GlenAllachie Meet the man with the barrels - Blog post by Whisky Magazine

In this blog post, Whisky Magazine met one of the guys who really has his finger on the pulse in the warehouses at GlenAllachie. It's none other than Lindsay Cormie, who has been a loyal employee of Billy Walker ever since Billy bought Benriach.

GlenAllachie - Meet the man with the casks

Blog post published in Whisky Magazine no 5 - Interview with Lindsay Cormie

Can you give us an overview of your career so far? How long have you been working with Billy Walker?
And what has it been like working with him?
- I started working for Billy Walker and his two South African partners in 2006 and I worked at Benriach Distillery from 2006 until the entire group was sold in June 2016. The restart of a distillery is always very tough and the pace hasn't slowed down over the years.

In 2008 Billy and his partners bought GlenDronach and again it was a bit like restarting a distillery and the relentless pace returned. In 2010, the bottling hall in Newbridge was purchased and the whole business grew. During 2012, Glenglassaugh Distillery was also purchased, which again required a lot of hard work to get things moving quickly there," says Lindsay Cormie.

- "In June 2016 when the BenRiach distillery was sold to Brown Forman, I continued to work for them briefly. But in November 2017, I got another chance to join Billy at The GlenAllachie Distillery. And I've been annoying him ever since," laughs Lindsay.

- Working for Billy is always fun, even though it's hard work. There's always something exciting and experimental going on and Billy is very approachable, always just a phone call away, which has its drawbacks as it means I can't really hide from him.

How has your role changed since you started in the industry?
- In the beginning, I was mostly involved in all the activities in our warehouses, after which I spent a short time in the production area itself. Then I came back to the warehouses, which I really enjoy," Lindsay says.

- "I'm also involved in the various whisky festivals and from time to time also in tastings. I'm quite lucky in my job. Even though I have a lot of planning and organizing to do, as well as some customs work and making sure we comply with all the rules and regulations, I can still get away from my desk and get into the warehouse to fill casks with our warehouse team. I really enjoy working with the excellent warehouse team that we have here at the distillery.

What does an average working week look like for you?
- An average week consists of a little bit of all types of warehouse work. We will typically work with sampling from the barrels and measuring the contents. But also filling kegs with new make, re-racking, bottling and receiving new kegs. And there are many different types of these. There is also a lot of planning. There is also a lot of paperwork to be done, but all in all, the good thing about working for Billy is that there are always a lot of different tasks in any given week and there are always some exciting experiments going on.

What is the most challenging element of your job?
- The scheduling can be quite challenging in terms of ensuring that casks come into, or go out of, the distillery at the correct time. Most tasks require many different casks to arrive or depart at the right time. Casks where mature whiskies are to be used in our products and empty casks arriving from mainland Europe. For example, they should preferably arrive so that they are refilled while they are still fresh.

The logistical issues are worldwide at the moment and that makes things very unpredictable right now, but it's the same for everyone everywhere and it applies to the whole supply chain.
- I would still say the most challenging part of my job is dealing with Billy Walker and his accomplices," laughs Lindsay.

How would you describe GlenAllachie's character?
Can it be difficult trying to execute Billy's very specific vision for the whisky?
- I would describe the character of GlenAllachie as being quite rich and full-bodied. Fortunately, it is very "adaptable".

Our new spirit (new make) lends itself well to maturation in a variety of casks, which gives Billy even more scope for experimentation.

- We already know what works, but there's still unexplored territory that we're going to try to move into, and I think that's exciting, although it could be years before we see the results from some of the experiments. Executing Billy's plans is no different to the tasks of an old-fashioned organic chemist. His instructions and communication are quite clear, concise and precise - he knows in which direction we need to move and when.

How important do you think maturation is to the taste and quality of the final whisky?
- I believe that maturation is without a doubt the most important factor in the final character of the whisky. I would say that about 75% of the magic is due to cask influence and the environment. The slow delivery of oxygen to the contents of the cask from the surrounding environment combined with good quality casks that have been filled immediately upon arrival at the distillery are all key factors.

- Billy Walker is happy to spend a lot of money on good casks, and here you really do get what you pay for. This is not the place to cut corners because it's money well spent," concludes Lindsay Cormie.

If you're lucky enough to stop by GlenAllachie one day and take a tour of the distillery, you're sure to run into Lindsay Cormie, who is one of the most visible employees at the distillery.

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