Whisky Focus - Congratulations To The Balvenie’s David Stewart On His MBE

#RaiseADram tonight at 19.45 on Twitter to congratulate The Balvenie’s David Stewart on his MBE which he will be presented with today.

The remarkable career of The Balvenie's Malt Master David Stewart will be recognised today when he will be presented with an MBE medal by a member of the royal family at a ceremony in The Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh, Scotland, for services to the Scotch whisky industry.

David's career, which now spans an incredible 54 years in the whisky industry, where his pioneering techniques have had a profound impact on the Scotch whisky production methods used today.

As many of you will know David is renowned for his groundbreaking work particularly around ‘cask finishes’ for The Balvenie single malt and has developed a number of award winning whiskies enjoyed and loved by us whisky drinkers all over the world. He is one of only 12 malt masters in the Scotch whisky industry, a small band of master craftsmen who have perfected the art, alchemy and scientific understanding of whisky making, and he is the longest-serving of them all.

David Stewart started work at The Balvenie distillery in 1962 at the age of just 17. During a 12 year apprenticeship, he mastered the skills of nosing and creating the best quality single malt Scotch whisky. David was then appointed The Balvenie Malt Master and has held that position ever since, making him the most experienced malt master in the industry.

David’s list of key achievements as The Balvenie Malt Master includes the development of two cask maturation in the 1980s, unheard of at the time, but these days an established technique referred to as ‘finishing’ and widely enjoyed as The Balvenie DoubleWood 12 Year Old and The Balvenie DoubleWood 17 Year Old.

So wherever you are in the world this evening at 19.45 (the year David was born) British time why not head over to twitter and #RaiseADram to congratulate David on his MBE which he will receive today.

Congratulations David, you are a pioneer in the craft of whisky making, Slainte mhath.

You will find the current Balvenie whisky range available from specialist whisky shops such as The Whisky Exchange
 

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