"Whenever you taste one of our expressions, you've got to say, yes, that's a Glen Grant. My job is to be the custodian now and control it so that the flavour profile is unmistakable, regardless of the age."

– The Glen Grant’s Master Distiller Greig Stables

The Glen Grant Distillery quietly stands as one of Scotch whisky's pioneers. It was among the early few to market its own whisky as a single malt. This decision paid off handsomely in Italy from the ‘60s, where it became the country’s top-selling single malt Scotch whisky and a cultural touchstone in its own right.

Fast forward to the present, Glen Grant has recently turned the page to a new chapter. After a 63-year career, legendary Master Distiller Dennis Malcolm retired in June last year. Greig Stables holds the reins now, himself having spent over three decades working in the Scotch industry.

Greig has already played an integral role in shaping many of the house’s recent releases, including the Glasshouse Collection, an elevated trio of 21-, 25-, and 30-year-old single malts. Then, earlier this year, came something of extraordinary age: the unveiling of the new Splendours Collection 65-Year-Old  that was distilled in 1958 and aged its entire life in a single French oak Sherry butt. This release is limited to 151 decanters worldwide with 12 available in Singapore. 

Thanks to our friends at Campari Group, we had an opportunity to sit down for a chat with Greig about what lies ahead for this historic distillery. We spoke about the challenges and rewards of stepping into Dennis Malcolm’s shoes, the importance of preserving Glen Grant’s unmistakable DNA, and how the distillery is embracing its freedom to experiment—particularly with cask finishes and innovative maturation techniques.

We also learnt exactly what it’s like to wander through Glen Grant’s warehouses with a vallinch in hand, nosing whiskies that have waited decades for their moment. Below is our full conversation with Greig Stables, the new Master Distiller of Glen Grant.

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"To enable us to produce [the Glen Grant with rum cask finish], we've created a specific blend of different cask types, which we've then finished in the rum cask. It's not just a straight cask-for-cask approach."

[88 Bamboo]: First and foremost, congratulations, Greig on your appointment! Stepping into the role of Master Distiller, you’ve expressed the intention to evolve with the times and add your own distinct vision to lead Glen Grant’s next chapter.

Looking ahead, what is the direction you’d like to take Glen Grant? Are there particular areas or ideas that you’re especially keen to explore in the coming years? 

[Greig Stables]: Yes, certainly. It's been exciting the last few years too because I was responsible for the creation of the Glasshouse Collection whiskies.

To start back with the sherry casks has been a really interesting trip. It's about finding that fine balance to ensure that it's definitely Glen Grant that you're tasting. Yet it's such a flexible spirit that it lends itself to being mature in most cask types.

So that for me is exciting because we've got some experiments going on just to see exactly what works and what doesn't work. There'll be some new expressions to come in the future, should it be finishings or should it be a new addition to the core range. And obviously the Glen Grant 65-Year-Old is the beginning of The Splendours Collection. So, there's more, you're going to see more [luxury] halo products come as well as an even more robust core range.

The bulk of my job is still the manufacturing side of it and the supply chain, so we're driving sustainability as well to ensure that we can become carbon neutral at some point in the future. It's a two-pronged goal at the moment.

[88B]: What does it mean to you to evolve with the times while staying true to your roots as you’ve recently emphasised is necessary for the distillery? Which particular aspects of Glen Grant’s legacy and identity are most important for you to preserve as you shape its future?

[Greig]: The easy answer there is the DNA. Whenever you taste one of our expressions, you've got to say, yes, that's a Glen Grant. My job is to be the custodian now and control it so that the flavour profile is unmistakable, regardless of the age. We're not going to create something that's heavily peated or that totally masks Glen Grant. Ensuring that the DNA is there, it's going to be my job.

I'll never forget Glen Grant’s DNA because every day we need to check that we've created it and it's a light, floral, fruity spirit with a maltiness to it at the same time. We check to make sure we've created it and then we're following on that age journey to ensure we've never lost it. It changes slightly.

[88B]: You’ve mentioned how Glen Grant now has greater flexibility and room for experimentation thanks to the inventory of aged stock developed over the years. That reminded us that last year, you released the Glen Grant Exploration No. 1 that explores rum cask maturation for the first time.

Looking forward, what else could we expect to see in the realm of novel cask selection in Glen Grant’s next chapter?

[Greig]: The Exploration range with the rum cask finish is the perfect example, so thanks for using that. Whenever you taste the liquid, you still know it's Glen Grant, and then you've got that hint of sweet pineapples and that rum comes through afterwards.

To enable us to produce that, we've created a specific blend of different cask types , which we've then finished in the rum cask. So it's not just a straight cask-for-cask. We've added complexity by actually creating a liquid from the start that we've then chosen to finish.

Going forward with that range, that will be my plan – to use a base recipe and then finish it. What the next finish is going to be, I'm still undecided because we're playing with different cask types at the moment in the warehouse. It just needs to be that one that lends itself to art and complexity – Glen Grant with something different. There are a few different ones – if you get the opportunity to visit our distillery at some point, I'll take you to the warehouse so you can see what I'm up to!

"The only way to learn about [the whisky maturation journey] is to go into that warehouse, draw the samples and have a look at them, give them a nose, sometimes give them a taste... When we look particularly at the Glen Grant 65-Year-Old, it's about 'catching it' before the wood grabs it and there’s a chance of losing the flavour profile completely."

[88B]: Thank you, we’d absolutely love the opportunity!

We turn to the newly unveiled Glen Grant 65-Year-Old, the first part of the Splendours Collection, which is extraordinary—not only for its age but also because it was fully matured in a single French oak Sherry butt since 1958. You’ve mentioned that the quality of this cask had caught your attention years ago, and you’ve since closely monitored its maturation journey. 

This naturally leads us to wonder—what is your approach to monitoring your whiskies as they mature up until the moment you make the final decision to bottle? How does the character of Glen Grant change over the decades, and what signals or milestones would tell you that a particularly old cask is exceptional enough to be bottled as part of a rare collection like Splendours?

[Greig]: Really, one of the nicest parts of the job is actually to open the warehouse door and walk in – usually on a Friday afternoon – with a bung mallet, a vallinch and a glass, and then go and just look at the different journeys the different casks are going on.

We use bourbon barrels – first, second and third. We use remade hogsheads, we use Sherry hogsheads, we use Sherry butts.

I've always had a great intrigue for the journey that liquid goes on and the only way to learn about it is to go into that warehouse, draw the samples and have a look at them, give them a nose, sometimes give them a taste and pop them back in. And then you see the natural progression in the different wood types and you ensure that the wood is actually what it's supposed to be and it's of that correct quality.

When we look particularly at the Glen Grant 65-Year-Old, it's about “catching it” before the wood grabs it and there’s a chance of losing the flavour profile completely.

At this moment in time, the Glen Grant 65-Year-Old has got no big heavy notes in it, there's no woodiness to it, which sometimes at that age you start seeing these notes. This still is vibrant, fruity, while the depth of flavour, the complexity just plays with you the entire time. It's one of these whiskies that once you've drunk it you don't want to go and clean your teeth when you go to bed at night.

"We nose that empty cask before we fill it. We nose the new make spirit before we fill it to the cask and we nose the whisky before we empty the cask. The end-to-end quality [control] on one site is quite unique."

[88B]: Having spent nearly two decades at Glen Grant and now being the Master Distiller, you’ve had an insider’s view of the distillery’s traditions, innovations, and day-to-day life.

Could you share with us what is one thing about Glen Grant that might surprise even the most dedicated fan?

[Greig]: For those who don’t know, Glen Grant is actually one of the few distilleries in Scotland that's named after its founding family.

Also, the fact that we would control the quality of the liquid from the malted barley arriving until the finished bottle leaves. Every bottle of Glen Grant whisky which you see in the market that is a Glen Grant product, has been bottled on site. We nose that empty cask before we fill it. We nose the new make spirit before we fill it to the cask and we nose the whisky before we empty the cask.

The end-to-end quality [control] on one site is quite unique. For the older expressions like the 21, the 25, and the 30, we'll pilot blend them before we empty the casks as well just to make sure that the profile is exactly what we're looking for. That is something that's quite unique within Speyside.

We have a small, dedicated team at the distillery, which if you don't have the people, you don't have the product either. It's that real passionate young team which will hopefully carry on bringing the whisky from strength to strength.

[88B]: The Scotch whisky industry has undergone some dramatic changes over the past 30 years.

Having observed these waves of dynamic shifts, what in your view is the next shift that we have to watch out for? How do you think Scotch whisky should continue to tell its story to the world?

[Greig]: The great story for us in the industry at the moment is that drive to net zero in sustainability. We're very forward-thinking as an industry with our targets, not only with regards to whisky production, but also with regards to dry goods (i.e. packaging materials). That is something that I think that the world can look in on – the small country of Scotland is really driving the sustainability story.

Certainly, at Glen Grant last year, we invested £3.5 million in a new system to reduce our gas consumption and water consumption. We've reduced the amount of cooling water we extract from the River Spey by 50%. And we've reduced our gas consumption and production by 20%. That for me is very exciting, along with just being able to bring different expressions to this ever-changing market.

[88B]: Thank you so much for this enjoyable chat, Greig!

@CharsiuCharlie