Margaret Nicol: The hidden nose behind The Dalmore
She’s the most accomplished whisky maker you’ve probably never heard of, the hidden nose behind The Dalmore’s success. Now, after 50 years in the industry, most spent as the right-hand woman of master blender Richard Paterson, Margaret Nicol finally has her name on a bottle.
Her name may not be familiar among whisky enthusiasts, but within the industry, Margaret ‘Mags’ Nicol is a living legend.
There’s not a drop of The Dalmore released in the past 45 years that’s not passed by Nicol’s desk. In fact, the long-serving blend controller at Whyte & Mackay has had a hand in every single release in that time from the Glasgow-based Scotch business, from Fettercairn to Tamnavulin and beyond.
While Richard ‘The Nose’ Paterson, master blender at Whyte & Mackay, has become one of the most recognisable names, faces and palates in Scotch whisky, his right-hand woman for almost half a century is happy to support from behind the curtain.
“Richard is the glitz and glam, but I do the speed work behind the scenes,” she explains of her position managing the company’s whisky stocks. “I’m happy to take that background role, it’s my choice. I know I'm good at what I do and [the blending team] couldn’t do their job without my support.”
She pauses, before laughing: “You know what they say, behind every great man there’s a great woman!”
Nicol would visit The Dalmore distillery regularly to assess its maturing whisky
This year marks Nicol’s 50th anniversary in the whisky industry and 45th with Whyte & Mackay. She joined Long John Distilleries in a junior office admin role straight from school in 1974, choosing a career in whisky over one with the better-paying Milk Marketing Board because ‘it sounded more fun’.
When she moved across to join Whyte & Mackay’s stocks department in 1979, she found herself working more and more with Paterson, helping to arrange samples and assemble blends on paper. “It’s very much an administrative role, although when it was just Richard and I, I’d arrange the samples and we’d make up the different blends and ratios. Richard would say what he was looking for and I’d make up the recipes,” she says.
Nicol knew early on she had a nose for blending, although she’d no idea it would lead her into whisky. “When I was younger my mother used to laugh because I’d pick up smells,” she says. “When I could smell something foul my mother used to say, ‘your nose is too near your arse’, but to be fair my mother didn't have a sense of smell.”
Nicol not only selected the whisky for her Demeter Collection bottling, but the unique colour of the presentation case too
Nicol and Paterson spent decades working together compiling some of Whyte & Mackay’s most iconic whiskies, from The Dalmore King Alexander III to the Paterson Collection, a £1 million compendium of Dalmore vintages created in 2013 in partnership with Harrods. Yet when asked about her career highlight, Nicol deflects the praise onto her colleague and mentor.
“I was really proud seeing Richard get his OBE and celebrating his 50 years in the industry, but that’s not my career, it’s his,” she shrugs. “Most of my highlights are based around Richard. I feel proud by hanging onto his tailcoats.”
Since Paterson stepped back from daily involvement with The Dalmore in 2020, Nicol has moved into a supporting role for the wider blending team, which now comprises Gregg Glass, Kirsty Hodge, Kirstie McCallum, Joe Ricketts and Nick Wilson.
The Demeter Collection
For a woman who’s contributed so much to Scotch whisky, Nicol is incredibly humble. Her reaction to the news that The Dalmore would be creating a unique bottling to celebrate her own 50 years in the industry, and donate it to the Demeter Collection, the OurWhisky Foundation’s upcoming fundraising auction, says it all.
“When they first told me, I cried. I felt so honoured and privileged. It’s because I never would have expected it. I still get emotional when I think about it. The fact it’s The Dalmore makes it even more special.”
Nicol worked alongside master whisky maker Gregg Glass to select a 1979 vintage Dalmore matured in red wine, Grahams Port and Gonzalez Byass Matusalem Sherry casks. It was a parcel of stock Nicol had her eye on for some time, and given the opportunity to create her own expression – the first with her signature on it – she jumped at the chance to bottle them. She even selected the eye-catching coral colour for the presentation case: “Obviously it’s the brightest box because that’s the sort of person I am, I love bright colours.”
Just two have been created, one for the Demeter Collection, while the other will be gifted to Nicol in honour of her anniversary.
The Dalmore 44 Year Old is the first whisky to bear Margaret Nicol’s signature
“Knowing The Dalmore 44 has been made to raise money for the OurWhisky Foundation makes it even more special,” Nicol smiles. “The Foundation is a great support for women: the mentorship programme is fantastic, it’s a great endorsement for bringing women into the whisky world and developing those already in it. I’m sure there’s many women who bring a lot more to the industry than they get recognition for.”
Nicol admits that she never had a female role model in her career, although she says high profile whisky makers like Rachel Barrie and Stephanie Macleod have paved the way for other women to succeed. “It’s amazing how the industry has changed over the years, although it’s still very male dominated. Most of the women now who come in are quite high profile, but they need to be high profile to be visible.”
Looking back on her 50 years in Scotch, what advice does Nicol have for women pursuing a career in whisky? “Nowadays although you can’t say it I think [misogyny] still goes on. You hear wee snippets sometimes. Just keep fighting your corner, do your best and prove yourself.”
The Demeter Collection auction will run 29 March - 8 April 2024 at whiskyauctioneer.com.
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