14 minute read
The Big Interview | Dr Bill Lumsden The head of distilling & whisky creation at The Glenmorangie Company on his love of innovation
DR BILL LUMSDEN
THE BIG INTERVIEW
IN MORE THAN 25 YEARS AT THE GLENMORANGIE COMPANY, DR BILL LUMSDEN HAS CREATED A WEALTH OF SEMINAL WHISKIES. AND WHILE THE LAST 12 MONTHS HAVE PRESENTED CHALLENGES TO OVERCOME, HIS MAIN FOCUS REMAINS THE SAME AND THAT’S TO PRODUCE DRINKS THAT PEOPLE ENJOY AND CHERISH THE WORLD OVER.
We’ve all been there, I’m sure. Your taxi turned up on time, or public transport ran without a hitch. You’ve navigated passport control expertly then passed through security with a breeze.
And be it a holiday, weekend break or even a work trip, you’re then greeted with the comforting, warming glow of Airport Duty Free.
A sensory overload owing to the aroma of exotic fragrances, the sight of oversized Toblerone chocolate bars and the chitter chatter from the weary and the wise who are either slowly waking up for their early flight, or fighting off tiredness from a long day in transit. And like any good Duty Free concession, there is a beautiful visage. A myriad of fine spirits from across the globe and, if you’re lucky, the chance to sample one.
So what if it’s 8am? You’re in the airport and timezones don’t exist like they do in the outside world.
For many, this particular highlight of air travel has been consigned to recent memory. However, that time will arrive once more, that’s for certain.
It comes as no surprise that for many businesses in the world of spirits, travel retail plays an important role in their value proposition. And losing that sales channel is far from an ideal situation.
For Dr Bill Lumsden, the head of distilling and whisky creation at The Glenmorangie Company, the last 12 months in this pandemic have presented a number of challenges but he’s proud how his team have not only met them head-on but overcome them, too.
“It was obviously a bit of a shock to start off with. Most of the companies in the Scotch whisky industry stopped production for a while, including ourselves,” he recalls. “But we swiftly realised that as long as we stuck to the protocols, and put the relevant safety measures in place, then we’d be ok.”
Within approximately six weeks, the business was up and running once more. While a number of initiatives were put on hold, the team focused on what they knew best and that was producing, bottling and distributing great whisky.
“Travel retail was all but wiped out, like it was for the rest of the industry, but thankfully our brands are very strong and when you look at off-trade sales, we turned in a good performance and ended up beating our original budget for the year,” says Dr Lumsden.
He adds: “I’d like to think we were quite agile at adapting to the circumstances, and we made it work for us. Yes, we had some exciting plans we had to delay but if that’s all we’re complaining about then, guess what, it was not a bad year.
“I think we learned a lot about ourselves and as a director of the company, I’m very proud how well we all adapted to working in these situations.”
Adapting to testing circumstances is one thing, but refusing to rest on your laurels is something different altogether. And in his decorated career in distilling, Dr Lumsden has become synonymous with pushing the boundaries.
There’s a saying that goes along the lines of “There’s no point having a mind if you’re not prepared to change it.”
The best artists, creators and producers have a way of challenging our preconceptions and in doing so, make us look at things in a different way.
distillery’s ground-breaking whisky, Dr Bill Lumsden did just that.
Originally launched back in 2008, Glenmorangie Signet was the first single malt to use high roast ‘chocolate malt’ barley in its production and includes some of the distillery’s rarest whiskies matured in bespoke designer casks.
Glenmorangie Signet has gone on to win accolades such as Double Gold in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2018 and remains one of Dr Lumsden’s proudest creations.
Such success is only fitting then, when you consider for one week each year, the stills at Glenmorangie’s distillery are dedicated to the creation of this beloved beverage.
But before going on to create these disruptive and pioneering whiskies at Glenmorangie, Dr Lumsden achieved a BSc in Biochemistry and Cell Biology from Glasgow University.
He would then start a PhD in Fermentation Science at Heriot-Watt University’s Department of Brewing and Biological Sciences, a department now more commonly known as the International Centre for Brewing and Distilling.
In the years that would follow, Dr Lumsden held roles as a research scientist and also trainee malt distillery manager. Joining the Glenmorangie Distillery in 1995, it wasn’t long before he took up the position of director of distilling, whisky creation and whisky stocks at The Glenmorangie Company. In doing so, he would head up the production and evolution of whiskies from Glenmorangie and Ardbeg distilleries. A role he has both relished and thrived in during the decades that have passed since. After all, you don’t take home accolades such as Scottish Distiller of the Year, Industry Leader of the Year, and Global Ambassador of the Year by pot luck.
And looking back in the past year Dr Lumsden is gratified by the performance of established products such as Glenmorangie Original. However a much newer release that is also performing well is Ardbeg Wee Beastie. A 47.4% expression matured in ex-bourbon and Oloroso sherry casks, Wee Beastie launched in 2020. “For me, the biggest surprise of the year was Wee Beastie. It’s a five year old whisky, which could be seen as a risk but of course, I would never in my wildest imagination allow a product to be bottled if I didn’t think it was good enough,” he says. “That said, I simply cannot keep up with demand for that product. It has delighted me, but it also surprised me a little bit.”
Bottling a whisky that’s five years old, as Dr Lumsden says, could be seen as a bold move. But there’s no denying the quality of such a release.
He’s more than aware, however, that certain decisions in the world of whisky can be made without truly considering the end product. And in doing so, asks if there can be experimentation for experimentation’s sake? He explains: “To a certain extent, yes. But we have very severe restrictions and regulations placed on us by the Scotch Whisky Association. These are great, don’t get me wrong. They protect the integrity, quality and reputation of our brands and our industry.
“But it does mean some of the wackier things are simply not possible. And you
Glenmorange, based in Tain, Rossshire, produces whiskies enjoyed across the globe
know, the other side of the coin is that sometimes you see people trying to do things just for the sake of it. And at the end of the day my mantra has always been ‘Does the product actually taste good at the end of it?’ And if the answer is no, then what’s the point?”
And it’s a particular point of contention, especially when brands are boasting so-called innovations that are, ironically, quite the opposite. “I think there’s an element of that, and previously I’ve actually generated a response from one particular company,” he says. “When I had read how they were going to rule innovation in the world of Scotch whisky, they published a long list of things, which in itself was quite unusual, because normally you like to keep your powder dry.”
Dr Lumsden adds: “But I read down the list and I thought ‘Yes we did that 20 years ago, yes we did that 15 years ago’. So there’s not really anything particularly new out there. And the other thing that I find intriguing is that, obviously, a lot of these new startup companies are having to sell their product very young.
matured in the barrel for a minimum of three years before it can be bottled. But in reality, in my opinion, for good single malt Scotch, it generally needs a bit more than that.
“On top of that, I see people offering their first release at three years old for like £120 pounds a bottle and I think you’re having a giraffe here, guys. But if people feel they want to pay that, then good luck to them.” However, in more than 25 years at The Glenmorangie Company, Dr Lumsden is no stranger to genuine innovation.
In addition to the aforementioned Signet, you have Quinta Ruban and Allta. The former is matured is a single malt whisky matured in Bourbon Casks then ‘finished’ in ruby port casks. Quinta Ruban is full-bodied and velvety rich in texture, with a long and smooth finish.
A more recent expression, Allta, was launched to mark the tenth anniversary of the company’s Private Edition series, It’s also the first Glenmorangie expression created from the yeast which grows wild on the distillery’s Cadboll barley.
And it’s the creation, and production, of these whiskies that keeps Dr Lumsden ticking.
“We’ve got a set up in our company where the main focus of the work of myself and my team is to ensure the on-going high quality of our core range of whiskies, whether it’s Ardbeg 10 year old, Glenmorangie Original, or perhaps Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban,” he explains.
Does the product actually taste good at the end of it? And if the answer is no, then what’s the point?” Dr Bill Lumsden, The Glenmorangie Company
“But we also have extensions to the range where we showcase our experimentation and innovation. And, you know, I genuinely believe we were the first to do many of these sorts of things such as using chocolate malt for Glenmorangie Signet. I’ve also got a couple of really wacky products for Glenmorangie coming out over the next couple of years. So I’d like that we can satisfy the more inquisitive adventurous drinker as well with these ranges.”
But for a company has established and proven as Glenmorangie, does Dr Lumsden feel that it always get the credit it deserves?
“No, I think I think we don’t get as much as we should get for things like that. And you know, maybe we’re a little bit, not quite shy, but a bit too modest about what we do,” he says. “But you know, there’s so many things we’ve done over the years that are still rolled out now as recent innovations.
“That’s why I’m such a great supporter of long established brands. And in the eyes of some people they’re not viewed as sexy brands, but that’s ok, I prefer to let the quality of my whiskies do the talking.”
And with the company’s new experimental distillery, Dr Lumsden will be able to let even more of his creations have that particular conversation.
The new experimental distillery boasts two full size pot stills which are the same as the other 12 in the main distillery. If Dr Lumsden was so inclined, they can make classic Glenmorangie spirit in them. But that’s not the plan at all. Instead, he is enthused by the ability to create a wealth of different spirit characters. But just how do the stills in the new distillery differ to the main distilleries flagship stills? “With this new setup, we can vary the way we apply the heat to them and therefore can run them at a different rate,” he says. “We also have different condensation mechanisms, and one of the keys to giving your whisky spirit its unique character is the way in which it’s condensed.”
Dr Lumsden adds: “And the two main techniques in the industry are what we call a shell and tube condenser. So it’s a large copper column and inside there’s about 200 copper pipes, which you pump cold water in. Your spirit very quickly comes into contact with a large surface area of copper, which cleans the spirit up, removes sulphur compounds and condenses it.
“Or you can have a worm tub, which is a huge vat of cold water and your neck of the still goes into that and coils around, like a worm or a snake. You’re exposing your vapours to a much smaller surface area of copper. So consequently you make a much more full-bodied spirit.
“However, the worm tubs take up too much space but we have the technology to mimic that with stainless steel condensers. So I’ve got various ways of working on the neck of the still to allow me to vary the reflux rate and therefore create different spirit characters.”
For Dr Lumsden, the absolute sign of success will be discovering something on the small pilot scale that he can then scale up in the main distillery. He doesn’t yet know what that will be. But he knows that’s a big personal goal with this new facility.
Another such goal is seeing the distillery’s travel retail jump back into life once more. “It’s a great shop window for your products. And that’s why a lot of the companies in the industry have developed their own unique travel retail range,” he says. “In fact, we had just introduced a new range before the world went into lockdown. We have a 12, 14 and 16 year old expressions, all with a slightly different cask selection but we haven’t quite seen the full success of these yet.” Dr Lumsden adds: “But they are in the marketplace now and we continuing to produce them. In fact I recently approved a bottling of one product, The Elementa.
“It had been a while since I had tasted that release. Taking whisky aged in bourbon casks, we finished it in new charred oak casks for woody depth and warm spice. As its name suggests, this whisky’s taste deliciously reflects the natural influences of the new wood.
“And when I got the sample in from the distillery, the casks had been selected according to my approved recipe. The sample comes down to me and various other members of my core tasting team to taste.
“And when I did, I thought, “WTF What is this?’. I looked at the label and thought, Ah, okay, I know what this is now!”
An unwavering commitment to quality is one invaluable trait but from speaking to Dr Lumsden, another he has in abundance is that he never wants to lose sight of the joy achieved from creating new whiskies.
One such example is ‘A Tale of Cake’, it’s an expression initially matured in bourbon casks before being finished in Hungarian Tokaji dessert wine casks. “Using Tokaji wine casks, I wanted to recreate something I had tried more than 20 years ago because back, then it didn’t work. Back then I left the 10 year old Glenmorangie in the Tokaji casks for too long and the tannins from the Hungarian oak killed the product,” he recalls.
“It rankled with me for quite a while. So I thought I’m going to repeat this experiment. And I’m going to plan every bit of it.”
And this time, it turned out just right.
He says: “Like so many of us, some of my favourite memories come from cake, whether it be helping my granny in her kitchen, or the pineapple birthday cake my daughter surprised me with one year. By finishing whisky in Tokaji wine casks, I’ve captured the joy of those indulgent cake moments.
“The liquid is a rich copper, but the taste is pure technicolour – luscious, sweet and complex with multi-layered bursts of honey, white chocolate and fruits with a hint of mint.” Lumsden, was delighted by the way his team worked closely with the brand team to position ‘A Tale of Cake’ in the market’.
“I recall telling them ‘Look, I can bore the pants off you’ with complex biochemistry for hours on end, if that’s what you really want. But at the end of the day, all you need to know about it is it’s just simply delicious to taste.
“Thankfully, that’s exactly the approach they took.”
And going forward, the head of distilling and whisky creation is excited about the opportunities that await.
“We’re rolling out the new brand positioning for Glenmorangie. And as always, I have quite a few new products in the pipeline. Building on the success of releases like ‘A Tale of Cake’, we are working on something similar,” he explains.
“And, you know, it reminds me of a silly comparison. You look at the amazing success Queen had with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. I remember reading an interview with Freddie Mercury, where he said they are working on the follow up, but it took years to come out.
“Eventually they released ‘Somebody to Love’, which was a homage to that. And for me, that’s what I’m always trying to do. Something similar, a little different, but always delicious.”
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