The crème de la crème of the Scottish licensed trade gathered in Glasgow on Monday 7th July for the 2014 DRAM Scottish Licensed Trade Awards.

The pub industry’s equivalent of the Oscars were handed out to bars and pubs from all over Scotland at the ceremony at Glasgow’s Grand Central Hotel. This year’s theme was Top of the Pops/Pubs.

See the DRAM Awards 2014 Winners here

View the DRAM Awards 2014 programme here

 

Alice Caldwell Hodges – BII
“The whole event and atmosphere was very, very good, and the Top of the Pops theme was excellent. Everybody at my table thoroughly enjoyed themselves, it was a great celebration of the trade. It was fantastic to hear about the success of both individuals and companies, and having everyone together in the same room made for a very special evening.”

Stephen Rankin – Gordon & MacPhail
“The awards were great fun, and the consensus from those in my party was that it was one of the best awards nights they’d been to. The venue was very inventive, and suited the theme perfectly. Each of the winners were of good quality and highly deserving, which is always great to see. I really enjoyed being involved in the awards, it was a good learning opportunity for us.”

Claire Gordon – The Keys Bar (Sunday Mail Pub of the Year winner)
“It’s literally a dream come true, we’re quite overwhelmed. I have to keep pinching myself, it was one of the best nights of my life. I think it’s great that small, independent bars like ourselves get recognised. We’re a wee hidden gem, and our customers are delighted for us.”

Rory Slater – Honorary Secretary at Glasgow University Union (Diageo Award for Social Responsibility)
“I would just like to thank Susan and her team for a wonderful evening at the DRAM awards. The event was absolutely stunning and a great opportunity to meet so many people from the industry. Although disappointed not to win, we were very impressed at the effort shown by Driftwood.”

James Rusk – Winner of DRAM Award for Passion and Pride
“We had a great night, and were thrilled and genuinely surprised to be a recipient for anything. The night was top class from start to finish, the venue was fantastic and the compere Rob Deering was brilliant. There was a magical atmosphere and I am so impressed with the evening. I honestly can’t thank DRAM enough; you should all be very proud, you can tell you’re a close team!”

Ben Turner – Kopparberg
“It was an absolutely fantastic evening, and I couldn’t have asked for better company at my table. All of Kopparberg’s guests loved it and had a wonderful evening. I’d just like to say a massive ‘Thank You’ to Susan for inviting me, I had a genuinely great time.”

Ally Bayne – Tennent’s
“It was great, a really successful, well-attended night and everyone had a great time. It’s always good seeing people recognised for the hard work they put in, and as an awards sponsor it was good to see the quality values that Tennents’ hold as extremely important being rewarded. Our pre-show sampling of Tennent’s Whisky Oak Aged Beer went very well for us, and it was a great opportunity to get our product out to influential people within the trade. It went so well we had to send out for a couple of extra cases!”

Mark Brunges – CM Design
“I had an excellent evening, with the compere in particular being a highlight. The food was good, if a little unusual, and I would have liked for there to be more pop stars there. Overall though it was a fantastic night which I thoroughly enjoyed. Thanks for having me!”

Derek Mather – Artisan, Wishaw
“I had a swell time, I really enjoyed it and couldn’t have asked for a better night. I thought the compere Rob Deering was absolutely hilarious.”

Graham Swankie – The Meat Bar, Glasgow
“It was a great night, top class as always. The room looked amazing and suited the theme perfectly. Our whole team was very proud to walk away with an award, thanks so much to everyone.”

Dennis Forsyth – Cheers, Fraserburgh
“My staff were overwhelmed by the occasion. Four of them had never been to a big awards ceremony before and they just loved it! This serves to motivate them all the more and help us raise the standards at Cheers ever further. The event in itself is brilliant and a great night out, to win an award and be able to take something back to Fraserburgh makes it all the more special! The townsfolk are all behind us and so is our local Member of Parliament, Dr Eilidh Whiteford, visited us to show her support. We received a letter from her as well. Fraserburgh is a small town in the far north east neuk of Aberdeenshire, the Sunday Mail 100 Fund’s ‘Family Pub of the Year’ award puts us on the map and will hopefully encourage more people to travel to the town to visit us and also check out all the local shops. It’s a win-win situation for all and I’d like to thank everyone at DRAM to give us the opportunity to promote what we feel is a great venue for all the family – Cheers!”

Mike Smith – The Bow Bar, Edinburgh
“It was very flattering to win an award, although rather unexpected. It’s great to get some recognition and appreciation from the industry, it shows that our hard work paid off. I loved the event, it felt like the Oscars for the industry – lots of glitz, glamour and very professional. It was great seeing everyone getting dressed up and making an effort, we’d love to enter again next year if it means we get to attend the awards.”

Neil Morrison – Macgochans, Isle of Mull
“It was a great show, and it was evident just how much effort Susan put in to making it happen. We were nominated for two categories, and although we were disappointed not to win the first it was a great feeling to lift the Tennent’s Quality Award. Everything about the night was spot on, it ticked all the boxes. It was the first time I’d attended the DRAM Awards, and it was much more fun than I’d expected.”

Scott Clark – Clarks on Lindsay Street, Dundee
“Everybody who came had a really great night. The Top of the Pops theme was a great idea and the venue suited it well. The events were a perfect blend of formal and casual, and it was a great morale boost for the staff winning the Highly Commended award for the Tennent’s Quality Award. It’s a boost for them to know that they’re rubbing shoulders with some of the best quality bars in Scotland.”

Elaine Bannerman, Maxxium UK
“I thought it was a great night. Everyone at our table really enjoyed it. The compere was great – he had an amazing smile, and was very funny. Everything was very slick and ran very smoothly. The food was good, and the sweet was amazing. We all loved it.”

Dave Steward, MD Proximo
“A great night and Meatloaf! Thank you Susan – I really enjoyed the event.”

Margaret Gilligan
“John hasn’t lost the smile from his face since the awards night. We “The Gilligans” would like to thank you for your massive contribution to making this a really special occasion not just for John but all the family. We had a lovely evening.”

Sandy Fraser, Oak Tree Inn, Balmaha
“Just to say, that my son Stuart and I had a great night at the awards. Every time we are there it just seems to get better and more enjoyable.”

Mark Baird, Diageo
“Once again we were delighted to sponsor The Social Responsibility Award and great to see Driftwood pick up the prize. The Glasgow Central remains the ideal venue for this event and the highlight this year for me, was seeing John Gilligan pick up his well deserved Lifetime Achievement Award”

Carol and John Byrn, The Dean Tavern, Newtongrange
“We would like to thank you and your team for a most enjoyable night at the DRAM awards. It was our first time at the awards and we didn’t know what to expect, what a great night and a splendid set and entertainment. We, of course, were disappointed not to win but were honoured to get as far as the top 3 and 4 in our categories. Thanks again and well done.”

Tom Cullen, Molson Coors
“I don’t know how you do it, but you continue to outdo yourselves. It keeps getting better. I can’t imagine how you are going to top it next year! It was a bit hot, but that didn’t detract from the evening. I had a great time.”