Interview: Bushmills’ master blender Alex Thomas spills whiskey secrets

Established in 1784, earning it the title of Ireland’s oldest licensed whiskey distillery, the Bushmills name is synonymous with exemplary Irish whiskey. Offering a selection of age statement single malts as well as extremely drinkable blends, the brand has recently unveiled its oldest expression to date, the 46-Year Secrets of the River Bush.

Behind the offering, master blender Alex Thomas, whose tenure at the distillery has spanned an impressive 21 years. Responsible for maintaining the brand’s popular core range, Alex also selects unique casks and is the mind behind Bushmills’ exciting Causeway Collection. An annual selection of Bushmills most interesting, rare and exclusive single malts, the series showcases unusual casks, demonstrating the depth and breadth of flavour whiskey can offer.

With a firm belief that there’s a whiskey for everyone—”and if there isn’t one there, ask me. I’ll make something for you”— here, Alex speaks to Tempus about casks, whiskey culture, and how to know when a cask’s time is up,It’s still not that common to have a female master blender, does it take people by surprise?
My mother and father knew what they were doing when they called me Alex. People do not expect me when I turn up and sometimes, in the earlier days, I could go incognito and people would say about this ‘great job this guy Alex Thomas is doing’. Really? Thank you very much, that’s me! It’s fun to have that side of it. 

But I have to say I’ve been very fortunate. When I came here, I was taken on as a daughter by the team. It didn’t matter whether I was male or female. It was having the passion for the industry. 

You’ve just released Bushmills’ “Secrets of the River Bush”, its oldest Irish single malt to date. What can you tell us about its creation?
We’re the oldest Irish single malt and have celebrated many good times and also some bad times. This whiskey is a perfect example of that. Born in one of those hardship times in 1978 where we saw only two distilleries left in Ireland, we didn’t know what the future held for the industry. The wonderful thing about Bushmills is that the people really believe in what they do. It didn’t matter what challenges it faced, whether it was prohibition, world wars, malt taxes. We stayed true to the process; used the best possible products that we could get. The belief has always been there that better times will come. 

We didn’t know these casks’ potential. You never do because the casks are unique, just like you and I, and we all mature at different stages. But early on—about 15, 20 years—we saw something really wonderful about these casks. They were different, the potential was there to continue to age longer. So we left them alone to see what would happen.

I had the privilege to be the master blender when they told me “time is up, we have nothing more to give”. These two casks have lain side by side for all of that time. It’s such a wonderful journey and to think of all of the people that played their part, we get to now celebrate all of their legacies. Many of them are no longer alive, but they set us up for success so that 46 years later we could release this wonderful liquid.It sounds as though you knew quite early on in your tenure as master blender that these casks were something special.
Part of being a blender and part of the innovation side, you always want to give the casks time to see how far you can really push the flavour profiles. Through the sampling of it, in the earlier stages we were maybe only tasting it once a year, and as it got closer the maturation processes starts to slow down.

If you think of your journey through life, as a child you’re full of life and bouncing about all the time. Your teenage years come along, it’s a bit the same. All of a sudden you get married, you settle down a little and as you mature, things definitely get a bit slower. That’s literally the same as a cask’s journey. When it can’t breathe in and out anymore and it can’t give anything else, the flavour profiles don’t change. So from sample to sample, that change starts to slow down, to the point where I believed this one could give no more. I didn’t want to leave it any longer and potentially have the oak take over. It would have been lovely to push it a few more years but it would have been at the jeopardy of the flavour we’re trying to achieve.

How has it been received by your customers?
People are so excited to taste it. They are in awe of the colour of the liquid, and that we’ve honoured the secrets of the River Bush, which has been part of our story from day one. The river gives us our distinct DNA and really has been the heart of everything we do, and it runs right under our distillery. It holds our secrets, and it’s known that these casks have been here all these years, but it hasn’t told anybody.

Related: Wildmoor ambassador Aldo Kane on what makes a great adventureWho does Bushmills appeal to, do you have a typical customer?
No, I’m trying to reignite the fire in those people who already love Irish whiskey or whiskey in general by creating some of these new types of whiskey I’ve been bringing out recently. And to ignite the fire in those who think whiskey is not for them. There is a whiskey in the portfolio for you, it’s finding the one that suits your palate.

We’ve opened our doors and said to everyone, “Our whiskies are here for you to drink your way.” So if it’s a Black Bush, a 10-year-old, or even a 16 you want to put in a cocktail, we’re not going to say no. You start your journey where’s right for you. And if there isn’t one there, ask me. I’ll make something specially for you.

Do you think the stereotype of a whiskey drinker is changing?
Yes, there’s a shift. We don’t drink the same as our grandparents, if I did, I would drink nothing but sherry! The exciting part is that there’s such an array of flavour profiles we can work with and create new things, whiskey doesn’t have to be drunk neat anymore. My sisters are using it in cocktails and every now and then they enjoy one [neat] with me. 

I love to do research with whiskey non- drinkers to find out what it is they actually drink. A lot of the time it’s the ABV shift which can cause problems. They’re wine or beer drinkers and all of a sudden they’re trying to drink 40% or 46% neat whiskey and it’s too big of a jump. Some of that influence of wine casks that we’re using now is partly because of those wine drinkers I’m trying to entice to whiskey.  

Tell us a little more about Bushmills. Sustainability is increasingly important to consumers, is it something you focus on?
Yes, Bushmills is a zero to landfill site and has been for 15 years. When our new distillery was built, that was part and parcel. We are using 30% less energy there and planted 80,000 trees as well. It’s really important for us going forward that even our electricity is green energy. We are focused and dedicated to leading in the industry, and it’s something we have always been working towards, it’s now just more globally recognised. We want to have a wonderful planet for our children and our grandchildren, for the future Bushmills drinkers. We want to make sure it’s well protected.Do you see the opportunities for women increasing in the industry as well?
There’s simply more opportunity – when I started there were only three distilleries! It wasn’t so much that women [specifically] couldn’t get the positions, nobody left until they retired. We’ve just had two gentlemen retire after 50 years and there was no opportunity for those 50 years for anybody else to get their jobs. 

Do you think that Irish whiskey is gaining popularity?
I hope that we can continue to inspire more into the Irish category but I do see that the revival is already there. There are people who are absolutely drinking both [Irish and Scotch] where before they may have just been Scotch or may just have been Irish. As a consumer, I think we’re all wanting to learn a little bit more about what it is that makes the special liquid that we want to enjoy. 

Ireland is an island of wonderful whiskey producers. We all support each other because we all have one vision. We want to see the Irish category grow and, we’re competitors absolutely, but at the end of the day we all have one dream. 

At the end of a long day, who do you enjoy sharing a dram with?
Family is very important to me so, sitting on a beach out in Castle Rock, looking out over the hills and they’re all with me, sitting there toasting to the sun setting, that would just be beautiful. If my granddad could be with me and know that I’m now a master blender of the whiskey that he loves, it would be even better.

And finally, for those lucky enough to get their hands on the 46 year old, what can they expect?
Nobody can believe the depth of colour we’ve managed to achieve, but the quality of the Oloroso cask has made this possible. The climate during those 46 years has been very subtly allowing this to breathe. It really is a unique harmony. It’s so sweet and spicy all in one go, with gentle aged oak reminding you it’s taken this one 46 long years to be enjoyed by you. It’s phenomenal. It really is just a dream come true to say that we have achieved this and the flavour profiles are so well balanced. It won’t disappoint.

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