DRAMBUSTER
Yorkshireman Andy Watts came to South Africa to coach cricket — now he’s turning mealies into some of the world’s best whisky, writes Joanne Gibson
If Scotch imports to South Africa have been declining (down 2% in 2012, according to the Scotch Whisky Association), it’s not because we’re losing our taste for the finer things in life. On the contrary, it seems we’re simply realising that a couple of the world’s best whiskies are made in the Cape Winelands.
“We’ve always had the raw materials to make great whisky; we just haven’t had the 500 years of tradition,” says Distell master distiller Andy Watts, now in his 23rd year managing the James Sedgwick distillery in Wellington. A Yorkshireman who came to South Africa in 1982 to coach school cricket, Watts soon found himself married to a local
meisie and blending spirits for Stellenbosch Farmers’ Winery (now Distell). A defining moment came in 1988, when a technical agreement with Morrison Bowmore Distillers saw him spend six months in Scotland, gaining hands-on experience at Auchentoshan in the Lowlands, Glen Garioch in the Highlands and Bowmore on the island of Islay.
Discovering that up to 95% of Scottish grain whisky was made from South African maize at that time, Watts decided to prove that producing good whisky was not the prerogative of the Scots — and countless awards over the past two decades now speak for themselves.
Most recently, at the 2013 International Wine & Spirits Challenge in London, the Three Ships Premium Select Five Year Old (a blend of South African and Scotch whiskies, combining malted barley and grain, and matured for five years in American oak) was awarded the highest accolade, Gold Outstanding; while the Bain’s Cape Mountain Whisky (a proudly South African grain whisky matured for between three and five years in used American bourbon barrels) received gold for the fourth consecutive year.
At the International Spirits Challenge in London a few months ago, both whiskies were named best in class, with the title of World’s Best Grain Whisky having already been bestowed upon the Bain’s at the 2013 World Whisky Awards. “There’s suddenly a lot of interest in this little place at the
WHISKY IS THE SPIRIT OF THE MOMENT; THERE SEEMS TO BE NO STOPPING IT
southern tip of Africa,” beams Watts.
Actually the James Sedgwick distillery is no longer so little, accounting for 18% of the local whisky market, according to AC Nielsen — and not forgetting that South Africa is the world’s seventh-largest export market for Scotch. In response to predicted international demand, two new maturation stores have recently been built (already filled with thousands of American oak barrels and the heady smell of evaporating whisky — the so-called angels’ share).
The distillery, with its distinctive grey buildings and duck pond, is a welcoming landmark as you drive into Wellington but unfortunately it’s not open to the public. Watts hopes it soon will be: “It’s the only commercial whisky distillery on the African continent; I don’t think we’ll struggle to fill a few tours a day.”
He insists there’s no secret to their success: “We’ve always just paid careful attention to the process.” This he describes as “a perfect mix of automation and the human touch”. He and his 30-strong team (there’s someone on duty 24/7) interpret information from computers that monitor every step. But it all comes down to smell and taste at the blending stage.
After describing a recent whisky tasting dinner held at Taj Cape Town, where the smooth Bain’s (ARP R220 a bottle) complemented a Tandoori-spiced chicken with mint curry, while the peaty Three Ships Five Year Old (ARP R115) proved a robust match with aged Karan beef, wild mushrooms and truffle juice, Watts concludes: “Whisky is the spirit of the moment; there seems to be no stopping it.”