As the summer beckons we are having more and more interesting visitors from all four corners of the world. The visitors book continues to be a register of nations with super positive comments about the wonderful experiences guests have enjoyed.
A highlight of the month was the synchronised helicopter landing by three accomplished pilots, who were bringing an intrepid group of adventurers here for a Stag do – pretty impressive!
Talking of visitors, how can I not mention Saturday 4th June? 265 French visitors descended upon us to enjoy axe throwing, archery, laser clays and of course private tours and tastings. The visitors munched their way through 450 servings from a variety of food trucks, enjoyed 265 ice creams and drank 530 drams.
Stay safe and stay well, from our corner of Fife.
Slàinte
Drew & Helen McKenzie Smith
Custodians of Lindores Abbey Distillery
DISTILLERY NEWS
It’s been very much business as usual at Lindores regarding operations. In June we normally see temperatures starting to rise but so far, we have been running below normal temperature, so things are slightly easier but still not without their challenges.
We are continuing to run last year’s harvest of local laureate malted barley, with an eye towards this year’s harvest, which is looking very good. It’s taken us a few months to find the optimum settings for mashing in last year’s harvest; but a good combination of knowledge, experience and luck has brought us to the point of balance between quantity and quality.
As we approach the end of June, we start our preparations for silent season. This is a traditional time in the distilling year where the distillery would be switched off, the workers would get a holiday and the process would get some well-deserved repairs and maintenance. Silent season normally takes place in July / August, because in the height of summer, the rivers, streams, burns, and lochs were all running low with water. Even the water that was available was too warm for cooling purposes. There’s an old story that still circulates up north about a wooden washback being filled with water, to allow the staff to have a summer dunk!
This year our steam boiler reaches the grand age of five, and with that come certain requirements. Each year it has to be stripped down and inspected by the boiler insurance inspector; its pressure relief valve tested; and the main crown valve serviced and maintained. This is very important when it’s generating 7 bar of steam pressure, or 101psi – to illustrate, you normally only blow your car tyre up to 36psi so we are at 3 times this pressure. It would also hold a column of water 70metres vertically into the air, so it’s not to be messed with and we treat it with upmost respect.
Also for its fifth birthday, our boiler must get a mandatory NDT Inspection (NonDestructive Testing). This is where the metal and the build integrity of the boiler is checked and that it’s in good order and not hiding any structural faults. We look after our boiler throughout the year, so we are sure that everything will be fine and that it will give us another five years of good health!
In the warehouse, we are extremely busy, filling the last of the sherry butts from Fernandez Gao. After that we will move onto our fresh STRs, followed by our own refills; and as always, Elliot keeps us busy with private cask filling.
Bottling? Well, it never stops here. Definitely maybe, without doubt, we have the smallest and busiest bottling facility in Scotland. It’s pretty amazing what comes out of there. It has its challenges, but it allows us to keep some sort of control and to time with delivering our orders. We have literally just finished and handed over to Jane, the 1494 Custodian, the latest bottling for the 1494; and it’s a quality dram, even better that it’s out of the casks, married and had a little time to breath – as I have said before, it won’t disappoint!
Lastly, with regret and pride we have to say goodbye to Lewis Wilkie our distillery operator. Lewis joined Operations from Front of House and has been a great asset to us. We wish him all the best in his new ventures, which thankfully for the industry is at another distillery – so his skills and experience will stay with making one of Scotland’s greatest products.
Slàinte
Gary Haggart
Distillery Manager
