WhiskyCast

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.