Author name: Mark Gillespie

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. Read 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 Read More »

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 Read More »

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 Read More »

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 Read More »