Cover Story: Glenfiddich

GLENFIDDICH BRINGS DISTILLERY EXPERIENCE TO AUSTRALIA

Glenfiddich is taking to the road with the Glenfiddich Whisky Wanderer, bringing a little touch of Speyside to Australia.

Glenfiddich has announced the launch of the Glenfiddich Whisky Wanderer, a luxury whisky tour which aims to bring the distillery experience to life across Australia.

The tour will kick off at the Good Food & Wine Shows and will introduce retailers, trade and consumers to a truly spirited single malt journey with tastings, masterclasses, food pairings and exciting collaborations.

The Glenfiddich Whisky Wanderer is at the heart of a three-year program that will take Luke Sanderson, Glenfiddich Brand Ambassador, more than 9,000km across the country to share his whisky expertise with inquisitive mavericks.

“Because we are so far away from the distillery, for us this is all about bringing the industry experience to life and driving that pioneering spirit throughout the country,” Sanderson told National Liquor News.

And with the Glenfiddich Whisky Wanderer coming in the shape of a 1970 vintage Leyland two storey bus, it is a case of literally driving the spirit around the country.

Sitting at over 4m tall and 10m long, the Whisky Wanderer has been kitted out with a high-class premium bar, hydraulic pop-up roof and glinting copper stag’s head on the front.

HONOURING BRAND HERITAGE

“There’s an undeniable and growing interest in whisky throughout Australia, so we wanted to bring a touch of the Glenfiddich distillery experience to Australia. The Whisky Wanderer is the perfect accompaniment for our wonderful liquid, and in true Glenfiddich style, we wanted to do something with a difference,” Sanderson said.

“This program is about honouring the brand heritage, while playing into the maverick spirit Glenfiddich has brought to the category. For those looking to try their first single malt, the tour provides the ultimate immersive and memorable experience to give ‘Blended Drinkers’ and ‘Malt Explorers’ confidence to trial something new.”

Sanderson told National Liquor News that ultimately the Wanderer is about helping the trade and consumers to understand more about single malt and breaking down some of the barriers surrounding single malt as a category. “Sometimes it can be a bit intimidating and we really want to break down those boundaries,” he said.

Sanderson explained that a lot of what Glenfiddich has been doing at the distillery is progressive and experimental, and that has been the case throughout the life of the distillery. The Whisky Wanderer is about helping the trade understand the single malt category as it continues to enjoy its growth trend, but also continues to develop and evolve.

“The trade focus will be learning about different ways that whisky is influencing life and particularly through a maverick spirit where you are allowed to be curious and challenge the norm. That will be through educationals and masterclasses and aligning with a couple of our key partners to drive teaching and awareness about the whisky category for the trade.

“We want to help drive education among staff and give them the licence to be advocates and have more confidence through selling and understanding what is in the bottle.”

With a lot of consumers interested in the story and true messaging behind brands, Glenfiddich’s role as the brand which started the single malt category is an important one for everyone in the trade to understand. With a trip to Speyside not something you can do in an afternoon, the Glenfiddich Whisky Wanderer offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the distillery experience, understand about the brand and its history, and give your customers the confidence to make their single malt purchase.

“The Whisky Wanderer is the perfect accompaniment for our wonderful liquid, and in true Glenfiddich style, we wanted to do something with a difference.” Luke Sanderson, Glenfiddich Brand Ambassador