I’m Adam Hannett, Master Blender at Bruichladdich Distillery on the Isle of Islay – home of Bruichladdich, Port Charlotte, Octomore and The Botanist.
Honestly, I didn’t grow up thinking “I want to be a master blender”. I just loved the island and wanted to stay here. Bruichladdich had just reopened, I took a job in the visitor centre, and it opened my eyes.
Every day I was learning something new from the whole team around me – and I just became fascinated. For me, whisky goes beyond chemistry and craft, it’s community, agriculture, weather, memory, time – it all feeds in. That’s what hooked me.
I started out giving tours in the shop in 2004 before progressing into production roles in the warehouse and mashing and distilling before stepping up to take on more responsibilities to help manage those production areas.
Former master distiller, Jim McEwan, who’d go on to be my mentor, saw I was asking a lot of questions and took me under his wing and taught me not just how to make whisky but why every decision mattered. When he retired in 2015, he handed me the reins. Ten years on, I’ve just officially taken on the title of master blender – it’s a huge privilege.
It’s less glamorous than people think! There’s an image of a Master Blender sitting with hundreds of samples on a table, some days it’s sort of like that, but most days it’s spreadsheets, production runs, grain analysis, barrels that need moved, meetings, or checking the weather forecasts with an eye on rain for production forecasts or sunshine for barley harvests.
People are surprised at how much time is spent on the agricultural side of things. We work directly with our farming partners across Scotland and on Islay to source our malting barley. You’ve got to be as close to the fields as you are to the casks.
For me, it starts with transparency and flavour. We distil, mature and bottle every drop on Islay. Over half our barley now comes from local farms, with every batch traceable back to the field. So, what I’m really looking for is honesty – whisky that tastes of where it’s from – and a sense of that place. From the unpeated Bruichladdich, to Port Charlotte, to Octomore – they all have different characters, but they all speak of where they are from. You can taste that salty Islay air.
As a kid I remember when we had visitors to the house the whisky cupboard would be opened and drams poured. My dad would make sure he had a bottle from all the Islay distilleries, although there weren't as many then as there are now!
I remember being allowed to dip my finger into a glass to have a taste. Thinking back, I can still remember the burn and the smoke - and it was a while before I ever thought of trying another whisky. Of course, over the years I tried whisky now and again, but it wasn’t until I started working at Bruichladdich that I realised what complexity could come from a handful of ingredients and time.
Our new make spirit is incredibly fruity, clean, elegant, and full of character even before it hits a cask. We distil slowly and deliberately, with tall, narrow-necked stills and wide cuts. The soul of the whisky is created at that moment, before wood gets involved. We treat our new make with the respect some distilleries save for the finished whisky, because so much of the final flavour is born right there.
Absolutely. I don’t think there’s ever a time at Bruichladdich where something exciting isn’t happening. We’ve just launched the first expression in our X4+18 series which has had an incredible reception around the world.
Next year is our 25th anniversary, which isn’t a long time in whisky terms, but it’s long enough to have made an impact. We’ll be releasing some very special whiskies that nod to our early years and celebrate how far we’ve come. Fans and newcomers will have a lot to look forward to.
Jim McEwan - no hesitation. A mentor and friend, he gave me a chance, pushed me hard, and believed in me long before I did.
That you should only drink your whisky neat. I recently returned from a trip to Japan and was blown away by the sweeping popularity and incredible quality of the whisky highball.
I shouldn’t say how many I sampled! The best way to enjoy whisky is in good company – neat, with a drop of water, in a cocktail, however you like it.
Maybe Tilda Swinton - elegant, intriguing, sometimes a bit eccentric, but never boring. Scottish roots, global presence, strong sense of identity.
Islay. Innovation. Alive.
Curious. Lucky. Patient.
