million dollar expansion plan that will include a new craft distillery named for master distiller Fred Noe. We also have a bunch of new whiskies to talk about, and we'll also look at whether it's possible to distill whisky in space on Behind the Label.

Raj Sabharwal doesn't make whiskies, but his role is critical in making sure you get to drink them. He's one of the band of independent importers - the middlemen (and women) who secure the rights from a whisky brand to import their whiskies into the U.S. market. Importers put up their own money to pay for those whiskies and the shipping costs, deal with the government red tape, and then find regional distributors willing to take a chance on getting them into retailers, bars, and restaurants. Sabharwal's Glass Revolution Imports is the single largest customer for Amrut's single malts from India, and he also works with Blackadder, Hammer Head, and other brands to get not only their regular offerings, but exclusive single casks for the U.S. market. We'll talk with him on WhiskyCast In-Depth and find out how proposed changes in federal regulations and the trade war could affect the import business. In the news, Diageo is facing a possible strike in Scotland after two unions rejected the company's latest contract offer. Edinburgh is about to get its first malt whisky distillery in nearly a century, while Bladnoch Distillery will open its new visitors center this week and Glenfiddich unveils a rare bottling to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its visitors center.

60 years ago, Bill and Marge Samuels dipped the first bottles of Maker's Mark Bourbon in Loretto, Kentucky. They left the "e" out of "whisky" and shipped the first cases to Keeneland in Lexington. When Maker's Mark finally decided to start a private barrel program several years ago, Bill Sr. and Marge's grandson Rob decided to put a different spin on the concept and let their customers actually create a unique Bourbon instead of picking from a bunch of cask samples. Keeneland was first in line for a Private Select bottling, too, and we'll get the story behind the program from Jane Bowie of Maker's Mark on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we have the cause - and the effect - of the Jim Beam rickhouse fire in Kentucky earlier this month, and we'll also explain just how whiskey spills near rivers can lead to thousands of dead fish. The Scotch Whisky Association is taking a Virginia distillery to court over its use of the word "Highland" on its labels, and we'll have the details along with tasting notes for two of the offending whiskies.

The husband and wife team of Scott Blackwell and Ann Marshall opened High Wire Distilling six years ago in Charleston, South Carolina to make whiskey, gin, vodka, and an Amaro liqueur. Now, they're turning a corner...literally. They're investing $3 million to move the distillery into a much larger building a few blocks - and around a corner - from their original site, along with adding a second still just for whiskey, an expanded tasting room, and what they're happiest about...a real loading dock! We'll talk with them on WhiskyCast In-Depth. There's enough news to fill a second episode this week! After four days, the fire that destroyed a Jim Beam warehouse with 45,000 barrels of bourbon has finally burned itself out, though the environmental damage to the Kentucky River is still being felt. The trade war between the U.S. and Europe could expand to include punitive tariffs on Scotch and Irish whiskies in a dispute over aviation subsidies, while U.S. regulators are moving forward with a proposal to deregulate most bottle sizes for whiskies and other distilled spirits. There's also a truckload of new whiskies to mention, and we'll have an unusual head-to-head comparison: a whiskey and the beer it was distilled from.

Wyoming Whiskey is celebrating an anniversary this week. Ten years ago on July 4, 2009, they ran the still for the first time at the Mead family's ranch in Kirby, Wyoming, and Wyoming Whiskey is one of many craft distillers  marking their 10th anniversaries this year. We'll talk with co-founder David DeFazio about the lessons of the past and how they're shaping the distillery's future, along with what happens when a Hall of Fame distiller leaves behind a surprise for you to deal with years later. In the news, the U.S. Supreme Court has given retailers who want to sell across state lines a lifeline after decades of states largely banning interstate shipments. We also have plenty of new Bourbons hitting the market just in time for Independence Day, while Chivas Brothers is digging into its warehouses for whiskies from some often-overlooked Scottish distilleries.

If you're starting a new distillery from scratch, it helps to find some veteran whisky makers to join you on the journey. That's just what Ardgowan Distillery CEO Martin McAdam did when he convinced former Macallan managing director Willie Phillips and Edrington whisky maker Max McFarlane to come out of retirement and join the team behind his fledgling distillery. While final financing is still in the works for the distillery to be built on the Ardgowan Estate on the banks of the River Clyde, McFarlane is already blending Ardgowan's first release for its fall debut - a blended malt to be sold under the Clydebuilt label. We'll talk with Max McFarlane and Martin McAdam on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the owners of Fets Whisky Kitchen in Vancouver will appeal a British Columbia adjudicator's ruling against them in the #FreeOurWhisky case, 18 months after Fets was raided by provincial liquor inspectors for illegally selling Scotch Malt Whisky Society whiskies. Cleanup work is underway at the O.Z. Tyler Distillery in Owensboro, Kentucky following the state's second rickhouse collapse in a year, and we'll look at how rickhouse safety is regulated on Behind the Label.

Ten years after Pernod Ricard left Kentucky with the sale of Wild Turkey to Gruppo Campari, the world's #2 spirits company is back in the Bluegrass State. Louisville's Rabbit Hole Distillery has agreed to become part of Pernod Ricard, while founder Kaveh Zamanian and his family will retain a significant stake in the distillery and manage it on a day-to-day basis. It's a deal similar to one Pernod Ricard did in 2016 with Smooth Ambler, and we'll talk with Kaveh Zamanian and Pernod Ricard USA's Jeff Agdern on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Kentucky Peerless Distillery is also re-entering the Bourbon business this week - 102 years after selling its last bottle of Bourbon. We'll also have the first details on Ardgowan Distillery's debut release of Clydebuilt Blended Malt planned for this fall in Scotland and much more!

Rock bands often sound differently after they replace a member, and the members of Metallica considered Master Distiller Dave Pickerell to be part of their family. They collaborated on Blackened American Whiskey until Dave's untimely death last November, and now, Metallica has completed the search for his successor. Rob Dietrich is leaving Stranahan's to join the band's Sweet Amber Distilling Company as the master blender and distiller. We'll talk with Rob on WhiskyCast In-Depth and find out why it's not his first time working with Metallica, too. In the news, U.S. regulators are floating a proposal to remove most of the restrictions on bottle sizes for whiskies and other distilled spirits, and that could open up the market to whiskies not previously available in the U.S. Distilling industry leaders aren't embracing the idea with open arms, while independent bottlers and importers are practically giddy at the possibility. What may be the first Chinese acquisition of a Scotch Whisky company has taken place, with the sale of Loch Lomond Distillers for more than $500 million, and construction has started on another cooperage in Kentucky to help supply the booming demand for Bourbon barrels.

Construction could begin later this year on Diageo's planned revival of the legendary Port Ellen Distillery on Islay, which was closed in 1983. Only the seaside warehouses and the old kiln building are left, and they'll play a key role in the distillery's future when it opens in 2021 - assuming local officials sign off on planning approval for the project. That application was submitted in mid-May, with a decision expected later this summer. Islay native and former Lagavulin manager Georgie Crawford is the project manager for the Port Ellen revival, and she'll join us on WhiskyCast In-Depth to explain the plans - and how the team tapped into the memories of former Port Ellen workers to help shape those plans. In the news, climate change could be playing a major role in Scotch Whisky's immediate future as distillers and barley farmers deal with the after-effects of last summer's drought. Another dispute between the Trump Administration and Mexico could see tariffs slapped back on American whiskies just days after they were removed, and could North Korea actually be getting into the whisky business?

This week's episode is certain to arouse the ire of whisky purists. We're looking at Glyph, a "molecular whiskey" that's engineered in a lab instead of a distillery. Alec Lee and his colleagues at Endless West in San Francisco analyzed hundreds of whiskies down to the molecule to isolate specific chemical compounds - then sourced those compounds to blend with grain neutral spirits and a small amount of new make whisky to create Glyph. Technically, it falls under the legal category of a "spirit whisky," but it's already being sold in California and New York alongside traditionally distilled whiskies. Is it a glimpse into the future of whisky or a pale imitation of the real thing? We'll discuss it with Alec Lee on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, American whiskey exports to Canada and Mexico are tariff-free once again, and we'll talk with The Balvenie's David Stewart about the distillery's new Stories range of single malts.

Oliver Hughes and his partners in Ireland's Porterhouse Group opened Dingle Distillery in late 2012, just as the Irish craft distilling boom was beginning. Dingle was Ireland's first new distillery in 25 years since the opening of Cooley Distillery in 1987, but Hughes barely got to see the first early bottlings of Dingle Whiskey before his death in 2016. Today, his family and colleagues have taken Oliver Hughes's dream and are building on it, with the first exports of Dingle's single malt whisky to the United States coming later this year. We'll visit the distillery and talk with some of the people carrying on that mission on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, there's a truce in the trade war between the U.S. and two key trading partners that should mean the end of punitive tariffs on American Whiskey exports. We'll have the details, along with the rest of the week's whisky news and much more. 

Of all the craft distilleries Dave Pickerell worked with before his sudden death last November, none was more identified with him than Vermont's WhistlePig Rye. He was there at WhistlePig's founding when the first casks of whiskey were acquired from Alberta Distillers more than a decade ago, and trained the team of young distillers and blenders who now carry on his work. Jeff Kozak was around back then, too...but he was the Alberta Distillers executive who sold those casks for the first WhistlePig bottling. Today, he's WhistlePig's CEO, and joins us on WhiskyCast In-Depth to discuss how his team is moving forward while honoring the legacy Dave Pickerell left behind. In the news, construction is about to begin on Diageo's new Johnnie Walker Experience in downtown Edinburgh now that local officials have signed off on the development plans. We'll also have an update on the #FreeOurWhisky campaign in British Columbia after the owners of Fets Whisky Kitchen in Vancouver had a hearing on charges stemming from a January 2017 raid for selling Scotch Malt Whisky Society whiskies. We'll also remember Amrut Distillery managing director Neel Jagdale, who died this week after a battle with cancer.

Let's face it. When you think of American Whiskey, Bourbon is probably top of mind. After all, Congress declared it "America's Native Spirit" 55 years ago. It wasn't always that way, and people heading to Churchill Downs in Louisville for this year's Kentucky Derby got a reminder of that. Baltimore-based Sagamore Spirit Rye has been trying to build a more complete record of America's distilling history with its "Whiskey Wiki"project,  and bought a billboard near Churchill Downs to remind the folks in Bourbon Country that that history began with Rye Whiskey. We'll talk with Sagamore Spirit's Brian Treacy about the billboard and the history project on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Constellation Brands has acquired majority ownership in another craft distillery, while Scotch Whisky's impact on the British economy continues to grow. The Spirit of Speyside Festival honored four Scotch Whisky veterans this week, and there are all sorts of new whiskies to talk about, too!

Pam Heilmann's been making Bourbon for her entire career, but it was only in the last three years that she had the title of Master Distiller after she succeeded Willie Pratt at Michter's Distillery in the Louisville suburb of Shively. Now, she's heading into retirement this week, but will have the title of "Master Distiller Emerita" at Michter's while her hand-picked successor, Dan McKee, takes over the day to day responsibility. We'll talk with both of them on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the Bardstown Bourbon Company has put its first whiskey into a bottle. We'll talk with Steve Nally and have tasting notes for it, too. Arran's new Lagg Distillery has started laying down casks of whisky for the future, and we'll have details on new whiskies from Gordon & MacPhail, The Glenlivet, Tamdhu, and more.

The farming village of Knockdhu has 29 residents, 17 dogs, a bunch of sheep and cattle...and one distillery. Gordon Bruce has called Knockdhu home since 2006 as the manager of Knockdhu Distillery, the home of Inver House's anCnoc single malt Scotch Whisky. We first met Gordon in 2011 during a tour of the distillery, and caught up with him again at the recent Wonderful World of Whisky Show in Cornwall, Ontario - one of his rare trips away from that tiny farming village in Aberdeenshire. You'll hear our conversation on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the University of Kentucky's distilling studies program has a Bourbon benefactor after Beam Suntory donated $5 million to establish the James B. Beam Institute for Distilling Studies. Bushmills has received local approval for a $39 million expansion project that will add a second stillhouse and double the distillery's capacity. We'll also look at the week's new whiskies and much more, along with announcing the winner of our latest WhiskyCast competition!

Lew Bryson and Martin Duffy take their whisky seriously...but not much else! When they joined us at the recent American Whiskey Convention in Philadelphia, the laughter was a perfect complement to serious whisky discussion about the sources of whisky flavor, the growth of craft distilling, and why our discussion was taking place just feet away from valuable Egyptian artifacts in the University of Pennsylvania Museum. OK, that last part wasn't so serious, but it did help Lew explain how he came to meet legendary whisky writer Michael Jackson for the first time at the Penn Museum. We'll also talk with Dick Stoll, the veteran Pennsylvania distiller who made one of the Holy Grails for whiskey lovers...the 16-year-old A.H. Hirsch Reserve Bourbon. In the news, this was a week that won't go down in history at The Macallan, while Craigellachie is bringing a 51-year-old single malt to New York City - and pour it for free! Four Roses has completed its $55 million expansion project in Kentucky, and Woodford Reserve's Chris Morris has to figure out how to get a special barrel down from one of the historic spires at Churchill Downs in time for the Kentucky Derby.

Lindores Abbey has a unique place in whisky history, thanks to Friar John Cor and the aqua vitae he distilled for the King in 1494. Gary Haggart has a direct link to the Friar as the first distillery manager at the Lindores Abbey Distillery, built right next to the ruins of the original abbey. He's even distilling modern-day aqua vitae instead of gin or vodka while the Lindores Abbey single malt matures. During the recent Wonderful World of Whisky show in Cornwall, Ontario, Haggart presented Lindores Abbey's young spirit to consumers for the first time, and we'll talk with him on WhiskyCast In-Depth. We also took our studio setup to Friday night's American Whiskey Convention in Philadelphia to talk with whisky lovers just like you as well as some of the distillers on hand that night. There's a lot to unpack in this episode, so make sure your battery's charged!

Blending whiskies is both an art and a science, and Dewar's could fairly be accused of focusing more on the science side in recent years with solid, if not innovative whiskies. Master Blender Stephanie Macleod was given the green light to bring back the creativity that helped build the Dewar's legacy, starting with the new "Double Double" range. We'll talk with her about that project and her career on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Bruichladdich is planning an expansion on Islay that will include a new on-site maltings and investments in renewable energy. Balblair is the latest single malt to jettison vintages and return to age statements, and we'll honor two whisky industry veterans who passed away this week. 

This week, we're on location at the Wonderful World of Whisky Show in Cornwall, Ontario with everything from great whiskies and good friends to a guy dressed from head to toe in clothes made from recycled purple Crown Royal bags! On WhiskyCast In-Depth, we'll talk with John McCheyne, who's been traveling the wonderful world of whisky as the global ambassador for the Scotch Malt Whisky Society and was in Cornwall for this weekend's fun and games. We'll also answer a listener's question about a unique style of barrels on Behind the Label. In the news, there's a short-term delay on Great Britain's exit from the European Union and a likely impact on whisky sales, while more evidence is coming in on the impact of tariffs imposed last year on American whiskies by Canada, the European Union, and other key trading partners. We'll also mourn the death this week of Balcones distillery manager Zack Pilgrim after a sudden stroke at the age of 38.  

Irish Whiskey's resurgence is only now beginning to make up for decades of obscurity over the last century, but with 23 active distilleries in Ireland now, things are looking brighter than ever. In fact, there are projections that Irish Whiskey sales in the U.S. could surpass Scotch Whisky sales in the coming years...if Brexit and other political issues don't get in the way. We'll discuss the business side of the comeback with Irish Whiskey Association chairman David Stapleton of Connacht Whiskey Company, and Tim Herlihy will join us to look at the boom in Irish Whiskey culture. The longtime Tullamore D.E.W brand ambassador is one of the authors of the new book "From Barley to Blarney: A Whiskey Lover's Guide to Ireland." He, Sean Muldoon, Jack McGarry, and Conor Kelly traveled throughout Ireland to search out great pubs, visit distilleries, and create a new resource for whiskey lovers visiting Ireland. In the news, Brexit is less than two weeks away, and there's still no solution to the question of the Irish border. We'll also have details on the U.S. arrival of Red Spot, a whiskey writer's switch to making whiskies, and look at how the college admissions bribery scandal could affect the future of one Kentucky distillery. 

Women are making whiskies, running whisky companies, and teaching people how to enjoy whiskies all over the world. So...why do many men still treat women as second-class citizens at whisky tastings, bars, and whenever the topic of whisky knowledge comes up? Los Angeles-based freelance brand ambassador Kat Aagesen called out those men for their bad behavior in a column this week for The Whiskey Wash, and her complaints were echoed on social media by women throughout the whisky industry. She'll join us on WhiskyCast In-Depth to explain why "mansplaining" just makes men look foolish - and more importantly - why those men are missing out on a chance to learn something. In the news, investigators are looking for the cause of Barton 1792 Distillery's second accident in a year after a storage tank collapsed and spilled an estimated 120,000 gallons of fermented mash. The Brexit deadline is less than three weeks away, and Scotch Whisky distillers are getting more antsy as the days tick off until March 29. We'll also hear from Suntory Holdings CEO Takeshi Niinami on how much longer the shortages of Japanese whiskies could last, along with a unique collaboration between his whisky makers in Japan and Kentucky. 

Nicole Austin made her mark on the American craft distilling movement at Brooklyn's Kings County Distillery, then spent some time in Ireland working on Tullamore D.E.W's grain distillery project as its commissioning engineer. Last year, she returned to the U.S. - not to another "craft" distillery, but as head distiller and general manager at Diageo's Cascade Hollow distillery in Tennessee. That makes her one of the first craft distillers to join a major whisky company as a distillery manager, though she's pledging to keep "craft" in her job description. We'll talk with Nicole Austin about making the switch, and the one unique thing she asked Diageo for when she was negotiating to take the job. Here's a hint: it didn't involve whiskey. In the news, Nikka is joining Suntory in shaking up its whisky lineup because of supply issues, while also planning a major investment in new warehousing capacity. Bunnahabhain's $14 million refurbishment is underway, and some news reports are claiming an $18 supermarket blended Scotch is the "world's best Scotch whisky." That's not the case, and we'll explain why. 

There's a long tradition of fathers and sons in whisky distilling, but Kentucky's Jeptha Creed Distillery is one of the few distilleries where mother and daughter run the show. Joyce Nethery is the head distiller at the family-owned distillery east of Louisville, while Autumn Nethery is both co-owner and in charge of marketing. Joyce's husband Bruce grows all of the grain for their whiskies and other spirits on the family's 1,000 acres of farmland, including the heirloom Bloody Butcher corn that plays a key role in their soon-to-be-released straight Bourbon. We'll meet the Netherys on WhiskyCast In-Depth and taste their new Bourbon, too. In the news, Balcones Distilling is releasing its first permanent Bourbon...a Texas Pot Still Bourbon distilled from roasted blue corn and  Texas-grown grain. We'll also have an update on Penderyn's expansion plans in Wales, another distillery opening in Ireland, and much more!

Amazon delivers almost everything...even whisky in some places. Now, Amazon Prime Video is delivering content for whisky lovers. We'll talk with the Three Drinkers: Aidy Smith, Helena Nicklin, and Colin Hampden-White, about their new series that's almost like whisky's "Top Gear." If you're more into serious conversation, Fred Minnick's interview series "Bourbon Up" has also made its debut on Amazon Prime. We caught up with Fred at Louisville's Silver Dollar whiskey bar, and this episode was recorded on location at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience on "Whiskey Row" downtown. In the news, we now have concrete proof that the American whiskey industry is being affected by the trade war, while Scotch Whisky exports reached a new record in 2018. Distell's two-year renovation and upgrade project at Tobermory Distillery is almost complete, while Diageo is moving forward with plans for a new Johnnie Walker Experience visitors center in Edinburgh. We'll also look at the origins of whisky tourism on Behind the Label, and it goes back much farther than you might think!

Long before highways crossed North America, flatboats with barrels of whiskey were a common sight along the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers bound for New Orleans and beyond to satisfy the thirst of early consumers. Fortunately, today's route to market for distillers is paved and far more efficient - but Jefferson's Bourbon founder Trey Zoeller wanted to figure out what made the whiskey his predecessors distilled in Kentucky become so popular. He decided to send a couple of barrels from Louisville to New York City by boat in what became a year-long journey filled with tropical storms, a wrecked boat, and barrel repairs on the fly - while a batch of the same whiskey stayed behind in the rickhouse to provide a control sample. Both whiskies have now gone on sale, and we'll talk about the journey with Trey Zoeller on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the deadline to avoid another federal government shutdown is approaching, and failure to reach a deal in Washington could cause even more problems for whisky makers. We'll also look at the economic impact of Kentucky's booming Bourbon industry and get an update on record ticket sales for May's Spirit of Speyside Festival in Scotland. 

Glenmorangie unveiled its 10th Private Edition release this week in London, and we were there as Allta marked a new style of single malt for Glenmorangie. The barley came from the Cadboll Farm near the distillery, but the big thing is the yeast - which also came from the Cadboll Farm. Dr. Bill Lumsden and his colleagues worked with their yeast supplier to isolate and grow a unique strain of wild yeast from the farm to use in the fermentation for Allta. We'll talk with Lumsden about Allta's origins and share tasting notes for it as well on this episode. In the news, local officials have cleared the way for construction work to begin on the revival of Scotland's Rosebank Distillery, while Diageo has unveiled its proposed design for the revival of Port Ellen Distillery on Islay. We'll also have details on the week's new whiskies, including one that took a journey down the river and up the coast. 

Even when things appear to be going well, there are sometimes undercurrents of trouble behind the scenes. That played out in Ireland this week after Walsh Whiskey Company and Italy's Illva Saronno Holdings agreed to dissolve their five-year-long joint venture because of disagreements on the company's future. Walsh will keep its Writers' Tears and The Irishman whiskey brands, while Illva Saronno gets the distillery near Carlow. We'll talk with Bernard Walsh about the future of the company that bears his name on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news U.S. Treasury Department employees are returning to work after the tentative end of the federal government's partial shutdown, and they're facing a big backlog of applications for new whisky, spirits, wine and beer labels that piled up during the shutdown. We'll also have details on the long-awaited opening of Michter's new Fort Nelson micro distillery and visitors center on Louisville's Whiskey Row and the rest of the week's news, too.

In our second of two episodes from this week's Victoria Whisky Festival in Victoria, British Columbia, we'll talk with Eric and Allura Fergie of Fets Whisky Kitchen in Vancouver. Fets was one of four Scotch Malt Whisky Society partner bars in British Columbia raided by the province's liquor inspectors a year ago Friday. The Fergies had 242 bottles of SMWS whiskies valued at $40,000 seized because they came from privately-owned liquor stores in BC instead of government-owned stores. While the other three bars settled their cases for small fines, the Fergies are challenging the legality of the raids and have a hearing set for this May. They received support this week from Canada's Competition Bureau, which called on British Columbia officials to change what it terms an "anti-competitive" policy. We'll also have details on the week's new whisky releases, check on the latest distillery updates, and taste four single malts from Scotland in this special episode from the Victoria Whisky Festival.  

This is the first of our two episodes from the 14th annual Victoria Whisky Festival in Victoria, British Columbia. One of the highlights of the festival each year is the Canadian Whisky Awards, and Forty Creek returned to the top of the podium this year for the first time in five years with a new 22-year-old Canadian Rye whisky. We'll have the details on that and other award winners in the news, and we'll also look at the debate over the impact of terroir in whisky. Vancouver Island's Shelter Point Distillery won the Award for Innovation for its whisky distilled from 100% unmalted barley whisky grown on the distillery's own farm. That's just one example, and Ireland's Waterford Distillery is taking terroir to the other extreme with barley from more than 40 local farms being malted, distilled, and matured separately to maximize the impact of terroir. We'll discuss the findings of new scientific research on Waterford's barley with founder Mark Reynier on WhiskyCast In-Depth.