WhiskyCast

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WhiskyCast Episode 503: October 25, 2014 Oct 26, 2014

Show notes

This week's episode comes from Whiskey Live Dublin, and we'll be focusing on Irish whiskies this time around with some of the winners from Thursday night's Irish Whiskey Awards ceremony at Kilbeggan Distillery. We'll also get the details on the most expensive Irish whiskey ever released, the Midleton Very Rare 30th Anniversary Pearl Edition...as well as the upcoming US debut of Yellow Spot. It won't be an all-Ireland show, though...we''ll hear from Chip Tate on his side of the Balcones Distilling dispute now that his gag order has been lifted, and while Bourbon's global boom is causing a boom in Kentucky's economy, a slowdown in Scotch whisky sales has prompted Diageo to slow down its expansion plans in Scotland.

WhiskyCast Episode 502: October 18, 2014 Oct 19, 2014

Show notes

Finland has a love-hate relationship with whisky. Finns love it, and the Finnish government hates it. Distilled spirits advertising is banned, and regulators went so far as to force the organizers of a Helsinki beer and whisky festival this coming weekend to drop "whisky" from the event's name or risk losing their permits. It's still legal to make whisky in Finland, though...and we'll find out more about Teerenpeli Distillery & Brewery and the Kyrö Distilling Company on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Chivas Brothers gives its new Speyside distillery a name, both sides in the Balcones Distilling dispute head back to court this week, and we'll find out about some wearable whisky fashion, along with tasting notes for one Bourbon, one Scotch...and one Joker.

WhiskyCast Episode 501: October 11, 2014 Oct 12, 2014

Show notes

This week, we'll look at the growth of craft distilling through the eyes of Darek Bell and James Rodewald. Bell is one of the co-founders of Corsair Artisan Distillery, and has just published his second book. "Fire Water" looks at ways of producing uniquely smoky whiskies. Veteran drinks writer James Rodewald studied the boom in craft distilling for his new book "American Spirit." We'll also look at a bunch of new whiskies flooding the market from around the world, a flood at a distillery in Speyside, and a Manhattan mixologist teaches us how to make the perfect Manhattan.

WhiskyCast Episode 500: October 6, 2014 Oct 06, 2014

Show notes

This is a special episode of WhiskyCast - not only is it the 500th episode, but it's the second of two episodes this weekend from The Whisky Show in London! We're packing a lot into this episode, with news on new whiskies from Girvan, Kilchoman, and others, a re-start of production at Sweden's Mackmyra Distillery, and a look at some of the new whisky books just being published. Our main focus, though, is an in-depth look at whisky collecting, following yet another mainstream media story in Sunday's Telegraph touting the investment value of rare whiskies. We'll talk to some of the whisky lovers who hoped to get one of the rare Karuizawa single malt bottlings produced specially for the show, but were beaten to the punch..along with some who managed to get their hands on one. Much of the demand is coming from Asia, and things have gotten so crazy that some whisky bloggers are shooting video of themselves smashing empty sample bottles of Ardbeg's recent Supernova release just to prove they didn't sell their coded samples. Finally, we'll hear from one of the world's top whisky collectors...Sukhinder Singh, who's seen whisky investing from all sides as both a collector and retailer of rare whiskies.

WhiskyCast Episode 499: October 4, 2014 Oct 04, 2014

Show notes

This is the first of two episodes this weekend from The Whisky Show in London, and we'll be looking at some of the new whiskies that made their debut this weekend at Vinopolis, home of The Whisky Exchange. Some of the newest whiskies are actually very old whiskies, including four special Gordon & MacPhail Private Collection single malts to celebrate the transition of the family-owned business to a new generation of Urquharts. Michael Urquhart, the last of the third generation members to retire, helped introduce the 57 to 63-year-old whiskies during a master class today in London. Another longtime family-owned firm, Berry Bros. & Rudd, unveiled the oldest single grain Scotch whisky bottling on record, a 50-year-old North British grain distilled in 1962. We'll also check on the new Chivas Brothers distillery in Speyside that's ramping up operations this week, along with Edradour's plans to expand Scotland's smallest distillery, and check on other new releases from around the world.

WhiskyCast Episode 498: September 26, 2014 Sep 27, 2014

Show notes

With all of the issues being raised over whisky labeling in the US and a new lawsuit challenging claims on Templeton Rye's labels, we'll hear this week from an attorney who's become an expert in the US regulatory process as both a lawyer and distillery owner. David DeFazio is one of the co-founders of Wyoming Whiskey, and has been through the TTB's maze of red tape on several occasions. He'll explain the process and the potential pitfalls on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we'll have more on the class-action lawsuit targeting Templeton Rye, Brown-Forman will invest $30 million in a new downtown Louisville distillery for Old Forester, and Scotch whisky exports fell during the first half of 2014. We'll also have the latest on new whiskies from around the world, and here's a riddle to this week's tasting notes: think of a deer lost in space.

WhiskyCast Episode 497: September 21, 2014 Sep 21, 2014

Show notes

It's Kentucky Bourbon Festival week, and there's a lot of news coming out of Bourbon Country these days. Thousands of Bourbon lovers descended on Bardstown and the Louisville area for the annual festival, which comes as Diageo opened the new Bulleit Frontier Whiskey Experience at Louisville's historic Stitzel-Weller Distillery to the public for the first time, the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame welcomed a new member, and much more. In the news, Diageo and The Explorers Club have settled their legal differences, while the next hearing in the Balcones Distilling dispute has been delayed until October 7. We'll also get reaction to this week's decision by Scottish voters to stick with the United Kingdom...for now.

WhiskyCast Episode 496: September 12, 2014 Sep 13, 2014

Show notes

Templeton Rye has been in the spotlight in recent weeks as critics go after so-called "sourced whisky" producers for what they claim are violations of a US regulation that requires the disclosure of the "state of distillation" of a whisky if it's different from the producer's home state. The Iowa-based company announced two weeks ago that it will change its labeling to disclose that its whisky is distilled in Indiana, while noting that it's been up front about that fact for years everywhere but on the label. Templeton's Scott Bush and Keith Kerkhoff will tell us their side of the story on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Scotch Whisky producers are nervous about the upcoming independence referendum, Kentucky's Bourbon Hall of Fame will induct one of the industry's pioneering women, and there are plenty of new whiskies to talk about. This week's tasting notes include the Four Roses 2014 Limited Edition Small Batch, Maker's Mark Cask Strength, and the Parker's Heritage Collection 2014 "Original Batch" Wheat Whiskey.

WhiskyCast Episode 495: September 7, 2014 Sep 08, 2014

Show notes

When you've worked at the same place for 60 years, it's hard for your colleagues to keep a secret from you. Wild Turkey and the Kentucky Distillers Association managed to keep a secret from Jimmy Russell for months, though. This Wednesday will be his 60th anniversary at the distillery, and last week, the KDA held a luncheon at Wild Turkey to honor Jimmy with only the sixth lifetime honorary membership ever presented by the association in its 130-year history. We'll hear from the "Buddha of Bourbon" on just how surprised he was, along with the KDA's Eric Gregory...and Jimmy even gives us advance details on a new release of Wild Turkey Forgiven, too. In the news, there are plenty of new Bourbons on the way, along with several new single malts from Scotland, and we'll also get some of the reaction to last week's interview on whisky labeling issues with Steve Gertman of California's Ascendant Spirits.

WhiskyCast Episode 494: August 30, 2014 Aug 30, 2014

Show notes

Steve Gertman of California's Ascendant Spirits produces Breaker Bourbon, and his brand is one of those targeted by a Chicago-based law firm that specializes in class-action lawsuits, and is "investigating" claims by small-batch whisky brands about the source of their whiskies. Like many small producers, Gertman has been sourcing whiskey from other distillers while the Bourbon he's making is aging, and he responds to the claims on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth along with criticism he's received since appearing on WhiskyCast last January. In the news, Templeton Rye is also a target of the law firm's probe, and has announced that it will change its label to reflect that the whiskey is distilled in Indiana and not Iowa. We'll also have reaction from other targets of the probe as well, along with the reaction of Charbay's Marko Karakasevic to last weekend's Napa Valley earthquake and much more!

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