Whisky doctor sounds like a dram fine job
A SCOTTISH university is recruiting a doctor of whisky.
A Scottish university is looking for a doctor of whisky to develop a new yeast
The successful candidate will spend four years on PhD research to develop a new yeast that will enhance the natural flavours of whisky.
The position is being advertised by Abertay University in Dundee in conjunction with the Scotch Whisky Research Institute.
Strict guidelines dictate what can and cannot be sold as whisky, and only one type of yeast can be used – Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
The successful candidate will spend four years on PhD research
Professor Graeme Walker, of the university’s division of food and drink, said the doctorate research would focus on the study of around 20 different yeasts to see which ones could be used to enhance the natural flavours of the alcoholic drink.
He said: “The yeast is responsible for making the alcohol – and hundreds of other flavour compounds – and this creates the complex flavour and aroma of whisky and other fermented beverages.
“One idea is to look at yeast used in other drinks like the wine industry.”
One idea is to look at yeast used in other drinks like the wine industry
Prof Walker added: “Some of these are very interesting in bringing out fruity notes, produced by compounds known as esters. Whether it’s peach, apricot, banana or whatever you like, there is almost one fruit for each type of ester and these are all chemical compounds that the yeast produces.
“Perhaps some of these may have interesting applications for bringing out these flavour notes in other beverages, including spirits like whisky.”
The position is advertised by Abertay University and the Scotch Whisky Research Institute
Anyone interested in the project has until tomorrow to apply via the university’s website.
Meanwhile, whisky fans will have the chance to bid for a rare 1972 Brora Scotch whisky tomorrow. It could fetch up to £8,000, experts say.
The bottle from the long-closed Sutherland distillery goes up for sale at Bonhams in Hong Kong.
The whisky is the oldest official bottling of Brora ever to come up for sale and is the only bottle to have been drawn from the cask in which it was matured.
Anyone interested has until tomorrow to apply via the university's website
Distillery claims every whisky is poured over a naked woman
Collectors of rare malts and investors from around the world are expected to compete for it.
In a first for the whisky industry, native European oysters are being reintroduced to coastal waters around the Glenmorangie distillery at Tain in Easter Ross.
The firm said its anaerobic digestion plant represented a £5.1m investment.
Overfishing destroyed the oyster reefs of the Dornoch Firth more than a century ago.
The reintroduced oysters will purify the by-products created by the distilling of whisky.