J: You started out back in 1969 right? Have things changed much since then? If so, what’s different now?
I: That’s correct. The biggest change I’ve seen over the last 30 years is a greater emphasis on wood quality. Years ago a barrel was basically a container to hold spirit ’til it matured. More than 60 % of the flavours and colour come from the cask – so it really is important to use the best quality casks. We also rejuvenate the casks to improve wood quality; that is to de-charr and then either toast or charr – depending on what is required.
Previously the barrels used to come over from America, flat packed and known as ‘shooks’. The main job of a cooper was to reassemble them into casks either barrels or by adding extra staves to make them into dump hogheads.
I read that from very early in life you knew this is what you wanted to do. When did you know for sure and what drew you to being a cooper? What do you enjoy most and least about what you do?
There used to be two cooperages in the town of Dufftown where I lived – I used to be fascinated, watching the coopers making the barrels… and the pay was good!
When you see all the various whisky products in the shelves in supermarkets or duty-free you know that you have played a very important part in making that product.
Hard work doesn’t bother me at all, but it is a very dirty dusty job and hard on the body. Most coopers have hearing problems or ‘selective hearing’ as my wife says, due to the noise of hammering all day!
Leading from above, what’s a ‘day in your life’ like? Could you give us an insight into the life of a cooper in the whisky industry?
Coopers spend most of their day repairing or rejuvenating casks for refilling.
Essentially, I check casks for any damage to the staves or ends – and mark them with chalk. After that, I remove all of the hoops (except the top hoop) and take out the damaged staves. I then plane the side staves and replace them with good ones. Following that I replace the hoops and drive them tight with a hammer.
Sometimes we have to ‘rejuvenate’ casks. For this, we remove the old surface of the inside, dechar the cask and then char it again with a gas burner. We do this prior replacing the end. After the hoops have been tightened, we test the cask for leaks using water and air. Only then, if satisfactory, will the cask go for filling.
I’d imagine casks have certain characteristics? Do you find some easier to get along with than others? What makes a good one and a bad one? Do you have a most/least favourite variety?
Barrels are easier to work on than butts due to their weight and size, however the principals are just the same.
The longer the casks have been lying empty in a compound the worse they are to repair. Which means that its always best to repair the fresh ones direct from the filling store.
I prefer a good Speyside malt (I’m partial to the Balvenie Doublewood). I don’t like the heavily peated whiskies – they tend to give me heartburn.
My first introduction to you was via the ‘Craftsman’s Dinner’. You showed Michel Roux Jr what coopering was all about (is that the right word?) and he in turn cooked you an elaborate dinner? Could you tell us a little more about that, and how it came about? Sounds amazing!
As Balvenie is a handcrafted whisky and to celebrate this the team wanted to promote craftmanship. Werecruited Michel Roux Jr. to travel the country in search of the finest craftspeople across a number of different disciplines. This included a knifemaker, a salmon smoker, a potter, a winemaker and an organic farmer.
Michel visited each of us in our individual environments and then brought us all together to prepare a beautifully cooked meal which featured elements from each person he met. The knives were used to carve the beef from the organic farmer, the salmon from the salmon smoker was presented on plates made by the potter. This was served with some wonderful wine from the winemaker and of course… there was Balvenie on hand to toast a fantastic evening!
[Ed: if anyone wants to watch the video it’s on youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBvnCS2Lmkw ]
What’s your greatest/most memorable professional moment been, so far?
I have travelled all over the world giving barrel building demonstrations and I never imagined I would be doing this when I joined WM Grants as an apprentice cooper all those years ago.
Where do you get your ideas?
Everywhere. I never stop thinking of ideas on how to improve, make or do something.
What’s your philosophy, summed up in a sentence?
“There is no such thing as ‘can’t’, everything is possible with a little thought and plenty of time.”
What’s the biggest challenge you’ve had, how did you overcome it, and what did you learn from it?
I once was asked to make an old fashioned, crinoline ladies skirt using barrel staves which we then covered with fabric. I learned it would not have been very comfortable to wear, however I was happy I did not have to wear it!
Who’s the person who’s most inspired you in your work – food industry or otherwise? Is there anyone that you draw inspiration or strength from? Do you have any specific culinary influences?
There are quite a few people who have inspired me but the two most important people are David Stewart our malt master and Ian Millar our Global Brand Ambassador. The way they go about their different roles… and they always have time to inspire others.
Who would cook your Death Row meal, and what would you ask for (3 courses, please)?
Mary Berry to cook…
Starter: Cullen Skink
Main: Roast Beef and Yorkshire Puddings
Dessert: Some kind of trifle
I’d like this because it’s plain, simple and delicious to eat… at least that’s how it looks on the television!
What advice would you give to aspiring coopers who’d want the kind of career that you’ve had? Please correct me if I am wrong but there’s not that many full time coopers left these days, right?
Don’t be afraid of hard work, keep your head down, get on with your work and just be passionate about what you do.
If you weren’t doing what you do now, what would you be doing instead?
I wouldn’t change a thing, good job and lovely family. But if I had to go back to schooldays… I am very jealous of all the opportunities they now get at school. Especially with music! When I go to see my grandchildren perform in school concerts, it is very encouraging to see all the talent the pupils have.
If you could get anyone to try the whisky you have helped to age (fictional or real, living or dead) who would you pick and which of these whiskies would you like them to try? Assume that they go on to be your brand ambassador…
Sir Winston Churchill who I believe liked a glass of champagne. I think he would now prefer a glass of our 14 year old Caribbean Cask, which would compliment his cigar.
What’s your ultimate aim and goal for your career? If you could achieve anything with it, what would you pick? Money and reality are no obstacle, so shoot for the moon…
I would be more than happy just to be healthy and happy, and to complete 50 years as a cooper at Balvenie.
If you have health and happiness then just appreciate what you have – the grass always looks greener on the other side but this is not always the case. Life is what you make of it.
Where or what next for you?
Continue to do what I do – even better.
And we always ask three customary ridiculous questions…
If you had a day to spend in the life and body of your seven year old self (but with your current experience and mindset), what would the first three things you would do?
As one of my granddaughters is eight it is quite easy to see the difference that time has made – and I don’t think it is for the best. At that age I had the freedom to go out and play, you only came home at meal times. Nowadays kids seem to spend most of their time indoors playing computers – and everything they want must be designer fashion to ‘keep up with the Joneses’!
If you could swap lives for the day with any fictional character (and you’d be guaranteed to return to your life after 24 hours), who would you choose, and why?
Shrek – which fits in with my philosophy that if there is something you want, then anything is possible. You just have to go and get it – it just takes a little thought and time to achieve.
If you had to become some kind of vegetable related superhero, which would you become, and what would you superpower be?
‘Asparagus Spear: The Telepathic Mind Reader.’