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155 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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What Makes a Great Whisky Experience, and Why Scotland Does It Best | Ali Baxter
5 november 2026 · 1 uur 43 min
Ali makes it a hat trick of appearances on the podcast with his third time back on. Lees meer
He is the Head of Visitor Experience for the famous Scotch Whisky Experience in Edinburgh.
So this was only going to be about one thing; what makes a great whisky experience and how do we do it?
Ali talks us through his role, how he's learnt how to create experiences that bring whisky drinkers and non-whisky drinkers in for something they'll never forget.
Loads of laughs, a lot of fun and some great drams too!
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Peter Allison: Inside Woven’s Blending Room. Creating Flavour, Grain vs Malt and the Whisky Market Right Now
29 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 45 min
It was great to get Pete back on for a chat. And what a chat it was. Lees meer
We were down in the Woven Blending Room in Leith for this one hearing all about how things are going with Woven Whisky.
Pete also chatted through his time working at Edrington and the changes in the whisky market that he's experienced in his time working in whisky.
We spoke about the importance of blending, how blending whisky actually works and the power of grain whisky.
It's another cracker.
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Brendan McCarron: The Most Fascinating Career in Whisky - Roseisle, Oban, Ardbeg, Glenmorangie, Deanston, Bunnahabhain and Tobermoray
22 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 52 min
Is there anything in whisky that Brendan McCarron hasn't done? Lees meer
Brendan talks us through his career from a Diageo graduate to running the whole of Diageo's Islay Group. Creating Ardbeg An Oa, learning from Dr Bill Lumsden, distilling for Deanston, Tobermoray and Bunnahabhain, and then starting how own business.
His career has been an incredible journey and he's got some great stories from everything he's done.
Pour a couple of drams for this one.
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Controversial Whisky Opinions - No sitting on the fence for this one
15 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 31 min
We wanted to talk through some controversial whisky opinions of our own and from our listeners. Lees meer
It was a chance for the 4 of us to catch-up, have some drams and talk through some whisky opinions that might split the room.
I don't know if I should put a trigger warning on this episode, but some of the topics definitely caused some debate.
Pour a dram, sit back and give it a listen and tell us your own controversial whisky opinions.
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Not Another Whisky Distillery — Ian Palmer on Invergordon, Building Starlaw, Buying Glen Moray and Starting InchDairnie
8 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 46 min
This episode blew my mind when we recorded it. Lees meer
To say Ian Palmer has had quite a career is an understatement. Starting out as an apprentice Fitters Mate at Invergordon to Operations Director of the whole group, then building Starlaw, buying Glen Moray, and then eventually starting out on his own with InchDairnie Distillery.
There's so much to unpack in this episode. Just pour a dram, sit back and enjoy this one.
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150 Episodes - Drams at Diggers, Lessons We've Learned AND Whisky Festival News
1 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 37 min
150 episodes in 150 weeks! Lees meer
We were back in Diggers for a catch up, drams and some whisky chat. Ross handed in a last minute sick note, so we were joined by Jake Adcook for the evening.
What have been the biggest lessons we've learnt from the podcast?
But the BIG news is that Whisky Stories Whisky Festival tickets are ON SALE NOW!
Pour a dram, run yourself a bath, and enjoy episode 150!
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The people behind the whisky - Managing Tomatin Distillery, Global Markets & Tropical Drams | Part 2
24 september 2026 · 1 uur 42 min
A week later, we have part 2 of this epic chat with Tomatin Distillery Manager Jamie Muir and Global Marketing Manager Danny Whelan. Lees meer
In the last episode we heard the stories behind the guys and how they got into whisky. Now it was all about Tomatin and what goes into making the whisky.
I had no idea just how long some of the people who have worked at the distillery have been there. It's incredible to think of the time and service some people have given. And Jamie talks us through how he manages that and works with new, younger people coming through.
Danny let us know how selling and marketing whisky across the world actually works. From dealing with importers to brand advocacy.
On top of that we got a chance to try some excellent Distillery Exclusives as well.
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How Do You Manage a Distillery? — From Jura to Tomatin with Jamie Muir & Danny Whelan | Part 1
17 september 2026 · 1 uur 13 min
This is the first ever Whisky Stories Double Header Part 1. Lees meer
When the Distillery Manager drives down from Tomatin to chat, we had to make sure we got all we could get.
Jamie Muir is the Distillery Manager at Tomatin, he grew up on Jura and has worked for Jura Distillery 3 times, Fettercairn, Kichoman and BrewDog.
Danny Whelan is Global Marketing Manager for Tomatin and started out working in bars making cocktails.
In this episode we hear their stories and how they got into whisky and how they both ended up working for Tomatin.
We also asked, why is Tomatin 36 the whisky to ruin whisky for you?
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Whisky Stories Live: Arbikie's Inaugural Release and a Surprise Cask Sample
10 september 2026 · 1 uur 29 min
This one got loose! We packed out Uno Mas in Edinburgh for this Whisky Stories LIVE event and what a night it was. Lees meer
John Stirling was back on the pod and we also had Christian Perez from the distillery down and he brought a very special cask sample with him that John hadn't event tried.
We went through the lineup, chatted about the whisky and challenged John on some of the conversation that's happened since his last episode.
My head was sore the next day. A sign of a very enjoyable night.
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Cutty Sark, Yellow Jackets and a Masterclass in Blending: Stephen Woodcock Is Back
3 september 2026 · 1 uur 57 min
It was great having Stephen Woodcock back on the pod. And this time he came bearing gifts! Lees meer
Not to be outdone by the team at Bunnahabhain, he made sure we stand out now with the bright yellow iconic Cutty Sark jackets, bags, mugs, notebooks and pens!
He also brought drams with him too and plenty of great chat about his career, some really funny stories, and plenty of distilling and blending insight too.
Well worth poring a few drams for this long and epic episode.
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Drams at Diggers - Closed Distilleries, Lots of Drams, and Our Whisky Festival
27 augustus 2026 · 1 uur 36 min
It was time for a monthly catch-up in Diggers with the lads. Lees meer
We were down in the cellar with plenty of drams and loads to talk about.
We caught up on our distillery trip to Arbikie, some big drams on the lineup, AND if we can pull off organising our very own Whisky Stories Festival.
Loads of laughs, questionable chat, and good drams on this one.
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The Arbikie Inaugural Release With Founder John Stirling - Making Whisky The Arbikie Way
20 augustus 2026 · 1 uur 47 min
Arbikie Distillery are about to launch their first ever Single Malt release. And it's taken them 10 long years to wait for this moment. Lees meer
And what better way to spread the good word about it than to come on the Whisky Stories Podcast and tell us all about it.
John Stirling is one of the family members involved in the business. He is 'Chief Taster' and has been part of the journey since a conversation in a bar in New York.
The goal is simple - Make the best 18 year old whisky in the world.
Hear the whole story in this episode, including the £30,000 bottle, the ethos of the whisky, and creating sustainable products.
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Mark Thomson: Brand Advocacy, Industry Challenges and Honest Opinions
13 augustus 2026 · 1 uur 6 min
It's always good to catch up with Mark Thomson. Lees meer
In this episode, we dived into brand advocacy and asked if the Scotch Whisky Industry are moving away from it and whether that's a good thing or not.
Mark is an award winning Brand Ambassador and has worked with massive global brands as well as smaller independent ones.
He's also working with brands on a contract basis to help with advocacy and training. But are we losing the Brand Ambassador? And what does Mark think?
Enjoy!
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Julieann Fernandez: Becoming a Master Blender at 28 — Bunnahabhain, Deanston, Tobermory and Ledaig
6 augustus 2026 · 1 uur 51 min
This is a belter of an episode. Lees meer
Another Master Blender on the podcast and Julieann Fernandez gave us an amazing insight working for CVH.
As well as being responsible for signing off on all the single malt and blended releases from the distilleries, she also travels the world representing the brands and talking to people about Bunnahabhain, Deanston, Tobermoray and Ledaig.
We were also joined by Luke Fenton who is the Head of On Trade in the UK for CVH.
So Julieann is responsible for getting the releases out and Luke is responsible for getting them sold.
We were through in Glasgow for this one and managed to pop in quickly to the Pot Still Pub in Glasgow for a dram before and enjoyed some drams during the recording.
Enjoy this one, it's an epic.
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Islay Debrief — Distillery Ratings, Listener Questions and What Whisky Would You Save If the Ferry Was Sinking?
30 juli 2026 · 1 uur 40 min
We were back in Diggers for a catchup and debrief from our Islay trip. Lees meer
This one got a bit messier than intended, but it was good to be back in the cellar chatting drams and telling Ross about how good the Islay trip was.
We went through our own personal highlights from Islay, rated the distilleries on whisky, experience and merch.
We answered listener questions and tucked into some fantastic drams.
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Bunnahabhain with David Brodie - Stories and Drams at the Distillery
23 juli 2026 · 1 uur 46 min
Part 2 of our Islay extravaganza took us to Bunnahabhain Distillery and we got a chance to sit down and have some drams with the legendary David Brodie. Lees meer
David has been a tour guide at Bunnahabhain Distillery for 11 years and his Warehouse 9 Tastings have become famous.
David talked us through his own journey and how he found himself moving to Islay and falling in love with the island and the whisky.
From working in the bank to delivering tastings and tours.
David shared drams and stories with us from his own whisky journey and the distillery.
Enjoy
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The Kilchoman Story - How to start a new distillery on Islay
16 juli 2026 · 1 uur 38 min
This is part of our FULL Islay Experience! We headed over to Islay and our first stop was Kilchoman Distillery. After a lovely tour and plenty of drams, we sat down with James Wills who is the Marketing and Sales Man as well as being son of the Founder Anthony Wills. Lees meer
James talked us through the whole history of Kilchoman Distillery, what it was like growing up around the distillery, accidentally setting the kiln on fire, the ethos behind 100% Islay barley, and the connection between Islay and the Land Rover.
You don't often get the chance to sit outside a working distillery, drinking drams and recording a podcast episode.
Enjoy!
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Glenfiddich Malt Master: How Do You Make The Biggest Selling Single Malt In The World?
9 juli 2026 · 1 uur 36 min
Brian Kinsman is the Master Blender for William Grant & Sons. Lees meer
That means he is responsible for overseeing some of the biggest whisky brands in the world.
Glenfiddich, The Balvenie, Grants, Monkey Shoulder, and now The Famous Grouse.
He's only the 6th Glenfiddich Malt Master in nearly 140 years.
He's worked within the William Grant & Sons Business for over 25 years, and his name is on every bottle of Glenfiddich sold around the world.
We chat all about his career, his role, cask sniffer dogs, and what it means to be part of the biggest selling Single Malt in the world.
This is a biggy. Strap in, pour a dram and enjoy this.
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Mike McGinty: The Stories Behind Dewars and the Distilleries
2 juli 2026 · 1 uur 35 min
Mike McGinty is the Brand Home Manager for John Dewars & Sons. That means a big part of his job is to take people to the distilleries owned by Dewars and tell them the amazing stories about them. Lees meer
Aberfeldy, Aultmore, Craigallachie, Macduff, and Royal Brackla all fall under his remit. And in this episode he told us the stories behind them all.
Why is Dewars so popular in America? Mike explained how a gift to an American President helped create that popularity.
What makes Dewars Double Double so special?
What distillery has the kinkiest lyne arms?
Mike has so many amazing and fun whisky stories, this was a classic night in the Diggers Cellar enjoying drams and great whisky chat.
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What are the Scottish Whisky Awards?
25 juni 2026 · 1 uur 39 min
We've all seen the labels on bottles and seen brands promoting that they are finalists or winners of whisky awards. But what does that actually mean? And what goes into winning a whisky award? Lees meer
John Boyle is the man who's job it is to start putting the Scottish Whisky Awards together each year. Getting brands to submit entries, bringing in sponsors, and putting on a MASSIVE tasting session for judges.
This was a great insight into the work that goes into the Scottish Whisky Awards.
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60 Years of Tamnavulin with Whisky Maker Kirsty Hodge & Distillery Manager Trevor Milne
18 juni 2026 · 1 uur 19 min
What is it that makes Tamnavulin so popular? Lees meer
To celebrate 60 years of the distillery, we held a birthday party for Tamnavulin and got to try some incredible whisky.
Whisky Maker Kirsty Hodge and Distillery Manager Trevor Milne came down to Diggers Leith for the party and brought along some whisky goodies.
It's not every day you get to try 50. year old whisky, so the final dram of the night was a real treat. But it was the 16 year old sample from what could be something to look forward to in the future that stole the show.
There's so much in this episode to unpack and enjoy.
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14 Years Selling Whisky - Lessons from working and managing The Whisky Shop
11 juni 2026 · 1 uur 55 min
What does working in an Edinburgh City Centre whisky shop teach you about whisky? Lees meer
David Agnew is the Manager of The Whisky Shop on Multrees Walk in Edinburgh City Centre. He's also the man who first started teaching Ross Barr about whisky.
This turned into one of my favourite nights recording. David has his own unique way when it comes to talking about whisky. He's seen the trends of new distilleries and launches, to popular styles and flavours, and he's seen the changes in prices and consumer behaviour.
This was a lot of fun to record and there's some great dram chat in this.
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Scottish Story Telling - The Full Scottish Experience with Alex Thomson
4 juni 2026 · 1 uur 43 min
I love listening to Alex Thomson talking about history, whisky, and Scottish Hospitality. Lees meer
And there's plenty of that on this episode.
Since the last time Alex was on the podcast he's since left his role at Glenturret and has set up his own business with a focus on delivering authentic Scottish experiences with a focus on the Perthshire area.
Alex has plenty of amazing whisky stories and is also a member of the Athol Highlanders which is a private Scottish army.
It was great catching up with him again.
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How to Build an Independent Bottler Business - Lady of the Glen
28 mei 2026 · 1 uur 44 min
This is the second time we've interviewed Gregor Hannah from Lady of the Glen Independent Bottlers. And if there's one thing I know about him, he just says it as it is. Lees meer
This episode is one of the best insights I've ever had on Independent Bottling. How he started the business, growing the business to the point of bringing in a Brand Ambassador Paul McKendrick, and searching for markets to sell their whisky.
This was our May Indy Bottler Spotlight tasting with a live audience, we went through their latest releases and even got our very own One of One bottle from the ONLY Solera Cask System in Scotland.
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Drams with Pals — Listener Questions, Favourite Guests & Dream Distillery Visits
21 mei 2026 · 1 uur 34 min
It was just the boys in for some drams and a catch up for this week. Lees meer
We haven't had an episode with just the 4 of us this year! So it was good to get us all in the back room at Diggers, get some drams and answer some listener questions.
There's a lot to unpack in this, there's questions ranging from our dream distillery visit to who would win in a whisky triathlon.
Turns out Chuck's dad is now a listener, so hello Mr Kerr.
Ross is off to America with the Current Wife. So if anyone at Iron Fish Distillery is listening, hook him up.
Pour a dram and enjoy this.
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Finn Thomson: 250 Years of Family Whisky History and the Art of Independent Bottling
14 mei 2026 · 1 uur 46 min
This is the second time we've had Finn Thomson on the podcast. The first time was for our second Indy Bottler Spotlight. But we wanted to sit down with Finn and dive into his fascinating whisky family history which dates all the way back to 1772. Lees meer
Illicit stills, blending, buying casks, and carrying on the family business. We hear all about how Finn decided to set up his very own whisky business and the work that goes into starting a whisky brand.
He even brought in some of the new bottles for his latest project with the Scotland Tartan Army for the World Cup. These are the Official Tartan Army bottlings. They look and taste fantastic, and at the time of the podcast going out, they are on sale to buy. If there are any left.
Enjoy
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Whisky Stories Live — Adelphi & Ardnamurchan Take Over Mother Superior
7 mei 2026 · 1 uur 21 min
It was a big night at Mother Superior for our Whisky Stories LIVE event with Adelphi and Ardnamurchan. Lees meer
After our trip to the distillery, it was great to sit down with a group on a Friday night and go through a great lineup which included our very own hand picked cask sample we drew on our trip to the distillery.
We had Calum Rafferty and Connie MacDonald in representing Adelphi and Ardnamurchan and they brought some great drams along with them.
Another great night with loads of laughs and great whisky.
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How Do You Blend the World's Best Selling Whisky? — Johnnie Walker Master Blender Dr Emma Walker
30 april 2026 · 1 uur 31 min
This is the big one. Lees meer
Dr. Emma Walker is the Master Blender for Johnnie Walker. That's got to be the biggest job in whisky. She is responsible for blending and signing off on all Johnnie Walker products and she talked us through the whole process.
Getting to sit down and have some drams with Emma has been one of the best experiences I've had since starting the podcast. Hearing her explain the magnitude of the job that she has, managing 11 million casks of whisky, maintaining the quality and consistency of a product that's sold all over the world, and creating exciting new releases for new individual markets. This podcast was a proper insight into one of the biggest drinks brands in the world.
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The Two Best Selling Single Malts in the UK: Andrew Lennie, Whyte & Mackay
23 april 2026 · 1 uur 48 min
This week's episode is with Andrew Lennie who is the Global Whisky Specialist for Whyte & Mackay. Lees meer
This episode is actually part of our collaboration with Whyte & Mackay to celebrate the 60th anniversary for Tamnavulin Distillery.
In this episode we hear about how Andrew got into whisky and worked his way to becoming the Global Whisky Specialist for Whyte & Mackay.
We talked about the whole Whyte & Mackay portfolio which includes The Dalmore, Jura, Fettercairn and Tamnavulin. We talked about the incredible stat that Jura and Tamnavulin are number 1 and number 2 best seeling single malt whisky in the UK for off-trade in volume and value which is mental.
Jura being number 1 and Tamnavulin being number 2.
We also spoke about the unique still cooling system at Fettercairn as well as their use of Scottish oak which is really interesting. Ross had the Fettercairn 18 which is 100% finished in Scottish oak.
We also got a chance to try the 2 NEW and EXCLUSIVE Tamnavulin Special releases. One being the 25 year old celebration single cask for the 60th anniversary which was actually distilled and put into the cask in 2000 when the distillery was mothballed and we also tried their single cask release for Spirit of Speyside Festival which will only be available at the distillery for the 1 week that it is open to the public during the festival.
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The Most Important Ingredient in Whisky Nobody Talks About — David Hannah, Muntons Malt
16 april 2026 · 1 uur 38 min
Anyone who knows the pod will know that we never ignore barley chat. However, we've had Master Blenders, Distillers, Distillery Owners and Founders on the pod, but never had a Maltster. Lees meer
David Hannah is Head of Distillery Sales - Global for Muntons Malt. Basically, it's his job to travel around the world talking to Distillery Managers and selling them malted barley.
David said that it might not be the sexiest part of the process, but it's definitely the most important. And we deep dive into the world of malting in this episode.
This was a lot of fun to record, David is a keen listener of the pod and we had a few more drams after recording.
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Flora Outram: Old Pulteney, Scottish Prohibition and a Single Malt from Thailand
9 april 2026 · 1 uur 44 min
We're BIG fans of Old Pulteney on the pod. But we don't know enough about it. So we had Flora Outram who is a Brand Ambassador for International Beverage. She covers everything in their portfolio from New Zealand whisky and vodka, Thai Single Malt and all of their Scotch brands. Lees meer
Thankfully for us, Old Pulteney is one of the brands she covers.
We tried some great drams and heard about the amazing history of the distillery which is turning 200 years old this year.
Prohibition in Scotland, salinity tasting notes and loads of laughs. This was a lot of fun to record.
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How did Ardnamurchan Distillery start?- Managing Director Alex Bruce
2 april 2026 · 1 uur 54 min
We're HUGE fans of Ardnamurchan on the podcast. So it made sense for us to find out the story of how it started. Lees meer
Alex Bruce is the Managing Director of Ardnamurchan and Adelphi.
In this episode he talks us through how he started out at Adelphi in 2004 with nothing more than a black book of contacts, a filing cabinet, fax machine and 3 casks.
From there he grew Adelphi into a premium highly sought after Independent Bottler and then made the decision it was time to build a distillery.
This was a lot of fun and there were some amazing drams he was kind enough to bring in with him.
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How to get whisky into America with Importer Howard Sacks
26 maart 2026 · 1 uur 13 min
We met Howard a year ago up in Dornoch and when he contacted us to let us know he was coming back, we had to meet up for a couple of drams. Lees meer
We managed to sneak a recording in on Saturday morning in Diggers before the Independent Whisky Festival in Leith. It was an early start, but we still managed some 'breakfast drams'.
Howard talked us through how he started out as a Whisky Importer in the U.S, the challenges of getting whisky into America, how he selects the brands he works with, and why he decided to look at Independent Distilleries and Bottlers rather than going main stream.
This is a fascinating insight and the drams were fantastic too.
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Blender - Bottler - Distiller Spotlight: Aberargie Inaugural Release
19 maart 2026 · 1 uur 41 min
The first Whisky Stories Spotlight event of 2026 was a special one! Lees meer
Not only were we christening the new Diggers Leith with the first tasting in the pub, we were also getting to try a BRAND NEW Single Malt from Aberargie Distillery.
Morrison Scotch Whisky Distillers are Blenders, Bottlers and Distillers. And Good Pal of the Pod Tam Cuthbert came along to share some great drams with us and tell their story.
We enjoyed a Carn Mor Linkwood, Aberargie Inaugural Release, Old Perth and Mac-Talla.
Another cracking night with a room full of people enjoying the great drams.
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Glenfiddich, Balvenie and the Luxury Whisky Market — Tim Walker, William Grant & Sons
12 maart 2026 · 1 uur 53 min
This week it's a luxury podcast. Lees meer
Tim Walker has been a keen listener of the pod since the early days, and we've been trying to get him on for a long time.
Thankfully, he finally agreed. And he brought drams with him!!
Tim is the National Account Manager in Scotland for the Luxury On Trade.
What that means is that he sells very expensive whisky to people like Ross who sells it on to other people.
And speaking of Ross, it was great to have him back on the pod for this one. He was also able to give his own thoughts and insight into the wonderful world of luxury whisky.
Enjoy!
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Greg Urquhart's Liquid CV, Blending and Dram Jam
5 maart 2026 · 1 uur 52 min
This week we have good Pal of the Pod back on for some good old whisky chat. Lees meer
Where is the whisky industry right now? We reacted to the big news coming out of Diageo and tried to work out if this is good news for the consumer.
The art of blending and can we do it in the cellar at Diggers? We put Greg's consultancy skills to the test.
And a real treat with some Dram Jam sent in for us to sample.
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Loch Lomond, Glen Scotia & Littlemill – With Shona Sips
26 februari 2026 · 1 uur 47 min
This week we were back in the Diggers Cellar joined by Shona Gillespie aka Shona Sips from Loch Lomond Group. Lees meer
We chatted about Glenscotia, re-branding, Loch Lomond's 11 different spirit types and what's going on in the Scotch Whisky Industry right now.
Shona was kind enough to bring drams and samples along with her and we really enjoyed the new Glenscotia 12 release.
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Power Cut, The NEW Diggers, and Cartons of Whisky
19 februari 2026 · 1 uur 45 min
This week we were recording our first ever episoed in the NEW Digger Leith which only opened a few days ago. Lees meer
The first half of this episode was recorded during a power cut. But we had plenty of drams to get through, so we lit some candles, poured some drams and got chatting. This week we had really good 'Pal of the Pod' Fraser Souness on to talk us through what's happening at Gordon & Macpahil, the latest chat on the new Cairn Distillerly inaugural release AND I had brought back some Indian goodies. We tried some 'whisky cartons' which ended up with very mixed reviews as well as some proper Indian single malt from Pujl John and Indrie. Enhjoy
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Ten Days’ Notice, A Few Drams Later: Scotland’s World Cup Story in India
12 februari 2026 · 1 uur 2 min
When Scotland got a last minute call up to the T20 Cricket World Cup in India, and I realised they'd be in Bangalore while I was here, it was too good an opportunity to pass up. Lees meer
So after watching Scotland in their warm-up game against Afghanistan from outside the ground (check out the vlog) I was invited to the team hotel the next day.
You might hear from my voice in this episode that even though I didn't get into the game, we were still in fine voice.
I caught up with Charles Paterson Head of Coms and All Rounder Michael Leask in the team hotel before they headed off to kick off their World Cup campaign.
This is a great insight into cricket, what it's like scrambling to get a team together, and how whisky plays it's role.
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Fraser Morrison: From The Glenlivet Tour Guide to Whisky Life in India
5 februari 2026 · 1 uur 38 min
Fraser is based in India and represents The Glenlivet, Aberlour, Chivas Regal, Royal Salute and Ballantine’s. However, he is not on the podcast in an “official capacity”, therefore this was not a recording about his brands. This was a recording about him personally. Lees meer
We talked about his journey into whisky, starting on the familiar path from behind the bar, to then working as a tour guide at The Glenlivet Distillery (we can talk and did talk about this), moving up to Speyside to live and breathe whisky, and then eventually moving out to India to become an International Brand Ambassador.
We recorded this episode in Tycoons Bar in Bangalore. Fraser is based in Delhi but flew to Bangalore to catch up, have some drams and record this episode.
He spoke about his experiences out in India, the differences that he’s noticed in the whisky world out in India versus in Scotland, and the Indian whisky market.
Fraser has visited 17 cities and 15 states in the 18 months that he’s been working as a brand ambassador out in India.
He also told a great story about trying some “whisky” made from replica illicit stills made from Glenfarclas stills blueprints, but a third of the size.
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Paul John Distillery: The Story of India’s Single Malt
29 januari 2026 · 1 uur 18 min
While I’m out in India, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to dive deep into Indian whisky and, the good folks at Paul John Distillery were more than happy to help. Lees meer
After a flying visit into Goa to meet Master Distiller Michael D’Souza and get a full tour of the distillery (check out the vlog for this), I was invited to the Paul Hotel back in Bangalore for a chat and some drams with the Paul John Global Brand Ambassador Heemanshu Ashar.
Heemanshu talked me through his own beginnings and journey into whisky, and then talked about how Paul John started out.
Despite Paul John Distillery only being open from 2012, the whisky gets itself all over the world. But I wanted to know how it all started, and who is Paul John?
Heemanshu talked us through the origins of the business and explained about Mr Paul P John and the overall business John Distilleries. Blended Indian whisky, Indian wine and now Indian single malt.
Heemanshu was also kind enough to let me try the new 2025 Christmas Edition which is finished in a Cream Sherry Cask.
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The Whisky Drinkers Cycle & One Star Reviews with Cody Reynolds
22 januari 2026 · 1 uur 53 min
We’ve talked about getting Cody Reynolds back on the podcast for a long time. Lees meer
But the Angus Dundee Global Brand Ambassador is a busy man travelling the world spreading the good word of Glencadam and Tomintoul.
Cody was our 5th episode when he first came on the podcast on the 9th of November 2023.
He was our first Brand Ambassador to come onto the pod as well.
One of the things that I remember most about that episdoe was Cody explaining the cycle of the whisky drinker. What makes that even more impressive is that even now, after 113 episode we are still referencing it.
There was a good amount of whisky consumed before, during and after the podcast and Cody was kind enough to bring in a Swedish drink that I can still taste now.
Cody has also birthed one of our next Games for the Pod with Cody Reynolds One Star Reviews!
Loads of fun on this one and lots of Glencadam, Tomintoul and general whisky chat.
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2025 Wrapped: Top Drams of the Year (Official)
1 januari 2026 · 1 uur 44 min
What better way to end the year than to sit down in the Diggers cellar with the owner, tuck into some drams and go through some of the best whiskies we've had this year. Lees meer
We look back at what's been an amazing year for the podcast. We've had some great guests, had access to distilleries and hosted some really fun events.
We also look ahead to an exciting 2026 for Kev with the soon to be launched 'Diggers 2' down in Leith (name pending).
Thanks to everyone who's been part of the podcast for the last 12 months.
Happy New Year and here's to 2026 and plenty more drams and shenanigans.
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A Christmas Cracker - North British Distillery AND some BIG news for 2026!
25 december 2025 · 1 uur 36 min
Merry Christmas! Lees meer
We had a quick Christmas catch-up in Diggers for a couple of drams (Ross had already had a few before he got there...) to lead into our North British Distillery Podcast recording.
We were given a very special gift from the guys at Royal Mile Whiskies which is something to look forward to in the new year and Ross gave us his top whiskies of 2025.
Hope you're having or had a great Christmas and Happy New Year.
Thanks for listening.
Cheers!
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Big Cam's Festive Drams
18 december 2025 · 1 uur 45 min
This week we have Pal of the Pod Cameron Ewen in for a chat about his now job, Christmas drams and whiskies of 2025. Lees meer
We were back in the Dug Oot at Diggers for this one enjoying some drams, and festive whisky chat with Cam.
Cam talked us through his new role at Diageo and some of the amazing whiskies he gets to work with. Including old Brora and Port Ellon bottlings.
We also discuss what whiskies we'll be drinking over the Christmas festivities.
Enjoy
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The creator of the Glencairn Glass - Raymond Davidson reinventing how we drink whisky
11 december 2025 · 1 uur 27 min
Raymond is the man behind the iconic Glencairn whisky glass and changed the way we drink whisky. Lees meer
He isn't just Whisky Royalty, he's an absolute gentleman as well.
Spending time with Raymond and hearing his whisky stories was amazing.
In this episode we hear about how he started out, what made him decide to design a glass for drinking whisky, and the journey it's taken him on.
We also enjoyed a good few drams while we were at it!
Enjoy
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Dr Whisky Sam Simmons - Atom Brands, Master of Malt and Boutique-y Whisky
4 december 2025 · 1 uur 38 min
This one was a lot of fun to record. Lees meer
Sam Simmons was one of the first online whisky bloggers with his blog Dr Whisky starting back in the early 2000s.
That took him from writing about whisky to selling it, becoming the Global Brand Ambassador for Balvennie to becoming Head of Whisky for Atom Brands.
He's responsible for putting out releases to over 1 million people around the world. Looking for cool whisky concepts, bottling it and selling it.
Sam brought in some of his own projects with him for us to try including Wormtub 10 and the famous Dalry Milk North British bottling.
There's some great whisky chat in this podcast as well as plenty of laughs and good drams.
Enjoy
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Whiskygasms, Edinburgh Pub Crawls and our USA Brand Ambassador Scott Moore
27 november 2025 · 1 uur 44 min
We were all back in the Diggers Vaults for a recording and a catch up with Chuck, Angus, myself Ross and Scott Moore. Lees meer
Ross had literally just jumped off the plane returning from his trip across the pond to see his current mother and father-in-law and our USA Brand Ambassador was about to leave from his epic whisky trip to Scotland.
There were loads of drams on the barrel for this one. With plenty of whisky chat from Scott's trip, we had whisky samples sent over and lots of catching up to do.
We chatted about our trip to Glencadam Distillery as well as our epic Edinburgh Whisky Pub Crawl.
Loads of fun and nonsense on this one. Enjoy!
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How to start a distillery - the Isle of Raasay Story
19 november 2025 · 1 uur 46 min
How do you start a distillery on tiny island off the coast of Scotland? Lees meer
We sat down with Isle of Raasay Co-founder and Master Distiller Alasdair Day and UK Sales Manager Gregor Hunter to hear the story.
Alasdair talks us through how he got into whisky through his family history connections and how things sparked from blending to distilling.
We also talked about life on the island and what the distillery is doing for the local economy and growing the island population.
The lads also brought in some fantastic drams for us to try including Isle of Raasay newmake and the first ever peated single grain whisky to be bottled.
Enjoy!
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Whisky Stories Turns 2! -The BIG Birthday Bash
13 november 2025 · 2 uur
It's our birthday and to celebrate we put on a BIG Birthday Bash last Friday night at Uno Mas. Lees meer
And what a night it was!
We had 55 guests, 6 brands and 7 whiskies on the lineup. There were party games and Ali Baxter Whisky Stories Bingo.
And we even had our own cask of whisky which was rolled in and hand filled on the night in the bar.
A huge thanks to everyone for coming along and being part of the special occasion and to our brands.
Woven
InchDairnie
Holyrood
Tri-Carragh
Glengoyne
Woodrow's of Edinburgh
This is a wild one. Enjoy