Johnnie Walker – it’s the world’s biggest selling blended Scotch whisky. Is it unreasonable to assume that every whisky drinker has, at some stage or another, notched up a JW on their list of conquests?
For so many years, Johnnie Walker’s iconic Red Label and Black Label expressions were staples in nearly every bar and whisky drinker’s cupboard. Gold Label and Blue Label came along, also eventually joined by Green Label.
With interest in the category booming, Johnnie Walker has continued to innovate and expand, developing and releasing an impressive range of limited editions, or adding to the core range. There are now multiple variations in the Green Label range; ditto the Black Label; and the old Gold Label evolved into two new expressions, the Gold Label Reserve (a no-age-statement), and the 18yo (which was badged as Platinum Label for a few years). Needless to say, the striding man is never standing still. And speaking of a long stride….
What makes a whisky a Christmas whisky? Is it simply a whisky you receive as a gift for Christmas? Is it a whisky that comes packaged in traditional Christmas colours, e.g. red, green, and white? Or is it a whisky that smells and tastes like Christmas? (Which begs the question: What does Christmas actually taste like?)
Need a whisky for Christmas? Once upon a time, whisky was whisky, and Santa wasn’t too discerning when it came to what special dram you left out for him on Christmas Eve. But as for us consumers? Well, Christmas = Christmas pudding, and that means dried fruits, raisins, dates, boozy prunes, butterscotch sauce, toffee, cherries, currants, cloves, cinnamon, and spices. And THAT, my friends, means a Christmas dram has to be sherried!
Here are five sensational sherry-matured whiskies that will fit the bill this Christmas. Four are regularly and widely available; one is an Australia-only exclusive….
You can never accuse Glenmorangie of standing still. In fact, they remain – consistently – one of the more innovative distilleries in Scotland, always putting out something new that presents their prized spirit in a new and interesting light. The new release, A Tale of Cake, is further evidence.
It’s one of the reasons why the distillery has such appeal. Their core range of The Original (a 10yo), the extra-matured releases (Lasanta, Quinta Ruban, and Nectar d’Or), and the 18yo are all hard-hitters and right up there in the quality stakes, contradicting anyone who believes the mass-production whiskies can’t be any good. But, never resting on their laurels, Glenmorangie entertains its fans by regularly putting out limited release or special project editions that tweak the character of the spirit and showcase the whisky’s DNA in a different light.
The Private Edition range was one such avenue for these special releases, although this came to an end with 2019’s Allta. Stepping into the void towards the end of 2020 is the aptly named, A tale of cake”.
The 2021 Malt Whisky Yearbook was released this month, garnering due and appropriate attention around the world. It’s worth looking into this remarkable publication….
It’s a question often asked: Which is the most beautiful distillery in Scotland? But if beauty is in the eye of the beholder, how does one assemble a definitive list of Scotland’s most beautiful distilleries that adequately captures all the subjectivity from amongst the whisky community? And when it comes to distilleries – which are nothing more than factories to produce alcohol – what metrics do we use to define beauty? Is it architectural flair? Aesthetic lines and symmetry? And how do we compare architectural and construction fashions across timelines? Many would suggest that the classic, quaint, stone-built distilleries of the Victorian era have a romantic advantage, but purists are correct to assert there is beauty in the functional architecture of modern behemoths such as Roseisle or Dalmunach.
There are further complexities: How much does the surrounding environment impact our assessment of a distillery’s beauty? For example, Lagavulin is, in reality, just a clump of relatively plain, white-washed buildings nestled together. However, put them in a coastal location on the water, add some colour from the local vegetation, and throw in the ruins of a medieval castle nearby for good measure, and you have one extremely beautiful distillery.
A further difficulty arises when you look at the many distilleries that have been bastardised over the years with unsympathetic expansions, often resulting in clashing, jarring visuals. There are many such examples that mix their original old-world Victorian charm with 1960’s modernism or 1970’s brutalism.
Following a poll that Whisky & Wisdom ran on Twitter a few weeks ago to gauge public opinion, we offer you – in no particular order – the following list of Scotland’s most beautiful distilleries:
Highwayman – A man on a horse, carrying a gun, who holds up and robs travellers on public roads. Highwayman Whisky – an altogether different beast, as we shall see…
The “next wave” of Australian craft distilleries is washing across the nation at present, with the last six months seeing a large number of new names bring their debut releases to the market. Most of those distilleries have taken the “traditional” route by setting up, distilling, and waiting patiently for their spirit to mature. Others, as Whisky & Wisdom has written about previously, have adopted the strategy of purchasing spirit distilled elsewhere and then selling it under their own brand/label to establish their name whilst they wait for their own distilled spirit to mature. They effectively operate as independent bottlers, until such time as the spirit they’ve made themselves is ready to launch.
Highwayman is one such distillery and operation. Effectively established in 2018 by Dan Woolley, Highwayman is based in Byron Bay, adding to the rapidly growing number of distilleries in New South Wales. Dan’s name is known to most Australian whisky enthusiasts, having worked tirelessly for many years as the brand ambassador for the Beam/Suntory portfolio in Australia, most notably with Laphroaig. What many people weren’t aware of is that, during this time, Woolley would spend his holidays and time off working voluntarily at numerous distilleries in Scotland, the USA, Japan, and Australia, learning the art and craft of distillation. Highwayman is thus the realisation of a long-term dream, in more ways than one.
When new businesses are founded and launched, there are numerous financial and business models that help get the product to market. There might be schemes to raise capital; funds assigned to support marketing and promotion; and then comes the down-and-dirty process of actually selling the goods. It’s obviously a very diverse and varied minefield to tread. If you’re wondering how to start a new whisky brand, or even how to start a new whisky distillery, the minefield is particularly tricky to navigate…
The whisky industry is an example of a sector where that diversity and variation is most evident: There are brands and businesses that go large scale and are backed by investors who put up millions of pounds/dollars, and there are – quite genuinely – “mums and dads” businesses that are launched off little more than sweat and elbow grease in combination with passion to create a craft, artisan product. And, in more recent times, there are distilleries that get established off the back of crowdfunding or barrel investment schemes – with mixed degrees of success.
William Grant and his wife. Were the challenges of establishing a whisky distillery and brand much different in 1887 to today?
A question often pondered is whether or not the process of getting a whisky business off the ground is easier or harder than it was in the past? There’s a multitude of different factors and considerations. William Grant, together with his family, spent over a year physically building Glenfiddich with his bare hands and started distilling on Christmas Day in 1887 to establish his own brand. In contrast, if you’re armed with a website, a social media account, and access to some spirit distilled at Cooley, it seems you can quite easily launch an Irish whiskey brand overnight – complete with an impressive backstory!
In the harder basket, distilleries setting up today have planning and environmental controls that their predecessors didn’t have to worry about. Council and municipal applications and approvals can take years to get through, and the days of casually discharging distillery effluent and by-products back into the river downstream are long behind us.
In the easier basket, as we’ve seen already, the internet and social media marketing means you can broadcast and promote your brand to a wider audience than ever for relatively little money. Online sales via your own website mean you don’t even have to fight anymore with wholesalers or distributors to get your product on to the shelves of retail liquor outlets. The days of Tommy Dewar hopping on a ship and spending months sailing around the globe to get sales are also well and truly behind us.
Let’s look at a few distilleries and brands from around the world that have forged very different steps in very different landscapes to see how the process unfolded….
Since the Australian whisky industry’s re-birth 30-odd years ago, there have been a number of specific markers or events that have indicated the industry is taking steps forward and leaving its fledgling status behind. Like an adolescent transitioning to adulthood, not every step is glamorous; there will be a few missteps along the way; but you’ve got to take those steps to learn and develop.
As the number of fledgling whisky distilleries around Australia grows, an increasing number are now starting to release their whisky and bring it to market. In fact, as at August 2020, the number of distilleries selling their legal, matured whisky is apparently 48!
What is increasingly exciting, at least in the eyes of this observer, is seeing the number of mainland distilleries establish themselves in the various states. Our industry has never (yet) been large enough, sustained enough, or consistent enough for concepts such as regionality or terroir to be considered. It would be interesting if Victorian distilleries had a certain, common style that was unique and identifiably distinct from, say, WA or NSW – but perhaps that’s just a romantic notion tethered to the sentimentality of a Scotch fan who still appreciates a Lowlander being distinct from a Speysider and an Islay….
With that as a backdrop, Aussie whisky fans have rejoiced in seeing a number of distilleries establish themselves in Victoria. For so long the sole domain of Bakery Hill, there are now other players in the state, and one such player planting an increasingly visible foothold is Chief’s Son.
