16 May 2023

123rd Whisky Insiders Interview - Mike Hayward


Company:
The Glasgow Distillery Co
Job:
Founder
Website:
Socials:
@GlasgowDC



How long have you been working in the whisky industry?
In 2012 I founded The Glasgow Distillery alongside my long-term business partner, Liam Hughes. Before embarking on our distillery journey, we had both been in the drinks industry for over 20 years working across business development; brand strategy; product launches; operations and project management for a wide number of well renowned drinks brands, which included whisky. The drinks industry as a whole has been central to my entire working life and the experience of seeing the exciting changes and innovation across spirit categories is one of the reasons we produce not only single malt Scotch whisky at The Glasgow Distillery, but gin, vodka and rum, too. 
 
What has been your biggest career highlight to date?
Starting up the distillery from scratch has been no easy task. It has been one of the most challenging experiences of my life but, also, one of the most rewarding. It fills me with immense pride when I see how far we have come in a relatively short period of time. Indeed, our first release of single malt scotch whisky distilled from The Glasgow Distillery, Glasgow 1770 Single Malt Release No.1, was very memorable and a proud moment for me and everyone within the distillery who collectively worked so hard to make it happen. That first release was the culmination of so many years of effort – first to get the distillery up and running but then to subsequently build all of our five brands.
 
Since that first release, we haven't stopped. We’ve kept going with the same drive and energy that was behind Release No.1 and with each subsequent new release – be that our Peated or Triple Distilled single malts, or releases within our experimental Small Batch Series of Glasgow 1770 Single Malts, or limited-edition Banditti Club rums - I get a buzz and an immense sense of pride in our work.
 
Can you remember your first dram, and indeed what it was?
It’s hard to remember my first dram of whisky specifically but I recall when I was somewhat younger, growing up at home with the aroma of single malt from my father’s whisky collection as he took a well-earned dram after a long day at work, which sparked my early curiosity. Albeit I was far too young to be drinking at that age!

Having frequented a wide range of spirits over the years, one of the first whiskies that I fell in love with was Highland Park 18 Year Old. The balance of soft campfire smoke against the rich sherry influence, the saline balanced against the vanillin of American oak. It was one of the first whiskies that helped me realise just how complex and well-balanced malt whisky can be.
 
What does whisky mean to you?
Whisky is both pleasure and business and it’s a privilege to be able to call it both. I enjoy whisky in my downtime and have a joy in discovering new brands that are innovative and engaging and pushing the boat.
 
Within a business context whisky means working hard to deal with the demands of the day-to-day running of an operating distillery and all the challenges that are associated with that. 
 
Whisky also means creativity. Leading on new product development, creating new blends, trialling new spirit and wood combinations, purchasing casks and planning out our future spirit in the long-term are all aspects of my role and daily work life. 
 
People and whisky cannot be separated. I have many personal friendships that have come out of working in this industry; It’s full of wonderful and passionate people – both within the wider industry and within the distillery itself. We have a fantastic team of really engaged and passion-fuelled team members who are as enthusiastic about creating, talking and loving whisky as much as I am.
 
So, for me whisky means a lot of different things, each one contributing and adding colour to my life.
 

11 May 2023

Kilchoman Cognac Cask Matured Competition


Be it for one of our industry leading Tweet Tastings or one of our monthly bottle competitions, we love nothing more than being able to share and giveaway some new and exciting drops of dramspankage. Talking of which, to help celebrate the launch of one of their latest releases, we’re teaming up with our good friends at the Islay based Kilchoman Distillery, to give one of our followers the chance of winning a bottle of their dramspankingly new Cognac Cask Matured.

This latest peated (50 PPM) single malt Scotch whisky, which is their first to be matured in Cognac casks, was distilled in 2016 and was matured in Cognac casks sourced from Tonellerie Bossuet in France, for 6 years.

For your chance to win a 70cl bottle of Kilchoman Cognac Cask Matured click here to email us with your contact details and date of birth, along with the following phrase that dramming pays:
 
“I’d love to pour and explore this latest
kick ass, all killer and no filler Kilchoman”
 
*Mark the subject line of your email with: Kilchoman Cognac Cask Comp
 
If you’re on Twitter, you can also follow us via @TheWhiskyWire and RT one of our related competition tweets for another chance to win!
 
Limited to 15,100 bottles, Kilchoman Cognac Cask Matured (50% ABV) is now available from specialist retailers, for a RRP of £80.15.
 
@TheWhiskyWire
@KilchomanWhisky
#KilchomanCognacCaskComp
 
Competition closes at 23:59 on June 11th 2023. You must be aged 21 years or over to enter!
 
Good Luck!