Not Another Whisky Podcast

Mitch and Daz take a deep dive into coopering — the ancient craft behind every great dram.

Recorded in Edinburgh over suspiciously large highballs, the episode traces the cask from Celtic barrel-makers and Roman trade routes to modern whisky maturation, wood policy, rejuvenation and the global cask trade.

Mitch speaks with Ian MacDonald, former head cooper at The Balvenie, who started his apprenticeship in 1969 and spent over 50 years in the trade. Ian shares stories of rebuilding bourbon barrels into hogsheads, working alongside David Stewart, being paid per cask, apprentice initiations, and why coopering is far more than “just hammering bits of wood together."

The episode also features Lawrence Proctor, manager of Camlachie Cooperage and president of the Coopering Federation, who explains the modern reality of running a cooperage: cask repair, rejuvenation, apprenticeships, bourbon barrel prices, industry slowdowns and why coopers are often the first to feel the pressure when whisky dips.

Featuring
Ian MacDonald — former Head Cooper at The Balvenie
Lawrence Proctor — Manager at Clydeside Cooperage and President of the Scottish Coopering Federation
Hosted by Mitch Bechard and Daz Haldane, this is where the whisky world gets pulled apart properly, with stories, insights, and the occasional bit of chaos along the way.

🥃 New episodes every week(ish)
🎤 Live shows & tastings across Scotland
🎟️ Web: www.notanotherwhiskypodcast.com
📩 Enquiries & partnerships: [email protected]
📲 Follow us on Instagram
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/not-another-whisky-podcast.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Daryl interviews Sarah Dowling, lead whisky maker at Laphroaig, tracing her path from a genetics and environmental background to a 2012 Edrington recycling contract that turned into a long whisky career via sensory panels, Diageo, and nearly seven years at Cooley in Ireland (working on Connemara and other releases, and even managing the site). She discusses how her palate evolved from missing vanilla to treating smoke as a “neutral,” and how collaborative tasting works best when nobody gets told what they “should” taste. Sarah explains the organic Willem Dafoe collaboration (the “Unforgettable” campaign), built from pilot blends, repeated tastings, and an Oloroso-driven 14-year whisky bottled at 53.7% with rich texture. For Fèis Ìle’s 40th anniversary, Laphroaig’s Càirdeas is fully matured in French oak, noted for Lapsang souchong-like smoke and melon notes, and Sarah previews interactive Laphroaig Day tastings, parties, and Friends of Laphroaig camaraderie.

00:00 Welcome Sarah Dowling
01:09 From Sustainability to Whisky
02:59 Discovering Sensory Panels
07:03 Finding Flavor Blind Spots
11:53 Irish Whiskey Calling
16:41 Life at Cooley Distillery
17:55 Full Time Blender Role
18:36 Willem Dafoe Collaboration
20:34 Building the Oloroso Blend
23:47 First Tastes and Bold Character
24:28 Bold New Release
25:07 Willem Gets It
26:17 On Set Inspiration
29:05 Friends And Festivals
30:40 French Oak Cairdeas
31:58 Tasting Notes Tea Smoke
35:51 Feis Ile Tastings
38:04 Friends Stories And Farewell

Hosted by Mitch Bechard and Daz Haldane, this is where the whisky world gets pulled apart properly, with stories, insights, and the occasional bit of chaos along the way.

🥃 New episodes every week(ish)
🎤 Live shows & tastings across Scotland
🎟️ Web: www.notanotherwhiskypodcast.com
📩 Enquiries & partnerships: [email protected]
📲 Follow us on Instagram
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/not-another-whisky-podcast.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gordon Dundas brings out Tamdhu’s Dalbeallie Dram, ninth edition — a natural-colour, first-fill sherry powerhouse sitting at 60.5% ABV. It’s everything you’d hope for from Tamdhu in full sherry beast mode: fruitcake sweetness, dark spice, espresso bitterness and a finish that somehow drinks far too easily for its strength.

The panel get stuck into age statements, natural colour, value, pricing, and where the whisky market is heading after a few years of everyone releasing everything, everywhere, all at once.

Then Stuart Buchanan steps up with the final dram: a newly shelved Benriach 2009 15-year-old peated whisky at 61.1% ABV, matured in refill hogsheads before spending six years in PX. Stuart talks through Benriach’s peated history, how cask choice shapes phenols, and why everyone apparently needs to save the hogshead.

Along the way, the ambassadors talk favourite recent markets, from Japan and Turkey to Singapore and Australia, before looking ahead to what might be next for whisky: more highballs, more blends, more indie bottlers, and hopefully fewer releases that require remortgaging your house.

The episode finishes with distillery recommendations from around the world, thoughts on new distilleries finding their feet, concerns around the pace of Irish whiskey growth, and the all-important audience vote.

00:00 Next Dram Setup
00:22 Dalbeallie Origins
01:41 Sherry Bomb Breakdown
03:44 Tasting Notes Banter
04:29 Editions and Value Talk
05:28 Age Statements Debate
07:13 Whisky Market Correction
10:06 Secondary Market Trends
11:16 Final Dram Dedication
12:17 Introducing Benriach Peat
12:58 Peated Release Details
14:50 Cask Strategy and Hogsheads
17:09 PPM and Peat Science
19:23 First Impressions Wrap
19:29 Sherry Cask Debate
20:14 Speyside DNA Explained
21:10 Glenglassaugh Coastal Dram
22:11 Travel Highlights Quickfire
23:49 Whisky Trends Next Year
26:41 Distillery Picks Worldwide
33:32 New Distilleries Growing Pains
34:59 Irish Whiskey Boom Concerns
37:41 Global Whisky Wrap-Up
39:39 Audience Vote Results
Hosted by Mitch Bechard and Daz Haldane, this is where the whisky world gets pulled apart properly, with stories, insights, and the occasional bit of chaos along the way.

🥃 New episodes every week(ish)
🎤 Live shows & tastings across Scotland
🎟️ Web: www.notanotherwhiskypodcast.com
📩 Enquiries & partnerships: [email protected]
📲 Follow us on Instagram
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/not-another-whisky-podcast.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mitch kicks off a sold-out Clash of the Drams live recording, making it clear from the start that this is not going to be one of those polite Speyside tastings where everyone nods quietly and pretends to know what quince is.

This year’s brave contenders are Stuart Buchanan from Brown-Forman, Gordon Dundas from Ian Macleod Distillers, Struan Grant Ralph from Glenfiddich, and first-time entrant Charlie Metcalfe from The Balvenie. The audience are given the terrifying responsibility of judging both the drams and the banter, before casting their final vote in the Quaich Bar.

Part one features two outstanding drams. First up is Glenfiddich Snow Phoenix, created after the heavy winter snow of 2010 caused warehouse roofs to collapse, leading Brian Kinsman to vat together a unique selection of rescued casks. The panel talk through the story, the rarity, the price, and why it still holds such a special place for Glenfiddich fans.

Dram two comes from Balvenie, with an 18-year-old finished for seven years in Pineau des Charentes casks. Charlie explains how ambassador-led ideas can help shape whisky projects, while the group get into cask influence, flavour development, market differences, and what happens when ambassadors are allowed anywhere near new liquid.

And because this is Not Another Whisky Podcast, things naturally take a turn. The episode ends with the ambassadors being forced into celebrity-style whisky poems, including Daniel Craig and Jack Nicholson impressions that may never fully leave the room.

Part two is where things get even more unhinged.

00:00 Welcome to Clash
01:37 How the Voting Works
03:11 Meet the Panel
07:16 Festival Banter
10:26 Ambassador Origins
12:47 Dram One: Glenfiddich Snow Phoenix
18:26 The Warehouse Roof Collapse
19:17 Snow Phoenix Price Talk
20:50 Tasting Notes and Vibes
21:54 Dram Two: Pineau des Charentes Cask
25:01 How Ambassadors Shape Whisky
25:38 Signatures and Fingerprints
29:48 Markets and Innovation
32:42 Envelope Impression Game
37:40 Part One Sign Off
Hosted by Mitch Bechard and Daz Haldane, this is where the whisky world gets pulled apart properly, with stories, insights, and the occasional bit of chaos along the way.

🥃 New episodes every week(ish)
🎤 Live shows & tastings across Scotland
🎟️ Web: www.notanotherwhiskypodcast.com
📩 Enquiries & partnerships: [email protected]
📲 Follow us on Instagram
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/not-another-whisky-podcast.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mitch is joined by Ria McAdam, European Marketing Manager at The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, for a dive into the world of SMWS — who chats about the current chance for members to win an entire Distillery 10 Islay cask.

They get into the origins of the Society, from Pip Hills sharing cask-strength whisky with friends in the 1970s to the founding of SMWS at The Vaults in Leith in 1983, before moving into how it has grown into a global whisky membership community. Ria talks through the monthly outturn model, the coded bottles, the flavour-led approach, and the gloriously odd names that have become part of SMWS folklore.

There’s also plenty on what membership actually gives you, from access to exclusive bottlings and Members’ Rooms to tastings, guest access, content and whisky education. Ria explains the crazy current May promotion where buying a festival bottle or activating a membership gets you into the draw to win a full Distillery 10 cask.

The episode also touches on SMWS’s Scotland football-inspired release, A Belter for America, a 10-year-old Highland single cask bottled to celebrate Scotland’s return to the World Cup.

Links
SMWS website
Join SMWS
Win a cask / festival bottles
Buy A Belter for America (28.118)

00:00 Welcome to SMWS
01:45 Origin story: Pip Hills
03:38 Global membership today
05:06 Ria’s role in marketing
06:27 How outturns work
10:11 Wild bottle names
11:52 What membership offers
13:19 Members’ Rooms and perks
15:14 Staff training and whisky culture
17:59 Ria’s own whisky journey
23:00 Events, outreach and content
25:36 Win a cask giveaway
29:03 A Belter for America
30:42 How to join and buy
33:24 Wrap up and thanks
Hosted by Mitch Bechard and Daz Haldane, this is where the whisky world gets pulled apart properly, with stories, insights, and the occasional bit of chaos along the way.

🥃 New episodes every week(ish)
🎤 Live shows & tastings across Scotland
🎟️ Web: www.notanotherwhiskypodcast.com
📩 Enquiries & partnerships: [email protected]
📲 Follow us on Instagram
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/not-another-whisky-podcast.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.