John Glaser's Position

I asked John Glaser, head guy over at Compass Box Whisky, his position. I had posted a short quote attributed to him from another article, but I wanted to get it from the horse's mouth.

Here's John's opinion --- un-adulterated and un-edited --- directly from John.

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Kevin,

Regarding the SWA proposal for definitions, I'm in favour of all the definition proposals except that for vatted malts (their proposal to call them blended malt Scotch whisky) and vatted grains.  My feeling is if the SWA does not like "vatted malt" (I think it's fine) and feels change must take place, they should simply go with "single cask single malt", "single malt" and "malt whisky", the latter referring to vatted malts.   This is analogous to the AOC wine definitions in much of the world, that many people are already familiar with (i.e., Bordeaux-St Julian, Bordeaux-Medoc, Bordeaux, from the most specific to the least specific).

My overarching concern in all of this is that consumers around the world find Scotch whisky easier to understand and more approachable.  This is why I label our blend, "Asyla" as "Grain & Malt" [on the first line] "Blended Scotch Whisky" [on the second line].  I want people to understand that this product contains two different types of whisky and therefore they should expect something specific, in this case, a lighter whisky due to the use of grain whisky.  (I also put short descriptors of the style of each of our whiskies on the front label, too, to help further.)

A lot of people ask me why I make "Asyla".  Selling high end blends (of grain and malt) today is like pushing water up hill.  Our sales are predominantly of our vatted malts.  But I make "Asyla" because, when made with very high quality ingredients and with care, I simply love this style of whisky.  I drink a lot of whisky before dinner, and to me, this style of whisky (light, soft, sweet) is perfect for this time.  (I usually drink it out of a wine glass, with a big splash of water!)

To sum, one of the main things I want Compass Box to do over time is to help people understand Scotch whisky more easily.  So I try to be as open as I can be about our products.  Some people say I'm too open, that I give away too much information, but I do it because I want people to know what to expect when they buy a Compass Box whisky, and I also do it because I know people like yourself and the people who take part in your blog are interested in the details.  Knowledge is power!

Rock on.

J

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John Glaser
Compass Box Delicious Whisky Ltd

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Thanks John.

Well there you have it. While I don't have an issue with "Blended Malt Whisky" my livelihood doesn't rise and fall on nomenclature, arbitrary or otherwise.

I think the bottom line is that the SWA needs to put some money behind communication - making it VERY clear what each designation means, whatever designations they choose.