Hall of Fame

Growing up around farming in the north of Scotland, Bob began his whisky career at The Macallan in 1984 as a warehouseman. From here, he worked his way through many production roles including mashman, brewer, stillman, warehouse supervisor, and operations manager, gaining insight into all parts of the whisky-making process.

In 1995 he joined the distillery’s nosing panel, which selected casks for bottling, then went on to work alongside its previous whisky maker before being appointed as The Macallan’s whisky maker himself in early 2000.

Bob has been described by colleagues as having an admirable commitment to his craft, supported by his breadth of experience and skill and a faultless work ethic. He is passionate both about whisky making, and about teaching others and helping them to develop their whisky-making skills.

As well as his time spent in production, Bob has been a vocal ambassador for the brands he has worked with, speaking to distillery visitors and consumers to engage them and share his infectious enthusiasm. Today, Bob is the whisky maker for The Glenturret, helping to craft a range of highly sought-after single malt whiskies that was launched following the distillery’s takeover by Lalique Group in 2019.

In 2021, he was named master distiller of the year in the global Icons of Whisky awards – a recognition of the knowledge and experience amassed over his near-four decades in the Scotch whisky industry.