I always wondered how independent bottlers got hold of casks and why big brands and distilleries were so happy to sell whisky to them.

But when Finn Thomson explains how he gets the casks from the likes of Diageo, they all work together to grow whisky instead of competing.

If independent bottlers can introduce whisky drinkers to new whiskies from distilleries and brands then it helps everyone grow.

0:00 Introduction
4:00 Is Finn Thomson's Family Scotland's Oldest Whisky Family?
7:00 The First Record — James Thompson Gets Caught in 1772
12:00 How Did the Family Business Actually Work in the 1800s?
15:00 The WWII Chapter — David Thomson Captured in France
20:00 What Did Scottish Whisky Look Like Before Distilleries?
25:00 The Ben Eagles Brand — How Did It Start?
32:00 Launching Ben Eagles at Gleneagles — Did It Work?
36:00 The Golden Era of Whisky Packaging — Ceramic Eagles and Swing Tops
44:00 What Does It Mean to Be a Custodian of a Whisky Brand?
49:00 How Do You Carry a Brand Forward Without Losing Its Identity?
52:00 Why Finn Chose Expensive Packaging Over Cheaper Bottles
58:00 How Does Premium Packaging Actually Affect Sales?
1:00:00 What's Wrong With How Independent Bottlers Market Themselves?
1:04:00 How Do You Build a Brand Through Retailers Rather Than Direct Sales?
1:08:00 How Do You Balance Young and Old Releases as an Indie Bottler?
1:16:00 Does Finn's Grandfather Still Have a Say in the Business?
1:20:00 Why Do Big Companies Like Diageo Support Small Independent Bottlers?
1:24:00 The Tartan Army World Cup 2026 Bottles — What's the Story?
1:32:00 Scotland vs Brazil 1998 — The Stories Behind the Cask
1:40:00 Tasting the Tartan Army Bottlings — Glengarioch 28 Year Old
1:44:00 Why the World Cup in America Is a Big Deal for Scottish Whisky

Finn Thomson is an Independent Bottler with deep family roots in the whisky industry and history going all the way back to 1772.
Starting how own Independent Bottler business and brand was a big step, but when you hear the family history, it's almost like Finn was destined to do this.
In this episode we spoke about Finn's family whisky history and then how that transferred to him. We dived into branding and how important a bottle shape, feel and design is. We spoke about access to liquid, the casks that Finn still has from his grandfather and his new exciting project for the World Cup with the Tartan Army Whisky special releases.

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Brora whisky is like gold dust. You can find bottles of it on auctions and through retailers, but it’s very very expensive. Because it was a distillery that had been lost and demolished back in the 80s.

The distillery was closed in 1983. But Diageo decided to bring it back to life and restored the whole distillery brick by brick to ensure it looks exactly the same.

It’s been open since 2021 and offers some very exclusive and expensive tours.

Have you been to the distillery? Or have you ever tried the whisky from before it closed in 1983?

This is something that really annoys me.

When it comes whisky, everyone can drink it whatever way they want to. Ice, water, with lemonade, it’s my whisky, let me drink it how I want it.

No one wants snobbery in whisky.

The Glenfiddich bottle is iconic. The triangular design, the stag and the writing on the labels. There’s so many things to associate with the brand.

They’ve changed the branding and it’s caused a few people to question whether they like the new Glenfiddich look.

What do you think?

Regardless of the way the bottle looks, the liquid is still the same. So does it really matter?

We absolutely loved this game and it’s now a solid favourite for the pod.

Someone finds a one star whisky review online, reads it out, and everyone has to guess what the whisky was.

It’s a lot of fun and there’s some great and interesting whisky opinions in those reviews.