Only talking about provenance risks ‘alienating’ whisky drinkers

A recent panel talk highlighted how focusing on making whisky fun, as well as educational, is imperative to opening up the category to new drinkers.

Last month (February) independent bottler The Heart Cut hosted a panel discussion titled ‘For the Love of Whisky’, which took place at Soho Whisky Club in London.

Moderated by The Heart Cut co-founder Georgie Bell, the speakers included: Chris Tanner, co-owner of London bar Dram; Alessandro Basile, general manager of London’s Black Rock Whisky Bar; Tom Smyth, general manager at 3 Greek Street Whisky Shop and Bar; Ryan Chetiyawardana, owner of bars including Lyaness in London; and Adelaide Hayes Elliott, spirits advisor and ambassador at Soho Whisky Club.

During the discussion, Tanner noted: “The shift in attitudes, it’s been a big shift in attitudes [towards whisky]. Historically, whisky as a category has had this barrier to entry that was predicated on knowledge.

“The more as an industry [that] we are open and we have more fun with [whisky], and we play with it more, the more that those walls come down.

“It makes it more accessible, and it allows us to bring guests into that world a bit more, and people are really responsive to that.

“I think that’s really crucial, and it’s us as professionals and as stewards in a bar, we have a responsibility to make sure that our guests have access and they don’t feel intimidated.”

Hayes Elliot concurred, and also noted how newer whisky styles and regions were creating fresh excitement at Soho Whisky Club.

“I have so many whisky drinkers who have been drinking whisky for a while,” Hayes Elliot noted. “They’re just curious to try something new.

“And that’s what those newer whiskies rom different parts of the world really offer. People, especially if they’ve been trying whiskies, they’re curious to have that.”

The risk of alienating consumers

Conversation within the trade often highlights the want and need of consumers seeking more information about what they are drinking.

But how nuanced should brands and bartenders be in educating their customers?

Basile responded: “We don’t have one type of consumer. We have several types of consumers, age, or the way they drink whisky. I think that the key role is about keeping it humble and open, and as informative and educational as that person wants you to be.”

Tanner added: “We are in a position of moments in the industry. We have an opportunity to be more creative with storytelling, with how we talk about brands, and how we talk about the product.

“I don’t know what the right answer is here, but I would also be concerned that if we get all these new brands, all these great new products out there in the world, but then we’re still only talking about provenance and heritage, then we’re kind of working within the same framework of the tropes that made whisky inaccessible before it still suddenly then becomes knowledge-based.

“Yes, it’s amazing for us as bartenders and stewards to be able to share all of that knowledge, but to work within that same framework you risk alienating people again in the future.”