Whisky 'supertaster' unveiled as guest speaker at Edinburgh business networking club

Megan Brown, director of the independent bottler and whisky blending company Woodrow’s of Edinburgh, is due to appear at the Love Your Business event this Thursday, June 27 at the Black Ivy Hotel in Bruntsfield.

Brown founded Woodrow’s alongside her partner Woody Tan in 2016, initially as a trading company, Eastlin Alba, to export Scottish beverages worldwide. Over time, the business began to focus more on whisky which led to the decision to launch their own brand, Woodrow’s of Edinburgh, in 2022. The firm has now released 25 single malt whiskies.

At the event, Brown will be talking about the launch and growth of the business, including learnings around building the brand, collaborations, accolades, which include receiving a bronze award at the Scotch Whisky Awards, and her “supertasting” whisky abilities.

She said: “I'm really excited to be the speaker at this month’s Love Your Business networking event and share my story. I’ve been to the event before and it’s a great venue to meet fellow business owners and hear unique entrepreneurial stories.”

The networking club has welcomed more than 4,000 attendees since it was launched in 2018 by Michelle Brown, of the eponymous PR agency, which marks its tenth anniversary this year, and some 200 guest speakers have taken part. These include eco-entrepreneur and founder of PulpWorks, Paul Tasner, from California; Marie Owen, founder of LS Productions; Alice Thompson, co-founder of Social Bite; rugby legend Scott Hastings; Mike Welsh, chief executive of Tirebuyer.com; and Chris van der Kuyl, chairman and co-founder of games developer 4J Studios.

The aim of the networking club is to help start-ups and growth businesses to share referrals, contacts, ideas and collaborate, and also to support a different charity every year who receive a percentage of ticket sales and marketing support. This year Love Your Business has partnered with Carers of East Lothian, CoEL, which was founded 26 years ago to provide much-needed support for people who are caring for someone.

Previous charities include Make 2nds Count, Support in Mind Scotland, Epilepsy Scotland, Invisible Cities and last year, Fighting Against Cancer Edinburgh.

Michelle Brown said: “I’m delighted to be interviewing the ‘whisky supertaster’ and founder of Woodrow’s of Edinburgh, Megan Brown, at this month’s Love Your Business event, where she will be sharing her story of setting up the business, including major changes along the way, awards and challenges, and her impressive skills as a whisky supertaster.”