'I took a chance on the whisky industry and I haven't looked back'

‘I took a chance on the whisky industry and I haven’t looked back’

Zoey Darnbrough took up a role at Annandale Distillery after completing her studies.

Zoey Darnbrough readily admits that, only a few years ago, she did not even realise there was a whisky distillery close to her hometown in southern Scotland.

Yet that has not prevented her from climbing quickly from tour guide to group tourism and events co-ordinator at the site near Annan.

After leaving school, she went to Stirling to study heritage and tourism, but unlike many of her contemporaries, she returned to Dumfries and Galloway for work.

Now, she hopes to help shift attitudes towards the whisky world “one woman at a time”.

The 26-year-old, who went to St Joseph’s College in Dumfries, was recently put forward for “rising star” recognition at the South of Scotland Thistle Awards.

Zoey said her path had not been easy, as she did not achieve the exam results she had wanted at school, and so she spent time working in the kitchens at Dumfries Infirmary.

But when a position became available at Annandale Distillery, she seized the opportunity.

She said: “My first thought was - there’s a distillery in Annan? And my second thought was - whisky?

“I thought I’d give it a chance and see what it was like because there’s a lot of heritage when it comes to whisky.

“And I’ve now been here three-and-a-half years and I’ve not looked back.”

What does she believe the area offers that others her age may overlook?

One point she raised was the comparatively lower cost of property than in cities.

Zoey also feels the area has plenty to be proud of and is glad to have come back after university.

“The south of Scotland has so much heritage and it is a passion of mine,” she said.

“So I would naturally like to be somewhere where there’s a lot of heritage and where I can kind of grow as an individual.”

However, she agrees that much more could be done to prevent young people from moving away.

“I would like to think we could go back to the local schools across the region and try and explain that there are other careers out there including in heritage and tourism,” she said.

Zoey would also like to see the area promoted more effectively.

“We’ve got so much to offer in terms of castles, in terms of scenery, in terms of attractions, accommodation, it’s so vast,” she said.

“I always like to say that we’ve got everything that the Highlands have, but just in a much quieter area.

“But we’re going to use that quietness to our strength.”

She has certainly done that in her own career in the whisky industry - despite some people assuming she may not have the knowledge of older, male counterparts.

“It has been tricky, I’m not going to lie,” she said. “But I always think that if you prepare yourself well, those types of questions cannot faze you.

“I’ve been so fortunate that all my experiences have been mostly pleasant and so I have not really felt it, but I do understand the struggles that other people face.

“We just need to start changing people’s opinions one woman at a time.”

Zoey is content to keep doing that from Dumfries and Galloway for the foreseeable future.

“I’m only beginning to stick my teeth into the south of Scotland,” she said. “So to leave, it would have to be a fairly big jump.”