Industry honour for whisky lover Derek
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A Wishaw restaurant owner and whisky fanatic has been recognised for his passion.
Derek Mather was awarded the
Whisky Guru of the Year at the Scottish Pub and Restaurant awards las Tuesday evening.
And Derek, who has had a keen interest in whisky since he was 18, beat a shortlist of four other whisky fans to win the prestigious award.
Speaking to the Wishaw Press, Derek said: “I was really happy to win, but if anything I was more excited to be recognised for my hobby.
“It was a huge awards ceremony in The Hilton and there were around 600 people there.
“We aren’t on the tourist trails, being in Wishaw, so that means that people have to almost come out their way to visit us.”
Derek runs the Artisan restaurant with his wife, Fiona. They have a collection of over 3000 bottles of whisky in their whisky snug.
He received his first bottle of whisky when he was 18 from his dad and has been a fanatic ever since.
Having had a tough 18 months with restrictions, they hope that things can start getting back to normal.
Derek said: “We really hope that we can start to operate as normal now.
“We are known for our whisky nights and tours and already have groups from Germany, Sweden, France and the USA interested in coming to visit.”
“When people come to visit us they spend time in the local area, spending money on local hotels and shops.
“It’s really important for us to keep that up and make sure Wishaw is on the map.”
A driver fled from police in a high-speed chase on a road where a schoolgirl was knocked down and killed.
Safety measures were introduced on The Loaning in Motherwell after the tragic death in 2019.
But Hamilton Sheriff Court heard that Thomas Duris ignored the speed restrictions in an effort to get away from the police.
Duris, 27, of Hamilton, appeared from custody and admitted driving dangerously in April last year while on bail for another matter.
Duris’ defence agent said he didn’t realise the men who approached him from an unmarked car were police.
Sheriff Andrew McIntyre called for a criminal justice social work report and deferred sentence until next month.