Stuart Thomson, der Distillery Manager von Ardbeg, hat bekanntgegeben, dass er seinen Job aufgeben und Ardbeg (mit bislang unbekanntem Ziel) verlassen will. Ein Nachfolger ist noch nicht genannt worden. Mit ihm wird auch seine Frau Jackie, die das Besucherzentrum geleitet hat, die Brennerei verlassen.
A message from Stuart Thomson – Chairman of the Ardbeg Committee
Dear Committee Members and friends,
As your Chairman for the last five and a half years I have thoroughly enjoyed watching our beloved Ardbeg grow from a whisky known by a few to a malt increasingly recognised across the world.
Who would have believed this could have happened when I arrived in 1997 with the backing of The Glenmorangie Company to breathe new life into a Distillery that by all measures was nearly lost forever. The transformation in those 9 years has been quite extraordinary, extremely exciting and yes, from time to time a little scary… especially when the roof of the Old Kiln blew off in the hurricane of January 1999!
The passion and enthusiasm you have shown for Ardbeg and indeed the support you have given me and the team at the Distillery has been one of the most rewarding parts of my job. Many of you have made the arduous journey to Islay to wonder along with myself at the remarkable renaissance of this proud Distillery.
In no small measure this is down to you, the Committee, who have spread the word about Ardbeg and its indomitable spirit to the four corners of the globe to the extent that the Committee now numbers some 35,000 members in 112 countries!
So it is with great regret that this note announces my departure from Ardbeg. I have been considering this for some time not because of any dimming of my passion for The Ultimate Islay Malt – more because there comes a time in life when it’s quite simply time for a change.
I shall be leaving Ardbeg soon to go off to pastures new, but one thing I will always carry with me are memories of all the conversations, e-mails, tastings, discussions, debates and comradeship we have had over the years. My admiration for Ardbeg under Glenmorangie’s stewardship remains as strong as ever.
I wish my successor well and go off to my next adventure bolstered with pride in all that I and the team at the Distillery and Old Kiln have achieved together. I, of course, remain a member of the Committee and look forward to keeping in touch.
Slainte
Stuart Thomson
(Ardbeg)