Company:
The James Sedgwick Distillery
Job:
Distillery Manager
Website:
threeshipswhisky.co.za
How long have you been working in the
whisky industry?
I first started in the spirits industry
in 1984 but from 1988 exclusively with whisky. I was fortunate enough to be
invited to Scotland on a technical exchange program to spend a period of time
working with Morrison Bowmore Distillers at their Glen Garioch and Auchentoshan
distilleries, as well as on Islay at their legendary Bowmore distillery.
It was whilst on Islay that I
fell in love with the island, its people but more importantly its whiskies.
My time there led to many emotive decisions further on in my
career.
On returning from Scotland I was tasked
along with our Technical Services Department to re-locate our whisky operations
from the relatively small R & B Distillery in Stellenbosch to the current
location here at the James Sedgwick Distillery in Wellington. I was appointed
as Distillery Manager in 1991 and am still there. I am only the 6th manager in
the almost 127 year history of the distillery.
What has been your biggest career
highlight to date?
This is a difficult question to answer. Since
my appointment in 1991 there has not been a single year when some or other
major project has not taken place. The successful completion of all of these projects
and seeing the distillery transform from what was an “ugly duckling” to what
can now only be described as a “beautiful swan” is immensely satisfying. I
think a lot of people forget that the life of a distillery manager is not
always with a glass in hand!
On the whisky front it would have to be
the three World’s Best Awards we have won from the Whisky Magazine over the
last few years. The distillery received the Whisky Icon Brand Innovator of the
Year award followed by Three Ships 5yr Old and the World’s Best Blended Whisky
in 2012 and then just last month the Bain’s Cape Mountain Whisky and the
World’s Best Grain Whisky in 2013.
To receive any award from your peers is
a great honour and a humbling experience. To receive three in such a short
space of time is beyond imagination.
Can you remember your first dram, and
indeed what it was?
Yes I can, it was in my formative years
and it was the Famous Grouse. The next morning I swore I would never drink
whisky again. Fortunately I soon realised it had nothing to do with what is a
fine blended whisky and it had everything to do with youthful exuberance and
over indulgence!
What does whisky mean to you?
Whisky is my Life! Having lived on the
distillery premises for the past 22 years and for most of that time being on
duty 24/7 it has become everything to me. During this time the characters and
amazing people I have met have just re-enforced that it was my “calling”. Fortunately
I have a great wife who has understood and still does what was required to
bring everything to where we are today.
Where would you like to see yourself in
five years time?
An interesting question, due to the
fact that no two days are the same and that we still have some very exciting
projects and plans for the distillery, the times ahead will be more than
challenging enough to keep me busy and happy where I am.
However I have an understudy by the
name of Jeff Green who has been with me for just over three years. He has the
necessary passion and understands that this career is not a 9 till 5 job and therefore
in a couple of years maybe the time will be right for other opportunities.
For example it is a genuine desire that
we would like to see our whiskies go global, therefore an ambassadorial role
within the company working on the awareness and education of South African
Whisky would be an exciting challenge. I love interacting with the consumers
and writers who enjoy the world of whisky and who make my work all the more
worthwhile.
What was your last dram?
It was last night and it was a Tomintoul
33 year old. I have great admiration for my friend and colleague Robert
Fleming, the Distilleries Director for Angus Dundee, and the work he has done
in a lifetime in the industry.
Do you have a favourite whisky and food
pairing combination?
I am partial to a good blue cheese and
nice peaty whisky to finish off an evening. I also enjoy melting down blue
cheese with a little cream and making a sauce for a nice piece of fillet again
with a peaty dram. Whiskies like Bowmore 17yr, Ledaig 10yr and our own Three
Ships 5yr blend make good choices.
What’s your favourite time and place to
enjoy a dram?
I don’t think there is any one time. A
lot depends on the mood and the company. However a cold, wet Cape winters
evening with a log fire burning or a Cape West Coast sunset rate right up
there.
What do you think is going to be the
next big thing on the whisky horizon?
I think we have already seen that age
is starting to play less of a role in the new whiskies being released. The
master blenders are going to become more creative and so will the marketers.
In a country like South Africa we have
a whisky loving nation ranging across all ages, sexes and demographics. We
don’t have over 500 years of tradition and although we have the utmost respect
for that tradition we can be very innovative and creative within the
legislation of what is whisky. I think Bain’s Cape Mountain grain whisky is testimony
to that. 20 years ago in South Africa this style of whisky would probably not
have been perceived as “whisky” but fortunately the market and consumer has
become much more tolerant to change and difference.
What’s the one dram you couldn’t live without?
What’s the one dram you couldn’t live without?
Going back to my earlier
statement of the emotive decisions I have made in my career then this is
another one. Bowmore's range of whiskies still remain magical to me and
therefore one's I could not live without!
Many thanks to Andy Watts. Who will be the next Whisky Insider? Click back soon to find out!