Brian Kinsman

Brian Kinsman was born in West Lothian, Scotland, in 1972. From an early age he was drawn to science, a path that would later set him apart in the world of Scotch whisky. He studied chemistry at the University of St Andrews, graduating in 1994 with first-class honors, and there he met his future wife, Lisa. This combination of rigorous scientific training and personal partnerships he experienced at St. Andrews would later underpin both his analytical and collaborative approaches to whisky creation. After university, Kinsman began a PhD program while working as a development chemist in the dental sector, focusing on materials and product development. This period, though outside whisky, gave him deep experience with analytical techniques, experimental design, and quality assessment, skills that later proved directly transferable to evaluating and understanding whisky at chemical and sensory levels. 

In 1997, Kinsman made a decisive pivot. He responded to an advertisement for a chemist at William Grant & Sons’ grain whisky site in Girvan, South Ayrshire, and “ditched dentistry for distilling,” as he later described it. His early work at Girvan was rooted in quality control and spirit analysis, focusing on lab measurements of new make spirit and mature whisky, and tracking how flavors and compounds evolved in casks over time. This behind-the-scenes analytical role immersed him in the molecular side of whisky long before he became known for sensory decision-making. 

Although whisky is often described as an intuitive craft, Kinsman’s scientific grounding gave him a unique lens on how spirit character and consistency can be quantified and guided. Early in his career, colleagues noticed his acute sensory ability, which together with his analytical skills made him ideally suited for blending work. In 2001, Kinsman had the opportunity to become an apprentice to David Stewart, one of the most revered figures in modern Scotch and a long-serving malt master at William Grant & Sons. Over roughly eight years of apprenticeship, Kinsman learned traditional blending and sensory judgement from Stewart, absorbing decades of tacit knowledge about spirit character, cask influence, consistency, and house style. This apprenticeship wasn’t a casual mentorship, it was a structured transfer of skills, where novice and master would nose and taste together, compare judgments, and refine how to manage thousands of casks across different ages and styles. The result was a rare combination: a blender trained both in empirical science and deep sensory craft. After eight years in working under Stewart, in December 2009, Kinsman succeeded him as Master Blender and Malt Master, becoming only the sixth person in William Grant & Sons’ history to hold that title. The appointment marked a generational shift: a scientifically trained whisky-maker stepping into a role traditionally associated with intuition and long informal apprenticeship.

By the mid-2010s, Kinsman’s responsibilities stretched not only to William Grant’s single malts, but also for the entire blending portfolio, from world-famous Glenfiddich and The Balvenie to major blended Scotch whiskies such as Grant’s, and innovative bottlings like Monkey Shoulder. 

In this wider context of portfolio stewardship, Ailsa Bay distillery occupies a distinctive role in Kinsman’s story. Built by William Grant & Sons in 2007 on the Girvan site, the distillery was conceived amid a growing demand for malt whisky and the logistical advantage of situating it near existing grain operations. Ailsa Bay was then officially opened with royal attendance in 2009. The distillery sits in the Lowlands by classification, but was designed less as a traditional regional distillery and more as a modern, experimental production facility, a place where scientific control and sensory exploration combine. Its proximity to Girvan and state-of-the-art equipment made it well suited to both supplying whisky for blends and pushing new flavor frontiers. For Kinsman, Ailsa Bay was immediately something of a creative “canvas,” a place to test ideas and calibrate flavor variables systematically while also ensuring the results remained engaging and accessible to drinkers. 

One of the most talked-about innovations associated with the early releases from Ailsa Bay was the use of SPPM (“sweet parts per million”), a measurement designed to quantify compounds associated with perceived sweetness in whisky. This metric was developed under Kinsman’s guidance and printed on early bottle labels as a way of communicating flavor intent, not just poetic descriptors but measurable sensory markers. While some enthusiasts have debated the utility of numbers like SPPM, Kinsman himself has been candid: the figures resonate with technical whisky lovers, but ultimately flavor is experienced by people, not just by numbers, and sensory expertise remains central to blending decisions. 

Brian Kinsman’s impact extends beyond any single bottling or innovation. His stewardship of some of whisky’s most iconic brands reflects a balance: honoring tradition and house identity, while willingly pushing boundaries in maturation, measurement, and flavor design. Ailsa Bay, in particular, stands as a testament to this balance, a distillery born in the modern era that bridges empirical clarity and sensory nuance. As whisky culture continues to evolve, Ailsa Bay and Brian Kinsman’s stewardship of it remind us that innovation grounded in sensory mastery and thoughtful measurement can enrich tradition without overshadowing it: a fitting legacy for a craft defined by both patience and precision.

Sources:

  1. William Grant & Sons official website, “Brian Kinsman”, www.williamgrant.com

  2. PMA Canada, “Brian Kinsman”, www.pmacanada.com/meet-the-maker/brian-kinsman/

  3. The Whisky Exchange Whisky Show (London 2016), “Guests of the Show: Brian Kinsman”

  4. ScotchWhisky.com – Interview: “Brian Kinsman, Glenfiddich”, 21 April 2016

  5. Square Mile, “Brian Kinsman: ‘I ditched dentistry for distilling’”, 28 Feb 2024,
    www.squaremile.com

  6. Moodie Davitt Report, “William Grant & Sons appoints new Master Blender…”, 2 Nov 2009, moodiedavittreport.com

  7. Bartender Spirits Awards, “Sensory Skills are at The Heart of Everything I do…”, 10 Sep 2022

  8. ScotchWhisky.com, “Whisky News: “Ailsa Bay’s first whisky launches in UK”, 5 Feb 2016

  9. Whiskypedia, “Ailsa Bay”, scotchwhisky.com

  10. OCD Whisky, “A Day in the Life… Brian Kinsman”, Sorrenkrebs, 4 Feb 2017 

Contributed by Tracy McLemore, Fairview, Tennessee USA