The Blenders

Our brand is named after our founder, George Ballantine, an ambitious Scottish grocer who also blended teas. You could say he was a bit of a trailblazer. In his late twenties, he became one of the first people to start blending aged whiskies. Why? Well, after realising that the whisky he was buying wasn’t up to scratch, he decided to do something about it.

George later shared his whisky blending expertise with his sons George II, Archibald, and Daniel, as well as his grandson, George III.

In 1895, Ballantine & Son bagged a Royal Warrant from Queen Victoria. That’s a serious thumbs-up for the company’s prestigious reputation.

The family first blended Finest in 1910. Since then, we’ve stayed true to that original recipe, and it’s still the most popular in our collection today – proof that quality stands the test of time.

Next up was yet another George, though this one wasn’t actually related to the Ballantine family. After the First World War and 13 long years of Prohibition, he inherited something incredible: barrel upon barrel of beautifully matured whisky. George Robertson took that gift and used it to create something legendary. He’s the reason we have the world’s first (and still most awarded) 17 Year Old Scotch, plus the prestigious Ballantine’s 30 Year Old.

Jack Goudy was all about carrying on the tradition of excellence, introducing a 12 Year Old Blend into the world. He was thinking ahead, too: Jack personally trained two future Master Blenders, making sure the quality of Ballantine’s would stick around for years to come. He taught them the importance of sourcing the best Scotch and maturing it in the very best American oak. Those American oak casks have kept arriving every year since, maintaining that same high quality and signature balanced flavour.

The first of Jack Goudy’s protégés was Robert Hicks. And you could see why. This man was a straight-up perfectionist when it came to Scotch. Robert worked side-by-side with Jack for an impressive 24 years before finally stepping into the Master Blender role. His claim to fame? He was renowned for having one of the best noses in the business.

And finally, meet Sandy, the current Master Blender and the second of Jack Goudy’s protégés. Sandy is, quite frankly, a legend in the whisky game, celebrating over two decades in this role and four in the industry. So you could say he’s a little bit obsessed with whisky.

In fact, at home, he even has a room dedicated to his extensive collection of some of the best Ballantine’s memorabilia out there. Think one of the original Ballantine’s Finest bottles, decanters from the 1950s and even one of the catalogues from the George Ballantine and Sons shop.

Since the start, Sandy has stayed true to our Ballantine’s values. He’s the guardian of the original Ballantine’s Finest recipe, all the way from 1910. And he hasn’t been afraid to innovate, introducing blends like Ballantine’s 7 American Barrel, Ballantine’s 10 Year Old and the playful flavour range to the family. He’s hands-on, driven and passionate as anything. We’re proud to call him our Master Blender.