THREE BLENDERS WALK INTO A BAR A CHAT WITH BRIAN KINSMAN, SARAH BURGESS AND OLIVER CHILTON

Live from Spirit of Speyside, host Daz welcomes three blenders—Brian Kinsman (William Grant & Sons), Ollie Chilton (Elixir/ Tormore), and Sarah Burgess (Head of Whisky Creation at International Beverage, jokingly “banned” from other sessions)—to taste four whiskies and talk careers, process, and mischief. Brian explains his science-to-apprentice path under David Stewart and taking over in 2009; Ollie traces retail-to-cask-buying and acquiring Tormore in 2022; Sarah recounts starting as a Cardhu tour guide, moving through Diageo, becoming a Macallan blender via a sensory/blending interview, then returning to Scotland. They taste a 2023 Tormore “plain spirit”, a 2006–2018 Speyburn single cask, and a Glenfiddich 30 22-year with oloroso and a palo cortado finish, discuss water’s role in blending, sensory blind spots, grain’s value, stock legacy, cask strategy, innovation limits, and shifting whisky audiences toward flavor over age.

Hosted by Mitch Bechard and Daz Haldane, this is where the whisky world gets pulled apart properly, with stories, insights, and the occasional bit of chaos along the way.

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