Tornado. Emotional rollercoaster. Dog’s arsehole, if that is something that is okay to say.
These are the words our master distiller Leon (Lon) Bruns uses to describe 2020.
What kept Leon, Whistler Rum's master distiller, sane in 2020:
What kept him sane? We were intensely busy. There was no time to overthink or dwell on anything. The first few weeks we barely slept. This is a blessing in disguise. Otherwise it would potentially be a very depressing time. We kept busy by doing planning, renovating the tower at the distillery, and producing hand sanitiser in bulk.
What he enjoys most now that the alcohol sales ban has been suspended, is having people visit the farm again. “Seeing how people enjoy what we do, really makes 24/25-hour workdays worthwhile.”
This is what kept the rest of the Whistler Rum team standing during lockdown.
Kantoor, our rum distilling assistant words on lockdown:
“Whêk, whêk, whêk, whêk.” This is what kept our assistant distiller Kantoor Kartus Mzaka sane during lockdown. What he enjoys most about the sale of alcohol being unbanned is having his “fans” back again. What he looks forward to most for the remainder of this year, is spending time with his family at Christmas.
Trevor, the marketing dude's feelings on lockdown:
Trevor Bruns says his kids and the family kept him going during lockdown. He also did “tonnes and tonnes” of research. For most of lockdown he had his nose in books doing research about different types of rums and about producing hand sanitiser.
What he enjoys most about alcohol sales ban being suspended is the fact that they can now resume Open Days every Saturday at the distillery.
What he looks forward to most for the remainder of 2020 is a range of gift boxes we plan to roll out to several retailers and at the distillery later this year. Watch this space.
Also, the other biggest thing I look forward to for 2020 is for it to move on to 2021!
Cheers,
Trevor, Lon and Kantoor
- For enquiries about sanitiser sales, contact Leon Bruns: 079 512 6787/ leon@whistlerrum.co.za.
- We have resumed weekly Open Days at the distillery every Saturday from 11:00 – 19:00. Keep an eye on our social media channels for details: Whistler Rum (@whistlerrum); Instagram: @whistlerrum; Twitter: @Whistler_Rum
- Sales via our online have resumed. Go have a look: https://whistlerrum.co.za.
