William Grants and Sons crowned distiller of the year

Press release issued 1st October 2008

Top accolade rounds off remarkable evening of award wins

Independent, family-owned distiller William Grant & Sons last night scooped the
prestigious International Spirits Challenge Distiller of the Year title at Claridges
Hotel, London. The Company dominated proceedings with a series of awards
including:

• The Excellence in Craftsmanship award for Glenfiddich.
• The single malt Trophy for Glenfiddich 40 Year Old.
• A special presentation to Dennis McBain, the distiller's coppersmith who celebrated 50 years with the Company on Monday.
• Seven gold, 12 silver and nine bronze medal awards for the quality of its premium spirits in a variety of categories

Commenting on the remarkable achievements, William Grant & Sons Master
Blender and Malt Master David Stewart, said: "Winning the ISC Distiller of the Year
title for the third time in four years is a phenomenal achievement and has taken us
by complete surprise. With Glenfiddich also picking up the major awards for the
quality of its range of single malts, we had a good work-out going up and down
the steps to the stage.

"For all the awards we won though, perhaps the most satisfying part of the
evening was seeing our coppersmith Dennis McBain receive a standing ovation
from everyone in the industry for the 50 years of service he has given to his craft."
He added.

With Glenfiddich winning more gold medals than any other distiller for the quality
of its single malt, it walked off with the inaugural Excellence in Craftsmanship
award. The £1,000 a bottle Glenfiddich 40 Year Old also cemented its reputation
as the finest single malt on the market by collecting the overall Trophy award.