An Education: The Balvenie Whisky Academy

As John Hansell says, “When it comes to whisky, education is key.” And the more I learn about whiskey the more I realize this is true. For someone to truly enjoy the beverage one needs to know about it. Not that a beginner cannot enjoy whiskey on a first time basis, but to continue enjoying it one needs to continually educate themselves on it. When education on any level ends, the consumer becomes complacent and the all of the reasons why whiskey is interesting in the first place is lost. Not to mention, just as Hansell drives home, when “the buyer purchases a whisky he (or she) will like, the retailer is happy, the distributor is happy, and the producer is happy. That’s why I have devoted my professional life to it.”

This is exactly why all striving whiskey enthusiast should be excited about the Balvenie Whisky Academy. At first glance, it is only natural to question any so-called educational experience promoted by a name brand. Yet, as I have delved into the whole experience, as it were, I have found that the Academy has really been made for the benefit of the consumers. The focus, though geared toward scotch drinkers, is not a simple advert to pull you in to drink Balvenie’s products; rather it is to teach people about scotch in general – from the history to the process to actually tasting. If more producers did projects like this, the whiskey world would indeed benefit in large. As as an added benefit to joining Warehouse 24, Balvenie's online site for the Whisky Academy, they will send you a booklet on Balvenie, as well as a pocket tasting notes book for your own use.

Scotch Pronunciation Guide with Brian Cox:

“I’m your uncle, Argyle”

– Brain Cox as Uncle Argyle (Braveheart)

Brian Cox is undoubtedly one of the greatest British actors of the age. From Braveheart to the Bourne Identity, no matter what character he is comprised of he always seems capture your heart and your imagination. So when I found out about these 40 some-odd videos he was in I had to post them. Myself being an American, and not necessarily growing up around heavy Scotch drinkers, the sometimes tongue-twisting names can make one shy when trying to ask your local whisky seller to point you in the direction of Caol Ila. This is where these videos come in handy. In Brian Cox's debonair style, one can practice pronouncing each like a true Scotsman. For all videos click here. 

Mad About Whiskey: AMC's Mad Men, Drinking, and Other Things…

"All credibility, all good conscience, all evidence of truth come only from the senses." 

– Friedrich Nietzsche

I love the show Mad Men. Recently I introduced my wife to it through Netflix. Now she's addicted. So about once a week, or twice depending on how badly we want the next few episodes (since we only get one disk at a time), she and I sit down on the couch and delve into the world of advertising for about 2 to 3 hours. And without much thought, before we even get to the start menu, my mouth starts to water. I get up and walk to the bar, pouring myself a double of whatever happens to be on hand. Finally ready to relax the night away I sit back down next to her and press play. 

And during those three to four 45 minute episodes something happens. I forget about everything I had done that week. I forget about everything I have to do tomorrow. I am transported into a world which is so different than mine - a past I never knew. Yet somehow everything is familiar to the point that one of my largest emotions is nostalgia. Nostalgia for something that has passed, a time that will never be. I find myself yearning to live in a world where the cars are classy, the restaurants are swanky, where all the women dress in beautiful clothing, and where the men order Scotch instead of beer. A place where smoking actually has sex appeal.

But then I sit back and think about what I’m watching. Don Draper (Jon Hamm) the star and face of the show is an identify thief. As a married man he sleeps with every woman he can get into bed with. And he is a complete alcoholic who lives by the motto, “I’m living like there’s no tomorrow, because there isn’t one.” And speaking of egotistical self-loving narcissists, almost everyone else in the show seem to exhibit much of the same characteristics. Sleeping around, drinking too much, lying, cheating… the list goes on. Everyone is striving for a life they believe will fulfill them, the epitome of the American dream, in a world speeding forward at a pace no one can quite keep up with. So the natural question to ask would be: Why do I enjoy the show so much? Why does it make me nostalgic? Why is Old Overholt getting an overhaul in the real  world – rye Old-Fashioned anyone? Why are more men wearing suit vest again? Why is Don Draper so cool?

I guess my questions are not necessarily about drinking, per se, as much as the way people used to drink. The way in which Scotch used to be enjoyed. A cultural essence of sorts. Where have the classy bars gone? When did playing video games and cheap beer replace drinking Scotch and playing cards? Have we lost something, in spite of the rampant prejudice, sexism, and tumultuous times of the 60s, which was worth having? Somehow Don Draper in all of his folly, exudes a quality which people admire.  “What,” asks Lauren M.E. Goodlad, “is it that makes this odd blend of Jay Gatsby, American Gigolo, and the Man in the Gray Flannel Suit so captivating a figure for today?” 

Maybe Don Draper, with our hindsight of the impending world crisis to be had in the next decade, just makes falling look good.

Upcoming Films: Ken Burns' Prohibition

"The population of the United States in 1919 was 104,514,000, and those folks were serviced by 180,000 licensed saloons and many, many unlicensed ones. Per capita consumption of alcohol hovered around 20 gallons a year, and most of that (90 percent, by some sources) was beer. Whether or not the dries had actually been winning their war against ardent spirits, tastes had been changing with immigration, transportation, and refrigeration. Whatever we drank, however, we drank quite a bit. We were, just as we had always been, tipsy." - Max Watman from Chasing the White Dog

In honor of Max Watman's book I will be reviewing this weekend I thought I would publish a short post on the up-and-coming three-part, five-and-a-half-hour documentary film series directed by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick: Prohibition. As Max Watman states in Chasing the White Dog, "For thirteen weird years, the Constitution of the United States of America made beverage alcohol illegal." Prohibition is bound to be an interesting and informative documentary of those thirteen years. To be released this fall: