Malt Maniacs, E-pistle 2008/22, 15 October 2008

An Interview with Duncan Taylor's Euan Shand
by Bert Bruyneel

Hello Euan...
First of all, I would like to thank you for letting us take this interview from you.
A first thing we wanted to know: How did you 'fall' into the whisky business ?

Euan: I was born into it!
My family have been around this business for a long time as Millers, Distillers etc.

So, does that mean your current job at Duncan Taylor isn't your first 'whisky job'?

Euan: I started off as a Cooper and warehouseman a long long time ago at Glendronach Distillery and moved on through all departments, Mashing, Distilling, Cask Stock Room even a Tour Guide over a 6 year period at Wm Teacher and Sons Ltd culminating in my move to the Sales Dept at their headquarters in St Enoch Square in Glasgow. Yes its long enough ago that I turned malt on the original floors at Glendronach. As part of my training I spent 9 months at Ardmore Distillery.

What made you decide to take over Duncan Taylor? This seems to have been quite an adventure...

Euan: The business was offered to me by the Executors of a Family estate in New York and I was stunned by the diversity of whiskies on offer and ...(continued)

To view the entire interview click here.

The Lowland Ladyburn distillery in Ayrshire was opened in 1966 by William Grant & Sons, owners of Glenfiddich and The Balvenie, to great fanfare—and then promptly closed down nine years later when business took a turn for the worse. (Adding insult to injury, it underwent a transformation and now produces Richard Branson's Virgin Vodka.) A few casks of Ladyburn remain, however, and rare Scotch dealer Duncan Taylor has got its hands on one from 1973. Only 30 bottles of the stuff are making their way Stateside, and it doesn't run cheap. Of course, it includes a wooden presentation box and a miniature so Scotch hoarders can have a sip and then lock the bottle away.

by Jared Paul Stern
http://men.style.com

Perhaps we may some day share a glass of a special potion that is soon going to come out of Huntly: green whisky, though we'll have to wait while it matures. Euan Shand, who grew up in a distillery, is building a plant that will have a turf roof and where the heat for the stills that will produce the amber bead comes from wood chips. It is going to be the first carbon-neutral distillery in Scotland, and this in whisky country where tradition is everything. My father used to say of his home village, not far away: "Rome has seven hills but Dufftown has seven stills." And they thrive. Shand is just back from China, where they want more of the stuff. In these troublous times, maybe whisky futures are the answer.

To view the entire article click here.

"To get back on the road to Aberdeen, turn left out of Huntley, pass our distillery on your left, and keep going until you reach the main road.” There is no distillery on the left as you travel out of Huntley, but Euan Shand, proprietor of independent bottler
Duncan Taylor, isn’t delusional. He’s ecstatic....

Click to download the full article Echoes from the Boom.pdf (725k)

(Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

http://www.maltadvocate.com

A cocktail from Duncan Taylor using their Islay malt whisky:

Take 10ml Auld Reekie, 50ml of port, 3 pineapple chunks and some ground cinnamon. Muddle the pineapple chunks and a pinch of cinnamon in a cocktail shaker. Add the liquid ingredients to the shaker followed by ice. Shake and double strain into a cocktail glass.

Garnish with a pineapple wedge studded with some cloves and garnish the glass .

http://www.savilerow-style.com/

Mark Watt has the sort of job others envy ... especially whisky fans. For Mark, 25, is a sales executive for Duncan Taylor, an independent Scottish whisky bottler with one of the largest privately-held collections of rare Scotch whisky casks. The company distributes whisky all over the world from its shop and bottling plant in Huntly. Part of Mark's job is travelling the world hosting tasting sessions. You could say it's a job tailor-made for him .... he was born within the grounds of the Macallan distillery and now lives in a house at Inchgower Distillery near Buckie. He's already visited Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, Holland, France, Spain and Sweden and hopes to visit Russia and America soon. With expert knowledge of hundreds of whiskies at his fingertips, he's very often asked to name his favourite dram. He says it's impossible to say. Each has a different flavour, and Mark's current favourite depends on his mood at the time.

Favourite place in the world
Osaka in Japan. In Japan, running a bar is seen as a profession to be proud of, a real status symbol. I've been lucky enough to be invited there for two weeks each year to run a whisky bar called The Harbour Inn. Everyone is helpful, kind and friendly and although it's a built-up city, it is very clean. While I'm there I am always treated like a celebrity

Favourite hotel
It's the Craigellachie Hotel in Craigellachie on Speyside. It stocks more than 700 single malts in the bar. It's a perfect place to sit back and relax with a dram and watch the world go by. The hotel has been beautifully refurbished but retains all the original charm of a lovely Scottish country house. The food is also exceptional.

Favourite place in Scotland
Apart from the sample room at Duncan Taylor I would say it would be the Island of Noss on Shetland. I used to have many great times there as a kid.

Favourite restaurant in Scotland
The Mussell Inn, in Edinburgh's Rose Street.
I discovered it while I was a student at Napier University, Edinburgh.
It is very earthy and informal and the main options are mussels and oysters.
It has a busy, bustling atmosphere and very reasonable prices.
My favourite dish is naturally, mussels.

Holiday companion
I would take the singer Dido. She's good to look at and I imagine she would be a laugh too. If she couldn't make it I'd as comedian Peter Kay as I think he's hilarious. I have lots of his DVDs and they always make me laugh, no matter how many times I watch them.

Five things I'd take on a paradise island
1 A cask of well aged malt whisky.
2 A radio to listen to the football.
3 My mobile phone (on silent) so I could keep in touch with people.
4 A pack of playing cards.
5 The Harry Potter series of books, as I might finally read them and see what the hype is all about.

Before I die I'd like to visit ...
I would like to go on safari in Kenya. When my late father was a soldier he was posted to Kenya and always spoke about it fondly. I'd like to re-trace his footsteps. I'm especially keen to see the capital, Nairobi.

http://www.thisisnorthscotland.co.uk/

Since scientists have branded detoxes a waste of time and money, we say forget the health kick (it only lasts for the first two weeks of January anyway) and mix yourself a real drink. The Smoky Martini is about as manly as you can get. All you need is 15ml Auld Reekie 12yo Islay Malt Scotch Whisky and 50ml Absolut Vodka. Just fill a mixing glass with ice, stir until the glass is chilled and then empty the contents. Refill the glass with ice and add the ingredients. Stir the contents and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with three olives on a cocktail stick.

http://www.gqmagazine.co.uk/