Big, bigger, biggest

Posted on 19 October 2012 by | Leave a comment

If you thought that it was all about the motion of the…uh…potion, think again.  Size does matter.

First published in Prestige Magazine (October 2012 edition).

As it appeared.

Every year the authoritative Drinks International publishes a supplement called The Millionaires’ Club.  To the pundit this is something of a bible – and accordingly I read it religiously.  It’s a snapshot of an intensely gladiatorial arena at the end of the annual “games”, documenting the performance – measured in millions of 9l cases – of the world’s big-time spirits brands.  In order to crack the nod a brand must post minimum annual sales of that magical thousand thousand, hence the name.

You might ask yourselves why this should matter to you.  Those of us who consider ourselves to be fierce individualists would probably insist that we make choices to which we are innately suited, rather than paying any attention to what the unwashed masses are consuming.  Or in other words – when it comes to liquor – we should drink what we like rather than worry about what others are drinking.  It’s a simple fact of life however that popular preference has significant sway on our own.  We are susceptible to a large extent, like it or not, to the influence of the world around us.  There is some sense after all, unconscious or otherwise, in recognising the value of something that has been evaluated and accepted en masse.  It is the ultimate endorsement, or so I console myself when falling prey.    Furthermore there’s also an undeniable pull to the beholding of scale: elephants, monster trucks, million case vodkas, and much other such oversized phenomena all offer a certain voyeuristic fascination, especially when they’re pitted one against the other.  Millionaires then is well worth a gander.

So, what’s big and getting bigger?  What’s out there – of significance – about which we might not know?  Do we need to re-evaluate our repertoires? I was seeking out and enjoying Grey Goose a good few years ahead of most fellow South Africans, thanks to Millionaires.  Do you know that Ballantine’s Scotch whisky – which is completely under our local radar – is the world’s third best-selling whisky?  And that’s including whiskeys!  What other tricks out there might we be missing? There’s only one thing for it – here are the highlights of 2011.

A quick note first though:  Millionaires categorises a brand as either global, regional or local, depending on its prevalence.  Global brands are those with wide reach and appeal.  Local brands are limited to just a few markets, or in many cases just a single market.  These are typically value-for-money brands whose success can largely be attributed to pricing, or culturally-specific tastes.   Regional brands fall somewhere in the middle.  I think we have enough Romanoff vodkas and Wellington brandies all of our own so I’ll be focusing on global brands, with the odd passing glance at a few regional brands and at one lone local brand.

All figures quoted represent millions of cases.

Cognac

  1. Hennessy 4.93
  2. Martell 1.86
  3. Courvoisier 1.34

You should know:  Remy Martin declined to participate and did not submit any figures for 2011 – its volume for 2010 was 1.65.  Courvoisier, the smallest of the four dominant cognacs was also the fastest growing last year – adding to the previous year at a rate of 11,7%.  The Jarnac producer built this growth with the launch of a slew of age variants as well as other line extensions, notably C by Courvoisier – a bold, some are saying revolutionary, double-matured cognac with a “full-bodied, intense flavour profile”.  It is targeted it seems at the gangsta rapper brigade…and associated wannabes.  Word up.

Vodka

  1. Smirnoff 24.7
  2. Absolut 11.21
  3. Nemiroff 8.03
  4. Khortytsa 7.5
  5. Grey Goose 3.79

You should know:  Smirnoff continues to consolidate its solid position – it has for some years now been the world’s largest global brand.  Meanwhile Ciroc, the ultra-premium grape-based vodka, has crested a million cases and was last seen passing the 1.5 mark, climbing a rate of 66.7%  thanks to the efforts of megastar rapper and brand ambassador Sean “P.Diddy” Combs.  Ciroc may technically be classified as a local brand (very unusual – given its premiumness), because its volume is almost exclusively concentrated in the US, but on evidence of this performance it won’t be for very much longer.  Around the world people are also increasingly calling for Ketel One and Poliakov, two premium vodkas that have been growing steadily during the past five years.

Rum

  1.  Bacardi 19.56
  2. Captain Morgan 9.2
  3. Havana Club 3.84
  4. Cacique 1.7
  5. Appleton 1.2

You should know: Rum continues to be dominated by the mix-it, party brands.  Only Appleton, with its credible portfolio of aged rums, is giving any hint of what might be to come.

Whisky

  1. Johnnie Walker (Scotch) 18.0
  2. Jack Daniel’s (Tennessee) 10.58
  3. Ballantine’s (Scotch) 6.47
  4. Jim Beam (Bourbon) 5.86
  5. Crown Royal (Canadian) 5.0

You should know:

William Lawson’s posted incredible growth of 35,5%.  Is this the mass discovery of a formerly underappreciated brand?  There are suggestions that a pre-duty stocking in the massive French whisky market may be responsible, but time will tell.  If this is the case it’ll be corrected in next year’s figures, but it might be worth finding a bottle in the interim to see if there’s any merit to the fuss.

The introduction of flavoured “bourbons” such as Red Stag has been a big hit and largely accounts for the strong movement from Jim Beam and Wild Turkey in particular.

Jameson continues its long term surge, growing at an impressive 19,2% off an already large base.  Where though are the other Irish whiskeys?

The most monumental news however is the entry of the first single malt into the club (Glenfiddich of course).  Malt still plays a distant second fiddle to blends, but this signals a bit of a shift – in perceptions if not serious volumes yet.  Hopefully the supply can keep up.

Gin

  1. Gordon’s 4.3
  2. Seagram 2.77
  3. Beefeater 2.39
  4. Bombay Sapphire 2.32
  5. Tanqueray 2.1

You should know: Premium brands rose, whilst standard brands stayed static or sank.  The G and T set are packing their bags and setting sail for Bombay, with sales of the blue bottle leading the charge for the second year running at 7,9% up.

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Whisky on the not-so-cutting edge

Posted on 17 October 2012 by | Leave a comment

Building a better mousetrap in an industry where mice cannot be trapped

First published in Prestige Magazine (October 2012 edition)

As it appeared.

Someone recently told me that Blackberry is on its way out, eaten up by Apple and Samsung, as good as gone, kaput.  I had no idea.  It doesn’t seem like too long ago that it was the next best thing.  Admittedly I’m not the best barometer when it comes to mobile technology.  I’m currently using my wife’s hand-me-down and I always seem to be one upgrade behind everyone else.  My finger is so far from its pulse that I wouldn’t know what was happening in this market until two years later.  Regardless it can’t be disputed that change is taking place at a breakneck pace – driven by rapid innovation.  Whisky, with which I’m decidedly more familiar, offers a stark contrast by comparison.  It’s an industry in which true innovation is rare – its product has been made in largely the same way for centuries.  Here it is heritage more than anything else which is the key to success: the common thread amongst the world’s big whiskies is that they’ve all been around for a while.

Unlike the cellular phone whisky is old and deeply traditional.  Change is resisted – in many cases it is institutionally resisted.  The running gun battles – hugely entertaining by the way – between the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), the guardians of industry, and John Glaser, the most maverick whisky maker in living memory, have become almost legendary.  His company, Compass Box, named Innovator of the Year on four separate occasions by Whisky Magazine, has continually attempted to push the boundaries.  Most recently he and his team cocked a snook at the SWA with the release of their “Last Vatted Malt” – a dig at the latest regulations.   In reality though, as inventive as these guys might be within whisky’s narrow confines, a few oak staves here and few hazy blends there would hardly qualify as innovations amongst the Steve Jobs of this world (may he rest in peace).  Compass Box has prospered but I sometimes think that it’s the resultant publicity rather than the actual merits of its inventiveness that is more responsible – and this is said without casting any aspersions on the quality of the whisky, which is good, very good.

Whisky, during its long history, has of course seen a few genuinely transformative developments.    The column still paved the way for more affordable supply in greater volumes.  Blends, which today dominate the market, made whisky more acceptable and palatable to a broader spectrum of people.  More recently, the inception of “finishing”, also known as double maturation or even extra maturation, added a new diversity of flavour to the whisky repertoire by introducing exotic casks (port, rum, cognac and others) into the ageing process.  But these have been few and far between.  Today the industry is too tightly regulated to permit much more than a few Compass Box-type peculiarities.

I often wonder whether this status-quo is in our best interests as whisky lovers.  Are we not perhaps missing out?  Would it not serve the greater good to loosen the reins and see what happens?  I’m a renegade at heart so I’m always thrilled to see guys like Glaser tangling with the Establishment and giving the what-for.  The limits should to be tested, and the agendas of entrenched interests need to be kept in check.  But equally there must to be limits, otherwise this path may take us to places where we might not want to go.  Consider this eventuality: would the addition of external flavours (blasphemy!) not make for a better, or at least a worthwhile, whisky?  This is a realistic consequence of uncontrolled innovation.  The answer?  Perhaps – but would such a concoction still be whisky, the drink we’ve come to know and love?  Whisky’s identity, and indeed its value, comes from its connection to the past and from its mystery, rather than from any kind of mechanical functionality with which to be played and manipulated.   It is only whisky because five hundred years of documented history (and several hundred more lost in the mists of time) have told us that that’s how it should be made.

I attended a tasting not long ago which reinforced to me why I’m passionate about whisky rather than anything else, cellular phones included.  During the function I tasted two whiskies aged in similar Oloroso sherry casks (probably sourced from the same bodega):  the first younger (a 1992 vintage), the second significantly older (a mystery whisky).  Strangely, inexplicably, the 1992 was considerably darker and its sherry flavours more pronounced.  Furthermore the mystery whisky exhibited citrus notes – highly unusual in sherry casks.  This is the type of phenomenon – in this case the visceral, unpredictable organicity of the casks – that makes whisky so special and so enigmatic.  There may not be the potential to release a new app every few days, but whisky makers can and do build better mousetraps just by focusing on the fundamentals and leaving the rest to a time-honoured, intangible “magic”.  In its different casks, in the shape of an individual still, and in its varying terroir whisky has the power to surprise and to astound.  May the dram be with you!

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What to do at 30 000 feet

Posted on 1 October 2012 by | 1 comment

Get yourself one of those dinky bottles, take a sip, sit back and read my article in the October edition of British Airways’ High Life magazine.

As it appeared – p1.

As it appeared – p2.

May the draaam be with you!

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Win with Glenfiddich!

Posted on 27 September 2012 by | 4 comments

The excitement of Whisky Live is upon us again, and in spirit appropriate of the whisky season my friends (and yours) at Glenfiddich have put together a special surprise for all you whisky-loving readers of Words on Whisky.   Here it goes.

Win a bottle of Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky, the world’s leading single malt Scotch Whisky, in the lead up to the FNB Whisky Live Festival.

Whether you’re a first-time taster, already a passionate connoisseur, or enthusiastic to learn, see, and taste more, visit the Glenfiddich gold stand at the FNB Whisky Live Festival to nose and taste a dram of the core range of Glenfiddich 12, 15 and 18 Year Old under the expert guidance of the Glenfiddich Brand Ambassador team.

Mmm….

Send your name and contact details to info@whisky.co.za to stand a chance to win a bottle of Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky valued at R320.00.

The FNB Whisky Live Festival takes place at the Cape Town Convention Centre from 3 – 5 October and is open daily from 18:00 – 22:00.  Tickets are available online at www.whiskylivefestival.co.za.  See you there and may the dram be with you!

PS – Please note that the competition is only open to residents of South Africa, or to those prepared to travel here to come and collect their prize :).  Entries must be received by midnight 5 October.

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Stocking up for spring – part 2

Posted on 10 September 2012 by | Leave a comment

A bar in need

First published in Prestige Magazine (September edition).

As it appeared – p1.

As it appeared – p2.

I must confess upfront that I have an ulterior motive for this choice of topic – I’m renovating my house.  And, inspired by that wildfire Heineken commercial, my wife and I have come to a nifty arrangement to attempt to avoid the conflicts that tend to accompany these residential makeovers: I get a bar, she gets a walk-in closet.  Being the poetic fellow that I am (or at least that I like to think I am), I intend to see the whole matter through to its rightful conclusion.  It is imperative to me thus that when the moment comes my friends outscream hers in tribute.  This is only likely to happen if my bar is a replete with the necessary accoutrements…if it is impressive enough to move grown men to a spontaneous and volcanic show of emotion.  Take heed then of my lead for a bar in need.

The liquids

A bar can only be as good as what it serves.   We’ll dispense with talk of wine and beer, save to say that they’re required.  This is a spirits column – and, after a hard day in the trenches, when nothing but a stiff drink will do, this is where you’ll be glad that you focused your efforts.

Here is my three step cricket-derived guide to stocking a bar:

Step 1

Fundamentals first.  You need a command of the basic shots required to play all the orthodox deliveries.  Whisky?  Tick.  Vodka, brandy, and rum?  Tick, tick, tick.  Gin?  Of course old chap.  Cognac?  Mais oui monsieur.  And let’s not forget tequila (por favor) and liqueur.

These are the big boys of hard tack, and they should all be represented.  You should offer a choice of at least one brand in each category, preferably something that has been judiciously selected.  The consummate host should also ideally offer guests an alternative for each to cater for varying tastes.

Step 2

Develop depth.  There’s a famous quote that goes like this (after I’ve bastardised it somewhat): “An educated host should keep everything of something, and something of everything”.  We’ve covered the latter above, now for the former.  Everyone has a standout shot, or a favoured part of the wicket.  This should be developed and exploited – for both personal satisfaction and in order to accumulate runs more effectively.  Like to pull?  Learn to do it with a straight bat, a cross bat, forward, back, lofted and so forth.

My preference is for whisky, so my drinks’ cabinet (soon to be bar, hooray!) is whisky-heavy.  But I have a friend who enjoys his gin, and I particularly look forward to the opportunity to sample London Dry, Sloe, Jenever, and others amongst the variety of styles and brands that he’s collected.  This depth makes visits to your bar, for yourself and your invitees, so much more interesting and fulfilling.

 

 

 

Step 3

Exotic elaboration.  A good batsman is made great by the ability to produce the unexpected: shots like the reverse sweep, the switch hit, and the scoop.  These are the cherries on the top – the extra efforts that allow you to excel, that can propel a team to victory, and that can provoke unabashed delight.

Looking for an unusual aperitif?  Why not try pastis, or the similar ouzo and arak.  A digestif that’ll stimulate after dinner conversation?  Whip out a bottle of grappa, or a fine Armagnac.

So, can I now raise my bat and bask in adulation for my astounding strokeplay?  One might think so, but perhaps celebration is premature.  At this stage my wife – with her collection of shoes batting on well beyond a century – still has the wood over me.  There’s a bit of work remaining to be done.

The accessories

So you’ve now put together a suitably cultured collection.  Imagine you’ve got them lined up on the back bar like a row of soldiers awaiting deployment (another metaphor you say?).  Would a General with such a quality assortment of troops just send them out willy-nilly?  Not a chance.  He needs equipment and tactics, and so do you.

Equipment

A bar’s most important accessories are its drinking vessels.  Goblets, quaichs, and steins might be good for a laugh or a theme party, but for the most part this means glasses – they are generally the vehicles that will get your drink from A to B.

Ok, before we drop a bundle we need to ask ourselves: do glasses though actually make any difference to the flavour, and consequently (or not) the enjoyment, of what one is drinking?  The short answer is yes: our perception of flavour can be psychosomatic.  A good whisky for instance will – most of the time – taste better when drunk from a crystal tumbler than from a paper cup.  So it’s really worthwhile to invest in some quality glassware.  You’ll need tumblers, highballs and zombies to start, and specialist glasses depending on your “tactics” below.

Tactics

You have the troops, and you have the equipment.  Now what?  Sometimes the engagement will be straightforward: neat, on the rocks, with water or a mixer, and maybe with a slice of lemon or lime.  But sometimes you’ll need to do something a little bit special to carry the day.  Enter the cocktail, and the science of mixology.

These are the world’s most popular cocktails (in no particular order): Mojito, Pina Colada, Cosmopolitan, Tequila Sunrise, Martini, Cuba Libre, Screwdriver, Margarita, and Daiquiri.  Pick three (from this list or any other), and learn how to mix them.  As I mentioned earlier this may require specialist glasses, and some other equipment as well.  Martinis and margaritas should be drunk from glasses dedicated for the purpose – anything else, after all this effort, would be too inelegant to even contemplate.  Shakers, glass rimmers, and muddlers may all be required…along with a supply of limes, olives, mint, salt, and various mixers.

So, there you have it, our home bar is complete – and impressive enough to claim the raucous approval of both our palates and our guests.  Heineken, I may not be drinking your beer (all the time), but I hope to do you proud.

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Stocking up for spring – part 1

Posted on 7 September 2012 by | Leave a comment

The new serving standard

First published in Prestige Magazine (September 2012 Edition).

As it appeared – page 1

As it appeared – page 2

Premium.  It’s the watchword of our times.  The online Oxford defines it as: “relating to or denoting a commodity of superior quality and therefore a higher price”.  I’ve simplified it to: “relatively extra” – specifications, quality, prestige…any or all of that good stuff.  Everybody wants premium.  And why not?  Life is too short to settle for less.

Whisky is no exception; in fact it’s the epitome of this phenomenon.  In the whisky world expensive, lavishly-packaged variants are being introduced on a weekly basis.  Older, better, more!  It’s exciting but also a little bit intimidating, because the bar (yes, I like my puns) is being set progressively higher.  For instance, it no longer seems enough, in a well-to-do home, to serve visitors the regular fare – a 12YO blended Scotch, the first step to premium, is the new minimum standard.

To properly appreciate this new game, and to make the most of it, one needs become familiar with the players.  This may be particularly relevant right now as we come out of winter hibernation, look to refill our liquor cabinets, and start entertaining afresh.  In the not-so-distant South African past, although there were others lurking about, the choice invariably came down to a straight contest between Johnnie Walker Black Label and Chivas Regal 12YO.  One either preferred the huskiness of the former or the honeyed flavour of the latter (or, in many cases I’m sure, one just bought premium for premium’s sake).  No longer.  Whilst these two stalwarts still dominate the market, the repertoire of easily accessible options has expanded quite delightfully.

I recently sought out a few of Cape Town’s whisky luminaries and prompted them to gather at the Bascule, the city’s whisky HQ, to review the local pool of 12YO blended Scotch.  In the midst of some typical whisky-fuelled R&R (repartee and revelry) we somehow managed to string together a few coherent observations, précised below for your reading pleasure.  Enjoy, and may the dram be with you!

Johnnie Walker Black Label

Johnnie Walker is the world’s best-selling whisky.  Diageo, its owner, is much maligned in the whisky world, but one thing is clear enough: it takes nothing less than high-quality, highly consistent whisky to attain and maintain such lofty heights.  I found the nose somewhat brash, but if subtlety’s not the result then it’s not the objective either.  Rather, this is a bold and tasty mainstream whisky that hits each and every place on the Scotch trifecta – malt, peat, and sherry – and hits it hard.  And if you’re a young turk with a big swinging dick looking to make your mark in the world then there’s still no better way to announce your intent than by walking into a bar and calling for a Johnnie Black, yeah baby!

Chivas Regal

If Johnnie Walker is Scotch then Chivas is Speyside…in all of its debonair elegance.  In very broad terms the region has become known for the fruit and honey flavours which happen to be prominent in Chivas Regal.  The whisky’s official tasting notes also claim a slight smokiness, but this was beyond my ability to identify.  Perhaps it comes from char as opposed to peat.  Regardless, it’s not important.  Chivas is not about smoke, or anything so robust.  It is understated refinement personified.  Interestingly one of our party noted that this is not a distinctively whiskied whisky – apparance of its cereal origins is restrained, and dominated by sherry notes.  Indeed to a novice it might be difficult to distinguish from a similarly aged cognac or rum.  I’d perhaps venture to suggest that this is a whisky for all seasons.

Grant’s 12YO

This new kid on the block comes from a pedigreed background.  It’s a blend in which we can assume the famous Glenfiddich and Balvenie malts, emanating from the same hallowed stable, to be at the forefront.   Sadly for this fine whisky my attention was diverted by a claim which seems rather forced: “Grant’s 12 Year Old is the only blended Scotch whisky to ‘marry’ the finest 12 Year Old grain and single malt whiskies for six months after blending in bourbon casks”.  Technically this may be true, but it’s not quite as impressive as it sounds.  Dewar’s (and W&M) has a long tradition of marrying whisky, albeit in sherry casks, and one of the variants of the local Three Ships, albeit not a Scotch, is married in bourbon casks.  The good news – for peat freaks in particular – is that Grant’s is the smokiest whisky in this category.  Phenol-menal!  Kudos too on the best packaging amongst the lot.

Ballantine’s 12YO

The regular Ballantine’s is my favourite blended Scotch in its price category.  It reminds me of my time in Rome when I spent many an evening pondering the spectacular sights, glass in hand.  And big brother does not disappoint.  A flavoursome and interesting all-rounder – my personal runner-up.

J&B Jet

Jet’s mild flavours won’t start a party in your mouth; rather this is a whisky that’s ideal for newer initiates, and for occasions when fuller flavours might be distracting.  Fresh but not vivid – perfect as an aperitif on a spring evening.

Dewar’s 12YO

I’ve kept the best for last – and that’s not just my opinion.  Each of the heavyweights at our gathering concurred, with no hesitation whatsoever.  This whisky is magnificently integrated – it displays superb balance not only amongst it complex flavours, but also between nose, palate and finish – and is completed by a smooth, silky mouth-feel.  Hugely underrated.

Big thanks to Hector McBeth, Marsh Middleton and Bernard Gutman.

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The sum of all rum

Posted on 15 August 2012 by | Leave a comment

From corsair to connoisseur

First published in Prestige Magazine (August 2012 edition).

As it appeared – page 2.

“Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest-

Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum!

Drink and the devil had done for the rest-

Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum!”

This is the gung-ho opening stanza of the pirate’s anthem, as sung to us in Stevenson’s ‘Treasure Island’.  It epitomises the rum ethos – that of hard-drinking bravado.  There is simply no other drink that’s quite as synonymous with masculine adventure as rum: be it boarding a Spanish galleon, or bush-diving from a balcony, it’s more likely than not to have played a part.  Whilst some of the rough edges may have been smoothed away and the fairer sex accommodated with the inception of light, spiced, and other flavoured versions, rum has nonetheless remained steadfastly raucous since its epic days of yore.  In ‘The Rum Diary’, the movie based on the Hunter S. Thompson novel of the same name, one of the characters famously says to another “I think we’re drinking too much rum”, to which the other replies “there ain’t no such thing”.  Indeed.  Rum is an all-out, balls-to-the-wall party drink.

Or, I should way, it was.  Allow me to announce, ahead of the approaching dawn, that our society’s experience of rum is set to change.  In Jekyll and Hyde fashion (also Robert Louis, how droll) this is a dissociative drink.  Whilst many of us in the Anglosphere – and it’s still very much the case in South Africa – have been distracted, or even misled, by its often emetic incarnation (which has somewhat tainted its image), discerning rum-lovers, in the Latin world in particular, have for many years now been charmed by a different, altogether more suave and elegant persona.

But let’s start at the beginning.

Before rum, there was the inventively named brum, a drink fermented from sugar cane juice by the Malay people of antiquity.  It wasn’t until much later however, half a world away (the Caribbean of the 1600’s), that distillation was introduced into the mix.  Rum quickly became a staple in the British navy, issued to sailors in rations, and from that source the habit found its way first to privateers and then to pirates, proving a hearty companion during those endless voyages on the seven seas.  These chaps took their libations as grog and bumbo respectively, concoctions including any of water, weak beer, lime or lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg to accompany the rum.  And these unlikely forerunners of the cocktail era set the trend of mixing rum into motion.  The Cuba Libre, rum mixed with coke (and lime, strictly speaking), then took the baton during the twentieth century and went on to become spectacularly popular, propelling Bacardi at one stage to the position of world’s best-selling international brand.

Despite this dubious, albeit colourful, legacy, rum, as I implied earlier, is actually a fine spirit, offering a variety and complexity of flavour to those who seek it out.  It makes an effortless transition from spring break to cigar lounge.  Rum is defined almost everywhere as a spirit distilled from cane sugar and its derivatives, although there has been the odd attempt, such as Sweden’s Altissima, to make “rum” from sugar beets as well.   This may seem like a blandly uniform recipe but cane derivatives are surprisingly diverse, and each has a distinct impact on flavour.  Rum producers in the majority use molasses, a thick, gooey by-product of the sugar refining process, as their primary ingredient, but sugar cane juice and sugar cane syrup (also known as sugar cane honey) are also frequently used.  Product made from sugar cane juice, known as Rhum Agricole, is a feature of the French Caribbean islands, and also of other francophone islands such as Reunion and Mauritius.  Martinique in particular has an Appellation designation (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée or AOC being the French system for regulating certain agricultural products), giving their accordingly produced rhums a special cachet.  One of the world’s best rums, Ron Zacapa of Guatemala, is produced from sugar cane syrup – in fact these guys differentiate their ingredient further as first-press or virgin sugar-cane honey.  I’m sold on that description alone.  Most importantly though all the better rums share the same pedigree as good whisky and cognac – dictated by extensive cask maturation.  New casks, bourbon casks, sherry casks, and various wine casks are employed – often, especially in Latin territories, in a Solera system (a complicated ageing method in which liquid from one cask is blended into others at intervals) – to produce exquisite, expertly blended liquid.

Rum then it appears is a spirit for all seasons.  I’m partial to a Captain and Coke, with its foaming head and its promise of unruly fun, but increasingly I’d rather seek out Zacapa, or Barbancourt of Haiti, or others of their ilk whenever I can find them.   Whilst the awareness and acceptance of premium rums is still unfolding over here, the signs are unmistakable.  Aye me hearties, a new rum era is upon us for sure.

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Out and about with whisky

Posted on 13 August 2012 by | 2 comments

The Singapore episode

First published in Prestige Magazine (August 2012 edition).

As it appeared.

Singapore never fails to impress me.  Looking down as one approaches from the air it’s no stretch to believe that this is one of the top three busiest ports in the world.  The Straits of Singapore is a bustling bottleneck – densely peppered with naval traffic from one horizon to the other.  The island city also happens to be one of the wealthiest countries in the world.  Singaporeans are not struggling for drinking money and it shows in the whisky scene.

In an overall Asian whisky context, Singapore would be classed as a mid-mature culture.  It sits somewhere between the refined palates evident in Japan and Taiwan, where demand for vintage whisky is de rigueur, and the still raw uptake in crazy China, where whisky drinking is karaoke-inspired mixology.  The place regularly ranks amongst the leading markets for Scotch whisky exports, and whilst most of that stock is filtered into the wider region its presence alone must be infectious.   Things are happening here.  I visited no fewer than three top-quality whisky bars during my short eight hour layover and I was so enthralled by the experience that I came within a barley whisker of missing my flight home.  My whisky-addled, panic-stricken dash to the airport, involving no fewer than three modes of transportation (four if you include the trip on the airport skytrain needed to correct my arrival at the wrong terminal), must have been quite something to behold…more amusing to onlookers than it was to me.

La Maison du Whisky (LMDW)

This legendary French whisky business was founded in 1956 by Georges Bénitah, one of the true whisky pioneers of the modern era.  Its bar in Singapore – based at the vibey Roberson Quay on the banks of the eponymous river – is a little different, not only from its other outlets but from most other bars:  it is both a shop and a bar.

I didn’t quite know what to make of it.  It’s an appealing concept in theory, if a country’s regulations allow for it.  Imagine browsing whiskies and then being able to sit down and test drive one’s options before committing.  Generally I dislike shopping but this I think I could grow to enjoy.  I also like the idea of a total whisky zone, where I can ogle whisky, talk whisky, taste whisky, and then, to make the experience complete, take-away whisky.

But in reality can anything really be all things to all men?  LMDW Singapore, in keeping with its heritage, is more shop than bar.  I’ve been there once, early-ish on a weekday evening, so take my opinion from whence it comes, but with its face of plate-glass and severe lighting that it projects to the world, it wouldn’t be my first choice for an intimate evening of mellow dramming.

Ambience aside, it ticks all the boxes with a flourish.  LDDW boasts a selection of 400 distinct Scotches and 200 other whiskies, including some rare bottlings (to which the closest we would have come here in SA is a fleeting glimpse in one of the international versions of Whisky Magazine), and some dedicated bottlings.  GM Jeremy Moreau introduced me to a Strathisla 1965 Single Cask, specially bottled for the group by Gordon & MacPhail, whose rich, bite-into sherry flavours I savoured at length…yum.  Worth the visit?  It goes without saying.

 The Quaich

A short stroll down the river and a bite of supper later I found myself at a bar named after Scotland traditional drinking vessel.  The Quaich, according to owner Khoon Hui, was Singapore’s first genuine whisky bar.  It also appears to be the most genuinely Singaporean whisky bar.  Whereas the other two I visited seemed somewhat expatified, this was refreshingly local – Khoon pointed out a radio celebrity and some government heavyweights enjoying the undisputable pleasures of his establishment.

The Quaich’s menu numbers a highly respectable 300 fine whiskies, with a focus on the distilleries that it represents as a distributor in Singapore.  These include Bunnahabhain, Springbank, Glenglassaugh, and Bowmore, amongst others.  I noticed, and was duly impressed, by a 1964 Bowmore 46YO and three dedicated single casks bottled by Springbank (Longrow) and Glenglassaugh for The Quaich.

My most lasting impression however was of the great hospitality.  Khoon and I chatted whisky over a Kavalan (a name with which the chaps at Macallan are none too pleased by the way), and then he insisted on giving me a lift to my next appointment.  The man is a gentleman and a scholar and his bar is a gem.

Auld Alliance

The Long Bar at the Raffles Hotel created the Singapore Sling, and has since been regarded as the bar in Singapore, fads aside.  Well, now there’s a new king in town and its name is Auld Alliance (a reference to the close military relationship which existed between pre-Union Scotland and monarchic France).  Let me not mince words: in my opinion this may well be the king of all whisky bars worldwide.

To say that I was blown away is an understatement.  This whisky cathedral – to call it a bar seems inadequate – is utterly, utterly (repeated for good measure) magnificent.  Auld Alliance is the brainchild of Emmanuel Dron, a whisky expert of long standing, and, as I set about acquainting myself with his spot, his expertise became explicitly evident: it is quite simply a league apart from anything that I’ve ever experienced.

Located in Chijmes, a charming entertainment complex built within the grounds and amidst the architectural structure of an old convent, the venue offers a breath-taking bar area, an elegant lounge, and two private tasting rooms.  Its collection of whiskies currently numbers 1500; so many in fact that there’s just not enough space for all of them, thus requiring 500 odd to be rotated in and out of storage periodically.  The highlights include a mint-condition first-edition 1993 Black Bowmore (S$ 12 990 ≈ R84 955 per bottle), and a Yamazaki 50YO, of which there are only a handful of bottles accessible outside of Japan.  I was particularly captivated by a menu which offers flights of the “same” whisky bottled in different decades, allowing customers to explore the evolution of the style over time.  I could go on and on.  Quite simply Auld Alliance lacks for nothing…except for South African whiskies.  One has to leave room for improvement I guess.

The moral of this story, in case you haven’t arrived at the same conclusion already – a whisky pilgrimage to Singapore is well in order.  May the dram be with you!

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Winter whisky specials

Posted on 20 July 2012 by | Leave a comment

This message went out to the WHISKYdotcoza database today.  Ignore if you’re not interested in a commercial punt.

Winter is upon us.  If you’re anything like me then you’re probably enjoying a dram or three to fight back the cold.  In this regard WHISKYdotcoza is offering a little bit of winter cheer.

We’ve teamed up with Macallan and Highland Park to bring you these special offers:

These promotions will be open for the next two months, but be warned that stock is limited.  It’s strictly first-come, first served.

Note too that WHISKYdotcoza has secured some stock of the Glenfiddich Age of Discovery Madeira Cask 19YO.  The South African allocation is limited, so if this is something that strikes your fancy don’t delay in getting yourself a bottle.  The numbers are too small to place the product on the site so please contact us at info@whisky.co.za to order.  Price is R1099.

We’ve also been informed by the local suppliers of Laphroaig that there’s a global shortage of the 10YO.  It’s currently out of stock – there’ll be limited stock arriving next month and then no further availability for the rest of the year.  Same deal as above – if this is your bag then get an advance order in to us at soonest convenience.

Until next time – keep well and may the dram be with you!

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A lightness of winning

Posted on 18 July 2012 by | Leave a comment

The gilded honours of spirits awards

First published in Prestige Magazine (July 2012 edition).

As it appeared – page 1.

As it appeared – page 2.

In the marketing of brands, whether spirits or otherwise, endorsement is the key to the kingdom.  We as consumers find a recommendation – be it from a friend, from a celebrity, from the masses, or from some other source to which we ascribe credibility – to be compellingly persuasive, perhaps even decisive, as we go about making our purchase decisions.  And when considering the population of potential sources what could be more reassuringly credible than a competition, or, more specifically, the results thereof?  In a sense these appeal to our baser, survival-of-the-fittest nature – an all-out duel, foe versus foe (well…foes), locked in combat for the ultimate prize – but they also serve a very rational purpose.  Before letting loose with our lucre we need to know which is best from the sometimes confusing array of options with which we’ve been presented.

A competition for distilled spirits (wine would be similar) works something like this: a fee is charged per entry, each of which would then be submitted to a qualified panel of judges for assessment, at the conclusion of which an award, typically a medal, would then be conferred upon each winner (and often multiple runners-up) in various categories.  Ostensibly this is a good thing.  It appears to give us the basis upon which to make that judicious choice for which we are continually striving.  If I want vodka wouldn’t it serve my purposes to know which – from amongst the dozens of brands clamouring for validation on the bottle-store shelves – is the gold medallist, the best of the best?  When though are things ever as they seem…?

Here then is the case for and against spirits awards, and, following thereafter, should one be inclined towards the argument for the former, a brief feature on one of the more notable competitions from which guidance might be derived.

For

–        The theoretical benefit already mentioned.  In a perfect world a competition would give us the basis for a satisfying purchase decision.  Hmm…a perfect world…I’m dubious already.

–        The outcome of a competition is an immediately understandable concept.  There are gold, silver and bronze medallists, or an equivalently straightforward grading.  This is something that can be readily processed by consumers.  The apparent benefits are therefore easy to access.

–        Competitions are an efficient vehicle to bring new or little-known but worthy products, about which we might otherwise never have known, to our attention.  They are, in moderation, a cost-effective promotional platform for the smaller players.

–        Competitions are usually independent and judged by credible experts.  Whilst the calibre may vary from one to the other, one can generally be confident that selections are made without bias and with competence.

 

 Against

–        A spirits award is generally of questionable value, much like the Zimbabwean dollar.  There are far too many competitions handing out far too many awards for these to be worth very much at all, to the extent that it prompted a prominent commentator to term the phenomenon “medal fatigue”.  The “major” competitions alone number in the dozens and some these hand out awards to upward of 80% of entrants.

–        Why would a dominant brand – a Smirnoff, a Johnnie Walker, a Bacardi or an Absolut – enter a competition?  Add the fact that there’s little to be gained to the potential for humiliation and what one gets is that many (most?) don’t.  So what’s a victory worth if those who might reasonably be perceived to be the best aren’t even competing?  Not too much I reckon.

–        Conversely some of the big players, those with access to bigger budgets, enter a truckload of their brands, perhaps those that are newer or smaller, into multiple competitions.  Enter enough times in enough places with product of a reasonable standard, and a slew of awards is inevitable.  This renders the more meritorious victories anonymous and makes a mockery of the entire system.

–        Taste is subjective, and there are extrinsic, emotive factors which play a significant role in satisfaction.  Competitions are unhelpful in this regard and may even be counter-productive.

The International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC)

If there was claim to be the most prestigious of spirits competitions, the IWSC has it secured.  It would in all likelihood be the gold medallist in a competition for competitions.   Established in 1969, and operating continuously since, the competition regularly draws entries from some 80 countries worldwide.  It is truly as competitive a competition as one could hope to find.

A competition of this nature is only as a good as the people involved, and this is where the IWSC really shows its class.  The list of past presidents, extensive because the incumbent changes on an annual basis, makes for particularly interesting reading, with eminence clearly being a necessary criterion.  South Africa’s sole representative was no less illustrious a person than Anton Rupert.  The fact that he associated himself with the Competition speaks volumes.  I’d say though that what really matters is the quality of the judging, the foundation for a competition’s credibility, and to this end the IWSC is able to call on an impressive breadth and depth of expertise.  Entries are evaluated by panels drawn from a pool of 250 specialists from around the world.  Our own Dave Hughes, probably the country’s more prominent liquor taster (and expert in general), is an IWSC judge.  Five large platoons comprising people of his calibre is mind-boggling indeed!

Underpinning the impressive personnel is a rigorous process and an impeccable infrastructure.   The Competition itself is divided into two parts occurring over a period of six months: it involves firstly a blind tasting and secondly a precise technical analysis conducted by an independent laboratory.  The tastings take place on the Competition’s own, dedicated premises, which includes temperature controlled cellars, purpose-built tasting rooms, and storage facilities and cellaring for some 30 000 bottles.  Nothing is left to chance – judges reporting on the process have commented on the preponderance of signage warning against smoking and the wearing of fragrance (so as not to interfere with the ability to nose and taste).  It is tasting at its most professional.

I guess what I’m saying is that if one was to put any credence in an award then one should probably make sure that it’s from the IWSC.

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