Kevin O’Gorman appointed Midleton’s Master Distiller
As Master Distiller, Kevin O’Gorman has an evolved role which sees him lead both distillation and maturation at Irish Distillers.
Kevin has taken on one of the most coveted positions in world whiskey and he takes on the role from Brian Nation who’d served as Master Distiller there since 2013. Brian has taken on the role of Master Distiller at a US startup distillery.
As Master Distiller, Kevin has an evolved role which sees him lead both distillation and maturation at Irish Distillers. As part of his new role he’ll be responsible for ensuring the quality of all new pot and grain distillates produced at Midleton while supporting future innovation.
A Cork native, Kevin is a Technology graduate from The University of Limerick and holds a Diploma in Distilling from the Institute of Brewing and Distilling. He’s a Master Craftsman, having started his career in Midleton in 1998 working as a distiller under the tutelage of Master Distiller Emeritus Barry Crockett. From there he moved to Maturation where he honed his skills under the then Master of Maturation Brendan Monks before assuming the role of Master of Maturation on Brendan’s retirement in 2007.
Kevin successfully continued the ongoing innovation in maturation while working with the team in facilitating spirit options for new brands like Method and Madness and a number of brand extensions. In his previous role, Kevin spent much of his time travelling the globe sourcing casks from world-renowned cooperages while overseeing the full maturation process across the portfolio.
Katherine Condon has been made Distiller at Midleton Distillery having joined Irish Distillers in 2014 as part of the Graduate Distiller Programme.
Irish Distillers has also appointed Katherine Condon as Distiller at Midleton Distillery. Katherine reports to Kevin, with responsibility for the production process from brewing to distillation. Tasting all distillates daily, Katherine oversees the quality of all new pot and grain distillates produced at Midleton to ensure the correct balance of flavours are present before being matured and bottled.
Chemical Engineer Katherine joined Irish Distillers in 2014 as part of the Graduate Distiller Programme. On successful completion of the programme Katherine was appointed Distiller at the Micro Distillery in Midleton, Irish Distillers’ hub for innovation and experimentation with new distillate styles. From there she moved to the main distillery as a Process Technologist and most recently, Production Supervisor. During her time with Irish Distillers Katherine has played a vital role in the production of many new innovations including the Method and Madness range.
Katherine also holds a Diploma in Distilling from the Institute of Brewing and Distilling and won ‘The Worshipful Company of Distillers Award’ in 2018 and 2019 for ‘outstanding achievement’ by the Institute of Brewing and Distilling.
