Glenfiddich Brand Ambassador's Blog

Meet Don Ramsay

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Posted on July 15, 2008 by Ludo

Today, I would like to continue our series of interviews with our longest serving employees and introduce our Head Cooper, Don Ramsay.

Ludo - Don, could you please tell our readers how long you have been working at Glenfiddich?

Don - I started my apprenticeship on December 25th, 1961.

Ludo – You started working with us on Christmas day!?

Don - In those years, Christmas was not a public holiday. I was 15 on December 18th and as such, I was allowed to leave school during the next break, which was Christmas. So on Monday 25th December, I reported for duty.

Ludo – Did you always want to be a cooper?

Don - Not really. The cooperage manager also ran the youth club, so when a position opened, he asked the kids if anyone would be leaving school over the Christmas period and if anyone would be interested in becoming a cooper. I raised my hand, spoke to my parents, started my apprenticeship a week later, and that’s been me since!

Ludo – Was it a long apprenticeship?

Don - Compared to today, absolutely! My first year was a probation year, which was basically a year for me to see whether I really liked the job and also for the company to decide whether they did like me. After that, there was another five years’ apprenticeship, which brought you up to the age of 21. Nowadays, you can become a fully qualified cooper in ‘just’ 4 years.

Ludo – Has a lot changed since you’ve been here?

Don - The tools are pretty much the same but the work has changed. When I started, my main duty was to rebuild the shook packs coming from the US. American whiskey casks now come to Scotland fully built but the idea, in those years, was to save space for transport. American whiskey casks would be dismantled in the US, before being put back together in Scotland.

Then came Dump Hogsheads and Distillery Puncheons a few years later. These were basically American whiskey barrels which we were asked to enlarge before they were filled with spirit.

Nowadays, the main responsibility of a Glenfiddich cooper is to check the quality of our casks and approve, discard or repair them if necessary.

Ludo – What was your proudest moment in your career?

Don - Generally, just doing what I do. There is a sense of belonging here, which is of course partly to do with the fact that we are a family-owned business.

More specifically though, I would have to say, the year 2004, when the company decided to bottle a Glenfiddich with my name on it. It was a Vintage Reserve from 1991. I had been involved in the barrel selection back in 1991 so when the company decided to bottle this vintage back in 2004, they called it the ’Don Ramsay’ dram.

Ludo – Have you kept any bottles?

Don - The family was very generous in giving me several bottles. I gave some to my sons and grandchildren but I also kept a couple of bottles for myself.

Ludo – your friend Dennis will reach 50 years’ service in September. Will you also make it to 50 years’ service?

Don - I’ll miss the 50 years by one week because I will reach 65 on December 18th 2011, but it really doesn’t matter. I already have a great sense of satisfaction from what I have done here.

Ludo – I have a final question which I also asked Eric and Dennis. If you could have a dram with William Grant, what would it be?

Don - Glenfiddich 15 Year Old! I think it’s a lovely drink. I was lucky enough to taste a few older Glenfiddichs but I really love the vanilla and sherry notes in Glenfiddich 15. However, I wouldn’t only just have one dram with William. The second one would be the Vintage Reserve 1991, of course!

Please use the comments form below if there are any more questions you would like to ask Don. Don will personally respond to you.