Cask to Glass cover art

Cask to Glass

Cask to Glass

By: David Holmes
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How do you take your whisky?


Neat? Splash of water? Block of ice? Or even a mixer?


However you take it, join John Beattie, former Scotland rugby international and semi-retired BBC radio and TV news presenter, as he celebrates the heritage and flavour of Scotland's national drink and the world's favourite spirit.


Whether you call it whisky, whiskey, uisge beatha, aqua vitae, or the water of life... there's a story behind every dram; a craftsman behind every drop; an aroma with every nose; and a flavour in every sip.


This is the spirit of Scotland: distilled in a place; shared around the world.


What makes it so special? Why is it so loved? And who are the people that make it, and the aficionados who drink it?


Join John every Thursday as he explores the alchemy that takes place from cask to glass.


Slàinte!


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Host: John Beattie

Producer: David Holmes


Socials:

@C2GWhisky

@JohnRossBeattie

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Episodes
  • Painting the Spirit: On the Whisk(e)y Trail with Artist Ian Gray

    Painting the Spirit: On the Whisk(e)y Trail with Artist Ian Gray
    May 21 2026

    Founding US President George Washington once said alcohol was a business for "scoundrels." So how'd he end up owning the largest whiskey distillery in the United States?


    Cue James Anderson, a Scottish farmer and 18th century expat.


    Join Scottish artist Ian Gray as he takes the whisk(e)y trail from Mount Vernon to Louisville; Lynchburg to Islay; Speyside to Shimamoto.


    Slàinte!

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    Socials: @C2GWhisky | @JohnRossBeattie

    Creator & producer: David Holmes

    Art work & design: Jess Robertson

    Music: Water of Life (Never Going Home)

    Vocals: Andrea Cunningham

    Guitars: John Beattie

    Bass: Alasdair Vann

    Drums: Alan Hamilton

    Bagpipes: Calum McColl

    Accordion: Gary Innes

    Music & Lyrics: Andrea Cunningham & John Beattie

    Recorded & mixed by Murray Collier at La Chunky Studios, Glasgow, Scotland

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show More Show Less
    29 mins
  • Beyond the Glens: Georgie Bell from The Heart Cut

    Beyond the Glens: Georgie Bell from The Heart Cut
    May 14 2026
    If you love whisky, there are hundreds of distilleries across the world pursuing flavour based on passion, provenance and a “taste of place”. Just look "beyond the glens" and the global "big five", says award-winning indy bottler Georgie Bell from The Half Cut.“I know I’m on a Scotch whisky podcast,” Georgie Bell co-founder of indy bottlers The Half Cut chuckles, before pressing home her point. “It’s Scotch and, not Scotch or…” she insists.“Whisky is now made across the world, and there are passionate individuals who are making whisky to the quality of Scotch. You just have to take a look at the recent World Whisky Awards and who the award winners were.“Scotland was there of course, but there were distilleries all over the world who were racking up gold medals right? Taking home best-in-class prizes. And these distilleries across the world, they’re making whisky that’s at that quality, but they’re not trying to replicate Scotch.“They’re trying to make whisky that tastes of home to them; that has a sense of place. And that is very exciting because actually when you think about it, what you need to make whisky is grain, yeast and water. You need time. You need a lot of money. And you need patience.“Those six factors don’t have any geographical boundaries. You can make whisky across the world. You just have to have the “why not, what if” mentality to be able to bring that to light. And those are the distillers that we partner with at The Heart Cut”.Georgie’s been in the whisky business for 19 years; since she was a 19-year-old bartender in Edinburgh. She was a global whisky ambassador for eight years, four with Craigellachie.Two and half years ago Georgie and her husband Fabrizio Leoni started The Half Cut. (Three days later she gave birth to their twin daughters.)The name comes from “the heart cut of the distillation process,” Georgie explains. “When the spirit runs off that final spirit still, distillers never take the first bit of the cut. They never take the last bit of the flow because of the undesirable flavours. They’re just not the character they want the whisky to be, but they always take their prized half cut.”“The heart cut is different from distillery to distillery,” Georgie continues, “because of the way the spirit runs off the still. Different flavour congeners are going to come off at different times.“We chose the name The Heart Cut for our independent bottler because we’re working with distilleries to find these incredible gems of casks within their warehouses. Kind of those prized one-off casks that really show the heart and soul of that distillery.”Distilleries like Stuaning on the west coast of Denmark, which was the first distillery Georgie and Fabrizio partnered with.It was founded by a group of friends intent on making a “distinctly Danish style of whisky,” Georgie explains. “I think four of them were engineers. One was a doctor, one was a butcher, one was a teacher, one was a banker.”They had the water. They had the grain. But they didn’t have peat.“But,” Georgie continues, “what they do have is heather. And once a year, they cut down some of this heather and they put it in the kiln during malting and they create a heather-smoked single malt. A flavour, that because of the heather and where they are, can’t be replicated anywhere else in the world.”It's whiskies like Stauning, "whiskies with a story", that Georgie and Fabrizio are bottling. Others include Starward in Australia and Thomson in New Zealand, as well as Nc'Nean and Lochlea in Scotland.So as Georgie says, it's "Scotch and, rather than Scotch or..."Slàinte!-------Socials: @C2GWhisky | @JohnRossBeattie Creator & producer: David HolmesArt work & design: Jess Robertson Music: Water of Life (Never Going Home)Vocals: Andrea CunninghamGuitars: John BeattieBass: Alasdair VannDrums: Alan HamiltonBagpipes: Calum McCollAccordion: Gary InnesMusic & Lyrics: Andrea Cunningham & John BeattieRecorded & mixed by Murray Collier at La Chunky Studios, Glasgow, Scotland Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show More Show Less
    31 mins
  • Scotland's Smallest Whisky Distillery: Cameron McCann on Heritage and Innovation

    Scotland's Smallest Whisky Distillery: Cameron McCann on Heritage and Innovation
    May 7 2026

    Most Scottish whisky distilleries produce millions of litres every year.


    But Stirling Distillery?


    They produce what their owner, Cameron McCann, calls a "puddle."


    Yet in 2025 this tiny family operation won Best Scottish New Make Spirit at the World Whiskies Awards.


    Join John as he dives into how Scotland’s smallest distillery is beating the global giants, the 172-year history of their building, and their innovative approach to the future of spirits, including sustainable aluminium bottles. Plus, Cameron shares three "undervalued" whiskies that every enthusiast should track down right now.

    In this episode, we discuss:

    • The "Becoming" of Stirling Whisky: Transitioning from Gin to Single Malt.
    • How to attract 25,000 visitors a year to a tiny distillery.
    • The reality of the current whisky market for small producers.
    • Sustainability and the future of whisky exports.
    • Cameron’s personal recommendations for bottles you should buy now.


    Slàinte!

    -------

    Socials: @C2GWhisky | @JohnRossBeattie

    Creator & producer: David Holmes

    Art work & design: Jess Robertson

    Music: Water of Life (Never Going Home)

    Vocals: Andrea Cunningham

    Guitars: John Beattie

    Bass: Alasdair Vann

    Drums: Alan Hamilton

    Bagpipes: Calum McColl

    Accordion: Gary Innes

    Music & Lyrics: Andrea Cunningham & John Beattie

    Recorded & mixed by Murray Collier at La Chunky Studios, Glasgow, Scotland

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show More Show Less
    23 mins
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