Category Archives: ‘New Make’ Website!

Whisky. It’s DEFINITELY not for girls. Except for everywhere else on Earth…

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According to an article in the Scotsman newspaper recently, girls only represent a third of  Scotland’s whisky drinkers. It probably surprises you that it’s as much as that. It certainly surprised us. We trained an ALL-female class in St Andrews yesterday and only a couple of them were whisky ‘likers’, never mind lovers, so we’ll be conducting our own research on this, over the next few months.
However, things are changing and you’ll see from the above flyer for the Belladrum Festival, it’s happening quite quickly. The ‘Beverly Knight’ pitcher and one of Scotland’s most traditional and largest distilleries!
It’s not surprising really. In countries such as France and Russia, when it comes to whisky, the figures are much more an even split of men and woman. Emerging markets like Latin America and the Far East are in many cases, much more female biased. That’s maybe because whisky’s drunk in very different ways. This would also explain why the demand for blended Scotch whisky, worldwide is so high. In Scotland, we really, seriously, need to take the blinkers off.
After all, if YOU were offered ANY spirit basically in ‘shot’ form, be it tequila, rum, brandy or vodka to try,  for the very first time, you’d probably find it quite intimidating. Gin is another one. Imagine you got raw gin from someone, with nothing in it, at a party. You’d think this was very strange.  Gin on it’s own? No tonic? Eh?
So why is it that we regularly INSIST on letting people have their very first taste of Scotch whisky in this way? Maybe it’s time for Scotland to catch up with how the rest of the world serve our National drink?
  • In Russia, they don’t think it’s a big deal to drink diet Coke with ancient malts
  • In South America, whisky can often be a long drink with coconut milk, lemon and ice.
  • 60% of Chinese whisky drinkers are under 35 and drink blends (and fine malts) with sweet green tea and ice
  • In Bulgaria, Scotch Whisky  is a clubber’s, party drink, served with Red Bull-type drinks
  • In South Africa, whisky is popular in cocktails and clubby punches
  • In Australia, surf dudes also like it in mixed punches. It’s not a macho thing though, lots of girls love it
I we had a pound for every woman that we train who initially reckons Scotch whisky is ‘too strong’ or has a ‘medicine’ taste, we’d have a right few quid. The problem is that quite often, the first taste of whisky has maybe been as a young drinker, where a girl has got to sample something from a young Scotsman who has been extolling his manly virtues by imbibing a Laphroaig or a Bowmore, to demonstrate that the stronger and more peat laden the dram, the more of a sexual powerhouse he is. Because of this and similar scenarios, it’s ingrained in many a Scotswoman’s mind that whisky’s not for them. This is in spite of the facts that:
  • There are lots of sweet, exciting, unpeated Malts
  • Some of the ‘new makes’ (under 3 years old) whisky are GREAT in cocktails
  • The finishes available, using sweet white wines, burgundy and rum, lend Scotch a much more approachable taste
  • The female palate is actually superior for whisky nosing and tasting
  • Many of the World’s top distilleries are run by females, with their superior noses
  • Lots of women actually PREFER peaty whisky, our Whisky Ambassador graduate Bayile being one!
So the next time anyone tells you that whisky is not for girls, you can tell them that factually, this is actually is a load of boll..erm balderdash.
On a final note, there would be those who may argue that the LAST thing we want to see is lots of young girls drinking lots of cheap alcohol at festivals. We’d agree 100% and that’s why we’re educating young females, young men and basically everyone to choose our own National Drink. Fine Scotch is a thing of delicacy, to be sipped and savoured and our  Drink Less. Drink Better.  mantra can become all the more real! Exciting times!

So, what IS The Whisky Ambassador?

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In the excitement of us training some of our Nation’s best hospitality operators and fielding calls from all over the World, from organisations who want to get involved with The Whisky Ambassador, we’ve been busy. Because of this, we may have been guilty recently of not putting enough on our blog about what exactly The Whisky Ambassador programme is all about. We’re keen to get lots of our whisky and hospitality industry opinions over on here but maybe we’ve not given enough detail on what our actual ‘task-in-hand’ is?

Perhaps? If so, let’s rectify that now! Here’s what The Whisky Ambassador can do for you.

In a nutshell, we’re the UK’s only Accredited whisky training for the Licensed trade.

We introduce bar staff to the wonderful world of selling Scotch (and World) whisky. This means:

  • We increase whisky sales for premises and educate bar staff in ‘up-selling’ techniques
  • We teach bar professionals  to actively promote whisky- ‘Scotland in a Glass’
  • We tell our delegates about the different brands and where in Scotland they come from
  • We talk enthusiastically about the history (and some of the mystery) of Scotch whisky
  • We get excited about the Global impact of ‘Scotch’ and the incredible success it is enjoying
  • It can only be made in one small country, on the edge of Europe, yet there’s a bottle in every bar in the World
  • We educate our delegates, in a fun way, in the different processes of whisky making
  • We ask delegates to sit a 30-question, multiple choice exam
  • We also ask them to nose and taste specially-selected malt whiskies and be able to differentiate between them
  • We spread the ‘Whisky’ love and get delegates to enthuse about Scotch Malt whisky
  • We definitely aim to increase profits for those who sell Scotland’s National drink, with pride and knowledge

We’re a ONE day course which starts at £200 per delegate and yes, we DO give Group discounts and yes, we ARE a fully accredited ILA centre. So, there’s a chance that if you meet their criteria, your journey with The Whisky Ambassador could be FREE!

The picture above is one of our Directors, Sue Beatt, in the middle of some of our latest Whisky Ambassadors. This is quite typical of the people who are wanting to get involved with The Whisky Ambassador. We’re engaging with young people, starting off in their ‘Hospitality’ Industry career, from all over the world.

However, we’re  also training Senior Management, whose aim is to help their hospitality organisations (of all kinds, both large and small) to increase their sales. ‘Whisky ‘Professionals’ with many years experience, who want their guests to recognise their credibility. They see The Whisky Ambassador Accreditation as the ‘cherry on top’ of their already impressive whisky pedigree. Certification that they really know what they are talking about. We’re training them how to build their Scotch Malt Whisky bars, write their whisky menus, put on and promote revenue-generating tastings and choose exciting, unusual and artisan whiskies, from the thousands now on offer. Whiskies that will sell and get guests talking about them.

We may be all about results and education but that doesn’t mean it has to be boring. Having had to sit through ‘training days’ ourselves, one of the first things we wanted to achieve with The Whisky Ambassador programme was make it fun to undertake and also be a good day out. Yeah, we’ve got serious learning outcomes to consider and we do have people fail our course, if they don’t pay attention but generally, we want to offer a day that we’d quite happily sit-in on, ourselves. In fact, we sometimes do, just for the ‘craic’!

We’re incredibly lucky to be working in an environment, where we’re training the next generation of Hospitality professionals and ‘bigging-up’ Scotch whisky, something that’s part of the very essence of Scotland. If some of our enthusiasm can spill-over and ‘infect’ delegates with our love for ‘Uisge Beathe’, then we think we’re doing our job. We’re finding that this enthusiasm, combined with newly-gained whisky knowledge is the secret to an increase in sales of whisky in the bars we’ve worked with.

It’s still very early stages in The Whisky Ambassador journey but already, we’re engaging with the biggest and the best in Hospitality, so we know that things are only going to get even more exciting.

We urge, nay, we implore you…join us on our journey.

The Whisky Ambassador. Drink Less. Drink Better.

Our ‘New Make’ website.

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'Fresh, young, exciting.

Welcome to the first website for The Whisky Ambassador. This is a ‘New Make’ site in the form of a blogsite. Our ‘Fully Matured’ site will be coming along shortly, with details of programmes, an itinerary and venues. We’ll also be telling you about merchandising, new contracts we’ve been signing and the new hotels, restaurants and bars who are undertaking The Whisky Ambassador programme.

Golf and Whisky gang th’gither!

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Ivanka Trump

It’s quite incredible that a small country in the chilled (and so far this summer, pretty damp) extremes of North West Europe is responsible for two of the most globally-recognised leisure icons in the world: Golf and Whisky. It’s amazing that Scotland’s responsible for BOTH these multi $billion industries, which are just getting bigger and more successful, every year.

When we got asked to bring Whisky and Golf together and work with the team who are creating the incredible, £70 million Trump Golf development in Aberdeenshire, we jumped at the chance. We’re training all the main front of house and bar teams in The Whisky Ambassador programme and as their commemorative dram is going to be a 25 year old belter from Glendronach, one of our favoured dramming houses, we were more than happy to get involved. Top class golf, top class drams, a great combo.

Okay, we’re the first to admit that Donald Trump can court controversy and in his roles as  ‘TV celebrity’ and professional ‘Billionaire’, you’d certainly call him outspoken. However, if you look at the scale of his golf resort empire, you’ll see that although he might not be to everyone’s taste, his company doesn’t do things by halves. The Trump courses are recognised are World class. If you look at their website, you’ll see see that Donald may be the famously  half-Scottish figurehead for the Scottish development but he’s got a lot of clever people pulling golf projects together, all over the World.

We believe that Golf tourism in Scotland has been incredibly undersold, outrageously so, when you consider it’s something that the Scots gave to the world. For instance, imagine if you can that ‘The Home of Golf’ was the brainchild of any other developed country: Do you think they’d think it was okay for there not to be a direct rail link to this hallowed spot? Hmmm..nor do we. Here’s another crazy fact. For a number of years, Ireland was attracting more inbound Golf tourists than Scotland, which seems an unbelievable situation. We haven’t checked on the latest figures for this but we do know this is changing. Some critics of VisitScotland’s ‘golf’ strategy would say that with many really good golf clubs struggling to make ends meet, this is not changing quickly enough.

The unusual conundrum that Scotland has with a number of bold new tourism initiatives, be they £multi-million golf course projects, or indeed £multi-million Distillery developments, is that our unspoiled vista, the very thing that lots of people come to Scotland to see, has to be altered in some way. Many think these alterations will be detrimental to the wild nature that our country is famous for. When it comes to architecture and ‘development’, you only have to look at the furore our ‘ain’ Duke of Rothesay can create, simply by commenting on what he thinks is superb, or sickening in the ‘buildings’ world. It’s very much a case of beauty being in the eye of the beholder, though. One Prince’s meaty Castle is another Sheik’s poisonous lair. All that glitters can be too much gold. Taste is, after all, very subjective.

One thing’s for sure, or rather, two things are for sure, though. If Scotland doesn’t start to invest time, energy, love, cunning, creativity and MONEY on Golf AND Whisky, as we’ve already seen, there are plenty other countries who will fill this void. We realise there’s a chance of shooting ‘the goose that laid the golden egg’ in changing the Scottish landscape but if we can’t capitalise on the two MOST FAMOUS things that our little country has given the world, then we’re missing the biggest duopoly of tourism tricks that have ever been presented to a Nation.

To do it properly, there’s going to be lots of debate, possibly heated discussion and certainly many different facets of our diamond of a country to be considered. It’s probably because we’ve had a fairly geographically compact central belt, which led the world in heavy industry and finance, that we’ve not had to consider the financial value of our more outlying and idyllic aspects of this amazingly unique country. However, we don’t build the same amount of steam locomotives or ships as we used to, so ‘Tourism’ in it’s broadest sense, that’s what we have to get world class at now.

It’s certainly a case of ‘build it and they will come’.

It’s interesting to reflect back to the times when Glasgow was Second City of the Empire and Edinburgh was The Athens of The North. If we look at some of the heinous and historic development decisions that had to made, in far less morally enlightened and spiritually  ecological times. Amongst the filth, corruption and haphazard, unparalleled growth, some epoch-setting planning decisions had to be made. Beautiful landscapes and buildings were created back then. Indeed, some of the World’s very finest. If we think about it, we can continue to make Scotland beautiful. We just have to balance this track record of building beauty with the more recent and particularly stark reminders of our less gorgeous planning past. Please don’t let us get tram-lined into this way of thinking.

 

 

The first three months. What we’ve learned. Where we’re going.

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There's a whole world out there.

You need a really good map, to know where you're going

We’re only a few months into the journey with The Whisky Ambassador and already, we’re beginning to add lots to the basis of why we actually set up The Whisky Ambassador in the first place.

So far, we’ve had many of Scotland’s leading ‘players’ put people through the programme. People from the likes of the Missoni Hotel in Edinburgh, The Grand Central Glasgow, The Radisson Group, The George Hotel in Edinburgh and Cameron House at Loch Lomond. We’re also putting lots of bartenders through the programme, from the likes of The Pitcher and Piano and The Artisan. We’re actively speaking to some of the most famous names in Scottish hospitality, so our ‘wish list’ of the great and the good of Scottish hospitality we’d like to work with is beginning to come true, much quicker than we expected. We’re also undertaking the programme in other parts of the UK, in spite of this not really being on our radar for the first year, never mind the first three months.

Although we want to train bar professionals to sell Scotch Whisky with enthusiasm, knowledge and passion, with an eye to our our mantra of ‘Drink Less. Drink Better’, we’ve also got other ideas. We want to help bars to sell more Scotch Whisky, that’s for sure and we’re now getting statistics on the upsurge in sales figures from them, to back this up. However, we’re actually about a lot more than just this. We’re getting asked all the time about ‘the other programmes and courses you do’ in spite of the fact, this wasn’t something we planned to look at till 2013, at least. So, we’ll be creating additions to The Whisky Ambassador. For those who want to visit Distilleries, become ‘Whisky Professionals’, build their OWN whisky bars or generally gain previously unavailable, prestigious Accreditation, for decades of work in the Whisky world.

Since we jumped, head-first into ‘Whisky Land’ to become the UK’s only Accredited whisky training, we’re learned a hell of a lot. We’ve learned that the love of Scotch Whisky is boundless. We get emails every day from the furthest corners of Earth, extolling the virtues of a natural product that quite a lot of Scots don’t really give a second thought about. People from EVERYWHERE want to get involved with us. Our National drink is loved, by lots. Whisky, the stuff that a large amount of alcohol-friendly Scots don’t even drink, is more popular in areas of Brasil, than it is in Scotland. The bloggers, ‘malt maniacs’, drammers, tasters, brand ambassadors and aficionados we chat to, just about every day on the social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter are really Scotch Whisky’s trump card. Most of these people are unpaid and spend their free time (or their life) tasting, festival-ing, writing, tweeting, blogging or simply drinking, in a Scotch Whisky ‘stylee’. It’s made us genuinely humble and proud to be living in Scotland and welcomed into a global, Whisky family.

We’ve learned that some of the most knowledgeable whisky people in the World are not Scots and we’ve learned the fact that there are now lots of women crashing into this formerly, male-dominated party. We’ve learned mainly that we’re always going to be learning! Scotch Whisky’s not just a product, it’s a way of life, the fabric of the Scottish landscape. We’ve learned it’s something that, if we play our cards right, is going to be hugely important to the future of Scotland. It’s blinking exciting!

Above all, we’ve learned that if Scotch Whisky is to remain as an iconic symbol of our great wee country and if it’s going to go on, to even greater heights, it’s not going to be one Superhero, using magical powers who will achieve this. It’s a big ‘gang’ of whisky ‘Ambassadors’ who will power Scotch whisky onwards and continually upwards.

In our first few months, we’ve spend a lot of time meeting people. Because Scotch Whisky is important (like, creating £225 per second for the UK economy, important) we’ve found out The Scottish Government, Business Gateway, The Scotch Whisky Association, Scotland’s Food and Drink, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, Scottish Enterprise, Scottish Development International and Visit Scotland all have lots to say, lots of clout and can bring lots of positivity to Scotch Whisky. That’s before you even consider all the Distillery ‘Groups’, the individual distilleries , The British Institute  of Innkeepers,  The Scottish Licensed Trade Association, all the UK hoteliers, restaurateurs, bar owners, from the Lizard, to Lerwick.  It’s all those people. We want to work with ALL of them. It’s not a competition, it’s a giant whisky alliance and we want to be part of it.

So, if you add all these together (along with the others we’ve not met yet), you get the UK whisky landscape. It’s huge.

This is quite daunting. Only a few months since formation and we’ve got LOTS of people to convince, encourage, support, lend a hand to, train and take on the first steps of their Whisky journey. We’ve got legions of people we’d love to build alliances with, set up mutually beneficial arrangements with and generally, get along with.

To further compound this, we really, seriously have plans to have The Whisky Ambassador in lots of places. At the moment, Scottish Development International are kindly supporting us in developing a strategy for growth into new territories. We’ve already attended a number of workshops which are helping us form a plan which will hopefully be the building blocks for organic growth, to spread the whisky love, everywhere. We’re speaking to people in USA, Lithuania, Holland, Singapore and China, we just need to focus a bit.

It’s been a rollercoaster ride of a start alright and although we’re not really that shy, lots pf people have opened doors for us.  We’d really like to thank all the people who have offered us advice and pointed us in the right direction, when we’ve been heading into a dead end. Those who have generally extended the hand of whisky friendship with kind words and encouragement, when we were beginning to get frustrated or over-enthusiastic! We’re not really out of the traps yet but because of the support, we know that the weekends, late nights, heated ‘debates’ and rather erm..interesting Director’s meetings we’ve already had, well, they’ve all all been worthwhile.

Thanks, whisky lovers! Here’s to The Whisky Ambassador! Here’s to Scotch Whisky! Slainte!

 

We do the drink well, the food’s okay too!

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When I was a small boy, Scotland wasn’t really a place for eating. The heavy Industrial heartland of Scotland had sort of forgotten about its amazing natural larder. As a mountainous country, surrounded with thousands of miles of coast, great food is all around us and we’re now starting to get really good at serving it up. There are lots of places in the cities where you can spend a lot of money. However, there are also lots of hidden gems, scattered away in some of Scotland’s most beautiful places, where you can enjoy some of the World’s best food, in stunning scenery. Here’s my top Ten. Not necessarily the most expensive, but certainly the ones that have left a mark on me. So, if you want to enjoy some pre-whisky dinner, here are some of our favourite places. We’ve made a few choices for drams but don’t take them too seriously.

http://www.threechimneys.co.uk/

The Island of Skye is a magical place and this amazing place is difficult to get to, but really worth the journey. It was at the forefront of Scotland’s food revolution and it’s still great. Jazz Singer Tony Bennett ate here and he thought it was some of the nicest food he’s ever had, anywhere. He probably eats quite well! It’s a Scottish exemplar. Fine food, amazing location and if you add a glass of the local Talisker 18 year old unchilfiltered whisky, possibly food heaven on earth. There’s also a rather nice aged Drambuie out now, you could give that a go, bearing in mind it’s Skye’s liqueur.

http://www.crabshakk.com/crabmain.html

Situated in the hippest part of Scotland’s biggest city. This is the coolest restaurant in Glasgow at the moment. There’s a lot of ‘cool’ going on! It’s small and cramped but it has an amazing atmosphere and seafood, delivered directly from Scotland’s Islands. It’s just opened a bar called Crabshakk table 11, along the road, so, you can now have a drink as well as eat with the coolest people in the West of Scotland. Lots of shellfish, which as you might know, Scotland is world class at and we always enjoy a smoky Coal Ila with lobster. But how about a glass of iced Auchentoshan, from just up the road in Dumbarton? Triple distilled, smooth and a great way to finish off one of the World’s best Fruits De Mer.

http://summerisleshotel.com/

Another amazing scenic seafood stop. It’s well named as food only gets served in the summer in this Achiltibuie bar/restaurant. I once enjoyed their biggest seafood platter, some local Scottish ale and an unforgettable outdoor dining experience. The sun shone on the hottest day of the year, a traditional ‘ceilidh’ band played. I was there with a great bunch of pals, we all looked out over The Summer Isles….all was well with the world. A magical part of Scotland. Up here, you literally eat on the beach, so a wee dram of Oban, from the same West Coast might help to capture the essence of here.

http://www.lochlevenseafoodcafe.co.uk/

Situated around the corner from Glencoe, one of Scotland’s most scenic and atmospheric places, this cool little café has no airs and graces, just splendid food. It’s another seafood highlight (Scotland’s getting really good at serving it up) but one which is really affordable. Sea and mountains all around, in the middle of nowhere. This isn’t really a whisky bar so why not try a Glenlivet or a Glenfiddich, you usually always find these old-school favourites on offer.

http://www.champany.com/

If you’re not a seafood lover but enjoy steaks, look no further than Champany. It’s not in a big city, it’s not even in a village but it’s ‘City Centre’ for meat lovers. There’s a lot of debate as to which place serves up Scotland’s best steak. I still think its Champany. Not cheap, not easy to find but anything really good is worth seeking out. A Scottish carnivore’s place of legend and a short drive from Edinburgh. We reckon it’s a full on experience steak here, so you need a full-on sweet whisky. Go for a Glenfarclas 15 or a Glendronach. Get the sherry monsters out!

http://www.anstrutherfishbar.co.uk/

There’s even more debate in Scotland about who serves the best Fish and Chips. Anstruther was undefeated champion for many years and in spite of a number of ‘enfant terrible ‘chippies’ (the Scots slang for Fish and Chip shops) springing up. I still find myself returning here. The East Neuk of Fife on the East Coast still has a feel of the great fishing fleets and I think, if you are going to eat fish and chips, you need to look out over a beautiful fishing harbour. Or, get your ‘chippy’ in newspaper and retire to your holiday home, caravan or tent.  Crack open a bottle of Singleton from the local supermarket, to share with friends. Have it with ice, or even soda, in tall glasses. Outrageously affordable but don’t let the snobs put you off, it’s a fine dram. A light, approachable Speysider, magic with haddock and chips.

http://applecross.uk.com/

At the end of Scotland’s craziest road, in a far off, West coast peninsula is another of my favourites. Maybe I just like driving? The Applecross Inn is owned by the aptly named Judith Fish and in spite of being many hours drive from Scotland’s two biggest cities of Glasgow or Edinburgh, it’s always busy. Sumptuous seafood, great Scottish real ales and a charming Scottish pub atmosphere, it has the beer garden with possibly the world’s best view. You’ve travelled a LONG way to get here, so have a whisky that’s ‘out there’. It’s not local but have a Scapa or a Highland Park from the very far north. Geographically miles away but worth seeking out, the whiskies and the pub!

http://www.inverlochycastlehotel.com/

Okay, it’s INCREDIBLY up-market but I turned up here after a weekend of camping with my family, looking rather scruffy and received the warmest of Scottish welcomes. After Scotland’s finest afternoon tea, in incredible garden surroundings, with a view of Ben Nevis, the UK’s highest mountain, we thought it was a bit special. You walk in the door and realise EVERYTHING in this hotel is simply the best. If I got the chance to stay ANYWHERE in Scotland, The Inverlochy Castle Hotel would be the place. Scenery, staff and a Rolls Royce Phantom to take you shopping in Fort William. World Class. If you’re staying, it’s GOT to be the BEST Ben Nevis that they do, as the distillery is only a short walk away. The only problem is, knowing the quality of this place, it’s liable to be a VERY good one indeed. Don’t look when you sign the bill, put it down to a unique experience,  in one of the World’s great places.

http://www.burtshotel.co.uk/

Lots of people arrive in Scotland’s main cities and head North. Here’s somewhere for those who want to head South. Scotland’s ‘Border’ region is more gentle and pastoral and a bit more genteel. There’s an air of class about a lot of the towns and if you like your ‘country’ chic clobber, you can give it an outing here. This fabulous small hotel in the middle of Melrose isn’t the most expensive hotel in the Borders, but to my mind, it’s the best. Old-style Scottish lunches in a cosy Scottish bar at Burts can go on for hours. It’s a difficult place to leave. Being here would give you a chance to try a Glenkinchie, from the distillery that’s situated between here and Edinburgh. A really good session dram.

http://www.portcharlottehotel.co.uk/

The Island of Islay is basically ‘Whisky Heaven’ and home to LOTS of distilleries. Arbeg, Bruichladdich, Laphroaig, Lagavulin…the list goes on. If you’re a lover of Scotland’s National drink and you want to visit Scotland’s Whisky Island, you really would want to eat or stay here. This is one of my favourite Scottish Island hotels. It’s not a very big or particularly grand hotel but it’s got a ‘spirit’ in both senses that few places can match. Do not stay here if you don’t want to fall in love with Scotland. It’s a perfect place.

Erm, what to drink here, it’s a bit of a ‘no-brainer’ . Our only suggestion would be, no butts it’s got to be Islay. And if your solitary dram bill came to more than that for the food, who cares? You only live once. Drink Less. Drink Better.

So, there you have it, ten places that capture the essence of modern Scotland, some, cheap and cheerful, others erm, even more cheerful.

We’re already very good at whisky. We’re also getting very, very good at food.

The Whisky Comedian

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We LOVE Alan Anderson, The Whisky Comedian. He’s really knowledgeable but he makes finding out about whisky (or in this case, Connemara Irish whiskey), really fun. His podcasts are great and he ropes-in all kinds of comedians and his bonkers pals on his travels.

Here he is, half-way-up a mountain, with his celebrity comedian chums. Irish comedian Ed Byrne knows a good bit about Whisky. As he studied at Strathclyde University and spends a lot of time Munro Bagging in Scotland and retiring to some of the great bars after a day in the hills,  it’s hardly surprising.

Quite interesting to hear their thoughts on an Irish malt. The Irish are definitely coming to ‘Maltland’ though! There are some cracking Irish malts now and with news that the biggest Pot Still in the world is to be installed at Middleton, Scotch is going to have to keep pushing the envelope! Continue reading →