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Duncan Taylor's Euan Shand is in the middle of what he calls the company's busiest year in its 75-year history. He's just started work on the distillery he's wanted to build in Huntly for several years, is in the middle of turning an old supermarket into a new bottling hall and gift shop, entering the furniture business, and sponsoring a race car with plans for next year's 24 Hours of Le Mans. We'll catch up with Euan on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Diageo completes its acquisition of India's United Spirits, Edrington and Isle of Arran report profits, while Arran's also releasing a devilish new whisky as well.

Women are changing whisky history every day as distillery managers, master blenders, and some entrepreneurs are even creating their own brands. Earlier this month, we heard about the history of women in whisky from author Fred Minnick, and this week, we'll hear from two women who want to help write the next chapter in that history. Carin Luna-Ostaseski will launch her new SIA blended Scotch in San Francisco in the next several weeks, and used the power of the whisky community to help realize her dream. Allison Patel was searching for world whiskies to bring home to the US when she discovered a Cognac producer in France who was making whisky for himself and his friends, and launched Brenne in New York last autumn. In the news, Woodford Reserve will get a $35 million expansion, Alberta's Highwood Distillers is still closed after last week's flooding, and Beam's Fred Noe explains how it's legal to add flavors to Bourbon to create the new Knob Creek Smoked Maple.

Here's a challenge: Pick the whiskies for a wedding party, with an emphasis on quality over quantity, and you're spending a lot of someone else's money. Which whiskies do you pick, and where do you start? Rich Howard's been facing that task for a wedding this coming week in Minnesota, and the Malt Maniac joins us to talk about his choices on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Duncan Taylor's long-planned distillery in Huntly is finally under construction as the Scottish Government comes up with economic development funds for several other distillery projects, honours for the founder of the Keepers of the Quaich, and much more!

When Beam acquired Ireland's Cooley Whiskey at the end of 2011, Cooley Managing Director Jack Teeling had the chance to stay on at the company his father founded in 1987. However, the idea of being a small fish in a big corporate ocean didn't appeal to him, and he decided to start his own company. This week, the Teeling Whiskey Company released the first of a new Vintage Reserve series of Irish single malts, and Jack Teeling hopes to have Dublin's first working distillery in nearly 40 years open by the end of 2014. We'll hear more from Jack on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Glen Keith is out of mothballs and back in business, Speyside's smallest distillery will get a big boost in production, and F. Paul Pacult answers the question "How do you pick between two excellent whiskies for the Best Spirit in the World title?"

Joshua Hatton and Jason Johnston-Yellin started out as whisky bloggers, and are now bottling their own whiskies for a unique audience. Single Cask Nation and the Jewish Whisky Company are on the leading edge of a growing trend in the whisky business...targeting the unique and growing niche market of Jewish whisky lovers. While there's no clear consensus on what makes a whisky kosher, Single Cask Nation is bottling both kosher and non-kosher whiskies and letting each person make their own choice. In the news, a tanker truck full of whisky crashes and catches fire in New Jersey, The Glenlivet discloses the details of Alpha, and George Washington's Whiskey is now being made in New York as well as Virginia.

Stories are what give whisky its unique place in the drinks world, and this week, we'll hear from two authors of new books on the stories and history of whisky. Gavin Smith's "Stillhouse Stories &  Tunroom Tales" shares the stories of current and retired whisky makers in Scotland, while Fred Minnick looks at the history of women in whisky in his new book "Whiskey Women: The Untold Story of how Women Saved Bourbon, Scotch, & Irish Whiskey".  In the news, The Famous Grouse tests flavored versions in Sweden, The Tweeddale Blend arrives in Canada, Kentucky officials approve tax incentives for two distillery projects, and UK regulators are said to be weighing in on Diageo's acquisition of India's United Spirits.

The annual Islay Festival of Malt & Music gets underway this weekend, and they'll be celebrating more than just whisky on Islay this week. Bruichladdich's Jim McEwan, a native Ileach, is celebrating his 50th anniversary in the whisky business this week, and scotched the rumors that he might announce his retirement during the Feis in this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth interview. He'll also share some of his memories, as well as a life lesson his own mentor taught him many years ago when he was an apprentice cooper at Bowmore. In the news, Buffalo Trace is warning of a Bourbon shortage, we'll check on new whiskies from anCnoc, The Glenrothes, and a couple of Islay Festival bottlings, and honor another 50-year whisky veteran who's retiring this week.

Gordon & MacPhail has released thousands of single cask bottlings over the years, including the two oldest whiskies ever bottled: 70-year-old casks of Mortlach and Glenlivet single malts. Now, the family-owned company is reviving its "Rare Old" series of single malts with a series of new releases. Many of those new releases are from distilleries that closed 30 years ago this year during one of the industry's biggest cutbacks in distilling capacity. We'll discuss those distilleries and whether a new "whisky loch" is filling up with Gordon & MacPhail's Michael Urquhart in this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, another Indian distillery expands its single malt lineup, Miltonduff Distillery gets a turn in the spotlight, and more new distilleries are coming to Northern Ireland. This week's tasting notes include Ardbeg's new Ardbog, The Glenlivet's new Alpha single malt, and Forty Creek's upcoming Heart of Gold Canadian whisky.

One of the fun things about WhiskyCast has been the opportunity to watch dreams come true, and that's the case with this week's episode. Back in 2006, we first met Barry Stein and Barry Bernstein as they were just getting started as Canada's first independent Scotch whisky bottlers and dreamed of making their own whisky. in 2009, they opened Still Waters Distillery in a Toronto suburb, and on April 27, the first cask of their Stalk & Barrel single malt whisky went on sale. This weekend, they were pouring it at the Spirit of Toronto festival, and we'll catch up with the guys on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Diageo's shaking up the executive suite, the Kentucky Bourbon Trail gets a new stop on Louisville's Whiskey Row, and we'll hear about new whiskies from Mackmyra, Jura, Corby, and Masterson's.

Family-owned businesses often face obstacles that other companies don't, and the whisky business is no exception. This week, Fred and Stewart Laing dissolved their 40+ year partnership in Glasgow-based Douglas Laing & Co., with Stewart taking his half of the business to form his own company with his sons. Meanwhile, Fred has brought his daughter Cara into what remains of Douglas Laing, and both brothers are already working on new whisky ideas. We'll hear from both brothers on their views of the split and their plans for the future. In the news, Kentucky's Bourbon distillers had their busiest year in nearly four decades during 2012, Heaven Hill's partners are signing on to help support Parker Beam's Promise of Hope fund for ALS research, and the Maker's Mark controversy pays off for Beam.

When Ireland's distillers joined forces in 1966 to merge their struggling distilleries into one company, they placed their bet on Jameson as their principal export brand. Powers became the leading whiskey in Ireland, with limited exports to the U.S. and other key markets. The bet paid off, and Jameson became the world's best-selling Irish whiskey. Now, Irish Distillers is giving the world a taste of the pot still whiskey John Ryan's family created seven generations ago. He's been in the U.S. for a series of Powers tastings, and joins us for this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, a gutsy thief steals a $26,000 bottle of whisky in Toronto, Kentucky's getting ready for Derby Week, and Amrut's greedy angels are on the loose.

The English Whisky Company has been distilling since 2006, and while it may not be able to claim the title of "England's only whisky distillery" for much longer, it'll be able to call itself "England's oldest whisky distillery". Andrew Nelstrop's been touring the U.S. to introduce his family's whiskies for the first time in the colonies, and joins us for this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, South Africa's Distell Group has bought Burn Stewart Distillers, Chivas Brothers clears a hurdle to building a new distillery in Speyside, and we'll have the weekly update on new whiskies.

When Magnus Eunson set up his illegal still on Orkney in 1798, the gaugers in the village of Kirkwall were a safe distance away. Graham Manson manages Highland Park now, and Kirkwall has grown up around the distillery. We'll hear from Graham on WhiskyCast In-Depth, and get some historical perspective from retired Highland Park and Scapa worker Davie Reid. In the news, U.S. craft distillers have broken away from the American Distilling Institute to set up their own organization, the Scotch Malt Whisky Society expands to India, and Chicago's getting ready for Whisky Week.

Scotch Whisky exports account for 80% of all Scottish food and drink exports each year, along with about 25% of all UK food and drink exports. The Scotch Whisky Association released its final 2012 export report this week, with little to no gain from 2011. SWA Chief Executive Gavin Hewitt discusses the export data and other key issues facing the industry on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Diageo’s Nick Morgan outlines the company’s plans for a massive expansion of distilling capacity in Scotland, Beam North American President Bill Newlands discusses the Maker’s Mark controversy, and we’ll get  sneak previews of this year’s Four Roses Limited Edition Single Barrel Bourbon from Jim Rutledge and the new Wild Turkey visitors center from Jimmy Russell. 

Cutty Sark is marking two anniversaries within a week or so: the brand's 90's anniversary on March 23 and the third anniversary of its acquisition by the Edrington Group April 1. It's a legendary brand that lost its way in recent years, but recorded its first annual increase in sales during 2012 after years of declining sales. Edrington's first move three years ago was to put Jason Craig in charge of turning the ship around, and he joins us for this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we'll have plenty of new releases to talk about from Arran, Balblair, Four Roses, Kilchoman, and more...including a very special Bruichladdich single cask with a lot of sentimental value for former managing director Mark Reynier. This week's tasting notes include a special limited edition Cutty Sark, a single malt from Germany, and a Kentucky classic.

This week's episode required 35 hours of flying and 17,000 miles of round-trip travel, but it was well worth it to visit Amrut's distillery in Bangalore, India. We'll catch up with Amrut's Rick Jagdale to discuss a series of new Amrut single malts, including one that pays tribute to the excessively greedy angels in Amrut's warehouses, and Rick will answer some of your questions about Amrut as well. In the news, Billy Walker's investment team has added Glenglassaugh Distillery to their portfolio that already includes BenRiach and GlenDronach, Whisky Magazine announces this year's winners of the World Whiskies Awards and the Icons of Whisky Awards, more whiskies receive honors in the Ultimate Spirits Challenge, and it'll cost more for a dram of Scotch in Scotland after a UK tax increase.

This week's episode comes from Frankfurt, Germany...during a layover on my trip to visit the Amrut Distillery in Bangalore, India. However, we're focusing on a rare  breed of whisky this week...the Peated American Single Malt. There are very few examples of this rare breed, one being Leviathan from Lost Spirits Distillery on California's Monterey Peninsula. Bryan Davis of Lost Spirits explains his reasons for producing a highly-peated single malt in this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Dewar's enters the flavored whisky market, Highland Park unleashes the shape-shifting Loki on the whisky world, and Scottish officials consider reviving the old Dallas Dhu Distillery in Speyside as a working distillery as well as a museum.

Buffalo Trace's Single Oak Project is at the halfway point, with 96 of the 192 single cask bottlings released and the remainder to be parceled out every three months for the next two years. We'll get a progress report from Buffalo Trace Master Distiller Harlen Wheatley on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, and get some hints about a possible new release from the distillery in the near future. In the news, there's word on a bunch of new whiskies from Heaven Hill, Jefferson's, Michter's, Johnnie Walker, Corby, and Ranger Creek...Ichiro Akuto has a U.S. distribution deal for his Japanese single malts, and Bourbon Hall of Fame member Mike Veach's new book on the history of Bourbon is now available.

Whisky has historically been thought of as a “man’s drink”, but thankfully, that’s changing. Not only are more women drinking whisky now than ever, more women are making it as well. Victoria MacRae-Samuels is Vice President of Operations at Maker’s Mark, and she’s the first woman to run one of Kentucky’s major distilleries since Prohibition. She discusses her 24 years in the whisky business and the growing diversity within the industry on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, an accident sends Chivas Brothers whisky down the drain, Glenmorangie kicks off its Cask Masters project, we’ll discuss the new Bulleit 10-year-old Bourbon with Hollis Bulleit, and get a preview of this month’s Bourbon Classic in Louisville.

Chip Tate of Balcones Distillery in Texas is winning even more awards for his whiskies, with two gold medals in the inaugural Spirits of the Americas competition. One was for his Texas Single Malt, and the other for a whiskey that Chip used to say he'd never make. He'll tell us about it on WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the latest on the Maker's Mark controversy, along with your comments on Maker's in our new "Your Voice" segment. We'll also have the latest on new whiskies from Angel's Envy and Highland Park, Tuthilltown's recovery from a fire last autumn, and a tour of the new WhiskyCast.com!