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Spirit of Speyside Festival 2013

January 25, 2013 in Events

There’s less than a month to go until the five-day Spirit of Speyside festival takes over Scotland’s most active whisky producing region.

This year’s Festival will include a whopping 300 events, with 51 distilleries opening their doors to show visitors behind the scenes. The Glenlivet will host this year’s opening dinner on the 2 May at its distillery.

Festival organiser Mary Hemsworth – who’s come on board for her second year running – told me she feels people in the region are really “getting behind the festival and bringing new innovative events to the programme.”

New this year to the events calendar will be Tamdhu distillery tours and the Ardmore Distillery ‘Whisky Shots’ event, which blends photography with whisky tasting. This year’s whisky awards will also be going on the road, with the six finalist whiskies being taken throughout Speyside to where visitors will be so that people coming to the festival will have the chance to sample and vote for which whisky wins out. The awards will be announced on the 5 May at the Whisky Awards Lunch.

But it’s not only about visiting distilleries. Last year, I took part in a whisky masters quiz and hiked the ‘Smugglers’ trail’ at The Glenlivet and took an ancient train from Dufftown to Keith, learning about the history of the area. The festival was as much about celebrating the stunning surrounds in which the whisky is made as it was about the whisky itself.

Mary HemsworthMary told me she believes people should come to the festival because of “its uniqueness.”

“It’s the only festival of its kind in the world, set in beautiful scenery with 51 distilleries producing seven of the top 10 whiskies in the world. It’s a whisky lover’s paradise.

“It’s also a wonderful opportunity for visitors to see and experience exactly where their favourite drams come from. The people of Speyside make a huge difference too, by being welcoming, knowledgeable and friendly.”

I can attest to all of her points, having visited last year. The four days I spent in Speyside were some of my most memorable of the whisky year – I wrote about it here – and it was the openness, friendliness and great energy around the festival which made it so wonderful. Visits to Strathisla, Glenfarclas, Benromach and The Glenlivet distilleries made me feel so much more connected to this industry I love and I can’t recommend it enough.

Mary concurred: “There is a really great, can I use the word ‘spirit’ around the festival and I think this is really what I enjoyed the most.”

For more information on the festival and to get tickets, visit: www.spiritofspeyside.com

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Martine Nouet speaks to Miss Whisky

November 23, 2012 in Whisky Women

 

In my latest Whisky Women interview, I speak to Martine Nouet, a celebrated food and whisky writer and chef, and former editor of Whisky Magazine France.

In the full interview, here, she speaks of her determination to write about whisky, why she doesn’t believe in positive discrimination to get more women into the industry and her favourite memory of whisky drinking, shared on a beach with whisky writer Michael Jackson.

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A visit to Strathisla

June 26, 2012 in Uncategorized

With its twirling water mill, sharp-peaked pagoda roofs and cobbled courtyard, the distillery at Strathisla looks ever so misplaced beside a busy roadway in Keith, Scotland. It should, one feels, appear by a drifting river in a forest in the hills.

It  has been around since 1786 and is most famous now for producing whisky for the Chivas Regal brand – some of the best known blends in the world.

I arrived during the recent Spirit of Speyside whisky festival by way of the Keith & Dufftown railway – an historic train that rumbles shakily along a thin track through forested valleys for 11 miles. It’s a beautiful journey, made ever-more enjoyable by the friendly, Dungaree wearing conductor and a wee dram given out during the trip I was on (though not, I’m told, available at all times of the year).

Chivas Brothers has owned the distillery since 1950. But some traditions go back far further. Whisky is made using water from the nearby Brew Hill spring, which has been supplying it since operations began.

The distillery is medium-sized, with eight wooden washbacks made from Oregon pine. Fermentation takes 54 hours, before being distilled on two sets of stocky, globular copper stills. The new make comes off at 68% and the short stack makes for a heavier flavour.

Many of the casks are kept off-site in Elgin, while full blending is done in Paisley. Around 1,000 casks of various whiskies are stored in the stone warehouses on-site, but I was unable to take any photos as it is against policy.

After the tour, I headed to the tasting room to sip a few drams. As I was driving, I mostly nosed the whiskies.

I much preferred the Chivas Regal 18 year old to the 12. In the former I found hints of hazelnuts, chocolate, orange, oatmeal and a tiny bit of smoke on the nose. It was rich and appealing. I also liked the smell of the Strathisla 12 year old, which is one of the only single malts released by the distillery. Aged in sherry casks, I found it had hints of brown sugar, creamy oatmeal and something slightly citrussy on the nose.

Strathisla is a quaint distillery to visit and it’s hard to imagine millions of litres of blended whisky being produced from this twee place. It was worthwhile, if only to see the lovely set-up of Scotland’s oldest continuously running distillery. Enjoyable for the malt lover all around.

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Mary Hemsworth speaks to Miss Whisky!

April 14, 2012 in Uncategorized

Mary Hemsworth is the Festival Manager for the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, where she has been responsible for organising more than 300 events happening from the 2-8 May all around Speyside. She speaks to Miss Whisky about her introduction to whisky, her excitement about the festival and what she will be doing once it’s all concluded! Read the full piece here.

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Penny Ellis speaks to Miss Whisky

March 30, 2012 in Uncategorized

 

 

In my latest Whisky Women profile, I speak to Penny Ellis, a director of the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, which runs from the 2-8 May this year. She is also owner, along with her husband Gavin, of the Knockomie Hotel located in Findhorn in Speyside, where she actively promotes whisky to all guests in the Malt Library, which features more than 80 single malts. To read the full profile, go here.

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Speyside’s Spirit Comes Alive

January 22, 2012 in Uncategorized

 

  “If you want to know about whisky then doing the Spirit of Speyside festival is a must-do event.”

So says Ann Miller, a festival director and International Brand Ambassador with Chivas Brothers. Ann has     been involved with the festival since its infancy and has watched it, and the profile of Speyside, grow ever since.

This May the festival will celebrate its 13th year running. From the 3rd to the 7th, thousands of people from around the globe will descend on the distilleries and communities of Speyside to celebrate its whisky, heritage and culture. On Saturday, its official programme went live with tickets on sale for nigh-on 300 events over the five days, ranging from outdoor wildlife and whisky tastings, to bottling your own whisky at Glenglassaugh or enjoying a whisky-themed afternoon tea on the Strathspey steam train.

“It does such an amazing amount to publicise Speyside to the world,” says Mary Hemsworth, the festival’s manager. “It’s not so much Scotland’s heritage and culture – it’s Speyside’s history and culture because of the illicit stills and the history of whisky making here; it’s about promoting that element.”

This will be Mary’s first year as festival manager. Having lived in the area and being familiar with the event, she says it was an opportunity she couldn’t miss.

“The people involved are so passionate that it makes it a truly great job,” she adds.

Most of the small communities based around the more than 50 local distilleries become involved, she says, which makes for a very inclusive festival. This year, for instance, there will even be a “safari supper” in Grantown on Spey where attendees get to try three courses matched with three whiskies in three different venues, before ending up at the town hall for a Ceilidh.

Ann and Mary are not the only women helping shape the festival. Also on the board of directors is Penny Ellis, who owns the Knockomie Hotel in Forres with her husband. Penny has been involved in the whisky industry for 25 years – having previously worked with J&B and Cutty Sark – and says the festival does wonders for local businesses.

“A lot of business are closed throughout the winter and reopen in April so it’s a great kick-start to the tourist season. Accommodations have hugely benefited over the years,” she says.

The Knockomie Hotel, run by Penny Ellis and her husband, Gavin

This year, the team has focused on moving the festival into the 21st century by promoting it heavily through social media – a tactic that has seen its fan base grow enormously.

“What’s been interesting is the sheer amount of interest. We’re almost at the 2,000 [follower] mark on Twitter and moving towards the 2,000 mark on Facebook. Every day we’re picking up more followers,” adds Mary.

So, what does it mean to have such a strong, female contingent on the board of one of the top whisky festivals?

“I think we can lend a different angle as to the direction of some of the events and it’s important that it’s not just seen as a male event,” says Penny, who adds she’s made it a key goal over her time running the hotel to make sure she introduces more women to whisky.

Ann says while the majority of attendees are male she is seeing an increase in the number of females coming to the festival as well.

“There’s much more awareness about the fact you don’t have to be a man to enjoy it or to work in the industry. You see women at the events and suddenly there is this moment of revelation where they realise that whisky can taste this good,” she says.

Moving forward, the team hopes to build on the number of communities involved and continue making sure distilleries not normally open to the public do so for the festival.

“If we target different distilleries on a year by year basis it gives us a unique selling point,” adds Penny.

So, with all of the events, unique opportunities and excitement, why else do the organisers hope new people give the Spirit of Speyside a try?

“The festival gives people the opportunity to come together with lots of like minded people in a really convivial way. You can enjoy it and meet the people who make whisky – for a couple of weeks a year we can bring it all together,” concludes Ann.

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