Sukhinder Singh

The Path

The founding years of The Whisky Exchange, where Sukhinder Singh was founder and co-owner from 1999–2021, defined a business built on selection as much as scale. Over that period, he worked in a field where rarity, provenance and category shifts all mattered, and where a retailer’s point of view could shape how whisky was understood. He is now Managing Director of Elixir Distillers, with whisky still at the center of the work.

The Work Today

At Elixir Distillers, Sukhinder Singh continues in a role that keeps him close to distilling decisions and category definition. At Portintruan Distillery in Port Ellen, Islay, the project is being positioned within the peat-driven language of the island while still aiming for its own style. He says it will be the first distillery on the island to make grain whisky, a detail that marks the project out within its setting. “We want to have our own style that plays into the peated Islay character,” he says. The shift in his own position is part of the same continuity: “I’m more passionate now than ever. Previously I was learning – now I’m sharing my knowledge.”

Signature

Sukhinder's signature dishes include Port Askaig and Elements of Islay.

In Their Words “I always do so as if I was a customer. My passion is split between how good the liquid is and the joy of rare old bottles.” “I’m more passionate now than ever. Previously I was learning – now I’m sharing my knowledge.”

Acclaim

The work is marked by the roles themselves: founder and co-owner of The Whisky Exchange from 1999 to 2021, and Managing Director at Elixir Distillers. Taken together, they show a career built inside the trade, with selection, stewardship and market reading carrying as much weight as any single bottle.