Author name: Mark Gillespie

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 Read More »

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, Read More »

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 Read More »