FROM THE EDITOR

Isn’t it time to celebrate Prohibition? Kind of...

The Roaring Twenties

I’d say that by now it’s a relatively safe bet to say that you’ll have had quite enough of the “new year, new me” chat, and that’s before we even start talking about how many questionable photos from 10 years ago that I’ve seen during the last month or so. Too many is the answer, far too many. We really do love a new start, but why is it that before that can happen we need to spend so much time reflecting?

It makes sense, I suppose, to learn from your mistakes… and of course your triumphs (sorry, I’m trying to be more positive in 2020 for the sake of my colleagues – not that we’re calling it a resolution). In the spirit of reflection, it seems like quite the poignant time to take a look back, not a decade, but a century to January 1920. Did you feel shudders? I did too.

As we enjoy the current outlook of the US whiskey industry, a thriving and innovative subsect of the drinks business, it’s hard to imagine the feelings that were befalling our predecessors at this exact point 100 years ago. Maybe the impending trade tariff situation is giving some of us a small glimpse into that, but let’s face it, nothing seems quite big enough to compare. It feels like something we shouldn’t talk about anymore, but Prohibition changed the face of American whiskey and we are still making choices because of it to this day. Be that in the distillery, as a writer, or simply as someone that wants to continue to enjoy their favorite whiskey for many years to come.

It’s got me thinking, which is often dangerous, about our love of curating a whiskey ‘stash’. I have to admit that I’m a bit of a hoarder by nature, a prime example of this being the box of cassette tapes I found just last week in the attic. I have no means of ever listening to them again, but I’m saving them for the rainy day that I do manage to find a cassette player… I might require the help of Doc and Marty Mcfly for that moment to ever come, but a girl can hope. I wonder if they even work anymore... I digress. Looking back to January 1920 drinks lovers were united in the need to stash away their prized bottles, for it wasn’t actually illegal to consume the alcohol you already had in your drinks cabinet.

It’s hard to imagine not knowing how long this need would last and that you’d be confined to a few bottles for goodness knows how many years, especially in a day and age where we have more whiskeys to choose from than you can shake a master distiller at. It feels like we are in an incredibly privileged position to feel such horror at this prospect. As I mentioned before, perhaps this was one of the original ideas behind a whiskey collection… I’m glorifying it, but isn’t that one of the upsides of the passing of time?

I’m not saying I’m making resolutions this year, because we all know that’s a sure-fire way of breaking them, but I would like to look at the way I consume my whiskey. It’s very easy to become blind to the wonders that are being created when testing alcohol becomes a part of your working life. We all know how important the age-old work/life balance is, but does it have to take away the shimmer? I’m going to put it out there for all of us in the drinks industry and say no, it doesn’t. Instead I’m going to work on carefully creating a collection, one that I could happily have a dram of on a special occasion; something that I would breathe a sigh of relief at having if it was all of a sudden my only option. What would you have in your stash?

To me it seems the infectious and unbreakable spirit of the master distillers, blenders, proprietors and marketing teams, to name a few, is a direct result of the knowledge that it has all been taken away before and to not enjoy the wonders and opportunities of whiskey to the full would be a crime. The past has a lot to answer for, but surely the best response is to learn from it and blossom – something that is clear to see in the US whiskey-making family.

The general positivity that is pulsating from the industry right now is infectious and only looks set to continue. The Roaring Twenties is beginning again… maybe it won’t be quite as well dressed, but that’s something we can all come to terms with over an Old Fashioned. I think it’s time to raise a glass to our second chance.

... it’s time to raise a glass to our second chance