If your social media feeds are anything like mine, then whether you’re scrolling through Instagram, Facebook, X, or TikTok, you’re invariably alerted to the many new whisky releases that come out each month. Either a brand’s official channel will announce a new product, or someone you’re connected to will like or comment on that post, and it then turns up in your feed. It’s a convenient, albeit distracting way to stay on top of the endless new whisky releases and expressions that keep appearing. But as you see some of the more intriguing, obscure, and fancy releases arriving on the market – particularly as they hit you in rapid-fire succession – you can’t help but feel that some whisky brands are jumping the shark.
Jumping the shark? It’s an idiom that has its roots back in the 1970’s American television sitcom, Happy Days, although the saying itself was coined a few years later after the show had finished its run. Facing falling ratings, the producers of the show came up with increasingly far-fetched ideas to try and attract/maintain viewers – culminating in an episode where the show’s writers concocted a thin storyline that saw The Fonz jump over a shark whilst waterskiing. It was the television equivalent of clickbait and a weak grab for attention. In modern parlance, one official definition puts it this way: “The idiom ‘jumping the shark’ or ‘to jump the shark’ is a term that is used to argue that a creative work or entity has reached a point in which it has exhausted its core intent and is introducing new ideas that are discordant with, or an extreme exaggeration of, its original purpose.”
So are whisky brands jumping the shark? I contemplated this recently when my social media feed alerted me to a new release of Big Peat. This particular expression of Big Peat was finished in white port casks. Now white port casks aren’t exactly the most prominent variety of fortified wine casks used to finish whisky, and whether or not it has particular merit is something only your tastebuds can confirm. But my issue with this – and tying back to our definition of what it means to jump the shark – is does Big Peat need to be finished in white port casks? Is this something the market was genuinely salivating for, or – by choosing an exotic, rarely-seen cask type – is the brand stretching and over-reaching in an attempt to grab our attention?
I do not mean to single out Big Peat or even be singularly critical of the brand. Big Peat is not alone in this caper, but some brand-specific context here might help….
Big Peat was launched in 2009 by independent bottler, Douglas Laing. In the context of what has happened since in the world of Scotch whisky over the last 15 years, anything that occurred back in 2009 may arguably now be considered ancient history, but it’s worth understanding the landscape in 2009. In the peated whisky category, there were certainly fewer brands and expressions available. Lagavulin 16yo and Laphroaig 10yo ruled the roost at that time. It was before the multitude of Laphroaig sub-expressions (Lore, Select, Legacy, Triple Wood, Four Oak, etc); before Lagavulin 8yo; before Kilchoman had gathered a fan base; and before the endless procession of Ardbeg variants. Big Peat came along at a time when interest in peated/Islay whisky was rapidly growing and, in some markets, it filled a much-needed gap. Both Lagavulin and Laphroaig had gaps in their inventory due to interruptions in their productions 10-16 years previously, and some markets were on tight allocations or the brands even went missing for a period. (Who remembers the dreadful Lagavulin then Laphroaig droughts that occurred consecutively in many markets around the world?)
Big Peat thus made a splash. It was peaty, it was affordable, and it was available. It was also alluring, with the marketing guff at the time telling us that it contained malt whisky from Bowmore, Ardbeg, and Port Ellen! (Do current batches of Big Peat still contain some Port Ellen? The producer’s website claims this is the case…which means every bottle of regular Big Peat retailing for £34 contains whisky that is at least 41 years old, given Port Ellen closed…um…the first time….in 1983). It added an impressive string to Douglas Laing’s bow at a time when their Old Malt Cask and Provenance lines were amongst the more prominent independent bottlings going around.
But times change. Lagavulin and Laphroaig now have multiple expressions in their portfolio; Port Charlotte / Octomore came along; Kilchoman goes from strength to strength; Bunnahabhain now has peated expressions in its core range; the other Islay distilleries are now more prominent; and several mainland distilleries got in on the peated action (Benromach, Benriach, Ardmore, AnCnoc all being good examples). Big Peat now finds itself in an increasingly crowded space. Little wonder the brand now needs to turn to exotic wine cask finishes to try and grab our attention. In fact, there are currently 11 different expressions of Big Peat being showcased on Douglas Laing’s website.
I re-iterate: Big Peat is not alone here. Ardbeg arguably jumped the shark years ago, and continues to each subsequent year with limited-edition releases that strive more and more into far-fetched backstories, imagery, and marketing collateral that are a long way away from the simple (and brilliant) 10yo that we all adore. (The most recent super-premium expression of Ardbeg, The Abyss, is being marketed on the basis of it coming with a once-off illustrated comic!) Even in the blended whisky stakes, Johnnie Walker went down the route a few years back, releasing a continual series of new product lines to grab the limelight for their various labels. Just how many different variants of Blue Label and Green Label are there now?
The overall issue here is deep-rooted and, ultimately, it’s consumerism. It seems whisky drinkers get bored all too easily. No longer content to simply stick to three or four staples on our shelves at home, we’re always looking for the next new, shiny release that – supposedly – forges new ground. Is there such a thing as a humble, classic Speyside 12yo anymore? Even Glenlivet 12yo has opted to display a bit more plumage by adding the near-meaningless words “Double Oak” to its flagship expression. I posit that nothing has changed in the cask regimen used to create the Glenlivet 12yo in the last three decades, but it now somehow feels that its label is bereft of appeal if it can’t sound more exotic than it actually is.
There’s possibly also another reason for whisky brands jumping the shark. The malt distilleries went into overdrive in the period 2011-2016 with many distilleries undertaking expansion plans and ramping up production. It was driven chiefly by expectations of growing markets (particularly India, Russia, and China) and forecasts of growing demand. However, not all of that played out as anticipated. In addition to those markets not opening up as much as hoped for, the industry has also recently faced increasing competition from other spirits categories, and it is facing falling sales in many markets where inflation and cost-of-living expenses are cutting into drinkers’ discretionary spend. There have been recent years where global sales of Scotch whisky have increased in value, but not necessary in volume.
What we’re angling at here is that some companies are presumably finding themselves left with excess stock that needs to be bottled and to find a home. No one is brave enough (yet) to suggest we’ll see a repeat of the 1980’s ‘whisky loch’, but if a whisky company’s sales don’t meet the forecasts that were made 5-10 years earlier, then you have to come up with some new and creative ways to move your stock. Finishing your whisky in exotic, rarely-seen wine casks that grab our attention is certainly one strategy, as are weird names, colourful labels, fetching backstories, accompanying comics, and linked promotions. Whether they actually grab our tastebuds or not is another matter. Regardless, don’t be surprised if your local liquor retailer is soon spruiking the newly-arrived Glen Bagpipe ‘Shark-Jumper’ release. No age statement, of course.
Cheers,
AD
PS….got any thoughts on this? Add them in the comments section below….
I attended my first wine fair a fortnight ago and coincidentally made a beeline for a white port fortified offering have seen its cask used with the occasional whisky of late 🥃
Another interesting article Andrew. Thanks. As the importer of Douglas Laing I have 11 expressions of Big Peat on my shelf and I agree that sometimes it seems to get ridiculous. (There are many more that I dont bring in). If only there was a way I could extract the Port Ellen I would be on a winner. I am dying to crack the 33yo Big Peat finished in Cognac and Sherry barrels. They also do special bottlings for charity purposes (see the RAF expression).
I guess that if customers dont want them they wont buy them. That would feed back to the importer/maker and then that will affect release decisions. There is a very small market for the Blended Malt category.
Whisky prices have softened considerably over the last few years in Australia. When you see Lagavulin 8 back to around $100, you know the bubble has burst, or at least sprung a leak. Ditto when Big Peat Christmas edition 2019 is still on sale, at a discount. I’ve built up the cellar significantly lately taking advantage of sale prices, but I’m starting to wonder if I should have waited for them to come down even more.
Was the Great Gin Bubble a precursor to a Whisky Crash? Who knows. At my age I’ll be delighted if the deluge of whiskeys from other countries means I can pack a few hundred bottles of Scotch away at bargain prices. Thoughts and prayers to the disappointed shareholders, of course.
“Shark jumping” might be called re-branding/innovation in marketing terms. I think it’s great that these distilleries are coming up with new creative ways to sell us something new and with a twist. Albeit risky and the trend of the whisky train is here
I am going to posit that here, whisk(e)y is indeed, jumping the shark. Much as craft breweries a few years ago there is an over supply of new and exciting expressions. The saviors will be the people who know what they like and as before, keep sipping it.
As a recreational whisky enjoyer it’s certainly a little harder to keep up with what’s what these days. In some ways I do appreciate the wider choices, experimental processes, and the opportunities to learn what this means for the spirit itself.. maybe that’s the researcher in me coming through.
Premiumisation, price-taggery and scarcity/exclusivity not so much though! I suppose it makes little difference to those with greater spending power, and best of luck to them.
At this point I tend to check several sources and take an almost scientific level of scrutiny to figure out if the whisky is likely to be a win for my collection, before handing over my hard-earned. 🙂
Excellent article. It is certainly a marketing strategy (trap?) to attract our attention and make us believe that we cannot help but try this new expression…
Great article. I love Ardbeg (especially single casks and the “Twenty Xs” (and the stalwarts Ten, Uigedail, Corryvreckan) but I have commented to friends that the numbers of new hyped expressions with just silly stories coming from Ardbeg is too hard to follow and bordering on ridiculous. Have I missed buying any of them? No, but I will. I did like the Spectacular a lot so my ‘golf instinct’ kicks in – i.e., it only takes one good shot during a round to coax me in to coming back and playing again tomorrow 🙂 But, seriously, I’m done with all the ‘shark jumping’ bottlings they are doing.
Let’s be honest – big peat getting aboard the ‘innovation’ train is merely Douglas Laing’s attempt to stay relevant in an entire category that lost the plot a while ago. (As you rightly say) It would be a shame for smaller (indie?) players like Douglas Laing to get the blame for what is playing out when the whole mess was orchestrated by the industry leaders through the creation of the Scotch single malt category, it’s faux prestige vs other categories and spirit types. If anything – big pete doing white port should/could be applauded for offering the everyman/ normal whisky enthusiast an opportunity to try a different take on a familiar spirit character (islay) in that somewhat novel finish. If it was another Islay producer it’d be 2x the price or part of some unobtainable feis isle release announcement. My take on this example is don’t hate the player… hate those that invented the game. The big players have become addicted to the lure of endless premiumisation. Greed has prevailed over integrity and become the driving force for the industry over the past 20 years. The only sad thing about a rebalancing or market collapse is that those that created the issue will be those that are best equipped to survive it, which is not great news for drinkers as those smaller players who seek to actually serve whisky drinks and not expoit them, won’t be able to weather the storm.
Interesting article – well written…
There is ,however , a glaringly obvious reason for a Whisky producer to produce different expression cask types, and it’s not jumping the shark. More like spotting the shark coming and swimming on a different beach.
In 2024, With Whisk(e)y now being a truly globally produced product, there are now distilleries in Germany, France, Italy, Israel, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, India, Canada, Kenya, England, Wales and many many more, Poland are even producing barrel aged Artisanal Vodka. and with the massive rise in Tequila and Rum, now we even have American Single Malt… the obvious question I ask myself is… where are the barrels coming from?
There are distillery’s in China being built on an industrial scale never been seen before, with one distillery being the size of an airport, having 100 stills on site.
Everything I’ve just mentioned above, uses Ex Bourbon casks for maturation, we are now living in a world where even large independent producers like Douglas Laing will have to fight for its share of ex Bourbon Casks with everyone else.
Bruichladdich pioneered the use of Wine cask maturation, largely due to a need to pivot because Sherry casks are rare and expensive. What they produced then was heralded as jumping the shark 20+ years ago and is now an industry norm.
This is the exact same. Yes, there will be an element of “this is shiny and new” but actually it boils down to ex bourbon casks becoming the new Sherry casks, rare and hard to find good ones.
The Scottish Whisky Association put distillers in a Box by only allowing Oak maturation – so the distillers got creative in the confines of that box.
The industry will continue to pivot, and the liquid tastes fantastic! 🥃👍
Thanks, Michael – great observations and comments there, and I appreciate you’re coming from the position of someone who’s ear is closer to the ground than most. Please convey my regards to Mr Dundas!