Top whisky man fined after drink fuelled row

One of the world’s leading Scotch whisky experts has been fined £700 after a drunken bustup with his wife and stepson.

John McDougall appeared from custody at Selkirk Sheriff Court and pleaded guilty to a charge of shouting, swearing and acting in an aggressive manner at the family’s £375,000 home near eyemouth, Berwickshire, on Sunday.

The 72-year-old master distiller had downed three gins and most of two bottles of wine during a family meal when his wife Kathleen became concerned at the amount he was drinking and told him to be careful.

Tessa Bradley, prosecuting, said: “He replied he knew what he was doing and ignored her. She was frightened of the accused as he became agitated and aggressive.”

His stepson stepped in in defence of his mother, and his girlfriend later phoned the police.

The court heard McDougall had been with his business partner wife for 23 years, although they had separated before getting back together recently.

He also had a previous conviction for domestic abuse.

Defence lawyer Greg McDonell said: “He apologises for his behaviour. Drink played a part in this and also his wife’s son, who started an argument.”

McDougall, who earns £80,000 a year travelling around the world in his role as a whisky consultant and designer of distilleries, was told by Sheriff Peter Paterson he would have been fined £1,000, but the amount was reduced to £700 to reflect the early guilty plea.

On his own website, McDougall describes himself as “one of the world’s leading whisky experts… one of a very rare and elite group of people who have been a production director of manager of a distillery in all of the traditionally recognised distillery regions in Scotland and is arguably the most experienced whisky expert/master distiller and best overall judge of Scotch whisky in the business today”.