In The City: Keepers of the Quaich Gala
Keepers of the Quaich USA Gala Features Outlander Star Sam Heughan
Keepers of the Quaich USA Chapter (KOTQUSA.org), the American arm of the Blair Castle-headquartered Scotch whisky society, announced that Outlander star, philanthropist and founder of The Sassenach Scotch whisky, Sam Heughan, was the keynote speaker for the Gala at a private members club in Manhattan on October 4, 2023.
The Gala celebrated Scottish culture and heritage and showcased some of the U.S. market’s newest and rarest bottles of Scotch Whisky at a pre-dinner reception for 200 prominent opinion leaders, A-list media and top executives from leading suppliers, distributors, and retailers. Many of the attendees were “Keepers” who have been inducted into the society with pomp and circumstance by the parent organization at Blair Castle in the Scottish Highlands.
Heughan, as the Guest of Honor, took part in the important haggis ceremony, as well as leading a toast with his new award-winning whisky, The Sassenach, which he donated for the evening.
“Over the years, as I traveled, lived and worked abroad, I found myself incredibly homesick. One Christmas holiday, I vividly remember ordering a single malt, from the top shelf of my local London bar,” recalled Heughan, the star of the long-running TV series about Scottish history. “Instantly, the smell took me back to Scotland. Upon tasting, I had such a profound feeling of ‘home’… transported back to the hills and glens of Scotland.”
Keeping Scottish tradition alive, the evening’s first toast featured the presentation of a Scottish Quaich, the two handled drinking vessel that dates back to the 16th century. The Quaich is also known as the ‘Cup of Friendship,’ and has been used for centuries to welcome friends, family, and visitors at gatherings and celebrate the communal drinking of whisky.
“Scottish culture is a cornerstone of Scotch whisky and we are delighted to keep the storied traditions alive with the annual Keepers of the Quaich USA events,” said Chapter CoChair and Diageo’s Chief Marketing Officer Ed Pilkington. “The USA is the most important market for Scotch and there has always been an unwavering relationship and appreciation between Scotland and the USA, which we are honored to have the opportunity to uphold.”
The evening benefitted the Entrepreneurial Scotland Foundation, a charity that specializes in creating scholarship opportunities in the U.S. for people currently studying in Scotland, many whom are the first in their family to go to college.
Also speaking was the top Scottish government official in the U.S., Counsellor for Scottish Affairs Chris Thomson, who discussed the importance of whisky in the US/Scotland relationship.
Notable attendees at the event included: New York Football Giants Punter, Jamie Gillan, known as the Scottish Hammer; New York Giants Placekicker Graham Gano and Sir David MacMillan, PhD, FRS, FRSE, 2021 Nobel Prize winner for Chemistry, currently at Princeton University and is from the Glasgow region.
