No April Fool's Day jokes in this episode...just cask-strength whisky news! The winners of the annual San Francisco World Spirits Competition have been announced, and we have the details. Also, Whisky Magazine's editors are training for the "Islay Triathlon", and we'll find out more from Glenfiddich's Ian Millar about the world's oldest whisky to be auctioned off in New York Tuesday night. Plus...one Glenfiddich single malt is "forbidden fruit" for American whisky drinkers, but that's about to change...

The numbers are in for 2005, and Scotch distillers had one of the best years on record -- despite sales declines in Europe. We'll get the details, along with a charity auction of what may be the world's oldest whisky, new Kentucky Derby releases, and a newcomer to the world of whisky...with a Swedish accent and rave initial reviews for Mackmyra Reserve.

Tullibardine Distillery in the Scottish Highlands is making up for lost time after reopening in 2003, and we'll get an update from veteran distillery manager John Black. In the news, a new "pillaged malt" is being sold for charity, along with a rare whisky that raised $30,000 for the Himalayan Trust, and master blender Richard Paterson heads off on a worldwide mission to promote Glasgow's 2014 Commonwealth Games bid.

WhiskyCast goes on location to Fitzer's Bar at the Fitzpatrick Hotel on Madison Avenue in New York City...right along the parade route for New York's St. Patrick's Day Parade. We'll look at Irish whiskeys in this episode, featuring interviews with Bushmills Master Distiller Colum Egan and Cooley Distillery's John Teeling and Willie McCarter on the new whiskey named after Irish revolutionary hero Michael Collins.

The title "Best Whisky Bar in the World" is sought by many, earned by few. This year, Whisky Magazine's Icons of Whisky award went to The Pot Still in Glasgow, and that prompted owner Ken Storrie to buy a round for the house! We'll hear from Ken, and in the news, we'll have word of a new Balvenie single malt release, a brewing trade war between Europe and India over whisky, and why China matters so much to whisky producers.

Time for an update on new whiskies heading for your local bar or retailer, including the 2006 lineup for Diageo's Classic Malts and Rare Malts series and new releases from Bunnahabhain and Compass Box. We'll hear from the folks at Glenfarclas, just named Whisky Magazine's Distiller of the Year, Also, an update on next month's Spirit of Speyside Festival and more on the "weapons-grade whisky" controversy.

It's a milestone of sorts for WhiskyCast, with 25 episodes now on the web! We'll celebrate independent spirit in this episode. Bruichladdich's Mark Reynier explains just what he and his mates were thinking when they distilled a weapons-grade whisky from a 300-year-old recipe last week. We'll hear from Penderyn co-founder Brian Morgan on his distillery's delays in getting the first Welsh whisky in a century into the United States, and news of a new distribution deal for one of Canada's most underrated whiskies...all on this special edition of WhiskyCast!

This cask-strength episode spans the globe, from controversies in India to whiskies that are fiery and smoky in Islay. We'll also re-visit an old friend of WhiskyCast, as Dawn Callan's group "Gopher Baroque" debuts their new song "Shipwrecked Whisky"!