The Scottish Distillers Conference returns for its third year on Wednesday 29th October 2025 at the DoubleTree by Hilton, Glasgow Central, bringing together Scotland’s leading voices in distilling for a full day of insight, discussion, and innovation.
Inspiring Keynote Speakers
This year’s programme features a stellar line-up of speakers:
- Mark Kent, CEO of the Scotch Whisky Association, will deliver the opening keynote, offering his perspective on the opportunities and challenges shaping the Scotch whisky and wider distilling sectors.
- Billy Walker, Master Distiller at GlenAllachie, will share his remarkable journey in building and sustaining a world-renowned distillery.
- Lesley Gracie, Head Distiller at Hendrick’s Gin, will bring her unique perspective on creativity and flavour innovation in gin production.
Conference Sessions
Delegates can look forward to a varied programme of sessions covering key industry themes, including:
- Ten Things I Wish I’d Known Before Building a Distillery – Lessons learned from those who’ve been there and done it.
- AI: The Future of Spirits – How artificial intelligence is reshaping the way spirits are created, marketed, and consumed.
- Distilling Insight: Strategies That Sell – Exploring the commercial strategies that drive success.
- Flavour Innovation – Bold approaches to creating distinctive spirits for evolving consumer tastes.
- Distilling Tourism: Attracting, Informing & Retaining New Customers – Boosting engagement and enhancing Scotland’s reputation for world-class spirits tourism.
Celebrating Distilling Excellence
The Scottish Distillers Conference has established itself as a key date in the industry calendar, providing valuable opportunities to learn, network, and share experiences.
As always, the conference coincides with the Scottish Gin Awards, the national celebration of excellence in gin, and this year also features the Scottish Rum Awards in the evening. Together, these events create a unique platform to recognise and celebrate Scotland’s world-class distilling sector across multiple categories.
Tickets are available now — don’t miss your chance to be part of the 2025 Scottish Distillers Conference
To find out more about sponsoring The Scottish Distillers Conference, please contact john@kdmedia.co.uk
