As you can see from these photos taken by Ross, the Lindores Abbey orchard is blossoming beautifully. It’s also great to see that our honey hives are once again literally buzzing with life. With the new mashes going through we again have all the delightful smells of the distilling process wafting through the building, reminding us why we’re here.
It’s also good, after the usual quieter winter, to find ourselves inundated with visitors from all over the world. Lots of work for our tour guides – those who have been here for a long time and those who are just starting out. We’re always happy to read the comments in the visitors’ book about how well our tours are appreciated.
We hope to see as many of you as we can at the distillery this season!
Slàinte
Drew McKenzie Smith
Managing Director of Lindores Abbey Distillery
& Custodian of Lindores Abbey
GOLD!!!
We are delighted to announce that our Friar John Cor Cask Strength Congregation Batch – Chapter 1 has won GOLD at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2023.
DISTILLERY NEWS
We returned to mashing in April after a brief period of maintenance, and we have used the first of the 2022 harvest which was subject to last year’s very dry conditions. This leads to lower starch in the barley and so we are expecting somewhat lower yields.
One of the bigger jobs we have tackled in the meantime is repairs to our heat exchanger. We have just released Casks of Lindores Bourbon #2. Between 40 and 50 casks were vatted together and then diluted to 49.4% ABV. Like the others, this is a No Age Statement bottling (NAS). However, since it’s about 18 months older than our first Bourbon Casks of Lindores, we can confidently expect it to be even better.
Our plan is to release a new Casks of Lindores bottling every six months, rotating between STR, Sherry and Bourbon, and this has been well received by our aficionados.
In more admin related news our new Inventory Management system is under way. Inventory is a complicated process when you recognise that every cask we fill has to be stored for at least three years and a day before we can use it, and during that time we have to be able to say where it is and what’s happening to it. We have now logged every cask, and next have to programme all adjustments in the same system, for full traceability; write procedures; and carry out staff training.
At Lindores we are always trying to reduce our energy consumption and one of the ways we do this is to make sure our barley comes from farms within a five mile radius of the distillery and that we use local firms whenever possible. Our barley is malted at Crisp Maltings in Alloa then transported back here; and then we place orders for malt with Crisp for next year. Meantime Crisp use some of our farmers’ crop for seed for next year, and sell the seed back to them when they are planning their planting. We keep in touch with the farmers and have a daily awareness of how next year’s crop is going; and the cows eat our draff. The team can watch the barley growing from the distillery hall. How many distillery teams could make such a claim?
Slàinte
Dean McDonald
Distillery Operations Assistant Manager
ONE TO ONE AUCTION
In October this year, one of our Tiron Oak Casks of new spirit will be auctioned for Charity by Sotheby’s at the Distillers One to One Auction at Hopetoun House – a great honour for us!!
We are celebrating this in our creation of a new cocktail: VIEUX ABBAYE – a spin on the New Orleans classic cocktail Vieux Carré.
If you would like to celebrate along with us, here’s how:
35ml Lindores Tiron Virgin Single cask Whisky (or MCDXCIV will do just fine)
25ml Lillet Rouge (French Sweet/herbal vermouth style aperitif)
15ml Benedictine Liqueur
3 dashes of plum bitters
1 dash of angostura bitters
Stir down with ice then serve straight up in a coupe glass and garnished with a fan of fresh plum.
This is a booze-forward cocktail designed for sipping – not a session. It tells the story with which you will all be familiar – how the monks of Tiron Abbey came to Scotland and established Lindores Abbey, cultivating the land for barley and fruit. And now we have it – eight centuries later – our world famous Lindores Abbey Distillery Whisky.
The One of One auction ,organised by The Distillers Charity, provides funds for the Youth Action Fund in Scotland which helps support young people to a better future!! (More on this marvellous initiative in next issue!!!!).
