Whisky Stories Podcast

This week’s episode is a huge milestone for us—it marks our first official distillery collaboration: Whisky Stories x InchDairnie Distillery!We were invited to the InchDairnie Distillery in Glenrothes, Fife, for a full behind-the-scenes tour and a fascinating chat with Managing Director Scott Sneddon, who we’ve officially nicknamed the "Engineer of Flavour".This distillery is closed to the public, so getting exclusive access was a rare treat—and with Chuck on camera, we captured the full all-access experience.Not only did we get the tour, we were among the first people in the world to sample InchDairnie’s debut Single Malt Scotch Whisky, officially released today, 8th May 2025:🥃 KinGlassie Double Maturation🥃 KinGlassie RawBoth are 8-Year-Old Single Malts, and both blew us away.InchDairnie is truly one of the most innovative distilleries in Scotland, combining traditional whisky-making with cutting-edge techniques. Alongside their Fife Single Malt Scotch, they’re also producing Rye Whisky and experimenting with a huge variety of grains and yeasts.In total, nine unique spirit styles are produced at the distillery—an incredible feat for a single site. From peated Fife Single Malt to unexpected mash bills and fermentation styles, InchDairnie is doing things differently… and doing them brilliantly.These exciting new releases are now available via The Whisky Exchange and Royal Mile Whiskies.To celebrate the partnership, we’re also hosting our first-ever Distillery Spotlight tasting event at The Diggers Vaults on Friday 23rd May, where you’ll be able to meet Scott Sneddon, hear about the incredible work going on at the distillery, and taste some of their standout whiskies for yourself.This episode is packed with:✅ Exclusive access to a closed-to-the-public Scotch whisky distillery✅ The first taste of a brand-new Fife Single Malt release✅ Deep dive into innovative whisky production✅ A huge moment for us here at Whisky StoriesEnjoy!

This week on the podcast, we were joined by Nicole Leslie from Halewood Artisanal Spirits for a cracking conversation recorded in The Diggers.Nicole gave us a proper insight into her career in whisky, her work with Halewood, and most importantly, the mysterious Bonnington Distillery—one of Edinburgh’s least talked-about distilleries, largely because it’s closed to the public.We’ve spoken often about the growing whisky scene in Scotland’s capital, but Bonnington has always felt like a bit of a mystery… until now. Nicole walked us through the distillery’s history, current releases, and how they operate behind the scenes.Bonnington’s whisky is bottled under both the Bonnington and Crabbie’s brands—John Crabbie being a legendary figure in Edinburgh’s distilling past. It’s a fascinating dual-brand setup that reflects both heritage and modern craft.Nicole brought along a couple of bottles from each range, and they were very well received indeed. We also got into a lively chat about maturing whisky in unregulated cask types and the controversy surrounding the Dalry Milk release from Master of Malt.A brilliant episode shining a light on a hidden distillery, a storied brand, and some of the big conversations happening in whisky today.Enjoy! 🥃

This week’s episode is another LIVE Indy Bottler Spotlight, and for our 7th edition, we were down in Leith with a brilliant crowd and an even better lineup of whisky.We were joined by friend of the pod Simon Smith, representing the Independent Bottler Pintail. Not only did Simon guide us through a delicious lineup of drams, but he also welcomed us into his brand-new pub, The Finch, to record the episode—just hours after getting the keys!While The Finch isn’t open just yet, we’ve no doubt it’ll become a go-to spot for a proper dram, especially with Simon behind the bar.Pintail is a fascinating bottler, known for their focus on sweet wine cask finishes, sourcing casks from across Europe and giving their whiskies a unique twist. Simon walked us through the history of wine cask use in Scotch whisky and broke down the five-dram tasting lineup in style.🥃 ⁠Inchgower 16yo Banyuls Cask🥃 Linkwood 14yo Loupaic Cask🥃 ⁠Tullibardine 10yo Calvados Cask🥃 Dailuaine 14yo Palo Cortado Sherry Barrel🥃 Laphroaig 16yo Oloroso Sherry BarelWe were also joined by the always entertaining Launce Morgan and his lovely 'current wife' Sandra, who made the journey up from England for the night.As always, this Indy Bottler Spotlight was packed with great whisky, proper stories, and plenty of laughs.Enjoy!

This week, we were joined by the brilliant Stuart Baxter—aka Barley Baxter—Global Spirits Ambassador for International Beverage, covering iconic Scotch whisky brands like Old Pulteney, Speyburn, Balblair, and anCnoc.Stuart’s whisky journey began with the Chivas Ambassador Programme, and since then, he’s travelled the globe sharing drams and stories. One highlight? His wild time working in India—including that unforgettable night as the only guest in an entire hotel.We dived into the history of Old Pulteney Distillery, including the wild days of prohibition in Scotland when the distillery was—believe it or not—used as a morgue.Stuart brought some fantastic whiskies for us to try, including a dram from Speyburn, which only opened its doors to visitors in the last three years. With its drum maltings from 1905—the first distillery to install them—it’s now firmly on my must-visit distillery list.We were also lucky enough to sample a rare staff-only bottling from Balmenach, and a surprise dram from New Zealand—Cardrona Single Malt Whisky.And if that wasn’t enough, we even uncovered the bizarre connection between Dr Seuss and a drunken duck in a kilt...An episode packed with whisky, scotch, distillery stories, global adventures, and big laughs.Enjoy! 🥃🌍🦆

This week, we bring you the final episode from our epic Whisky Stories road trip up north—and we’re wrapping it up in style with a private tour of Tomatin Distillery.Located in the heart of the Highlands, Tomatin is a Highland Distillery with a rich history and a reputation for producing some truly exceptional Scotch whisky. We were lucky enough to get access-all-areas, diving deep into the production process, the history of the distillery, and of course… sampling whisky straight from the cask in their oldest warehouse.Along the way, we kept the fun going with a few of our favourite games—Mystery Distillery and Play Your Distilleries Right—and we also heard the chaotic tale of Chuck’s mad dash to the airport after one too many drams the night before his flight to Japan.This episode is packed with great laughs, brilliant insight, and some stunning Tomatin whisky. A huge thanks to the team at Tomatin Distillery for the warm welcome and the unforgettable experience.Enjoy!

We’re back in Dornoch for Episode 2 of our Highland whisky adventure, and this time, Phil and Simon Thompson gave us the full behind-the-scenes tour of everything they’ve built—and everything that’s still to come.We started at the heart of it all: the Dornoch Distillery, tucked away in the back garden of Dornoch Castle. This tiny distillery—built in an old storage building—is one of the smallest in the world, but what it lacks in size, it more than makes up for in character and craftsmanship.The lads walked us through their whisky-making ethos, from using heritage barley and old-school yeast strains, to how they push their tiny stills to get the character they’re after.Then it was a short stroll through the town to visit their bonded warehouse, where they store, bottle, and label both their independent releases under Thompson Bros and their own Dornoch Distillery whisky.We also got a sneak peek into their exciting new project—Mystery Distillery—and we’re already buzzing for what’s to come.After a quick browse in their bottle shop, we made our way to the site of their next big venture: the future home of the Struie Distillery. Phill and Simon shared the vision behind the build and how whisky fans can get involved through their crowdfunding campaign.And of course, we wrapped it all up back at the Dornoch Castle bar, enjoying some cracking whiskies... and some seriously questionable opinions about how to eat French pastries.Another brilliant episode full of whisky, scotch whisky, whisky history, and a look into the future Highland whisky.Enjoy

We hit the road for a true Highland whisky adventure as the Whisky Stories Grand Tour to Dornoch begins!Leaving Edinburgh bright and early at 7am, we jumped in the Whisky Wagon and headed north. After a quick stop at Tomatin Distillery (more on that in a future episode!), we made our way to Dornoch to meet the brilliant Phill and Simon Thompson—aka the Thompson Bros.Phill and Simon welcomed us with open arms for the weekend and gave us the full story behind their incredible journey—from bottling 1930s-era whisky on their parents’ kitchen table, to launching their own line of independent bottlings, building the tiny but mighty Dornoch Distillery, and now planning their bold next step: the brand-new Struie Distillery.We stayed at the beautiful Dornoch Castle, enjoyed a cracking evening in the cellar with the lads, and were treated to some amazing whiskies and proper Highland hospitality.This is just Episode 1 of our Dornoch adventure—stay tuned for Part 2 next week, and trust us, you won't want to miss it.Enjoy! 🥃🏰🔥

This week, we welcomed back Justine Hazlehurst, co-founder and organiser of the Fife Whisky Festival, to talk about the success of this year’s festival, which took place over three whisky-filled days in March.Our conversation sparked an interesting debate—should Fife become its own independent whisky region in Scotland? With the growing number of Fife whisky distilleries and the success of the Fife Whisky Festival, the idea is certainly worth exploring!But Justine wasn’t just here to talk about the festival—she’s also just written and published a whisky book, and it’s one that dives deep into one of the most infamous events in Scotch Whisky history: The Pattison Crash of the 1890s.The Pattison Brothers have made frequent appearances on the podcast, but Justine has uncovered the full, fascinating story in her new book, Opening the Case: Opening The Case: The Affairs of Pattisons' Whisky.Their shady accounting practices, lavish spending, and African Grey parrots trained to advertise their whisky nearly brought Scotch Whisky to its knees.This episode is packed with whisky history, Fife Whisky, whisky scandals, and plenty of great chat.Enjoy! 🥃📖🔥Where to buy the book -

Hazel MacLeod was the third episode that we recorded back when we were just getting started. At that time, she was working for William Grant & Sons in Business Development.Now she works for Woven Whisky as their Whisky Specialist.Hazel is so much fun and a great laugh. We recorded this episode in the Whisky Bunker underneath the Athletic Arms and heard all about the cool and exciting things Woven are doing.The Highball competition sounds like a lot of fun and we would be desperate to get involved in sampling some of the highballs made by the 10 bars taking part in the competition.We also got a chance to try the new 'spirit' coffee and whisky blend Woven have done in collaboration with Project Coffee.This episode was a great laugh, full of some good chat and whisky.N6YhL0ArlOwGfDtl7LO1