Ashley Smith, Glen Scotia Master Blender at Loch Lomond Group. I am responsible for ensuring the quality and consistency of the whiskies coming out of Glen Scotia, assessing new make spirit and our maturing stocks to curate our core range Single Malt Whiskies, as well as crafting new expressions and limited-edition annual releases.
In Scotland, whisky is part of the fabric of life, woven into our culture and our celebrations, but I certainly took it for granted. It wasn’t until I lived and studied abroad that I truly began to appreciate Scotch Whisky, the esteem in which it is held and how it connects people.
When people found out I was from Scotland, one of the first things they would ask about was whisky, and at that time I knew very little about it. I decided that had to change, and I began to immerse myself into the world of Scotch Whisky.
As a marketing student, it seemed to me to be the dream to work on – whisky is more than a drink, it’s a cultural symbol with incredible heritage and history ripe for storytelling. I knew then I wanted to pursue a career in Scotch Whisky, but I could never have imagined the journey it would take me on.
My initial job in the industry was on a bonded warehousing site for Beam Suntory. Part of my role was assisting the master blender with their day-to-day duties and I discovered that, thanks to my sensitive nose, I had an aptitude for picking up nuanced aromas and complex flavours in the samples being assessed. I quickly became fascinated with the how’s and why’s of the blender role, and learning more about the whisky making process. I was truly hooked.
After several years honing my skills, I moved to Chivas Brothers as a Sample Room Assistant, working on products across their portfolio of blends and single malts.
I joined Loch Lomond Group in 2019 as Whisky Blender, where I was responsible for managing our single cask programme. This gave me an invaluable insight into how Glen Scotia matures and interacts with different cask types.
Throughout I have worked alongside Michael Henry, master blender for Loch Lomond Group, gradually taking on more responsibility for Glen Scotia, which culminated in be becoming master blender in 2024.
Spreadsheets, data and more spreadsheets…a significant and crucial part of the role is planning (months, years or even decades in advance), monitoring supply to our bottling plant as well as careful stock management to ensure we can meet future demands. This is equally as important as the assessment of the spirit itself.
Every single decision you make holds weight and responsibility. Whether you are evaluating new make spirit destined for whiskies that won’t be on the shelves for years, or even personally may not assess again under your guardianship, to selecting casks for upcoming bottlings, at each stage of its journey: at distillation, through maturation, cask selection and bottling, every drop of Glen Scotia is carefully nurtured.
Regular sampling takes place to safeguard the quality of the whiskies coming out of Glen Scotia today and in decades to come.
At Glen Scotia, we're always looking to create whiskies with unmistakable Campbeltown character. For me, that means a spirit that's fruit-forward, with layers of tropical fruit, a distinctive maritime salinity and the rich, oily texture that is central to our signature style.
As one of only three distilleries in Scotland's smallest whisky-making region, we have an important role in championing the character of Campbeltown. Every decision we make, from our traditional production methods and small stills to the way we mature our whisky, is about expressing the place we call home. It's that sense of place that gives Glen Scotia its distinctive character and makes our whiskies instantly recognisable.
I have fond memories of drinking whisky with my Dad. He is especially fond of peated Islay malts. I distinctly remember my first sip of Laphroaig 10 and being captivated by how smoke could be captured in liquid form.
Glen Scotia’s new make is fruit-forward, coastal, oily, and robust – this is due to our commitment to maintaining the traditional distilling methods which have been practiced in the Campbeltown region for centuries. Our Victorian-era replica rack and pinion mash tun, long fermentation (averaging 128 hours), and use of small stills all contribute towards the distinctive Glen Scotia character which makes it recognisably ‘Campbeltown’.
Absolutely - one of the most rewarding aspects of my job is developing new releases, collaborating with our marketing team to take the seed of an idea and then creating a whisky that brings the creative concept to life.
We have an exciting pipeline of releases that continue to explore different aspects of Glen Scotia's character. We're about to launch the fourth release in our Icons of Campbeltown series, and we're already working on next year's Campbeltown Malts Festival release.
The first master blender I worked with, Ron Welsh. He was (and still is) a fantastic mentor and immensely generous with his time. His guidance and encouragement had an incredible impact on me. Through sharing his knowledge and teaching me the fundamentals of blending, he not only provided me with the foundational skills necessary to become a blender, but also the confidence to pursue my professional goals.
Add water, add ice, drink it with a mixer, or in a cocktail... If there is a ‘right’ way to drink whisky, then that is to drink it how you enjoy it.
One of the most exciting parts of my job is experimentation and the pursuit of flavour, so experiment with different whiskies, different amounts of water, and different flavour combinations to find out what works for your unique palate.
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