Auction Calendar Update

To allow us to continue to offer you the best service throughout the holiday season and beyond we’ve amended our auction calendar. Auction 127 will now go live on Thursday 30th December and close on Sunday 9th January 2022.

Wishing you the very best for the festive season from all of the team here in Glasgow.

Kind regards

The SWA Team

View Auction Calendar

As 2021 comes to an end, I find I have mixed feelings about the year that was and the year to come. 2021 seems to have come and gone in a flash and it is hard to remember just how long ago it was that Covid arrived on our shores and put a spanner in our daily lives.

The year started with home schooling – something I maanged to side step after day 1 as my teaching methods were considered archaic by my 7 yr daughter and she claimed it wasn’t right to explain that her teachers method of multiplication was ridiculous… I very quickly passed the baton to Katy who appeared to have the patience of a saint whilst coaxing 2 children into doing a bit of work.

Lockdown continued until late March when we were finally allowed to fire up the bbq for outdoor parties of 6. Very cold parties but so joyful; who knew one could be so pathetically grateful for standing in the freezing cold with some good friends sharing a drink or two.

The distillery luckily has oodles of space and as a result the production team continued to make whisky for the most part, whilst also allowing social distancing at work. The retail team had a room each and kept the web orders flowing which was a godsend – so many thanks to all those customers who kept ordering and as a result allowed us to keep our head above water in these tricky times. Our exports continued to be despatched throughout the year, although lorries to and from Europe became incredibly hard to find; at one point it was noticeably easier to send whisky to China than to France.. didn’t see that coming and still not sure if Brexit or Covid to blame.

Our team at the distillery has waved goodbye to David; after 15years he has decided the time has come to take a well-earned retirement from distilling and move on to new ventures – we all wish him well. We have very sadly learned of the passing of Iain Henderson, our 1^st distiller back when we built St Georges; after a lifetime of distilling, most famously heading up Laphroaig, he leaves a legacy behind that will last for many generations. We welcome Philip to the team, who has come to look after the warehousing side of the business; Helen & Jenny who are working in the retail team & Susan who has taken over the accountant role.

The distillery restaurant was allowed to start feeding people outside in April and with the help of a cool stretch tent and some blankets did a great job of keeping all the visitors safe and warm. They are now opening on Thurs/Fri & Sat nights (do check opening hours in the xmas / new year period before visiting), so those of you that haven’t been – it is definitely worth a try!

As the year progressed it seemed as though life was returning to normal.  Vaccines received and then a bout of Covid that did little damage meant my family felt secure to venture out, go to events etc. The same must have been true of lots of you as the distillery got steadily busier and busier since tours resumed in May. Friends took holidays here & abroad, with talk of ski trips in the coming winter.. conversations started to be more about the future than the past BUT then it arrived, Omicron was duly named (what happened to the 10 variants between delta and omicron?); this super spreader has not only arrived but almost immediately changed the optimistic outlook of those around us. We have seen cancelled bookings and a change to conversations – reverting to what restrictions might happen instead of the optimistic plan making of only a month ago. I am more upbeat.. get boosted and look forward to a lovely Christmas holiday with family and friends; we will be here in the New Year to welcome you back to the distillery either in person or online.

Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year.

To all our friends, customers, suppliers, well wishers, acquaintances, complete strangers, friendly rivals, mortal enemies, aspiring anti-mask litigants, Zoom pals, and drinkin’ buddies.

Please note we will be closed December 25 & 26 to recover from the last 12 months.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!

• Your friends at Kensington Wine Market