The Cut

The editorial magazine for the OurWhisky Foundation.

Millie Milliken Millie Milliken

Claire Vaughan: I feel less like an imposter in whisky

With qualifications in sports science and interior design, Claire Vaughan, co-founder of Derbyshire’s White Peak Distillery, never thought she’d end up in whisky. But her skill set has been key to the success of the Wire Works whisky brand.

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Millie Milliken Millie Milliken

Dr Rachel Barrie: I finally feel like I’ve arrived

Dr. Rachel Barrie has spent over 30 years in the whisky industry, winning numerous awards and accolades, but only now feels like she’s 'arrived'. Grateful for the opportunities she's been given, Brown-Forman's master blender now wants to empty her cup.

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Millie Milliken Millie Milliken

Meet the mentee: Ana Hinz, Westland Distillery

Success stories like Ana Hinz’s prove that empowering women can have meaningful consequences. We catch up with the former OurWhisky Foundation mentee and Westland Distillery’s business development manager about her extraordinary entrance to the whiskey industry.

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Millie Milliken Millie Milliken

Abbie Jaume: Whisky shouldn’t be putting off female talent

Abbie Jaume discovered her love of whisky in Tasmania, but for the scientist turned distiller, founding a distillery back in England hasn’t protect her from experiencing sexism. It’s partly why she’s donating the first whisky she ever made to the Demeter Collection.

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Becky Paskin Becky Paskin

Bessie Williamson: Laphroaig’s guardian angel

Regarded as the ‘first lady of Scotch’, Bessie Williamson was so much more than one of Scotland’s first female distillery managers. From safeguarding Laphroaig during the war to exhibiting philanthropic kindness and even saving her warehouseman’s life, Williamson left an indelible mark on both whisky and the world.

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Millie Milliken Millie Milliken

Kirsty Black: It started with beer - whisky came later

From a career in quality engineering to running what could be the world’s first hydrogen-powered distillery, Arbikie manager and master distiller Kirsty Black wants women to know they’re not alone in whisky.

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Millie Milliken Millie Milliken

Meet the mentee: Heather Storgaard, Whisky Auctioneer

In the first of a new series, we sit down with senior marketing & communications officer at Whisky Auctioneer and former OurWhisky Foundation mentee, Heather Storgaard. She talks finding true meaning and re-writing whisky history.

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Becky Paskin Becky Paskin

Sarah Burgess: Making Atonia’s Legacy is a career highlight

Sarah Burgess has been making whisky for some of the biggest names in Scotland and England for two decades. Now, she’s ready to give back. She tells Becky Paskin why we need to shine a light on others, and how creating a unique whisky for the Demeter Collection is a career highlight.

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Becky Paskin Becky Paskin

Alice Pearson: My age doesn’t define me

She may be the UK’s youngest distillery manager but the Cotswolds’ Alice Pearson is confidently forging her own path, defying stereotypes of what it means to be a woman in whisky and proving age is nothing but a number.

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Becky Paskin Becky Paskin

Gillian Macdonald: My 20 years in whisky is down to luck

Twenty years after joining the whisky industry under the tutelage of the legendary Jim Swan, Glenmorangie and Ardbeg master blender Gillian Macdonald reflects on how her career can be boiled down to a ‘sliding doors moment’.

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