Raymond is now a Single Malt Whisky Expert

Raymond Fitzsimmons, Assistant Restaurant Manager, Cameron House Hotel
Drinks Scholarship 2019
Single Malt Diploma - Edinburgh Whisky Academy

I am passionate about working in hospitality, and love it at Cameron House Hotel.  When I applied for this scholarship I was F&B Supervisor, and as my area of expertise was beverage service I applied for the Drinks Scholarship.  I am always looking for ways to improve and hone my skills, and wanted to know more about whisky. It’s Scotland’s national drink, and I wanted the expertise to talk knowledgeably about it and make recommendations to our guests.

I was delighted to get to do the Single Malt Diploma with Edinburgh Whisky Academy, as this course not only gave me an excellent understanding in whisky development, production and flavour, but it’s SQA accredited so it also gave me a recognised qualification.

It was a real highlight for me meeting others from the industry and having discussions about whisky and hearing the differing opinions.  It was a great group of people, a diverse group, it’s amazing to see how many different jobs there are in the industry from microbiologist to sales.  We got to learn from each other, as well as from the tutor!

The course was well developed having been written and delivered by whisky specialists, so we got the benefit of their extensive experience, insights and judgement.  Vic our tutor was amazing, easy to follow and understand. We were also taught how to ‘nose’ a whisky and how to describe it in detail, and the all-important skill of conducting a tasting session.

This course will improve my whisky service and in turn the guest experience I can provide, which is great for both me and the hotel!  Since applying for the scholarship I have been promoted to Assistant Restaurant Manager, and I will be passing on what I have learned to my colleagues and organising a training session to help increase our whisky sales as a team, and encourage them to educate our guests.

It was a great experience that I would highly recommend to anyone working in the drinks industry in Scotland.  My long term career goal is to be a General Manager of a 5 star hotel or resort, and I believe that education and experiences such as this scholarship opportunity are the key to progression in this industry, and play a role in bringing fresh ideas to a company.

Thanks to Ian and Kirsty at Edinburgh Whisky Academy for this fantastic knowledge that I know I will use for many years to come!

Huge thanks to Edinburgh Whisky Academy for providing HIT Scotland with scholarship places on their Single Malt Diploma, and their Gin Diploma. Apply for a Drinks Scholarship in the Scholarships section.

For more information about EWA visit their website at www.edinburghwhiskyacademy.com