Rachel Sutherland
Flavour and Sensory Development Specialist
Warner’s Distillers

*The richness I achieve comes from Nature, the source of my inspiration.” – Claude Monet
Developing a local true London Dry Gin reflecting local botanicals.Growing up in the Scottish Highlands, Rachel gained early experience working with a number of local distilleries. She completed a Master’s degree in Chemistry at Heriot-Watt University, which included a year’s placement as a Process Technologist at Diageo’s Science and Technical Centre in Menstrie, Stirling.

This work mainly focused on process optimisation of distilled spirits.Rachel’s current role is as a Flavour and Sensory Development Specialist on an InnovateUK funded Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP), working in partnership with Warner’s Distillery and the University of Nottingham. The aim of this research is to develop a deeper understanding of the interactions between botanical ingredients in the distilling and post-distillation processes to improve quality, drive new product development and promote consumer engagement for increased sales.Rachel is currently undertaking a postgraduate qualification in Sensory Science at the University of Nottingham as well as WSET qualifications. Rachel was recently awarded the IWSC Award for Emerging Talent in the Spirits Industry 2021.