Profile: Slick Willie

WILLIE
TAIT • 59
• Master Distiller and Single Malt Ambassador •
Isle of Jura, Scotland

Och, aye! The isles of Scotland are rich in history and
religion. Iona is recognized as the cradle of Christianity
from which St. Columba preached and roamed in the
VI-century, CE. Jura, one of the medium-sized islands, has
over 15O square miles (larger than Martha’s Vineyard’s 126),
but only 174 people, as its surface of quartz and turf is
more suited to sheep grazing than agriculture. The Whyte
& Mackay Company, marketing malt whiskey from Jura
through Heaven Hill Distillers, hired its former master
distiller to be spokesman for the Jura whiskies he made.
Typically light and readily blended, they may make a
consumer’s ideal first-step-up from traditional blends to
single-malts.
REMOTE and UNIQUE The Isle of Jura has many caves in its
northwestern parts where the monks of Saint Columba
(VI-century abbot of Iona) likely took shelter in their
peregrinations to and from Ireland. It’s one of the more
remote of the Scottish isles, reachable only by a small
ferry from Islay, which often cannot make the crossing in
inclement winter weather. (The nearby island of) Islay is
much larger and more famous for its many whiskey
distilleries – Laphroig, Lagavullan, Ardbeg. Jura has only
one distillery, and it’s been there since 181O, when the
population was more like 2OOO. The name ‘Jura’ comes from
the Norse word for ‘isle of deer’ that the Vikings found
aplenty. The red deer herds, over 5OOO head,
remain.

QUIET
GET
AWAY
There are people
coming to Jura now for shooting and culling the herd. Those
deer have been on Jura over 8OOO years and their stock has
never changed, no hybrids. Hiking and pheasant shooting are
also a draw, and of course the distillery itself. People
come to escape – from anything, really – and it’s a great
bastion for solitary walking; you can walk for weeks and
never meet a soul. So these are all part and parcel of
coming to Jura for a sporting week, and a stay at the one
hotel, with a little pub attached. There’s also a little
church and a shop with a post office. There’s a mobile bank
in a van that comes every Thursday. And that’s it! It’s been
that way as long as anyone can remember.

A
FOCUSED CAREER I
went to the distillery in 1975 as a mashman and stillman.
Actually the man who ran the distillery came to the house
for the initial interview to see how we might fit in the
island. I worked at the maltings making the malted barley
for another whiskey company called Inver House. In 1979 he
gave me the job as assistant manager, so my wife and I and
our year-old son moved to Jura. My daughter was born there
later and so she’s a native Jurach. Then in 1985 I got the
job as manager and stayed until 2OOO. So the (three)
whiskeys we’ve tasted (all on the market) I’ve made
personally. Since then, we moved back to the mainland to
Fettercairn (near Aberdeen) and I worked for three
distilleries in Eastern Scotland. The Whyte & Mackay
company called me back to take over as spokesman.

BLENDING
BUSINESS Today it’s
a very difficult business to be in as a lonesome warrior.
Remember that single-malts were originally made to feed
blends. Companies buy single-malts and exchange them with
each other, mainly to make signature blends. A typical blend
will contain 3O to 4O malt whiskies. The bigger the company,
the more exchange they can do. So 6O to 65% of Jura whiskey
will be sold to go into blends for other
distillers.

SIGNATURE
TASTE Each
component makes one whisky different from another – the
water, the barley and the distillation process itself, from
the size, shape and composition of the copper pot still.
It’s akin to a still’s offspring, its child would be a white
spirit with distinct familial characteristics. Deep down,
each white spirit on Jura is a child of those great stills
made by Delsey Evans. They’re 26 to 27 feet tall, very
narrow and bulbous, with round shoulders and a great lie
arm; the congeners of these spirits are very light and
delicate. Then, we buy barrels from our company, Heaven
Hill, who make bourbon whiskey, so that’s another flavor
component of American white oak, and there’ll be some
oloroso sherry casks, as well. Then, with Jura’s exposure to
the Atlantic Ocean, the sea breezes will impart some it
their wonderful character to the cask. The traditional taste
profiles are definable – Jura (very light), Islay (very
peaty), Speyside (exceptionally sweet), Lowlands (treble
distilled so light), and Campbelltown (opposite Jura,
looking to the mainland).

LOOK to
the LAND Geology is
the start of making Scotch whiskey. The Jura water is
peat-softened and is the start for building up the character
for this wonderful single malt. Scotland’s north had hard
water as it runs through granite, but the western islands
are known for water percolating through peat, often for
millions of years, giving it that delicate character. We
named our new blend Superstition because the Jurachs are
very superstitious, and a guid example surrounds the cutting
of the peat. The old people say that they never cut peat
until the month of May, no matter how balmy the spring
weather. It’s really a harvest: you cut and stack the peat;
the sun dries it; the wind goes through it, and that’s what
you take home. If you should cut the peat before May,
‘twould bring back luck upon your huis. We also put the iron
cross upon the bottle, the Egyptian symbol (ankh) for
eternal life. Of course, whisky (usquebagh) is the water of
life.

AROMAS
and FLAVORS The
profile of Superstition is a marriage of Highland and Island
style spirits; the marriage was made in fact in the month of
May. The Highland (up to 21-year-old) gives a sweetness of
honey, toffee and spice. The Island spirit, only 13%, gives
a more pronounced peaty character, and at the end of your
palate, a pleasing chewiness. Toasted barley gives smoky
flavor, but peaty water gives the earthy flavors. And they
marry six months in first-fill oloroso barrels. So
Superstition can lead the unfamiliar consumer – age and sex
has no bearing, really – very gently into that smoky, peaty
style. We don’t want to compete with the big peaty styled
malts – Laphroig, Lagavullin, Ardbeg. It’s an introduction
to that peaty style without overwhelming the palate. You can
go in the door, but you can back out again. It’s not too
much, too soon. It allows a bit of adventure without going
too deep.

1O and
16 The 1O-year
(pale greenish gold, like some dessert wines) is aged in
fresh American white oak. Clean and fresh on the nose from
those tall stills, slightly peat and sea saltiness. On the
palate, it’s rich with a hint of spice. It’s nice to start
off a meal or with seafood, as it’s lighter in color and
body than most at that age. The 16- year-old is completely
different, more color, body and spice (orange, toffee,
ginger, honey finish). We use second and third-filled
oloroso sherry (and some bourbon) casks, so there’s a
buttered biscuit quality. It sits quietly in your throat,
like a lozenge.

WEE DRAM
with a WEE DROP I
personally would never add anything but a small amount of
bottled, non-carbonated spring water to a glass of whiskey.
No matter how good local tap water may be, there’s likely to
be a little chlorine or additive in it. Serve the whiskey at
room temperature: not too cold, not too warm. Yes, if you
like the cold, you can find ice cubes made from spring
water. I like to pour a small amount in a nice nosing glass,
not necessarily a snifter, but a good white wine glass. We
don’t knock it back John Wayne style, but let it sit in the
mouth, chew it a while. Have a sniff and a sip, write it
down. Wait a bit, have another, write it down. Cover the
glass with a wee plate, go away, come back 2O minutes later,
note how the profile has changed. For refreshment, a cracker
or an oat-cake will freshen up your palate. If it’s not a
professional flight, a bit of good Scottish cheddar is
welcome. That and a tall glass of water.

ROAD
TOUR I left Jura in
2OOO to look after other distilleries. I’ve been on the road
for three years, positioning the brand, building up a
following. I make several calls in the States every year.
The partnership is rousing awareness of the Isle of Jura, in
Europe, America and Australia. Many of the Scots Islanders
who came over to America in 176O to 1768 ended up in North
Carolina. All the names from Jura – Bowie, Shaw, MacIsaac,
Clarke – you can find there.