Annandale Distillery with Ben CallowGlobal Brand Ambassador
Annandale Distillery
After a long period of silence, this historic distillery was reborn in 2014, breathing new life into one of Scotland’s oldest whisky-making traditions.
Today, we sit down with Ben Callow, the Global Brand Ambassador of Annandale Distillery, to discuss the distillery’s remarkable journey from its historic roots to its modern-day revival
Annandale Distillery has a rich history, originally founded in 1836 and beautifully restored in recent years. Can you share the story of this restoration and what it means to bring Annandale back to life after so many years?
The revival of Annandale Distillery has been nothing short of breathtaking but also painstaking, but nothing great comes easy and being able to be a part of Annandale’s journey is a real privilege.
For myself and my colleagues, it’s a wonderful time to be a part of a project that is truly unique; bringing Single Malt Scotch Whisky production back to Annan, and building a brand that everyone from Dumfries & Galloway can be proud of has been at the heart of what our owners David and Teresa wanted to achieve.
The distillery is located in the South of Scotland and has a storied history dating back to 1836 when it was one of the first legal distilleries in Scotland. After being close to derelict for most of the 20th century, it was reborn in 2014 and restored to its former glory.
We are proudly traditional, doing things the way they have always been done. Our distillery is built from the local sandstone, our washbacks are made from Oregon Pine, and our Whisky is made one single cask at a time, each as individual as you.
Annandale is unique in offering both peated and unpeated single malt whiskies, known as 'Man O’Sword' and 'Man O’Words.' What inspired this dual production, and how do these two expressions reflect the distillery’s character and philosophy?
The inspiration behind is a mix of both simplicity and complexity.
The Man O’Words series pays tribute to ‘The Bard’ Robert Burns, a former excise man who based himself in and around Dumfries and Galloway in the 18th Century. It was always meant to inspire folk to take a cup of kindness and regale stories of the day.
The Man O’Sword series is to pay tribute to King Robert the Bruce, ‘King of Scots’. The distillery is built upon his lands and situated to where one of his Castles once stood.
However, we also wanted to pay homage to the original distillery owners that came before us; From 1836 all the way to 1917, Annandale produced Peated Single Malt Scotch Whisky, which is rare for the region, so our owners wanted to build on that legacy and produce peated malt, but in the true spirit of Annandale decided not to stop there and worked with Dr. Jim Swan to be able to run a plant offering unpeated spirit as well.
I’m sure after a few drams of Annandale’s Man O’Words & Man O’Sword Single Cask Whiskies we’ll all be reciting perfect Auld Lang Syne lyrics but if at first you don’t succeed, try, try, and try again.
We have since then gained the unofficial nickname of the distillery of both poets and kings.
Sustainability is a key focus for many distilleries today. How does Annandale integrate eco-friendly practices into its operations, and what are your goals for continuing these efforts in the future?
Like many other distilleries, both in Scotland and around the world, we understand the importance of being custodians of our own planet; we all have differences on how we perfect our Whisky but what we can agree on is that we can and should do more to have as small an impact on the planet as possible.
In late 2024, a trial system will be implemented at Annandale Distillery, showcasing the potential of The EXERGY 3 project. Although it is currently a prototype it will consist of a 36MWh unit powering a 4MW boiler, demonstrating the efficient conversion of air to steam while utilizing a 2MW grid connection. Notably, the distillery will operate seven days a week, leveraging charging capacity gained from renewable energy during off-peak hours. All being well Annandale should be free of using fossil fuels by 2025.
Wastage from a distillery may come in different forms such as broken or damaged casks, CO2 produced from our Washbacks, spent draff, effluent and even energy losses, most of which Annandale has found unique solutions for, and will continue to strive to learn and do more in the future.
After all, the three key ingredients are Water, Malted Barley and Yeast, all of which come from nature, so now is the time to be thankful and give back. I’m very conscious that today’s rain is tomorrow’s whisky!
As the Global Brand Ambassador for Annandale, how do you see your role in sharing the distillery's story and whisky with the world? What are some of the challenges and rewards of representing a distillery with such a unique heritage?
To pardon the pun, it means the world to me. It is by no means an easy ride; In the last six years I have been working tirelessly jumping all over the UK and Europe to deliver (sometimes scream) the message that Annandale is ‘The Home of Single Cask Scotch Whisky’.
Coming from a retail background, I always believe in the three pillars; First impressions are crucial, go beyond the customers’ needs and expectations, and leave an impression to build loyalty.
To anyone who has ever met me at a festival stand, in-store barrel top tasting, masterclass or been a part of one of my Annandale tours back when I was in the tour and retail team, I hope they experienced my philosophy that we may never meet again so let’s make our encounter one to remember.
I must personally thank Annandale’s Commercial Director and General Manager David Ashton-Hyde for taking a punt on a young loud and proud Brummie and entrusting me with the brand message as the past 7 years have been the most exciting and learned of my career to date.
With Annandale’s commitment to quality and innovation, are there any upcoming releases or special projects that you’re particularly excited to share with whisky enthusiasts?
We are always innovating and turning some heads, and taught to never say never no, and only ask ourselves how?
The cask purchasing team are always finding rare and interesting casks of proven quality provenance to mature our whisky in and I’m very excited by the prospect of bringing them to our customer base in the months and years to come. I believe there are over 40 different cask types maturing at present many of which haven’t been seen in the market before, certainly not as a single cask single malt, so each release will be continuing to showcase Annandale’s innovative spirit.
We will also be bottling our first Man O’Words 10YO Single Cask, Single Malt in November this year. This will of course be very limited bottlings from our 2014 range, and we plan to make a huge splash.
Will we then move to our First 10YO Man O’Sword Shortly after.
Alongside this we have some exciting collaborations being launched over the year ahead and very unique whisky advent hopefully ready for this Christmas.
For our international audiences and partners, we have expanded the team and will be flying in over the year ahead to bring our passion and some exclusive casks to you. Whether that will be some unique cask types or a selection of new vintages to try; I’m sure you will enjoy the quality of all that we put into glass.
If you would like to find out more about Ardnamurchan Distillery or would be interested in purchasing one of their bottles you can visit their website here
Looking ahead, how do you envision the future of Annandale Distillery and the broader whisky industry? Are there any trends or developments that you find particularly intriguing?
For Annandale, we want to be more self-sufficient. We plan to one day cultivate, , harvest, malt and kiln our own barley for Whisky production; and we’ll be continuing to nurture our own kitchen garden to produce fruit and vegetables for both The Globe Inn in Dumfries and Annandale’s stunning café; for this we have acquired Comlongon Castle along with a substantial amount of land within the estate.
From a whisky perspective, Annandale will continue to take ownership of the single cask single malt whisky market and hold our heads up within the premium sector at home and abroad.
The global whisky consumer is growing very aware of spending their money on quality liquid over brand strength, and with our liquid being widely regarded, and as we continue to reach vintage milestones, we’ll be able to further convince the whisky world of the quality of Annandale and cement our place around the whisky tasting table.
If you would like to find out more about Annandale Distillery or would be interested in purchasing one of their bottles you can visit their website here