After I traveled to Islay final summer time, I had two objectives for my go to to the enduring Ardbeg Distillery. One was to see the model new stillhouse, which had successfully doubled Ardbeg’s manufacturing functionality, and the opposite was to fulfill the man that ran the place, Colin Gordon. I knew he had bounced between Islay and mainland Scotland in a wide range of whisky roles earlier than touchdown at Ardbeg, and I used to be anxious to listen to about his journey. Our dialog must wait, nonetheless. I used to be in a position to discover each spectacular inch of the gleaming new distillery enlargement, however Colin was touring throughout my go to. Fortunately, he got here stateside in March this yr for the launch of the most recent Ardbeg Committee Launch, Eureka, so we had been lastly in a position to have a correct chat.
Colin has been the distillery supervisor at Ardbeg since 2020, however he nonetheless will get launched because the “new” man. Which may appear odd till you think about that over greater than two centuries, Ardbeg has solely had 20 different distillery managers. In 5 quick years, Colin has already had a wholesome profession on the distillery, overseeing the biggest enlargement in its historical past and through a world pandemic, no much less. Our dialogue was huge ranging and revealing about his path to Ardbeg, the distillery’s future, and the way forward for Islay whisky broadly.
Be aware: This interview has been frivolously edited for readability.
Drinkhacker: Ardbeg wasn’t your first job on Islay. How lengthy have you ever labored on the island now?
Colin: I can by no means get it proper. We first got here throughout in 2013, so 12 years in the past. I labored with Diageo for round 8 years. It was that interval when the old fashioned malt distillery managers had been ending and retiring, and so they had been eager to usher in individuals. I acquired my grasp’s diploma at Heriot-Watt in Edinburgh and utilized for the Diageo program. I utilized and acquired into this system. I used to be very excited, hoping they had been going to ship me to an iconic distillery. They usually despatched me to Burghead Maltings as a substitute. Nevertheless it was essential to study. I did a stint on the malting there after which went to Islay in 2013. I spent 8 months in Caol Ila after which again to Speyside for a yr. Then we ended up going again correctly to Islay in 2015 to run the Port Ellen Maltings. I did that for 3 years then went to Lagavulin for 2. Then the Ardbeg job got here up and that was it to be trustworthy.
Drinkhacker: What drew you to Ardbeg?
Colin: It’s an incredible place. Each distillery is exclusive, however there was all the time one thing about Ardbeg that I used to be very drawn to. I knew a number of the workforce, Jackie [Thomson] and Dugga [Bowman] within the warehouse and a number of the operators and the warehouse guys. They all the time made such an important whisky, an important spirit. Individuals genuinely cared concerning the place and had been very pleased with the place they labored. I simply beloved the historical past of the place, that it had been saved and introduced again and funding was coming in. When Mickey stated he was retiring, I knew I wanted to go for it. Delighted that I did.
Drinkhacker: There was a little bit of churn with distillery managers lately. What do you assume has pushed that?
Colin: Loads have retired since I began with Diageo, however I believe it’s a pure development. Automation has elevated and large company constructions have a tendency to supply much less autonomy, and you’re type of below the microscope. However that’s one factor I really like about Ardbeg, they put full belief in me to run the positioning with the workforce. We collaborate lots with Dr. Invoice [Lumsden] and Gillian [Macdonald] and the entire whisky creation workforce, but it surely’s an important place to be. Contact wooden!
Drinkhacker: Mickey Heads was Ardbeg’s distillery supervisor for 13 years previous to your arrival. What was that handoff like?
Colin: The job at Ardbeg was marketed I believe in February 2020. I used to be instructed Mickey was leaving and inspired to use. However then the whole lot went quiet due to Covid and lockdown. It most likely wasn’t till June that we acquired to the interview course of. Due to that, the day of our handover in October was Mickey’s final day. That was daunting. I knew Mickey and had big respect for him. He’s a legend and a real gentleman, very humble and beneficiant and unbelievably educated. However I had someday with him. It was simply the way in which it was. I joke that Mickey jogged my memory as he left that this was the primary new stillhouse for over 100 years, so high quality must be bang on. Cheerio! He was truthfully nice and instructed me to offer him a cellphone if I wanted something.
Drinkhacker: How did Covid impression your first years on the job?
Colin: It was going to be troublesome regardless as a result of we needed to get into the brand new stillhouse and the previous stillhouse had been run exhausting. Copper was thinning. We actually couldn’t run these stills for much longer, so we wanted to get the blokes educated and commissioned. Everybody was in face masks nonetheless and social distancing, so it was loopy. It was an exceptionally proud second although in March 2021 after we first ran spirit. I really feel like I got here in for the glory on the finish after Mickey did all of the exhausting work. It was a big day for Ardbeg, only a few in its 200-year historical past the place they commissioned a brand new stillhouse. The teamwork was good and the help we had was nice.
Drinkhacker: How is the brand new stillhouse working? What had been among the challenges of replicating a 100-year-old system?
Colin: It runs rather well. The spirt is nice. We’re very, very pleased with the spirit. It took time to settle in, the copper needed to get oxidized, however the spirit is incredible. Sure issues had been all the time going to have to stay constant. Stills had been the identical form and measurement. We intention for a similar run instances, identical fill and cost quantity. A few issues had been completely different, so we had been just a little not sure about them at first. Within the previous stillhouse, it was a really quick run between the condensers and the secure. Ardbeg has all the time had a really quick foreshot. We perhaps solely run it for 10 minutes to clear the road as a result of Ardbeg needs to seize these massive, fruity notes firstly of the distillation. With the brand new nonetheless, it’s an extended run from the condensers to the secure, so we truly performed about just a little firstly to search out the lower level. That sounds fairly small, but it surely’s essential to get it proper.
Drinkhacker: Ardbeg has been probably the most prolific Islay distilleries lately with a number of annual restricted editions along with the core lineup. Ought to followers anticipate to see extra new releases within the coming years?
Colin: We’ve all the time been fairly inventive, and we wish to create. There was fairly quite a few releases the previous couple of years. I believe that’s pulling again a bit. We’ve all the time acquired to be sure that high quality comes first. And it must be a very good story. We did quite a few issues, typically front-end experiments like Heavy Vapours, the place we eliminated the air purifier in distillation, or the Ardcore with the closely roasted malt. Then some casks and completely different maturations. Day-to-day, our job is to make sure consistency is essential. With the opening of the brand new stillhouse, increasing from six to 12 washbacks, we’ve acquired extra scope if we need to attempt to play about with issues. So, we’ll nonetheless completely look to do this. Dr. Invoice is all the time a person that appears to push boundaries.
Drinkhacker: The most recent restricted version, Eureka, is a particular one for the Ardbeg Committee. How did it come about?
Colin: This launch celebrates 25 years of The Ardbeg Committee which shaped in 2000. Jackie Thomson is the chair and was very concerned in bringing that about. We by no means needed Ardbeg to shut once more, so we shaped a committee. Why a committee? As a result of Islay is stuffed with committees. And it grew to become a chance for individuals to get collectively and get particular bottles and keep updated on the distillery. We’ve acquired 200,000 members everywhere in the world.
Two years in the past, on Ardbeg Day on the distillery, we invited 100 individuals as much as the west maltings to pattern completely different whiskies and provides us tasting notes. They picked their two favourite samples, and we mixed them to create Eureka. One was bourbon-matured however with closely roasted malt with nice espresso and darkish chocolate notes. The opposite was customary Ardbeg spirit matured in Pedro Ximenez casks. The phenols are ramped down a bit as a result of the darkish roast malt, about 20% of the mashbill, was mixed with 80% decrease phenol pot nonetheless malt. The smoke remains to be there, however it’s dialed down with these wonderful espresso and chocolate notes. It’s good to get the Committee concerned!
Drinkhacker: Having produced Ardbeg single malt now for 5 years, what do you assume differentiates it from different Islay malts?
Colin: I joke that you understand you’ve drunk Ardbeg for 3 days after. It’s such an important spirit, the peaty paradox, the soot and the fruit. Through the use of very closely peated malt barley however with a lot of reflux and copper contact, these oilier heavy notes drop again into the nonetheless. It’s such an important spirit. I believe it’s loopy the number of taste now we have on Islay and we’re all utilizing the identical components. What I really like about Ardbeg is the smoky, sooty, ashy notes mixed with great natural and citrusy notes. In older Ardbeg, you get these unbelievable menthol notes coming by means of. That blend is one thing actually great.
Drinkhacker: Dr. Invoice Lumsden and Gillian Macdonald oversee whisky creation for each Glenmorangie and Ardbeg. How do you’re employed with them within the design course of?
Colin: Day-to-day, my position is that the distillery is doing the whole lot it must do and getting mature spirit out to the bottling corridor as wanted. Invoice and Gillian nostril all the brand new make, and we catch up often to see how they really feel. Now we have innovation conferences to debate casks they need to fill or concepts on website that we’ve acquired. It’s an enormous quantity of collaboration, however on the finish of the day it’s Dr. Invoice’s name. He’s an incredible man to work with.
Drinkhacker: Port Ellen Maltings, a malt provider to Ardbeg and different distilleries on the island, is scaling again manufacturing for out of doors prospects now that Diageo has reopened the distillery there. How is that impacting your malt provide?
Colin: We had a really longstanding historical past with Port Ellen Maltings, however Ardbeg had usually introduced in peated malt from the mainland, as effectively. Now we have a mixture. We’ll nonetheless take from Port Ellen, it’s very helpful particularly not having to cope with the ferries. We’ve nonetheless managed to maintain that relationship, however we do herald from the mainland, as effectively. The important thing factor is to verify the spec is on, the phenol stage within the malt. The suppliers we’ve labored with have been actually incredible. From a continuity of provide, I believe it really works effectively having from each. Different distilleries on Islay are taking all from the mainland, and it’s difficult with the ferries.
Drinkhacker: About these ferries. After I visited Islay, a standard chorus particularly from smaller producers, was the infrastructure challenges on the island that proceed to develop with the addition of recent distilleries. How has that impacted Ardbeg?
Colin: I believe as a result of we’re an island of 3000 individuals, a number of Scots even assume we’re a distant place in the event that they’ve by no means been. It’s actually not. We’ve acquired flights to Glasgow and 6 or seven ferry sailings a day. My spouse is from an island that’s a quiet, sleepy little place. Islay is a busy place with lots occurring with the distilleries. We’re ready on two new boats that can ease the stress massively. The entire Hebrides have felt it, however Islay shouts the loudest. We’ll be OK after we get these two new boats.
As for the brand new distilleries, it’s nice for the island by way of jobs and work and enterprise coming. As an island, Islay is fortunate as a result of it may be troublesome. Now we have such an important alternative to maintain our younger on the island. Lots of isles don’t. Younger transfer to Glasgow or Edinburgh for work. Now we have zero unemployment on the island. My workforce is twenty, and possibly half of them are below 35 with households on the island. Islay is a thriving financial system, and it could solely be a very good factor that individuals are nonetheless investing and offering alternative.
