The House of Hazelwood
by Darinee Durai
@ 29 Aug 2017
We speak with Mr. Kevin Abrook, the Global Whisky Specialist for William Grant & Sons. His career spans over 25 years in the industry dealing with wines, spirits, liqueurs and especially whisky! His deep and thorough understanding allows him to enlighten consumers all over the world on the fine art of whisky drinking and the craft of making whiskies. He has even been a jude for the Whisky Magazine's Irish section 'Best of the Best' whisky competition in Dublin. He has appeared on Bulgarian TV and was a speaker at the Canadean Alcohol Innovation Conference in London for whisky.
DD: What does the House of Hazelwood personify?
KA: House of Hazelwood is an elegant scotch that personifies the sense of discovery, adventure and optimism of the progressive Art Deco era of the1920s. This is also true of Janet Sheed Roberts, whose spirit of adventure inspired the collection and who travelled extensively in this era.
DD: Which of the 3 expressions best represents Janet Sheed Roberts?
KA: This is a difficult one as each expression can be said to take a part of Janet’s character in the blend!
The 18YO is full of vibrancy and elegance, reflecting the fact that Janet was an elegant, vivacious woman;
Yet she was also a strong and fiercely independent woman – this is reflected in the rich, spicy, bold character of the 21YO;
She loved the rose garden at her beloved Hazelwood House. Pink roses were her favourite flowers, which she would pick every day for her vases inside the house. Thus, the 25YO has the most floral character in the blend. I think Janet would have loved this one.
DD: How should the 3 expressions best be enjoyed and would they be suitable for cocktails?
KA: These are drams that are to be savoured, so drinking them neat allows one to experience three different styles. That said; they do go well in classic cocktails:
The 18YO is the lightest in flavour of the three, so a classic Scotch & Soda makes a lovely refreshing cocktail; the soda water complementing rather than over-powering the elegant liquid.
The 21YO has a rich spicy character, which holds up well in a classic Scotch cocktail, like the Rob Roy.
The 25YO would also work in a Rob Roy, but perhaps the 25 should mark 25th January (Burns Night), so a Bobby Burns cocktail would be good, the dashes of Benedictine in the recipe adding an herbal note to the exotic floral character.
DD: What are your aims for the future of The House of Hazelwood?
KA: Our plans are to maintain the Travel Retail exclusivity for 2017, then to begin to roll out into selected domestic markets – exact details of which have yet to be confirmed.
William Grant & Sons Presents House of Hazelwood: Elegantly Exquisite Whisky Inspired by Family Luminary Janet Sheed Roberts
Inspired by Janet Sheed Roberts, a woman who epitomised the fun and daring spirit of one of the most dazzling decades to date, the 1920s. It was the decade F. Scott Fitzgerald released The Great Gatsby, women gained the right to vote, the glamour and exuberance of the art deco movement began flourishing through the great cities of the world, and it was the heyday for elegant Scotch whisky drinking.
William Grant & Sons proudly presents House of Hazelwood, an elegant and vivacious new blended Scotch whisky inspired by family luminary Janet Sheed Roberts. Born in remote Scotland in 1901, Janet went on to epitomise the progressive era-defining attitude of women in the 1920s and 30s. She sought the city as soon as she could, to Glasgow then Edinburgh, where she became one of the first women to receive a university master’s degree.
During her rich and vibrant life, Janet Sheed Roberts lived in Hazelwood House, a house close to the Glenfiddich Distillery in Dufftown in the wilds of Scotland. It was in that house that her grandfather, William Grant, first sparked her love of whisky. It became a lifelong passion and ignited her thirst for knowledge and adventure. She travelled extensively, lived spontaneously, shared generously and laughed readily, always with a whisky in hand. She lived to be 110, still with mischief in her eyes and still regaling guests with her escapades.
Janet Sheed Roberts was a rare and extraordinary woman whose spirit inspired five generations of one of Scotland’s most famous private distillers, right back to its founding father, William Grant. When Master Blender Brian Kinsman set out to create a range of whiskies to pay tribute to its family doyenne, it was natural that he might first look to the two distilleries closest to her heart: Kininvie and Girvan, as well as the family’s private collection. She continued her adventures with her husband Eric, meeting distributors and customers, and attending functions and award ceremonies. Her travels knew no bounds, and even her Australia trip featured on the itinerary with 12 stops, including one or two on remote islands in the middle of the ocean.
Janet Sheed Roberts’ passion for adventure did not end there. She also had a great love for the arts and fashion. She saw all the legendary actors and actresses of the time in the best shows – including Greto Garbo. She developed an extraordinary taste for shoes and handbags, with her favourite being Ferragamo. Indeed, she always travelled with her “Campaigners” – a pristine pair of Ferragamo lace-up walking shoes with a fashionable heel. In fact, it was a trip to a casino in Monaco that her elegant string of pearls broke, dropping all the fine pearls to the ground. Like a scene out of a Hollywood movie, all the men stopped in their tracks, got down to their knees and help Janet Sheed Roberts find all her pearls.
Hazelwood House
The magnificent Hazelwood House was bought by the Gordon family in the early 1920s.
Perched high above the River Fiddich, just a few miles from Dufftown, it is a sturdy and stylish homage to Art Deco inside and out. A streamlined portico complements the geometric facade while an eclectic collection of period artefacts abound inside, a constant reminder of adventures past.
Grant Gordon family
Janet Sheed Roberts unites the Grant and Gordon families, and became the undisputed matriarch of William Grant & Sons, the oldest family-owned distillers in Scotland. Her father, Charles, was the company’s first global whisky salesman and her mother, Isabella, was the daughter of William Grant. Janet personified this union, her father’s pluck and perseverance and her mother’s energy and entrepreneurialism.
Private family collection
Brian Kinsman, our Master Blender, crafts each exquisite Hazelwood House expression using
Girvan grain and Kininvie malt whiskies. He then blends in rare and precious malts drawn exclusively from the Grant Gordon family’s own private collection, luxury whiskies that capture the adventurous and intrepid spirit of the era and bring lighter, more elegant flavours.
About William Grant & Sons
House of Hazelwood is made by William Grant & Sons, Ltd. an independent family-owned distiller headquartered in the United Kingdom and founded by William Grant in 1887. Today, the luxury spirits company is run by the fifth generation of his family and distils some of the world’s leading brands of Scotch whisky, including the world’s most awarded single malt Glenfiddich®, The Balvenie® range of handcrafted single malts and the world’s third largest blended Scotch Grant’s® along with iconic premium spirits brands Hendrick’s® Gin, Sailor Jerry® Rum, Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskey, Drambuie and Milagro® Tequila
