EXPLOSIVE NEW SMOKEHEAD SHERRY BOMB

Smokehead Sherry Bomb is a heavily peated Islay single malt that has been boldly blasted by sherry casks. It follows hot on the heels of Smokehead High Voltage, which was unveiled in April. Priced at ￡64.99, Smokehead fans will enjoy a full-bodied, 48% abv peaty whisky that’s heavily influenced by Oloroso Sherry casks to create a smoky, spicy and rich flavour.

Media Release;

UNLEASHING THE NEW LOUDER AND BOLDER SMOKEHEAD ISLAY SINGLE MALT SCOTCH WHISKY

Ian Macleod unveils the new look for Smokehead, the distiller has also revealed an intense new expression which is not for the faint hearted: Smokehead High Voltage.

Commenting on the new expression and bold new look, Iain Weir, Brand Director for Smokehead said: “Smokehead has always challenged the traditional whisky world with its unconventional look and attitude, appealing to the younger and adventurous whisky drinker. We’ve turned up the volume right across the brand. It’s not for everyone, but that’s ok”.

 “And if Smokehead is an assault on your senses, then High Voltage is an all-out attack. Louder, bolder and more intense than getting put in a headlock from an angry roadie.”

The iconic skull logo now plays a much more dominant role on the label and striking gift tin. It takes on a more evocative and free-spirited style, with a rush of smoke blowing through the head to create an element of defiance.

One thing that hasn’t changed though is its bold and award-winning taste which still takes you on a fiery rollercoaster of peat, smoke and spice with a little delicate sweetness thrown in.

Smokehead is a premium whisky, as independent, strong and single minded as the people who drink it.

‘Smokehead’ and ‘Smokehead High Voltage’ are both available through specialists and multiples worldwide. Smokehead RRP £38.99 and High Voltage RRP £54.99.

 TASTING NOTES:

‘Smokehead’ (43% ABV) 

• The First Impression: The aroma of something powerful and fiery awaiting you. Thick, heavy woodsmoke. Rich, earthy peat. Extremes of spice and sweetness. Fresh lemon, zesty ginger, rich plum jam.
• The Full-on Flavour: An explosion of breathtaking peppery, peaty heat, soothed by honeyed sweetness, before the smoke comes to the fore again.
• The Finale: Exotic spices and a curious citrus tang of mandarin, both lulling you into a false sense of calm as the peat roars back to hit your senses again.

‘SmokeHead High Voltage’ (58% ABV)

• The First Impression: Breathe it in and feel the rush of spirit hit the senses and the nose prickle. Intense peat and smoke, maritime air, porridge oats, clean vanilla and toffee.
• The Full-on Flavour: A burn of hot spirit and the mouth fills with smoke, feeling almost thick with oiliness before softening and becoming creamier, with nutty, briny and citrus notes.
• The Finale: The mouth is almost in shock, numb and tingling. A sweetness mixes nicely with the slowly fading smoke, leaving a salty tang.

www.smokehead.com

f: www.facebook.com/smokeheadwhisky

i: www.instagram.com/smokeheadwhisky

#smokehead  

NOTES

About Smokehead:

• Smokehead is an Islay Single Malt Whisky and has been given a bold new look by Ian Macleod Distillers.
• Originally launched in 2006, Smokehead has been labelled the wild one of Single Malt Whisky.
• Award-winning premium whisky that has an attitude-led positioning and heavily peated taste.

About Ian Macleod Distillers:

• Established in 1933, Ian Macleod Distillers is one of Scotland’s leading independent, family-owned distillers, blenders and bottlers.
• Ian MacLeod Distillers is the world’s 10th largest Scotch Whisky company, producing and selling over 15 million bottles of spirits every year.

BEAM SUNTORY DONATES $100,000 TO OPERATION HOMEFRONT’S HOLIDAY MEALS FOR MILITARY

A 10-year partnership, contributions top $3.5 million, with over 90,000 military families served

BUFFALO TRACE DISTILLERY RELEASES 1993 VINTAGE O.F.C. BOURBON WHISKEY

FRANKFORT, Franklin County, Ky (Nov 20, 2018) – The year was 1993, and while “The X Files” debuted on national television and “Jurassic Park” broke box office records, Buffalo Trace Distillery quietly distilled and then laid away some of its bourbon to slumber, undisturbed, for 25 years, to be exact.

Now that bourbon has been bottled, and the result is the next offering of the O.F.C. Vintage Bourbon, set to release in December.   Although limited, there are more bottles available of this 1993 vintage than the previous O.F.C. Vintage dated releases from 1985, 1989, and 1990.

Like its predecessors, the 1993 Vintage will arrive in a wooden display box containing a provenance card.  Inside the wooden box lies a crystal bottle with real copper lettering in-laid in the bottle with a hand applied paper label. The label on the back of the bottle notes the milestones for the year 1993. The provenance card contains the same information found on the back label.

The O. F. C. vintage-dated bourbons has a name derived from this National Historic Landmark’s original moniker – the O.F.C. Distillery – renowned for producing top class whiskey during its tenure.

Tasting notes for this 25-year-old bourbon describe it as having a nose of dark cherry, honey, and smoked oak.  On the palate, notes of caramel, toasted vanilla, and cocoa are found.  For the finish, coffee, maple syrup and oak linger.

“It’s hard to believe that the same year this bourbon was made, in 1993, the world wide web was just becoming a ‘thing,’ and introduced to the public domain,” said  Harlen Wheatley, master distiller.  “Now when you think of how far everything has come, from a technology standpoint to bourbon’s popularity again, it’s mind blowing.  What’s really amazing is how solid this bourbon is, and how the taste and integrity have held up. It’s a real tribute to Elmer and Gary Gayheart and the rest of the team at the Distillery for this vintage to have this consistency and taste this good after aging for 25 years.”

This 1993 Vintage is actually the third release of the O.F.C. Vintage whiskey, but the second offered for sale. In the fall of 2016 Buffalo Trace Distillery released three vintage-dated bourbons, exclusively to non-profit organizations at no charge to raise money for their causes. Those bottles, from 1980, 1982, and 1983 were auctioned at charity last spring, and raised nearly $1.2 million for a variety of causes such as cancer services, cystic fibrosis, leukemia and lymphoma, children’s rights, autism, military veterans, animal protection, arts foundations, and many more.

Suggested retail pricing for this collectable and very limited 1993 O.F.C. Vintage Bourbon is $2,500.  More information about the O.F.C. line can be found at https://ofcvintages.com.

About Buffalo Trace Distillery

Buffalo Trace Distillery is an American family-owned company based in Frankfort, Franklin County, Kentucky. The Distillery’s rich tradition dates back to 1773 and includes such legends as E.H. Taylor, Jr., George T. Stagg, Albert B. Blanton, Orville Schupp, and Elmer T. Lee.  Buffalo Trace Distillery is a fully operational Distillery producing bourbon, rye and vodka on site and is a National Historic Landmark listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Distillery has won 21 distillery titles since 2000 from such notable publications as Whisky Magazine, Whisky Advocate Magazine and Wine Enthusiast Magazine. Its Col. E. H. Taylor, Jr. Four Grain Bourbon was named World Whiskey of the Year by Jim Murray’s Whiskey Bible 2018.  Buffalo Trace Distillery has also garnered more than 500 awards for its wide range of premium whiskies. To learn more about Buffalo Trace Distillery visit www.buffalotracedistillery.com.

Jewish Whisky Company Announces Significant Changes in 2019 for Single Cask Nation and Whisky Jewbilee

Building off 2017’s successful expansion of Single Cask Nation from a membership-only model to offering additional single cask bottlings of malt whisky, grain whisky via retail stores, Jewish Whisky Company plans a further expansion of their Single Cask Nation line of independently bottled whiskies into UK, European and Canadian markets in 2019.

“We constantly see great demand for our whiskies from many non-US markets,” said Jason Johnstone-Yellin, the company’s COO, “and as a result, we are keen to break into these markets while mirroring how we currently operate in the US.”

Jewish Whisky Company offers two separate outlets for Single Cask Nation sales: online, referred to internally and amongst their membership as ‘Special Projects Division,’ and retail. Single Cask Nation retail bottlings are currently available in the following US states: CA, CT, IL, LA, MA, NJ, NY, RI, WI, and IN with additional states being added as part of a national rollout in 2019.

“We’re proud of the fact that we bottled 28 casks in 2018 across both online and retail platforms,” said Joshua Hatton, the company’s CEO, “but we have every intention of tripling that number in 2019.”

With grand plans in place for 2019 and beyond the company has decided to mothball their globally regarded Whisky Jewbilee whisky festival to allow the needed time and focus to successfully realize their 2019 Single Cask Nation aspirations.

Whisky Jewbilee was built as a whisky geek’s whisky festival and, in the minds of Hatton and Johnstone-Yellin, must continue to evolve and innovate, challenging those very same whisky geeks who helped reinforce the reputation of the events across the United States. With an aggressive expansion plan in place for Single Cask Nation in 2019 there is no longer adequate time or focus to keep the Whisky Jewbilee held in high regard. Accordingly, the decision has been made to mothball the Whisky Jewbilee while tickets remain in high demand. All thirteen events have sold out and online publications like the Spirits Business and ScotchWhisky.com have named Whisky Jewbilee among the world’s top whisky festivals.

“We never want to phone-in any Jewbilee event,” said Hatton, ”The support Whisky Jewbilee has received in New York City since its inception in 2012, combined with the support it has garnered since it first started moving west to include Chicago in 2015 and Seattle in 2016, has been unbelievable and very much appreciated. Whisky Jewbilee attendees have a reputation unsurpassed on the whisky festival circuit. We’ll miss seeing so many familiar faces at future Jewbilee events but we’ll still visit these wonderful markets to share new Single Cask Nation releases.”

While both Hatton and Johnstone-Yellin lament the need to mothball Whisky Jewbilee, Johnstone-Yellin said “when we launched our company in 2011 it was with the intention of being an independent bottler first. While operating a whisky festival has been fun it’s time to refocus on our number one priority and, as such, mothballing the event is necessary to ensure that our UK, European, and Canadian expansion starting in 2019 is as successful as we can make it.”

About Jewish Whisky Company:

Established in 2011 , Jewish Whisky Company is the first and only US-based independent bottler of scotch, bourbon, rye, rum, and other world spirits. Owned and operated by Joshua Hatton and Jason Johnstone-Yellin, the company is home to Single Cask Nation, Whisky Jewbilee, WhiskyGeek Tours, and One Nation Under Whisky podcast. For more information, visit www.jewishwhiskycompany.com or contact Joshua & Jason at info@jewishwhiskycompany.com .

BUFFALO TRACE DISTILLERY LIGHTS UP THE HOLIDAYS WITH ITS 20^TH ANNUAL “LIGHTING OF THE TRACE”

Distillery Lighting kicks off the season, new drive-through light display route begins

FRANKFORT, Franklin County, Ky (Nov. 27, 2017) – If you hear sleigh bells jingling, that’s because the holidays come to Buffalo Trace Distillery this Thursday evening, Nov. 29, for the Distillery’s 20^th annual “Lighting of the Trace.”  At this fun, family event, the Distillery will kick off the season with a host of holiday festivities for its 20^th year, and debut a brand new route for its drive-through lights display.

This jolly evening will be complete with guaranteed snow, refreshments, carols, Christmas stories read by Santa’s elves, and of course a visit from “the jolly old man” himself.

Beginning at 5:30 p.m., a special candlelight tour of the Distillery will start, featuring carolers from the choir at Kentucky State University along the tour route.

Then, at 6:30 p.m. Franklin County Judge Executive, Huston Wells, will press the “magic button” that will light up more than 145,000 lights across the Distillery, including several new light features.

Directly following the Lighting ceremony there will be pictures with Santa Claus in the Clubhouse as the KSU choir sings more holiday carols. Cookies will also be served along with hot chocolate to keep you warm.

The Buffalo Trace Gift Shop will be open until 7:30 p.m. that evening for all your holiday shopping needs.  Plenty of great holiday gift ideas are in stock, including holiday gift baskets, food products, specialty clothing and much more.

Beginning at 8 p.m. the Distillery’s drive-through light display will open for motorists to drive through, ending at 10 p.m. Volunteers will be on hand to guide motorists through the new route.

Buffalo Trace Distillery is located at 113 Great Buffalo Trace, in Frankfort, Ky. Visitors are asked to enter at the main Distillery entrance. Event parking signs will be posted.  There is no charge for this event or the candlelight tour and it will take place regardless of weather conditions.

If you are unable to make it to the Lighting, Santa will return to the distillery Dec. 6, 7 and 8 from 6-8 p.m. Please visit Santa in the Elmer T. Lee Clubhouse. Visitors are also invited to drive through the Distillery grounds nightly from dusk to 10 p.m. Nov. 30 through Jan. 1.  The Distillery will be a winter wonderland with thousands of lights and colorful displays as in years’ past.  If you have any questions, please contact Rebecca Hobbs at 502-696-5983 or rhobbs@buffalotrace.com.

Please note children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian for the duration of the event. There will be no unaccompanied children permitted to enter the Buffalo Trace grounds. No pets other than service animals are allowed on the grounds.

About Buffalo Trace Distillery

Buffalo Trace Distillery is an American family-owned company based in Frankfort, Franklin County, Kentucky. The Distillery’s rich tradition dates back to 1773 and includes such legends as E.H. Taylor, Jr., George T. Stagg, Albert B. Blanton, Orville Schupp, and Elmer T. Lee.  Buffalo Trace Distillery is a fully operational Distillery producing bourbon, rye and vodka on site and is a National Historic Landmark as well as is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Distillery has won 21 distillery titles since 2000 from such notable publications as Whisky Magazine, Whisky Advocate Magazine and Wine Enthusiast Magazine. Its Col. E. H. Taylor, Jr. Four Grain Bourbon was named World Whiskey of the Year by Jim Murray’s Whiskey Bible 2018.  Buffalo Trace Distillery has also garnered more than 500 awards for its wide range of premium whiskies. To learn more about Buffalo Trace Distillery visit www.buffalotracedistillery.com

The Whisky Barrel releases their latest exclusive bottling from Auchentoshan. 

Specialist online whisky shop, TheWhiskyBarrel.com, is proud to release an exclusive Lowland single malt Scotch whisky from Auchentoshan.

Auchentoshan Distillery dates back to the 1800s. Situated just north of Dalmuir, Auchentoshan is now one of the few distilleries in Scotland to produce malt whisky using a full triple distillation process. Expressions by the likes of Hunter Laing and Cadenheads are very popular.

The Auchentoshan 21 Year Old 1997 Signatory Exclusive was bottled in October 2018 by Signatory Vintage for the Un-Chillfiltered series. Matured in a single fill sherry hogshead (cask #2911), this specially selected release is exclusive to TheWhiskyBarrel.com.

With just 168 numbered bottles at natural cask strength, this bottling is expected to be extremely popular.

Available exclusively from The Whisky Barrel, shipping to customers Worldwide including the United States of America, Canada and Japan.

Auchentoshan 21 Year Old | 1997 | Cask # 2911 Signatory Exclusive | 52.4%

Tasting notes 

Colour: Rich golden sherry.

Nose: Sweet sherry, stewed plums, milk chocolate coated raisins, mincemeat, orange zest and marzipan. 

Taste: Full bodied sherry flavour accompanied by apple crumble, figs and tobacco leaves. 

Finish: A long, lingering, sweet finish. 

Price: £129.95 GBP / $138.91 USD (+ P&P) 

Notes:-

Q) What is the product called?
A)  Auchentoshan 21 Year Old 1997 Signatory Exclusive #2911

Q) When will this product be released/was it released?
A) Monday 19^th November 2018.Q) Where is it available?
A) Scotland, off-trade, TheWhiskyBarrel.com.

Q) Is this product already available in other markets?
A) Scotland only, TheWhiskyBarrel.com ships worldwide.

Q) How much is it?
A) £129.95 / $138.91 USD (+ P&P)

Q) Who handles the product’s distribution?
A) In-house at TheWhiskyBarrel.com.Q) What is the ABV of this product?
A) 52.4% ABV

Q) Why has this product been launched?
A) Limited Edition single cask distillery exclusive for The Whisky Barrel.  

The Whisky Barrel is a specialist online whisky and spirits merchant based in Fife, Scotland and  was established in 2007. The Whisky Barrel won Whisky Magazine Online Retailer 2018 and was International Wine & Spirits Competition runner-up in 2016.

N.B. Prices correct at the time of publishing and are subject to currency fluctuation.

Glengoyne Distillery launches Teapot Dram Batch No. 006

Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky has announced the release of the much-anticipated Teapot Dram Batch No. 006.

The sixth release in the coveted Teapot Dram series, Batch No. 006 is matured in first fill Oloroso sherry oak casks and has a natural, rich amber hue and notes of cinnamon, marzipan and cloves. Bottled un-chillfiltered at cask strength, 2772 bottles of Teapot Dram Batch No. 006 are available to purchase exclusively from the Glengoyne Distillery shop and online at www.glengoyne.com.

The Teapot Dram series has been created in tribute to an old Glengoyne Distillery tradition: until the 1970s, workers would be given three fingers of whisky, three times each day. Most distilleries gave their teams new make spirit, but not Glengoyne. At Glengoyne, the finest whisky from first fill Oloroso sherry casks was chosen for the distillery workers’ drams. The less seasoned stillmen would, to save face, discreetly pour some of their untouched drams into a copper teapot which sat on the canteen windowsill, ready for their older colleagues.

Teapot Dram Batch No. 006 was launched last night at Glengoyne Distillery by Duncan McNicoll and Billy Edmiston, two of Glengoyne Distillery’s original ‘teapot drammers’.

Katy Macanna, Brand Manager for Glengoyne, said: “The Teapot Dram is a firm favourite amongst Glengoyne fans, and we’re delighted to share the latest release in the series.

“We’re incredibly proud of our history here at Glengoyne, and that’s why we continue to craft our whisky in the same unhurried way as we have done for more than 185 years. Our team is a vital part of that history, and the Teapot Dram series helps to tell the story of one of our old and most treasured distillery traditions.”

Glengoyne Teapot Dram Batch No. 006 is bottled at 59.3% ABV. Exclusively available as a limited-edition release from Glengoyne Distillery and online at www.glengoyne.com, and retails at £90 per 70cl bottle.

Nestled into Dumgoyne Hill with the hills of Loch Lomond in the distance, Glengoyne is considered one of Scotland’s most beautiful distilleries. Just 14 miles north of Glasgow, Glengoyne sits on the border between the Highland and Lowland whisky regions.  Glengoyne Distillery is owned by one of Scotland’s leading independent, family-owned distillers, Ian Macleod Distillers.

www.glengoyne.com

www.drinkaware.co.uk www.scotch-whisky.org.uk

Notes: 

About Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky:

Glengoyne, uncompromising in its pursuit of excellence, runs its stills more slowly than any other distillery in order to create the complex, sweet flavours for which the malt is known. The Glengoyne Highland Single Malt range is matured in the finest sherry casks from within its traditional dunnage warehouses.

Teapot Dram 006 tasting notes:

Appearance: deep amber

Nose: fresh pineapple, Digestive biscuits, rosehip, sherbet, rose petals

Taste: sweet treacle, cinnamon, marzipan, cloves

Finish: sweetness, oak, developing black peppercorn

WATERFORD DISTILLERY APPOINTS TERROIR AGRONOMIST

Irish single malt whisky producer, Waterford Distillery, is delighted to announce that Grace O’Reilly will be joining the team as the company’s agronomist in charge of terroir.

Grace will be overseeing the distillery’s relationship with its barley growers, and deepening the company’s understanding of the barley grown across their multiple Irish terroirs.

Terroir is the French word used primarily in the wine trade to describe the interaction between soil, microclimate and place.

Grace will help unearth knowledge on how these variables influence the different flavours found in the terroir-derived distillates produced at Waterford Distillery.

Grace’s career started with the Minch Malt, part of maltsters Boortmalt, and was from day one closely involved with the distillery’s initial intricate barley logistics.

Latterly Grace was with agricultural specialists Glanbia, before joining Waterford Distillery directly. She has continued to advise malting barley growers over the past four harvests across Ireland’s tillage-growing regions.

Having witnessed first-hand the successes and challenges of localized barley production across Ireland, Grace has a profound understanding of the variance from field to field in a given growing season.

Waterford Distillery CEO Mark Reynier says: “Terroir, provenance and traceability may be trendy buzzwords frequently bandied about by marketing men, but to us they actually mean something.

“Heretical as it may seem, we can show that a whisky’s flavour can indeed be influenced by where its barley is grown.

“While large distillers understandably are reluctant to accept this inconvenience, we find it both compelling and intriguing. Grace’s appointment is a kind of ‘putting money where our mouth is’ thing.”

Grace O’Reilly added: “From the beginning I really enjoyed collaborating with the team at Waterford Distillery and I’m thrilled to be joining at this exciting stage.

“Waterford Distillery are leaders in a what I hope becomes a barley movement. The level of research and data that has been collected on the 71 farms so-far involved is astonishing, and proves how serious we are about terroir.”

“Growers are the gatekeepers of terroir and through the spirit we can see how all these factors can influence flavour.”

It is highly unusual for a whisky distillery to require its own in-house agronomist, but is indicative of the importance attributable to the extensive barley provisioning policy and the consequent understanding of terroir.

Given Waterford Distillery’s obsession with barley – the essential variable that makes single malt whisky the most complex spirit in the world – the team believes this appointment will further enhance the company’s pioneering exploration in to whisky terroir.

DISTILLERY HIGHLIGHTS

71 Irish barley growers across multiple terroirs – each with demonstrable traceability from field to barrel
Entirely sourced from one of the premier malting barley growing regions in the world
Each farm distilled individually
First to produce organic Irish whisky in the modern era – Organic Trust certified since 2016
First to distill using biodynamic Irish barley – Demeter certified since 2018
First to take part in major academic research into terroir and spirit distilled from barley
Distilling one million litres of spirit a year (LPA)

NOTES

Waterford Distillery is a major whisky project by the man behind the renaissance of Islay’s Bruichladdich single malt whisky.

We’re embarking on a long journey, a voyage as ambitious as it’s pioneering. The destination is to create not just the most compelling Irish whisky, but the world’s most profound single malt.

WATERFORD

We chose Waterford, for here on the banks of the river Suir, on Ireland’s sunny south-eastern coast, we have an exceptional state-of-the-art facility originally built by Diageo in 2004 and converted to distilling in 2015. And we have the finest quality raw materials: the purest of spring water from renowned ancient wells; a team of passionate distillers that share the vision; and the very best barley in the world.

BARLEY

The provenance of our barley, where and how it is cultivated, is therefore key. Taking proven principles from Islay a giant step further, we have sourced an unprecedented 71 Irish farms, some organically-run, growing barley on 19 distinct soil types. With a pioneering digital logistical system keeping track, each farmer’s crop is harvested, stored, malted and distilled separately. Thus we can capture in spirit each farm’s terroir, that subtle character shaped by micro-climate and soil. Individuality and integrity from field to barrel.

PROVENANCE

The goal of this precision, provenance with total traceability, is to provide us with an unparalleled library of maturing, nascent single malt whisky as each farm’s barley is distilled, one per week throughout the year.

WHISKY

The first whisky ran in January 2016. After maturing for several years in the best of French and American oak, we believe these component “single”, single malts, each one exhibiting its own nuances, will come together making the most profound single malt whisky ever created.

THE TERROIR PROJECT

The Waterford team is currently working with industry-leading researcher Dr Dustin Herb from Oregon State University, as well as the Irish agricultural body Teagasc, to demonstrate the influence of terroir on flavours found in barley distillates – another world-first for the industry. The results of this will be published towards the end of 2019.

WATERFORDDISTILLERY.IE
Waterford Distillery, Grattan Quay, Waterford, X91 KF51, Ireland
waterforddistillery waterforddistillery @WaterfordWhisky

WHISKY VAULT – Indiegogo Launch

When it comes to collecting high value scotch, it’s not easy to find the right cabinet to showcase your bottles securely and in style.  The Whisky Vault does just that.  Behind a bulletproof window, your bottles are well protected from uninvited intruders to tipsy friends, who may accidentally open a prized bottle while you’re out getting more ice.

Whisky Vault will be officially launching through Indiegogo on 01 December 2018.  Sign up now through the link below for notifications regarding their launch.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/whisky-vault-most-secure-whisky-cabinet-available/coming_soon#/

Only 50 units will be offered at a staggering 51% discount.  Each handcrafted Whisky Vault for US$2940 (originally US$6000).

Whether you collect Scotch Whisky, Irish Whiskey, American Bourbon, the Whisky Vault is for you.  Display bottles vertically in the patented and most secure custom built whisky cabinet available.

For more information;

info@whiskyvault.tw

www.whiskyvault.tw

Ex-Chief Executive of Cadbury Schweppes joins board at Cotswolds Distillery

Sir Dominic Cadbury, previously Chief Executive and Chairman of Cadbury Schweppes, has joined the board of directors at Cotswolds Distillery. Sir Dominic, who lives locally to the distillery, is their second key appointment to the board, following the addition of Richard Watling, former CEO of Justerini & Brooks.

Dan Szor, Founder and CEO of Cotswolds Distillery, said, “We are delighted to welcome Sir Dominic to the board. He brings a huge amount of experience and will add enormous value to the board as the distillery moves into its next chapter.”

Sir Dominic joined Cadbury Schweppes in 1964 and was appointed to the board there in 1975. He was Group Chief Executive from 1983 to 1993 and then served as Chairman until his retirement in May 2000. His previous non-executive positions include serving as Chairman of The Economist Group and the Wellcome Trust. He held the position of Chancellor of the University of Birmingham for 11 years and is currently a trustee of the Heart of England Community Foundation, which helps to fund community projects across the West Midlands.

Sir Dominic

Sir Dominic said, “I am delighted to be joining the Cotswolds Distillery Board and look forward to contributing to their plans to grow this exciting young business.”

The Cotswolds Distillery, which was named World’s Best Craft Whisky Distillery 2018, has seen rapid growth in the past year, completing a funding round which raised £3 million in April. The funding has allowed the company to break ground this month on the construction of a new visitor centre at the distillery. It has also seen the company expand their senior management teams; in October Stan Owen join the distillery in the newly created position of Finance Director and Debs Carter joined the company as Head of Marketing in August.  

Notes 

The Cotswolds Distillery:

Located in Stourton, Shipston-on-Stour, the distillery has become a premier local attraction, offering tours and tastings daily, and now receives 30,000 visitors a year.

Cotswolds Single Malt Whisky was launched in October 2017. Each bottle lists the barley variety, harvest year and local Cotswolds farm it was grown on. It recently won Gold at the New York World Wine & Spirits Competition and took 2 stars (one of only two whiskies to do so) in the 2018 Great Taste Awards.

Cotswolds Single Malt Whisky is available nationally and in 12 countries across the world. Key UK retailers include Majestic Wine, The Whisky Exchange and Laithwaites.

The distillery also produces Cotswolds Dry Gin, which was named Best London Dry at the 2016 World Gin Awards and received the top Gold Outstanding award in the 2017 International Wine and Spirits Competition. Difford’s Guide recently ranked the Gin as one of the top 20 Gins available in a survey of 450 brands.

Cotswolds Dry Gin is on sale nationally and in over 23 countries.  Key national accounts include Waitrose & Partners, Majestic, Oddbins, Laithwaites, Harvey Nichols, Selfridges, and Fortnum & Mason.

For more information, please visit www.cotswoldsdistillery.com.