No one likes to pay taxes, especially distillers. And in the early days, when the government first started reaching into the pockets of farmer-distillers in Ireland, they put a serious face on tax avoidance. Yet distillers found creative ways to avoid these taxes.

It's time to take a deep dive into how Ireland ended up with whiskey taxes and the growing pains and wars that led to more and more government intrusion into the still house.

History is fascinating. It becomes even more interesting when you look at it through more than one lens. That is what I'll be doing this week - as I look at a complicated man whose first two potential victories in the North Channel were apparently snatched away by drink. His reputation on one side was as a pirate and the other as a patriot. We'll jump into that story.

And then I'll do a tasting of a gin named in his honor at Copeland Distillery. I hear what you're saying "Drew drinking gin?" Well, let's just say, this one has a nice whiskey twist.

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This week, I'm going to go deeper into the background of the Scots-Irish. They are often credited with being the foundation of the Kentucky bourbon and Tennessee whiskey industries. It is something I've heard over and over at American distilleries - it is time to see if this statement holds water.

Plus, I'm on my way to Echlinville Distillery and will share my tasting adventure there as I continue my way through Northern Ireland and visit my 7th distillery on this epic journey.

Why is there an "e" in Irish Whiskey? The popular belief is that four Dublin distillers, fed up with "silent spirit" made from column stills added the "e" to the word whiskey to separate their spirit from lesser quality spirits.

Say something enough times and it becomes everyone's truth. But is this really how whiskey got an "e?"

I decided to dig through some 18th and 19th century newspapers to get the answer. I also stopped off to visit John Teeling's Great Northern Distillery and had 2 amazing sips of whiskey - one from the 20th century, the other from the 19th! Join me for the experience.

While traveling to over 40 distilleries in Ireland, there was one story I heard more than any other - about how a malt tax in 1785 created a tax avoidance scheme that resulted in the creation of Old Irish Pure Pot Still whiskey as a style. Is it true?

Well, what I find is quite unexpected. Apparently there was a malt tax that led to two great whisky empires. I'll tell the full story as well as share Alfred Barnard's 1886 trip to John's Road Distillery in Dublin and my trip to Boann Distillery and encounter with a 140 year old bottle of whisky.

In my quest to dig into Irish whiskey history, this may be one of my favorite episodes yet. We start off with one of the great legends of Ireland - a legend tied to the area I was traveling through, the Boyne River Valley. I get to visit Slane Distillery, taste their whiskey and head over to Boann to learn the experimental side of that distillery and more legends. Meanwhile, I dig deep into the 17th century, when Irish uisce beatha was gaining a great reputation in London, until a Dutch upstart stole the show. All this and a beheading and rebellion - this week on Whiskey Lore.

As Sinatra said, "come fly with me" as we head to Foynes Airport in Ireland and learn how a stormy night and cold wet passengers led to one of the most iconic drinks in Irish Whiskey. We'll also follow along with Alfred Barnard and join him at the home of Powers Whiskey. And I'll continue my journey through the modern distilleries of Ireland with a trip to Tullamore DEW.