Month: October 2019

Icons of Whisky 2020 – The Australian Awards

The Icons of Whisky 2020, Australia awards were held in Sydney on October 21st this year.   The Icons of Whisky is an awards program convened by Whisky Magazine and its international agents to recognise the people, places, and products that strive for excellence in the whisk(e)y industry.

Originating in the UK back in 2007, the awards have since grown to recognise the local players in many international markets, with countries/regions such as America, India, Australia, Scotland, Ireland, and Rest of the World now holding annual awards.  The winners in each category in their local awards go forward to be part of the Global Icons of Whisky Awards, held in London.

The Australian awards were a fun (if slightly boisterous) affair, with the room filled with distillers, distributors, brand ambassadors, bartenders, hospitality managers, whisky tourism and visitor attraction personnel, accounts managers, sales teams and, yes, even the occasional whisky writer.  James Buntin, a long-time whisky ambassador who’s worked with many of the brands over the years, was an appropriate MC for the evening.

Continue reading “Icons of Whisky 2020 – The Australian Awards”

Islay – Its distilleries and its whiskies

[Updated 2024] With Islay’s smoky, pungent, peaty whiskies gaining increasing popularity and traction around the globe, and with whisky tourism to Islay growing, now is a great time to come to terms with the island and its whiskies. Here’s a unique and new way of presenting Islay’s critical information….

Continue reading “Islay – Its distilleries and its whiskies”

10 fun whisky facts that are often misunderstood

New to the world of Scotch whisky?  Confused about the language or etiquette?  Did you post something about whisky online and the grammar police arrested you?  Or are you looking for the crib notes on whisky facts and some whisky trivia?

At Whisky & Wisdom, we see and hear lots of misunderstandings and malapropisms, so here’s a list of 10 Scotch whisky facts, concepts and tips to get your head around…

Continue reading “10 fun whisky facts that are often misunderstood”

Too much information?

Is there too much whisky information flying around these days?  Are we becoming overwhelmed – or distracted – by excessive information about each release that ultimately obscures our appreciation and enjoyment of the whisky?  Has whisky trivia become too trivial?

Earlier this week, I was re-writing the Whisky & Wisdom “Whisky Quiz” which I refresh and update semi-regularly.  Designed and intended as a fun way for whisky drinkers to test their knowledge, the questions certainly separate the novices from the hardcore enthusiasts.  (If you’d like to try Whisky & Wisdom’s latest Whisky Quiz and put your whisky knowledge to the test, you can try our quiz here).  My rule is that the questions have to come off the top of my head – that is, I rely on my own knowledge, and I don’t research or go looking for impossible questions.  I figure that if I know the answers, then other people must know them, too.  However, whilst conceiving the questions and answers this time around, it became very apparent to me just how much information is out there and available to today’s whisky drinker.   And I pondered:  Is there too much information? 

Continue reading “Too much information?”