An open letter from John Glaser

Say NO! to Blended Malt Scotch Whisky: Sign the Petition!

Hello friends,

Pardon the interruption, but I simply want to call your attention to an issue that is very important to our business and to the Scotch whisky industry, and is something you can help us with.

Please help us tell the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) and the UK Government that we think their legislative proposal to force companies such as ours to label our malt whiskies “Blended Malt Scotch Whisky” (instead of simply “Malt Whisky” as we do now) is a bad idea for the industry.  If this proposal becomes law, it would cause further confusion for consumers around the world regarding the labelling of Scotch whisky.  It would make people think less of artisan-made malt whiskies, such as ours, because we would have to put “blended” on our labels, a term people (wrongly, but nonetheless) perceive to refer to inferior quality products.

It would also force us to redesign and reprint all our labels, and resubmit them to label authorities around the world.  Which would be an expensive pain and a waste of time.

This proposal has been widely derided by people across the industry, including whiskymakers, marketers, retailers, distributors and writers, including the late Michael Jackson, all of whom have pointed out that the proposal will do exactly the opposite of what it is intended to do, which is reduce consumer confusion about Scotch whisky. But the SWA have buried their heads in the sand on this issue in order to push through other legislative issues they feel are more important!

I could go on.  But instead I’ll point you to a petition on the web that takes less than a minute to sign and which will help us send a message to the SWA and the lawmakers that the “blended malt Scotch whisky” legislation is a bad idea.  Just click the link:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/no_to_blended_malt_Scotch_whisky/

Help us help the Scotch whisky industry!

Regards,
John Glaser
Compass Box Delicious Whisky Ltd

Comments

[lawschooldrunk]

all those interested, head over to whiskycast.com and listen to mark reynier (of bruichladdich) go on a 20 minute rant about the future debacle of the SWA

[Dennis Emerson]

A blend is a blend no matter how much "crafting" goes into it! Currently scotch is generally single malt or blended. That is the way I think it should stay.
I have purchased 2 of the Compass scotches, and I do likee some blends, Famous Grouse and Black Bottle. I will not sign and I urge you to really think before you do.

[James Johnson]

It is not helpful to say "a blend is a blend" and then put a whisky like Peat Monster from Compass Box in the same category as Famous Grouse. That response is exactly the reason why most producers believe the SWA proposal isn't helpful. Compass Box's whiskies aren't a blend, at least not according to current labeling laws. It's not a matter of how much "crafting" goes into it - it's a matter of how much grain alcohol goes into it. These are pure malt whiskies, without grain alcohol, and shouldn't be thought of as the same general category as less stringently produced whiskies.