With over 20 years of experience, Sarah Burgess knows a thing or two about making quality single malt. Born and raised in Speyside, surrounded by distilleries, it wasn’t until she began traveling as an adult that she realized there weren’t distilleries around every corner! It was a natural progression of her whisky passion to begin working in the industry.
As Lead Whisky Maker for The Macallan, her primary focus is on whisky range creation, innovation, and quality control. It was her expertise that brought A Night on Earth in Scotland into being. This non-age statement single malt whisky, bottled at 40% abv and retailing roughly $100, takes inspiration from the Scottish holiday of Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve) and the joy of celebrating with loved ones. It was Burgess’ childhood memories of Hogmanay that led to the creation of this giftable single malt. She said: “Crafting A Night On Earth In Scotland has been an extremely personal experience for me, which took me back to growing up in our family home in Speyside, just across the river from The Macallan Estate.”
While she’s been at The Macallan for nearly 5 years, she previously worked for Diageo, tackling such roles as senior site manager for various distilleries and distillery operations for a handful of distilleries around Scotland. Needless to say, Sarah Burgess is a talented and influential person working in the whisky industry and we can look forward to many more of her creations.
The Wee Tipple, LLC 