INNOVATIVE THINKING AND GAME CHANGERS
Right now, the global whisky industry is a weird market where everything is growing in different, but interesting ways. Irish whiskey is on fire, as evidenced by its tremendous growth. Bourbon is also growing, so much so that manufacturers are barely keeping up with demand, as is the case with ryebased and Japanese whisky.
Even blends, which a few years back appeared to have plateaued, are making a return. Another talking point is the younger generation’s demand for better quality whisky and it will be interesting to see how the market shifts toward accommodating such demand. This will inevitably lead to a sharper focus on more premium offerings at even lower price points than currently available.
Another interesting development, which is proving quite difficult to accommodate, is the demand for nonalcoholic drinks. While whisky cannot provide the answer, some producers are responding with new products offering much lower alcohol by volume (abv) content of about 15 percent, which is closer to wine. In addition, there is a trend which involves focusing on the flavor of whisky rather than its rarity or age. One major development is the relatively recent decision of alcohol giant Diageo to buy a major stake in the world’s first distilled non-alcoholic spirit maker Seedlip. That move is a literal game-changer, signaling a new direction in moving forward when it comes to demand for premium nonalcoholic drinks.
As a result, this age-old craft, dating back hundreds of years and rooted in tradition, is revealing some innovative thinking, with many surprises emerging that had not been forecast. Just recently, Glenlivet, the original Speyside single malt Scotch owned by the French alcoholic beverages company Pernod Ricard, launched edible ‘cocktail capsules’ made of seaweed. In so doing, they broke the rule on how whisky is to be enjoyed, showing that it is no longer about maintaining tradition, but rather having a fun experience, in which whisky has become a key player. While
One major development is the recent decision of alcohol giant Diageo to buy a major stake in the world’s first distilled non-alcoholic spirit maker Seedlip
this is another marketing gimmick, as are many of the immerging initiatives, it nonetheless recalls the issue of sustainability, which is playing an ever bigger role in both whisky and the broader F&B industry.
The number of new distilleries coming online is staggering; even here in Lebanon, the production of Athyr - the country’s first single malt whisky - is interesting. You now also have a few Japanese whiskies made from rice, which has prompted discussions on the question of how you categorize rice as whisky. Yet another innovation is lab-made whisky, which is equivalent to the search for the Holy Grail of alchemy in whisky-making. For me personally, however, there is no substitute for nature. But while there may be a romantic notion to it, there is also plenty of chemistry happening. People have tried to find ways to make whisky mature more quickly, but it simply doesn’t taste the same. Of course, it’s great that we can achieve such results, but that makes me question whether science is adding anything to what nature already does. Perhaps this all stems from the ‘because I can’ factor. There’s no doubt, though, that all these experiments are adding to our knowledge of whisky-making and I’m sure they will prove beneficial on many levels in the years to come.