This distiller wants more women to work in the spirits industry

A whisky founder is running an internship programme at her distillery in the Scottish Highlands to encourage more women to enter what is often considered a male-dominated industry.

Annabel Thomas, founder of Ncn’ean distillery in the Scottish Highlands, has launched a competition to recruit two female interns for a one-week crash course in whisky production from 15-20 July 2019.

Though the internship is unpaid, travel, food and accommodation will all be included for the week.

It will showcase “all aspects of creating Ncn’ean’s whisky” including mashing, distilling and maturation, as well as making cocktails.

It will also include the opportunity to sample the still-maturing whisky, due for release next year, and forage for local plants used in the Botanical Spirit which the company launched in September 2018.

“I wanted to challenge the outdated views a lot of people still have,” Thomas said.

“The number of times people ask me ‘do you actually like whisky?’, just because I am a woman, and the lack of gender balance in the industry in Scotland suggests we all still have more work to do.

“The internship will be a chance for two women to experience all aspects of the small operation and invite them to understand what working in a distillery really involves.

“We hope that women from all walks of life that want to try their hand at something new will apply”

The deadline for applications is 16 May.