Part 1 of our special feature as we talk to twelve General Managers of some of Scotland’s top bars to find out what makes then tick. Today’s six feature the mangers at The Malt Room – Inverness, The Pot Still – Glasgow, The Piper Whisky Bar – Glasgow, The Keys Bar – St Andrews, Whiski Bar & Restaurant- Edinburgh and The Bon Accord – Glasgow.
Oliwia Jagielo The Malt Room, Inverness
Oliwia, 26, has been in the hospitality industry for around six years. She moved back to Inverness to focus on management after working in cocktail bars around the UK and two years ago an opportunity came up in her favourite bar, The Malt Room.
She says, “I don’t think I had a particular interest in whisky before working here. I love to learn about drinks, but nothing had intrigued me as much as whisky did from the get-go. I love both the story behind it and how enigmatic and versatile it can be. I am truly lucky to be surrounded by people here that are bottomless wells of knowledge about whisky. In addition, I think people in the whisky industry are some of the nicest, most passionate folk you can find, so it’s hard not to fall in love with it.
“It’s easy to constantly recommend the same whisky, but what we try to do is tailor the whisky to the guests liking. More and more people are asking for whisky cocktails, whether it’s an old fashioned, a sour or a highball. I am an advocate for a whisky highball. It’s probably my second favourite way to consume this beautiful spirit.
“My advice is always to take your time drinking whisky. It takes such a long time to mature and develop its flavours. The longer you take to enjoy it, the more it opens up to you and you can fully experience what it has to offer. My favourite whisky depends on my mood but recently I’ve been really into ex-bourbon barrels, preferably heavily peated. Either neat or in a Highball!”
Julia Fletcher Smith – The Pot Still, Glasgow
Julia, 33, began her hospitality career while at university and became General Manager of The Pot Still in 2017. She recalls, “My initial impression of whisky was trying a sip of my dad’s whisky at Christmas. However, now knowing whisky as well as I do, our palates are very different, so my initial impression wasn’t necessarily a great one!”
Despite having over 1,100 whisky bottles, Julia believes “it would just be a bunch of bottles on shelves without our fabulous team.” She adds, “Getting to be the ones who ignite people’s passion for whisky is part of what’s great about what we do, so our training is quite a bit more extensive than your standard pub.”
“Currently, we’re finding that customers are gravitating towards the strange and unusual. New distilleries and independent bottlers are becoming increasingly popular alongside interesting cask types.”
“I believe you should never let anyone tell you what you should drink or how to drink it. If you want to drink it neat, with ice, with water, or with lemonade, that’s okay. You’re still enjoying the spirit and contributing to the growth of the whisky industry. Personally, I think of whisky like dinners. I love pizza, but I don’t want it every night. I love all whisky, and while some days I want a delicate, floral 40% Highland, other days I want a heavily peated, sulphury, cask strength Islay.”
“My current whisky of choice is the 1770 peated cask strength bottling. It’s lovely to see something not only so interesting but also incredibly delicious coming out of our fair city.”
Colin Douglas – The Piper Whisky Bar, Glasgow
Colin, 52, has worked in the hospitality industry for a staggering 28 years and has been at The Piper Whisky Bar for 17 years. He developed an interest in whisky when owner Gillian Kirkland changed the bar into a whisky bar 13 years ago. Before that, he says he just “had a very vague knowledge of whisky from previous jobs.”
He continues, “The bar doesn’t stand out because of one thing; it involves a whole lot more, such as a warm greeting to everyone, making sure everyone is treated the same, a presentable bar, great service, a wide variety of drinks (especially whiskies), knowledgeable staff, fantastic food, and great entertainment.”
He adds, “The great thing about whisky is that it’s there to be savoured and enjoyed, not necked like a shot. Our whisky flights are really popular as they are very selfexplanatory, and the customer can read notes at their own pace.
“There is definitely a whisky for everyone; you may just not have encountered it yet. Also, if you do have a favourite whisky, don’t stop there as there are so many more to enjoy through your personal whisky journey. My favourite at the moment is the Balvenie 14-Year-Old Caribbean Cask. I just like to enjoy it as is, with no frills.”
Marta Raynor The Keys Bar, St Andrews
Marta, 39, is originally from Poland and has worked at The Keys Bar in St Andrews for 18 years since she got a job there while on holiday!
She says, “When I started, we only had a few whiskies, but the collection started growing around 2012 when Claire Nicoll took over running the pub after her mum passed away. She took me on my first distillery tour and taught me about whisky.”
Claire sold the pub in 2023, but Marta still remains firmly at the helm, continuing her whisky journey. Marta adds, “I love whisky so much now, and I want everyone to be able to enjoy it too. My priority is pricing them fairly, and I always bring a bottle of something new and interesting to the pub when I travel to distilleries.”
The pub even has its own whisky – ‘The Keys Bar Whisky’. Marta worked with Fib Whisky to create an 18-Year-Old Cameronbridge Single Grain, 46% refill in a bourbon cask and finished in Fino sherry. She describes it as a “very complex taste of zesty sweetness with a hint of smoke!”
She continues, “My top tip for whisky is don’t give up and keep on tasting. I believe there’s a whisky for everyone, and in high season we can have up to 300 whiskies to try! My personal choice would be a sherry cask, and I love cask strength. My very favourite whisky is Aberlour A’bunadh – sweet, rich, and fruity.” She concludes, “In The Keys Bar, you can come in as a stranger, but you will leave as a friend.”
Gary Jackson Whiski Bar & Restaurant, Edinburgh
Gary, 28, has worked in hospitality since leaving university and has been at Whiski for nearly three years. He says, “I’m originally from a village in Northeast Scotland near Elgin. This is distillery country, and everyone always has a cabinet full of whisky there. So, I’ve always drunk whisky, but I’ve learnt a lot more about it since I started working at Whiski.
“I would say that 99% of our back bar is Scottish whisky, and we do a Malt of The Month which rotates. We get a lot of tourists, so it’s mainly bigger-name distilleries that we sell, as not many are willing to try something they’ve never heard of. We also find that what tourists ask for is very often driven by what they have seen in the media. We do have over 200 whiskies, though, so you’d be here for a couple of nights trying them!
“I’ve seen a lot more interest in peated whiskies over the past 12 months. People often come in and don’t know what they want, so it’s important to ask questions and see what flavours they are looking for. If someone is new to whisky, I ’ d personally recommend something lighter and more floral. However, every member of staff has their different favourites. It’s quite a subjective trade.
“My top tip is never to put ice in your whisky. Personally, I quite enjoy a sherry cask; my favourites are Tamdhu 12, as well as the Balvenie Doublewood, Balvenie Caribbean Cask, or Glenglassaugh 12 Years Old – all of them enjoyed neat and with a pint.”
Jacob Kane The Bon Accord, Glasgow
Jacob, 30, is an audio engineer to trade but has always worked in hospitality. He has now been Bar Manager at The Bon Accord for a year.
He remarks, “My family were always interested in whisky and my uncle has been coming to The Bon Accord for years. When I started working here, I liked Laphroaig 10 and that was about it. I didn’t know much about casks or the aging process. The owner, Tam, has been great, he gets us to whisky tastings and has shown us some stuff that I would never have tried before.
“What makes the Bon Accord special is how we treat our customers, we’ve had some regulars coming in for the past 40 years. We always make a point of talking to everyone.
“People seem to love a sherry cask at the moment and I’m starting to see red wine casks coming through as well. The price of whisky is going up though, and, as a lot of our customers are pensioners, they are worried it will get to the stage where they can’t afford it anymore. Which is a shame as a lot of their social interaction is in the pub.
“You should never let anyone else tell you what you should be drinking or how to drink it. We’ll get tourists coming in and sometimes they’ll want a can of coke on the side in case they don’t like the whisky straight and that’s fine.”
He laughs, “If it was a dram of the Macallan 72 Years Old, I’d maybe let them know they shouldn’t be doing that…but there’s really no wrong answers. My favourite whisky right now is the Glenallachie 15 served neat.”