History changes all the time as we uncover new facts about the past, and historian Drew Hannush’s new book shakes up some of the history of Tennessee Whiskey. For starters, “The Lost History of Tennessee Whiskey” sheds new light on the origin stories of Jack Daniel’s and the Lincoln County Process. We’ll talk with Drew Hannush on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Heaven Hill is closing its bottling operations in Canada, while Irish Distillers is getting out of the beer business. 

This year’s Canadian Whisky Awards produced another surprise winner for the second year in a row. Ontario’s Paradigm Spirits won Canadian Whisky of the Year honors, and we’ll discuss the state of Canadian Whisky with Davin de Kergommeaux. In the news, U-S craft distillers made gains in 2023 despite economic pressures, while Scotch Whisky’s impact on the Scottish economy continues to grow. 

Master Blender Billy Leighton’s recent decision to step aside from day to day work at Irish Distillers gave his longtime apprentice the dream job of a lifetime. Dave McCabe is the new Master Blender for Jameson, Redbreast, Powers, and other Irish Whiskey brands, and we’ll talk with him on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, Irish Whiskey exports posted a decline in 2023, while Islay’s Ardnahoe Distillery is shutting down part of its visitors center. We’ll have the details on those and other stories, including another new distillery for Kentucky. 

The week’s top story was the sale of the independent bottler Single Cask Nation to the Artisanal Spirits Company, which also owns the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. The two bottlers will co-exist under one corporate umbrella, with SCN founders Joshua Hatton and Jason Johnstone-Yellin remaining in charge. We’ll talk with them on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, there’s new life planned for a long-closed Speyside distillery and the winners of the 2023 John Barleycorn Awards have been announced.