WHISKY’S
SHINING LIGHTS “This is a man’s world”, says Mr James Brown. Look into whisky’s past, present and most definitely its future, and you’ll see that it would be “nothing without a woman.”
Historical records and recorded wills reveal more than thirty women have controlled some of the most famous distilleries in Scotland. Many continue to do so today. Take Bessie Williamson, ‘the First Lady of Laphroaig’. She started with the distillery as a secretary. She finished, some forty years later, as managing director. In 1934, young Bessie took a job as a typist at the distillery, intending to move on in a few months. Twenty years later, she owned the place, the only woman to own a distillery in Scotland in the 20th century. She was behind the push for Laphroaig to expand into the States and also seen as a key force in the rise of single malts, over blends. Further back in 1811, Elizabeth Cumming became the first woman to found a distillery, although granted it was an illegal one at the time. By 1824, it had its licence and Cardhu was born. Beyond the Scottish borders, Jesse Roberta Cowan, known locally as Rita Takatsuru, was ‘the mother of Japanese Whisky’. She met Masataka Taketsuru when he lodged in the family home in Glasgow while studying the industry. She returned to Japan with Masataka and played a key role in establishing the Nikki Distillery. Across the pond, Marjorie “Margie” Samuels was well known for her contributions to Maker’s Mark, including the signature red wax.
40 exploredrinks.com
Nicole Austin
Bessie Williamson
Elizabeth Cumming
