History & Future of the Whisky Industry

Ayr Rotary Club’s guest speaker, Andrew Hogarth, delivered a talk on the ‘History and Future of the Whisky industry’.

Andrew is currently William Grant and Sons’ ‘Operational Readiness Team Leader’, responsible for execution of the company’s operations and business objectives for their three distilleries producing Grain & Malt Whiskies and Gin. He is a former pupil of Belmont Academy, Ayr graduating from Strathclyde University in 2012 with a Master’s Degree in ‘Chemical and Process Engineering’, and has, over the years, had a wide experience in Operations Support and Process Engineering.

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He has developed credible relationships with internal and external stakeholders such as Project Engineers, the Health and Safety Executive, and others to ensure a sustainable behavioural and process change within the whisky business.

Andrew focused on the Girvan site and its history, future and importance to the whisky industry to the local area, including reference to some of the energy saving initiatives they have developed.

Six generations of Grants have stood together through thick and thin to hold the title of Scotland’s oldest continuously family-run, blended whisky makers. But we couldn’t have done it without a little help along the way.

Built in 1963, Girvan Distillery was an amazing feat at the time, taking just 9 months to build. Charles Gordon and four hundred locals worked around the clock to make sure one of the most advanced distilleries in the world was ready in time for the first spirit to be bottled on Christmas Day, as was the case at their sister distillery, Glenfiddich in 1887. In 1990, they installed the first patent still, enabling a unique method of making grain whisky. Today, the Girvan grain whisky is seen as one of the best in the world and is at the heart of every single bottle of Grant’s.

One of the many reasons this 64 acre site was chosen, was Girvan harbour accessibility to import grain and the location close to Penwhapple Resevoir.

Rocco is a one year old working cocker spaniel whose job is to sniff out the quality of the casks at the cooperage, where the wooden barrels are made by their highly skilled craftsmen who use traditional techniques to prepare them to protect and help perfect their whisky for years to come.

As wood is a natural material, and the distilling of whisky is an organic process, Rocco has a really important job to make sure that everything is perfect as the whisky ages in the oak casks. His sense of smell is 40 times stronger than a human’s and he’s been specially selected and trained to pick up the scent of anything that’s not quite right as the whisky matures. When he’s done checking out the quality of the wood in the cooperage, Rocco noses around the rest of the distillery to make sure that everything is going to plan.

William Grant & Sons has acquired Scotland’s best-selling whisky brand, The Famous Grouse, along with Naked Malt, from The 1887 Company in a deal completed July 1, 2025. The move significantly expands the independent distiller’s presence in the global Scotch whisky market.

The acquisition brings together two of Scotland’s most recognized whisky companies, with The Famous Grouse joining WG&S’s existing portfolio that includes Glenfiddich, The Balvenie, and Monkey Shoulder. The Famous Grouse currently sells approximately 2.7 million 9-litre cases annually worldwide, with 45% of sales in the UK market.

Andrew concluded with how William Grant & Sons uses biomass as part of its sustainability efforts. They convert whisky production by-products into biogas, which is then used as a fuel to produce renewable energy, including electricity and heat, at their Girvan Distillery. This biogas is also used to power specially converted trucks that transport Glenfiddich spirit at all stages of production, from the distillery to bottling.

David McIntyre gave a worthy vote of thanks