Est. 2025
Glasgow, Scotland
The Bottle Merchants are three friends who decided to take a risk and jump into the wonderfully abstract world of whisky bottling.
It all started with a “Whisky Wednesday”. The night the three of them got together for a general catch-up at The Wee Arnott Inn. Soon the catch-up became a business meeting that ended with an excited handshake. A few Whisky Wednesdays later, we had a name and an idea.
THE BOTTLE MERCHANTS WAS BORN
Meet the Team
John “Doc” Docherty
The comedian of the gang and general Mr Sensible. John has spent his career in the shipyards and has now decided to branch out into business ownership.
Doc – “‘Will we still get to go on holiday?’ That’s what my kids said when I told them I was investing some money in this business idea. I told them if a friend of 30 years asks you to be a part of their vision and dream, if you can do it, then you do it . ‘OK daddy but will we still get to go on holiday?’ So I’ll try to explain to them from Lanzorote that you always back your friends.”
Daniel “Danny” Keenan
Danny has enjoyed a long career as a Boat Master on the Clyde.
He was introduced to Single Malts as a young man by his Dad after ordering a Jack & Coke in The Mashtun in Aberlour. As the bar fell silent & his Dad looked mortified, he quickly accepted his first nip of Dalwhinnie and he’s never looked back.
“The Bottle Merchants is a blend of friendship and whisky but, this time, we are extending the invite to new friends to enjoy with us”.
Bryan “Dougs” Arnott
Bryan has spent his career in the food and drink industry specialising in the whisky industry since 2019. He floated the idea of the three starting a business to boost everyones pension. Now you’re reading this, so I suppose it worked.
Bryan – ” I’d always fancied the idea of having my own business and I really want to leave my family something they and I can be proud of so I asked Doc and Danny if they’d be interested in trying it alongside our day jobs. To my surprise they said yes and here we are.”
Linda “Lou” McKenzie Arnott
Linda is a care home manager by day and guardian of the Merchants by night which means she’s a real life superhero. She has an affinity for flamingos and giraffes and if you’ve not guessed by the name, she also looks after Bryan for her sins.
Linda – “My great-grandparents came from the Scottish Highlands, and the phrase “Slàinte Mhath” echoed through my childhood. Although Gaelic is no longer spoken in our family, the values and traditions they carried have always stayed with me. Supporting the team in their dream of bottling Uisge Beatha is more than a project — it’s a way of keeping that heritage alive and sharing it with others.