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

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO OUR SOCIETY MEMBERS
A ROUND UP OF 2021 AT SPRINGBANK DISTILLERY

We wanted to thank you for all your support this year and share a special Christmas message to you all from the whole team in Campbeltown.

WHAT HAPPENED IN 2021 AT THE DISTILLERY

2021 has been another eventful year at Springbank distillery. From kicking off the year in lockdown with much of our staff working from home, to the return of distillery tours, the opening of our new whisky tasting bar, roughly 1400 casks filled across Springbank and Glengyle, and the return to generally more ‘normal’ ways of working as restrictions eased, here is a quick review of our year.

THINGS OPENED UP SLOWLY. THE NEW ‘NORMAL’.

From January-March, while a lot of our employees worked from home, production and bottling hall staff understandably continued to work from the distillery. Come March, we began to welcome more staff back to the office and distillery, and with the reopening of the shop and the return of tours in May, the Springbank team was back in full-swing. To comply with social distancing regulations and ensure the safety of all staff and visitors, tours reopened with a capacity of four people, with this number increasing gradually over the past few months to allow for 12 people per tour. Since reopening, we have been thrilled to welcome over 2500 visitors from all over the world, with guests from Norway, Sweden, Czech Republic, America, China and many other countries making the long voyage to Campbeltown to witness the Springbank and Glengyle production processes first-hand.

ONLINE EVENTS AND THE WASHBACK BAR

Zoom calls remained a regular occurrence for the sales team this year, with several online tasting events held for whisky fans around the world. We also hosted our Online Malts Festival in May for the second year running. From September, we were able to reintroduce on-site tastings from our newly opened whisky tasting spot, The Washback Bar. The bar has been a great addition to the distillery, offering Springbank fans the opportunity to try rare and exclusive whiskies and allowing visitors to sample our range after touring the distillery. It also provides a great space for local tastings and events since this has become possible again; we are hopeful that 2022 will see the return of even more physical tastings and festivals and that we will have the chance to meet with some of you again!

THE INAUGURAL ‘ONLINE SCOTCH WHISKY AWARDS’

We were thrilled this year to receive the award for ‘Best Distillery’ in the Online Scotch Whisky Awards held virtually in November. Some of the team got together in The Washback Bar to tune into the awards and celebrate this recognition over a few drams, which was a great way to round off the year here at Springbank. https://www.oswa.co.uk/

WHAT’S IN STORE IN 2022

Looking ahead to 2022, we will continue to focus on our sustainability mission. By Spring next year, we hope to have fully transitioned to using LPG instead of red diesel as a fuel source, a project which is already underway in order to reduce emissions. We have also undertaken water and energy reviews as well as research into eco-friendly alternatives for materials and packaging used in all areas of the business, and will continue our efforts to become more ‘green’ going forward. The next year will also see some exciting new releases such as Local Barley, Springbank 30yo, Hazelburn 21yo and Longrow 21yo and, as always, we will keep society members informed of when to expect each release.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND BEST WISHES FOR 2022
From all of us at Springbank Distillery

Springbank Distillers Ltd, 9 Bolgam Street, Campbeltown, Scotland, PA28 6HZ
http://experience.springbank.scot/
society@springbank.scot

It’s time for our last note this year, and we thought we would leave you with one of our favourite Christmas films, which we believe captures the essence of what Christmas means to everyone at Glengoyne.

As we close the door on 2021, we look forward to a new year with new limited edition and single cask releases, special events, including our first live tasting of the year, on the 20th of January, and more. We also aim to be back shipping to our international family members.

We want to thank you for being part of the Glengoyne Family and hope you manage to share a dram or two with those nearest and dearest during the festive period.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a healthy and happy New Year.