We found 10 episodes of Whisky Talk with the tag “whisky”.
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Episode 72: Olaf Meier
Episode | 15 May 2024 | 35 mins 17 secs
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
Scotch Malt Whisky Society ambassador and Tasting Panel chairperson Olaf Meier is a fountain of knowledge, driven by a limitless number of whisky stories and a huge passion for the Society and the wider whisky world. Olaf now finds himself celebrating his 20th year representing the Society. Despite having more than two decades of whisky experience, Olaf started his journey with humble beginnings, as Duncan Gorman finds out.
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Episode 71: Scotch & Sherry
Episode | 2 May 2024 | 30 mins 56 secs
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
In this episode we’re going on a special journey across Spain, to tell the story of whisky and sherry and the wonderful synergy between the two worlds when it comes to sherry cask matured whisky.
We travel to the oak forests of Galicia in the far northwest of Spain to take the creation of Spanish oak casks right back to the beginning, in the Cantabrian forest, before heading south to Jerez and the Sherry Triangle, to visit the cooperages and bodegas where the casks are built and then seasoned with different styles of sherry wine. -
Episode 70: Paul John
Episode | 17 April 2024 | 28 mins 32 secs
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
Regular listeners will know that we are fortunate at The Scotch Malt Whisky Society to welcome representatives from distilleries, who visit us in our Members’ Rooms, share some special samples of their whiskies with our members, and give us their insights and knowledge about their distilleries.
In March we had a visit to the Vaults by Heemanshu Ashar from Paul John, the pioneering Indian distillery based in Goa on the country’s tropical west coast.
Before enjoying the tasting, we took the chance to find out more about Paul John distillery, India’s whisky journey since independence in 1947 and what tropical maturation brings to this spirit. -
Episode 69: Flavour Journey with Kami Newton
Episode | 3 April 2024 | 41 mins 36 secs
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
In this episode, we’re taking a deep dive into the flavour journey that takes place every time we uncork a bottle of whisky and then nose and taste it. It’s a process that the Tasting Panel at The Scotch Malt Whisky Society goes through with every sample that is presented for possible inclusion in a Society bottling. So we caught up with Tasting Panel chair Kami Newton, to find out more about the different steps on this flavour journey and why we should take time to appreciate the complexities of what’s in our glass.
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Episode 68: Blair Athol
Episode | 28 February 2024 | 40 mins 24 secs
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
We were fortunate to have a visit from two of the team from Blair Athol distillery to The Vaults in February, for a special tasting of four expressions of Blair Athol whisky, along with a sample of one of the Society’s own single cask offerings. Blair Athol distillery manager Derek Younie was joined by Peter Milne from Diageo’s Whisky Specialist Team to talk members through the samples and provide insight into the history and working of the distillery, what to expect from Blair Athol’s spirit character, and how it works with different casks and forms of maturation.
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Episode 67: Springbank
Episode | 31 January 2024 | 1 hr 7 mins
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
In February, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society paid host to Melanie Stanger from Springbank distillery in Campbeltown, who visited our Members’ Room at The Vaults in Leith to tell us more about this legendary distillery and share a few special drams.
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Episode 66: Pip's Prague Adventure
Episode | 4 December 2023 | 20 mins 2 secs
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
The vintage Lagonda belonging to Society founder Pip Hills played an instrumental part in our whisky club’s foundation, carrying the first precious cargo of single casks from Speyside back to his Scotland Street home in Edinburgh to share with friends. In 1990, Pip Hills and his brother-in-law Dick Pountain decided to take a road trip to Prague in the Lagonda, to witness Václav Havel’s inauguration as president of the Czech Republic. The magazine The Classic Motoring Review subsequently commissioned Pip and Dick to write a piece about the journey – and how Society whisky helped to make it a success. We asked Pip and Dick to tell us that story in their own words.
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Episode 65: Matugga Rum
Episode | 30 August 2023 | 31 mins 11 secs
cask strength whisky, matugga, rum, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
A taste of rum at a family gathering led husband-and-wife team Jacine and Paul Rutasikwa on the path to setting up their own distillery in the town of Livingston, near Edinburgh. Mads Schmoll paid a visit to uncover the fascinating story behind Matugga Rum and how it blends elements of African, Caribbean and Scottish cultures and heritage
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Episode 64: Val McDermid
Episode | 25 August 2023 | 22 mins 44 secs
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
Crime writer and whisky enthusiast Val has been a fan of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society since its early days, after receiving an educational journey across the whisky regions from a friend’s father who was something of an aficionado. Whisky Talk caught up with Val in an Edinburgh coffee shop to find out more about her whisky passion, her writing career and who would be her fantasy whisky-drinking companion.
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Episode 63: Maverick - The Founder's Tale with Pip Hills
Episode | 2 August 2023 | 23 mins 47 secs
cask strength whisky, scotch, scotch malt whisky society, single malt whisky, whisky
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society is marking its 40th anniversary with an updated and revised edition of Pip Hills' memoir, "Maverick – The Founder’s Tale", which now includes the story of 'coming in from the cold' after leaving the whisky club in the 1990s. Pip tells Richard Goslan about reconnecting with the Society and what we can expect from the new version of his book.