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This is the story of whisky

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and I start it right here
in the heart of Tokyo.

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Around these streets
are bars crammed with people

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imbibing the amber liquid.

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It will be a fascinating journey,

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so come with me as I tell the story
of Scotland's gift to the world.

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I'm going on a pilgrimage to find
out why such a simple drink

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has come to mean so much.

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Hi. My name's Jim.
I'm from Scotland.

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From the makers, to the marketeers,

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and the chemists
to the cocktail makers,

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and from the Highlands,
to Hobart in Tasmania...

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..I'll be meeting the people and
travelling to the places

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immersed in Scottish whisky's
world story.

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This is the tale of an ancient craft
that became a global colossus.

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It is the tale of Scotch.

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Isn't it grand that this
stuff's made in Scotland?

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Aye, true.

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Today, we treat Scotch whisky
with reverence.

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Yet, as recently as the late 1970s,

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it was viewed
altogether differently.

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When people thought of Scotch,

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they thought of old-fashioned,
untrendy, blended whiskies.

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It was something of a safe,
boring choice.

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Here - what your granda
drank at Hogmanay,

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and abroad - ignored in favour
of domestic spirits.

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By the early 1980s, too much was
being made for not enough drinkers,

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creating a whisky loch
of untouched liquid.

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Many distilleries closed.

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Then the industry recovered
on the back of an unlikely source -

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single malts.

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Marketing was once more
at the forefront

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via a bottle label vision of
Scotland sold to the world.

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Now malts are booming,
desirable and collectable,

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and provoke global interest
in Scotland.

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On Edinburgh's Royal Mile stands the
building symbolic of this intrigue.

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The Scotch Whisky Experience

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is funded by
a cluster of drinks companies.

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Among its greatest attractions
is a breathtaking hoard of bottles.

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This marble and glass shrine
to whisky

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contains 3,348 bottles,

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and it is
a magnificent collection.

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It was collected by one man -

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Claive Vidiz, a Brazilian
from Sao Paulo.

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It took him 35 years to collect,

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and then he came to a financial
arrangement with Diageo,

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and Diageo brought the collection
here to Scotland.

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And as Mr Vidiz himself says...

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"We have an expression in Brazil -

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"a good son returns home,
and, in my view,

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"the collection is back
with its family now."

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And here is Mr Vidiz.

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This is where it all began.

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He was well-known as being
a real lover of Scotch whisky.

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And business associates would always

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pick up a bottle in duty-free
for him.

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But finally a business associate
went to visit him from Scotland,

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and said, "This is real stuff.

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"This is the stuff
you'll never have heard of.

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"It's called single malt
Scotch whisky.

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"And this is the stuff
to keep and enjoy

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"with only your very best friends."

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What date was this?
So this was in the 1970s.

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And really only
blended Scotch whisky

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was exported at the time.

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It was very, very hard
to find anything else.

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So these six bottles here
were given to Claive then,

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and, rather than sharing them
with his very best friends,

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he was so overwhelmed and so
passionate about them

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that he never opened them.

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And this began the
Scotch Whisky collection.

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Now, people come from all over
the world to view this, don't they?

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That's right.

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About 80% of the visitors
that come here are from overseas.

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So it just reflects the
huge pull that Scotch whisky has,

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and the kudos that it has
from an international point of view.

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So they come because they
love whisky in the first place?

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Well... They don't just pop in
on a rainy day and think,

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"Where should we go in Edinburgh?"
Well, you know,

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they don't come because they
already know and love Scotch whisky.

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Most of our visitors
are from overseas,

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have heard of Scotch whisky,
know what it is,

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but aren't already
Scotch whisky drinkers.

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So a small proportion of them
love it, are enthusiasts,

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and know about this collection
and have made a bit of a pilgrimage,

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but the majority of them
have come to Scotland,

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and there is no way that they could
visit Scotland

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without finding out
more about Scotch whisky

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because the two are
so intrinsically linked.

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You've got a Black Bowmore
from 1964.

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What on earth is that worth?

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You've focused in on one of those
bottles that is completely unique,

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really rare...

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Only sold at auction.

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But, equally, we have
the opposite end of the spectrum.

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We even have whisky
and cola in a can.

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So there's nothing
too precious about this.

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It's a snapshot of every single
bottle of whisky that was different,

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that was individual,
that was unique,

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and that was collected
over that period.

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So, if you were to put a figure on
the Black Bowmore, what would it be?

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Tens of thousands now.

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Seriously? Yeah. Yeah.

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One of those ones
that goes very well at auction.

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The Scotch Whisky experience is,
in itself,

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a giant display cabinet for an
industry and, in turn, a country.

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Yet the rise of Scotch as
a tourist magnet

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is a recent phenomenon.

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In the 1980s, there were very few
distillery visitor centres,

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and now there's
round about 50 distilleries

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that you can visit as a tourist
to Scotland.

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That has been a huge change
in the whisky landscape.

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It is reckoned that, in 2015 alone,

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1.5 million people
visited Scotland's distilleries,

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spending £50 million.

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It is not only large established
distilleries that they visit...

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Places that have been making
whisky for centuries

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now face a challenge from
dynamic small-scale upstarts

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like Strathearn Distillery
in Perthshire.

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Over the last few years,
there's been a quiet revolution

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happening in the whisky industry
in Scotland.

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And that is the fact
that we currently have

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about 20 small craft distilleries,

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with another 10 waiting
to be operational.

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They make whisky in the old style,

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when whisky was made
in a small room,

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or a little but and ben, a croft,

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or a barn somewhere
in a Highland glen.

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And it's a bit like
the craft beer revolution

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that's really exploded over
the United Kingdom

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in the last few years,

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and it's really going to
make a radical difference

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to whisky and our choices.

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I'm standing in front

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of what is probably the smallest
craft distillery in Scotland.

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Welcome, David, to the smallest
distillery in Scotland.

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This is a dinky little thing, Tony.

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It's a miniature whisky distillery.

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It's also a bit like
an adult's Meccano kit.

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This is a prime example of
a small craft distillery, isn't it?

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There's currently 16 producing.

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We were the first.

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We had a meeting here because

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so many people
were asking me questions,

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and I said,
"Well, let's get together."

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And we had 50 people turn up.

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And it's not just whisky.

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There's whisky, there's gin,
there's vodka,

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there is a rum distillery
in the heart of Speyside.

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LAUGHING: I love it!

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Just because a distillery is small,

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it doesn't necessarily
make it well crafted.

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But some of the small distillers

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are producing products
of astonishing interest,

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astonishing versatility.

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Not all will survive. There will be
a shake-out of that sector.

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But craft is certainly
adding a lot of interest,

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it's adding a lot of vivacity,

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and it's adding a lot of choice
for the consumer,

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so, on balance, it can only be good.

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Craft is a tricky word.

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What is craft?

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Is it doing 20,000 litres a year

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and not more than that?

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Is it using old equipment?

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Old methods?

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It's a tricky definition,

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but if we're talking about the kind
of impact they can have

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on the industry then
I think the biggest impact

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doesn't come from volumes,
obviously, because they are small.

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I think it comes from
the way they try to innovate.

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I love that because some of
the big companies are too busy,

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too concerned
to produce large volumes

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to keep their
stockholders satisfied.

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I think that the emergence
of craft distilleries

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has built this new layer into
the industry, which is great.

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It's driving a lot of innovation.

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Sometimes that can be at odds with
the tradition of Scotch, which is,

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you know, rightly protected.

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We've been making great whisky
here for hundreds of years.

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We'll carry on making great whisky,

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but if we can all operate
under one banner more,

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if companies can work together more
from opposite ends of the spectrum,

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then I think that can only be of
benefit to the rest of the industry.

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Tony, are you a threat
to the big boys?

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Not at all. You're creating very,
very special whisky.

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Probably the best way to sum up
this distillery is...

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if you drive up the A9, and
you overtake a single whisky tanker,

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that's our year's production.

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In one tanker.

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What we do supply
to the big industry

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is a comparable quality product,

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and quality is the link
between both of us.

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So the big distilleries
produce millions of litres a year,

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but you couldn't lean against
the stills like this

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and have a conversation.
No, you couldn't.

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You couldn't turn the steam up
slightly while we're doing it.

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People can come here and spend
a week making their own whisky.

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They can come in
on the Monday morning,

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and put the grist
into the grist hopper,

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and, on the Friday,
after two distillations,

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they can make their own whisky.

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There is clearly excitement
about the craft movement,

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and it bristles with possibility.

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Whether, in the long term,

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each new distillery
is financially viable, though,

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remains open to debate.

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You need to have very deep pockets,

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and a very understanding
bank manager

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if you want to open a distillery.

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You know, it's got to be
three years old

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before you can even call it whisky,

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and, while people might want to buy

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your whisky when
it's three years old,

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because it's exciting and it's new,

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when that whisky is seven years old,

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people are going, "I've tried that.

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"I'm going to wait
until it's better."

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It might be perfectly good
at seven years old,

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but, you know, received wisdom
is that it only really matures

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when it's 10 or 12 years old.
But it's really, really tough.

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The big multinationals

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are going to watch the ones
that float to the top,

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that are producing
very high quality product.

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They might then suddenly
try and snap them up.

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There might be some that are very
adamant and stick to their ways,

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and say they'll be fiercely
independent until the day they die.

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But then if somebody's offering you
a huge sum of money,

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it's very hard for some people
to turn that down.

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So I think that may be what happens.

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Those producing very high quality
product will get snapped up.

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Craft distilleries
are just one thread

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among many to the traditional
and dominant Scotch whisky industry.

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Whisky is now made
in almost 30 countries.

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Old Scottish methods are making
for a vibrant scene

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biting at the heels
of Scotch whisky.

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Everywhere whisky's enjoyed,
it seems, it is now being made.

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Despite the refined nature
of this exquisite drink,

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Scotch is in a fierce global
competition for hearts and drams.

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There are pretenders to Scotland's
throne across the world.

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Even here.

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Cheeky bastards.

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Andrew Nelstrop comes from
a Norfolk farming dynasty

244
00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:25,920
who have put their
abundant barley to good use.

245
00:12:27,000 --> 00:12:29,000
Farming sets you up well
for having a distillery.

246
00:12:29,000 --> 00:12:31,160
They are both long-term businesses.

247
00:12:31,160 --> 00:12:34,640
Everything you do on the land,
if you like,

248
00:12:34,640 --> 00:12:37,280
is designed for generations
in the future.

249
00:12:37,280 --> 00:12:38,760
The same goes for whisky.

250
00:12:38,760 --> 00:12:42,160
Do you know what the Greek
definition of wisdom is? Go on.

251
00:12:42,160 --> 00:12:44,360
Wisdom is old men planting trees

252
00:12:44,360 --> 00:12:46,600
under whose shade
they will never sit.

253
00:12:46,600 --> 00:12:48,600
That's the same with whisky.

254
00:12:48,600 --> 00:12:51,880
Beautiful. You're making whisky
that you'll probably never taste.

255
00:12:51,880 --> 00:12:53,720
You don't have the hills,

256
00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:55,200
you don't have the glens,

257
00:12:55,200 --> 00:12:57,000
you don't have the peat,

258
00:12:57,000 --> 00:12:59,400
you don't have
the wonderful soft rain

259
00:12:59,400 --> 00:13:02,040
that comes off the Atlantic
and falls on Scotland,

260
00:13:02,040 --> 00:13:04,480
and yet here we are,
in the heart of England,

261
00:13:04,480 --> 00:13:07,040
and you're making bloody whisky!
Now that's a damn cheek.

262
00:13:07,040 --> 00:13:08,800
But we do have...
Where do you get your...?

263
00:13:08,800 --> 00:13:10,720
We have all the barley.

264
00:13:10,720 --> 00:13:14,200
We have the largest peat digs
in the whole of the UK,

265
00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:17,120
which is the Norfolk Broads.
Uh-huh. We've got the water.

266
00:13:17,120 --> 00:13:19,600
We've got the cleanest, largest,
freshest source of water

267
00:13:19,600 --> 00:13:22,800
underneath your feet. You don't
really need anything else, do we?

268
00:13:22,800 --> 00:13:25,160
Apart from rain. We don't need rain.

269
00:13:25,160 --> 00:13:27,600
You can have some of ours
if you want. Yeah.

270
00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:31,320
We've got plenty of it!

271
00:13:31,320 --> 00:13:34,840
My father had always
wanted to make whisky,

272
00:13:34,840 --> 00:13:39,760
purely because of one conversation
he had back when he was a lad.

273
00:13:39,760 --> 00:13:42,840
It was... My grandfather,
the story goes, said,

274
00:13:42,840 --> 00:13:44,920
"It's such a shame.
We've got all this barley

275
00:13:44,920 --> 00:13:47,680
"and it has to go to Scotland
to be turned into something useful."

276
00:13:47,680 --> 00:13:49,440
And it just stuck.

277
00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:51,640
You know, my father,
he farmed in Russia, Australia,

278
00:13:51,640 --> 00:13:54,200
he went all over the place
doing different things.

279
00:13:54,200 --> 00:13:57,680
But, every year, he went,
"I just need to build a distillery."

280
00:13:57,680 --> 00:13:59,560
So it was his dream? Absolutely.

281
00:13:59,560 --> 00:14:01,400
A lifelong dream.
So, when he turned 60,

282
00:14:01,400 --> 00:14:04,640
and he was going, "Oh,
we need to build a distillery",

283
00:14:04,640 --> 00:14:07,320
I think the rest of the family
just went, "Ugh, do what you like!"

284
00:14:07,320 --> 00:14:08,520
THEY LAUGH

285
00:14:08,520 --> 00:14:10,560
Upstarts like yourself,

286
00:14:10,560 --> 00:14:12,920
do you think
you're any serious threat

287
00:14:12,920 --> 00:14:14,760
to the Scotch whisky industry?

288
00:14:14,760 --> 00:14:17,120
Are you nibbling away...?
I think it's going to be a while

289
00:14:17,120 --> 00:14:19,080
before we buy Diageo! But...

290
00:14:19,080 --> 00:14:21,560
THEY LAUGH

291
00:14:21,560 --> 00:14:24,120
Another generation, maybe.

292
00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:26,080
There's ambition for you!

293
00:14:26,080 --> 00:14:29,760
I think, in terms of quality,
we can equal them.

294
00:14:29,760 --> 00:14:31,600
I don't think that's an issue.
I think...

295
00:14:31,600 --> 00:14:34,440
And I don't think that's me going,
"Our whisky can."

296
00:14:34,440 --> 00:14:39,080
I think any nation's whisky
can equal anybody else's,

297
00:14:39,080 --> 00:14:41,040
because each distillery is unique.

298
00:14:41,040 --> 00:14:43,480
So, if the owners
want to do it properly,

299
00:14:43,480 --> 00:14:45,960
they can make blooming good whisky.

300
00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:48,800
In terms of volume,
we are never going to compete.

301
00:14:48,800 --> 00:14:50,720
Andrew, every distillery I go to,

302
00:14:50,720 --> 00:14:52,960
and certainly this is
much more true now

303
00:14:52,960 --> 00:14:54,960
than it was
maybe 10, 15 years ago...

304
00:14:54,960 --> 00:14:57,280
Every distillery
has a visitor centre,

305
00:14:57,280 --> 00:15:00,320
and it seems to be an important
point of revenue for them.

306
00:15:00,320 --> 00:15:01,680
Yes. It is.

307
00:15:01,680 --> 00:15:03,520
It's not just spreading the word.

308
00:15:03,520 --> 00:15:06,400
It's about bringing in
hard-earned cash. It is.

309
00:15:06,400 --> 00:15:10,160
It's incredibly useful
in terms of spreading the word,

310
00:15:10,160 --> 00:15:12,120
getting a loyal following...

311
00:15:12,120 --> 00:15:14,760
"Come and see it. See
the distillery. Meet the people."

312
00:15:14,760 --> 00:15:16,080
It's a great story.

313
00:15:17,160 --> 00:15:20,080
For new distilleries opening,
like ourselves,

314
00:15:20,080 --> 00:15:22,640
the gin boys and vodka boys
have got it easy.

315
00:15:22,640 --> 00:15:25,440
You can make the stuff yesterday,
sell it today.

316
00:15:25,440 --> 00:15:27,880
There's no cash flow issues there.

317
00:15:27,880 --> 00:15:29,480
Whereas, the world of whisky -

318
00:15:29,480 --> 00:15:32,560
make it today, sell it
in three, five, ten years' time.

319
00:15:32,560 --> 00:15:35,120
There is a slight need
for another source of income,

320
00:15:35,120 --> 00:15:37,440
which brings you down to
having a shop

321
00:15:37,440 --> 00:15:40,760
and selling everything from
bottles of your own whisky,

322
00:15:40,760 --> 00:15:42,320
to tea, coffee and cake.

323
00:15:42,320 --> 00:15:44,040
And, yeah,
it's a good source of income

324
00:15:44,040 --> 00:15:46,320
and I think it's a nice day out
for people.

325
00:15:49,000 --> 00:15:53,240
Scotland's biggest whisky rival,
however, is much further east.

326
00:16:01,080 --> 00:16:03,480
Over the last few years,
the world of whisky

327
00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:06,600
has been rocked by a number of
Japanese whiskies

328
00:16:06,600 --> 00:16:09,920
winning critical acclaim
and awards worldwide.

329
00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:16,160
Whisky's story has taken us
halfway around the world.

330
00:16:16,160 --> 00:16:18,680
I'm now in the far north of Japan.

331
00:16:18,680 --> 00:16:20,960
If you fly that way, you hit Russia.

332
00:16:20,960 --> 00:16:24,160
We're probably on the same latitude
as Vladivostok.

333
00:16:24,160 --> 00:16:27,560
Now, it's been a lovely, sunny day,
but, from November till March,

334
00:16:27,560 --> 00:16:30,440
this place is blanketed in snow
and well below freezing.

335
00:16:30,440 --> 00:16:32,280
And, in the distance,

336
00:16:32,280 --> 00:16:36,200
you can see the scarlet chimneys
that cap the Yoichi distillery,

337
00:16:36,200 --> 00:16:37,680
the home of Nikka Whisky.

338
00:16:39,400 --> 00:16:43,040
And it seems very remote from
a Highland glen, but this place -

339
00:16:43,040 --> 00:16:48,240
the story of this place - is firmly
rooted in a true Scottish romance.

340
00:16:56,360 --> 00:17:00,680
In 1918, 24-year-old
Masataka Taketsuru

341
00:17:00,680 --> 00:17:02,320
left Japan for Scotland.

342
00:17:03,560 --> 00:17:06,720
He was to study the chemistry
and production of Scotch whisky

343
00:17:06,720 --> 00:17:09,600
with the aim
of replicating it in Japan.

344
00:17:09,600 --> 00:17:12,320
Masataka served apprenticeships

345
00:17:12,320 --> 00:17:14,720
at a number of
Scottish distilleries,

346
00:17:14,720 --> 00:17:17,240
learning every craft of the trade.

347
00:17:17,240 --> 00:17:19,360
He fell in love with whisky,

348
00:17:19,360 --> 00:17:24,560
but also with a Scottish girl -
Rita Cowan from Kirkintilloch.

349
00:17:24,560 --> 00:17:27,200
Rita and Masataka toured Scotland

350
00:17:27,200 --> 00:17:30,120
picking up more secrets
of the Scotch trade.

351
00:17:31,400 --> 00:17:33,960
When they arrived here
in Japan in 1920,

352
00:17:33,960 --> 00:17:36,800
it was to set up home
as man and wife.

353
00:17:37,880 --> 00:17:39,520
Together, in 1934,

354
00:17:39,520 --> 00:17:41,880
they put their expertise
into practice

355
00:17:41,880 --> 00:17:45,160
and founded this place,
Yoichi distillery,

356
00:17:45,160 --> 00:17:46,800
choosing these surroundings

357
00:17:46,800 --> 00:17:49,320
for their echoes
of the Scottish Highlands.

358
00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:52,760
They were married for 41 years

359
00:17:52,760 --> 00:17:55,240
until Rita's death in 1961.

360
00:17:56,360 --> 00:18:01,240
Masataka was to become known
as the father of Japanese whisky.

361
00:18:18,280 --> 00:18:20,760
'Author Dave Broom is here
at Yoichi

362
00:18:20,760 --> 00:18:23,800
'researching a book
on Japanese whisky.'

363
00:18:23,800 --> 00:18:26,480
Dave, how does Japanese whisky
differ from Scotch?

364
00:18:26,480 --> 00:18:28,440
Well, it's made in exactly
the same way.

365
00:18:28,440 --> 00:18:29,920
So, if you go round the distillery,

366
00:18:29,920 --> 00:18:31,760
you'll see essentially
the same kit.

367
00:18:31,760 --> 00:18:33,960
But there's a whole number
of different factors

368
00:18:33,960 --> 00:18:35,520
that make it Japanese.

369
00:18:35,520 --> 00:18:38,360
One of them is
to do with the production.

370
00:18:38,360 --> 00:18:40,640
They run very clear wort,
rather than cloudy wort,

371
00:18:40,640 --> 00:18:43,720
so they don't get any
cereal characters coming through.

372
00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:45,840
So it's not as dry as Scotch whisky.

373
00:18:45,840 --> 00:18:49,200
And there's more of a,
kind of, delicate intensity,

374
00:18:49,200 --> 00:18:52,040
which seems paradoxical,
but there's...

375
00:18:52,040 --> 00:18:55,080
I describe it as
a transparency of character.

376
00:18:55,080 --> 00:18:57,120
If you think of a
Scotch single malt,

377
00:18:57,120 --> 00:18:59,000
it's like a bit
of a Scottish burn.

378
00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:01,240
You know, all the flavours are,
kind of, moving around.

379
00:19:01,240 --> 00:19:03,960
It's hard to work out
exactly what's going on.

380
00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:06,320
It's complex.
Whereas, with Japanese whisky,

381
00:19:06,320 --> 00:19:07,720
it's like a clear pool.

382
00:19:07,720 --> 00:19:09,520
You can see all the flavours.

383
00:19:09,520 --> 00:19:13,000
Everything's just laid out
in a very stately and ordered way.

384
00:19:13,000 --> 00:19:14,560
So it's got this...

385
00:19:14,560 --> 00:19:16,800
That's very symptomatic
of Japanese culture.

386
00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:18,680
I think that's the point.

387
00:19:18,680 --> 00:19:22,480
From the word go, Japanese whisky
was made to go with Japanese food.

388
00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:24,840
If you think of the way the
Japanese approach food,

389
00:19:24,840 --> 00:19:27,080
it's all about texture,
and it's also delicacy.

390
00:19:27,080 --> 00:19:29,640
If you're making a whisky
to go with that food,

391
00:19:29,640 --> 00:19:32,440
you're almost automatically
going to be in that world.

392
00:19:32,440 --> 00:19:35,080
And there's a real
cultural resonance

393
00:19:35,080 --> 00:19:37,400
to Japanese whisky that ties in

394
00:19:37,400 --> 00:19:42,840
with the approach to ceramics,
to artwork, or to papermaking.

395
00:19:42,840 --> 00:19:45,640
I think it's all part
of this Japanese culture.

396
00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:48,840
It's a very powerful
and very, very deep whisky.

397
00:19:48,840 --> 00:19:51,680
And it's significantly different
to Scotch, you know?

398
00:19:51,680 --> 00:19:53,400
If I gave you two glasses blind,

399
00:19:53,400 --> 00:19:56,280
and gave you one of Scotch,
one of Japanese, you would say,

400
00:19:56,280 --> 00:19:57,840
"Well, that's different."

401
00:19:57,840 --> 00:20:00,480
So they make the best
Japanese whisky in the world.

402
00:20:00,480 --> 00:20:02,960
My mother is in a walking group,
and I was listening

403
00:20:02,960 --> 00:20:05,120
to this conversation
with one of the walkers.

404
00:20:05,120 --> 00:20:06,600
And she was about 80 years old.

405
00:20:06,600 --> 00:20:08,840
And she doesn't drink whisky.
She drinks gin.

406
00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:11,760
And someone was telling her about
the fact that Japanese whisky

407
00:20:11,760 --> 00:20:15,520
had just won a prize for being
the best whisky in the world,

408
00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:17,000
and she was ABSOLUTELY outraged.

409
00:20:17,000 --> 00:20:19,440
"How would they know
how to make whisky?

410
00:20:19,440 --> 00:20:21,240
"How would they know
what they were doing?

411
00:20:21,240 --> 00:20:22,640
"That's just ridiculous!

412
00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:25,480
"I mean, they don't have the water!
How can they be making whisky?"

413
00:20:25,480 --> 00:20:28,000
And I just thought, "But you don't
even drink whisky, Doreen!

414
00:20:28,000 --> 00:20:30,000
"You drink gin.
You don't like whisky!"

415
00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:31,760
But, for her,
it was like a personal insult

416
00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:34,600
that the Japanese were making
what she thinks is her drink...

417
00:20:34,600 --> 00:20:36,240
that she doesn't like.

418
00:20:36,240 --> 00:20:39,080
Japanese public broadcaster HNK

419
00:20:39,080 --> 00:20:42,080
recently broadcast
a 60-part drama

420
00:20:42,080 --> 00:20:44,840
about Yoichi's founding sweethearts.

421
00:20:44,840 --> 00:20:49,480
It has led to the distillery
becoming besieged by visitors.

422
00:20:49,480 --> 00:20:52,640
This is a living link
between the two countries

423
00:20:52,640 --> 00:20:54,400
and this drink.

424
00:20:55,640 --> 00:20:57,960
You are the chief blender here.
Mm-hm.

425
00:20:57,960 --> 00:21:00,720
How important is the
influence of Scotch whisky

426
00:21:00,720 --> 00:21:03,680
and how it's made
to how you make whisky here?

427
00:22:33,680 --> 00:22:37,160
The production of whisky may
be similar in Scotland and Japan,

428
00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:39,680
but here it is enjoyed
rather differently.

429
00:22:41,120 --> 00:22:43,160
The market went
into serious decline

430
00:22:43,160 --> 00:22:45,040
and companies
were trying everything.

431
00:22:45,040 --> 00:22:47,600
They were flavouring whiskies,
they were lightening them up,

432
00:22:47,600 --> 00:22:49,560
they were doing this,
they were doing that,

433
00:22:49,560 --> 00:22:51,920
and the young generation
just turned their back on it,

434
00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:53,400
and, eventually, they went,

435
00:22:53,400 --> 00:22:55,520
"Oh, hang on a minute,
there's this old drink

436
00:22:55,520 --> 00:22:56,560
"called whisky soda."

437
00:22:56,560 --> 00:22:58,280
Or the highball,
as it's known over here.

438
00:22:58,280 --> 00:23:00,200
And they began promoting
the highball,

439
00:23:00,200 --> 00:23:02,360
and, all of a sudden,
everybody began drinking it.

440
00:23:02,360 --> 00:23:04,560
You can get it on tap.
I'm a big, big fan of the highball.

441
00:23:04,560 --> 00:23:08,560
It's gone right back...
I think I will take some convincing.

442
00:23:08,560 --> 00:23:11,040
Ach, well, you see,
it's going right back to the origins

443
00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:13,680
of people drinking whisky
in the mass market.

444
00:23:13,680 --> 00:23:15,680
The reason that
Scotch blends took off

445
00:23:15,680 --> 00:23:17,320
at the end of the 19th century

446
00:23:17,320 --> 00:23:20,400
was because people were
drinking them as whisky and soda.

447
00:23:20,400 --> 00:23:22,840
You know? And the reason why
Japanese whisky took off

448
00:23:22,840 --> 00:23:25,320
in the 1960s was because they
were drinking it diluted,

449
00:23:25,320 --> 00:23:27,560
just whisky and water.

450
00:23:27,560 --> 00:23:30,920
We're actually just going
right back to the beginning again.

451
00:23:38,760 --> 00:23:40,720
Before leaving Sapporo,

452
00:23:40,720 --> 00:23:44,120
I'm joining Dave Broom
on a pilgrimage to the shared grave

453
00:23:44,120 --> 00:23:47,240
of Masataka Taketsuru
and Rita Cowan,

454
00:23:47,240 --> 00:23:49,920
and leaving a traditional
liquid offering.

455
00:24:04,120 --> 00:24:09,320
800 miles south in Tokyo, there is
another little corner of Scotland -

456
00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:12,600
a wee backstreet bar
called the Helmsdale.

457
00:24:12,600 --> 00:24:14,360
Masaki. Yes.

458
00:24:14,360 --> 00:24:16,600
We are sitting here
in the most beautiful bar

459
00:24:16,600 --> 00:24:18,400
I've ever been in in my life.

460
00:24:18,400 --> 00:24:21,720
I think it is now my favourite bar.
And we're in the heart of Tokyo.

461
00:24:21,720 --> 00:24:23,520
A Scotch whisky bar.

462
00:24:23,520 --> 00:24:25,160
How did this happen?

463
00:24:35,600 --> 00:24:37,760
But how did you meet
Scottish people?

464
00:24:37,760 --> 00:24:39,800
How did you first drink whisky?

465
00:24:47,520 --> 00:24:49,920
Now, your bar is called
the Helmsdale.

466
00:24:49,920 --> 00:24:52,720
How did that happen? Why?

467
00:25:09,760 --> 00:25:11,600
What are the most popular whiskies?

468
00:25:26,080 --> 00:25:27,840
Very popular.

469
00:25:27,840 --> 00:25:30,920
Do you think Scottish whisky, Scotch
whisky,

470
00:25:30,920 --> 00:25:33,760
is under threat from Japanese
whisky,

471
00:25:33,760 --> 00:25:36,440
Indian whisky, Tasmanian whisky?

472
00:25:50,680 --> 00:25:52,920
We will never beat you, but we have
the same heart.

473
00:25:52,920 --> 00:25:56,320
We will try our best, but, you
know....

474
00:25:56,320 --> 00:26:00,760
we will keep trying.
A very poetic answer.

475
00:26:00,760 --> 00:26:02,240
I love it.

476
00:26:03,640 --> 00:26:07,520
Leaving Japan behind, I'm heading
south to another whisky hotbed.

477
00:26:07,520 --> 00:26:10,640
Australia, and specifically,
Tasmania.

478
00:26:10,640 --> 00:26:14,360
With sprawling hills, thick clouds
and crashing sea,

479
00:26:14,360 --> 00:26:16,080
this could easily be Scotland.

480
00:26:17,200 --> 00:26:21,320
Across the bay from me is the
charming city of Hobart,

481
00:26:21,320 --> 00:26:23,600
nestling at the foot of
Mount Wellington.

482
00:26:23,600 --> 00:26:27,960
And on this captivating island, it
cradles 14 distilleries,

483
00:26:27,960 --> 00:26:29,480
with more on the way.

484
00:26:29,480 --> 00:26:33,360
In fact, it's the heartbeat of the
Australian whisky industry.

485
00:26:33,360 --> 00:26:35,200
A growing power to behold.

486
00:26:37,800 --> 00:26:39,640
This is Lark Distillery.

487
00:26:39,640 --> 00:26:41,520
The cherished creation of

488
00:26:41,520 --> 00:26:44,040
Bill Lark, godfather of Australian
whisky.

489
00:26:45,720 --> 00:26:48,120
Chris, in many ways, we couldn't be
further from Scotland.

490
00:26:48,120 --> 00:26:51,600
We are at the other side of the
world, in the beautiful island of

491
00:26:51,600 --> 00:26:54,440
Tasmania, and here, you have
something like

492
00:26:54,440 --> 00:26:56,520
14 distilleries in production and

493
00:26:56,520 --> 00:26:59,440
you're developing at least another
half dozen.

494
00:26:59,440 --> 00:27:02,520
Are you the cheeky young upstarts of
the whisky industry?

495
00:27:02,520 --> 00:27:05,200
I think you could call us a bit of
a larrikin bunch.

496
00:27:07,760 --> 00:27:10,320
We love our whisky and we discovered

497
00:27:10,320 --> 00:27:12,960
that Tasmania's a great place to
make

498
00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:16,960
it and so we're doing our utmost to
produce a good drop for the world.

499
00:27:16,960 --> 00:27:18,720
Well, you've been very successful.

500
00:27:18,720 --> 00:27:21,560
A few of them have been winning
world awards, haven't they?

501
00:27:21,560 --> 00:27:23,800
Yes. We've been very fortunate,

502
00:27:23,800 --> 00:27:28,640
both in England and also in the US
we've won a number of awards.

503
00:27:28,640 --> 00:27:30,800
And that's really encouraged us to

504
00:27:30,800 --> 00:27:33,080
keep doing what we're doing and
focus

505
00:27:33,080 --> 00:27:37,320
on the quality. We are trying to
make really quality whisky

506
00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:42,480
and our volumes are not great, so
it's about quality, not quantity.

507
00:27:42,480 --> 00:27:46,960
When Bill Lark wanted to start
a whisky distillery,

508
00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:49,920
there'd been no commercial whisky
distillery in Australia

509
00:27:49,920 --> 00:27:52,200
for 153 years.

510
00:27:52,200 --> 00:27:56,960
Federal law had made it impossible
for small distilleries to operate.

511
00:27:56,960 --> 00:27:58,720
So before he could even start,

512
00:27:58,720 --> 00:28:03,960
he had to change government federal
law to get his licence and so we are

513
00:28:03,960 --> 00:28:08,040
actually the first licensed
commercial distillery in Australia.

514
00:28:11,240 --> 00:28:15,520
Lark operates on a far smaller scale
than most distilleries in Scotland.

515
00:28:37,760 --> 00:28:39,720
It's so titchy in size.

516
00:28:39,720 --> 00:28:43,480
If you compare this to something
like The Macallan.

517
00:28:43,480 --> 00:28:45,560
I love the size, it's whisky in
miniature.

518
00:28:47,000 --> 00:28:49,760
And they're taking over the world,
the bastards.

519
00:28:54,840 --> 00:28:59,480
Craig, a Scotsman, and Chris, a
native, are distillers here.

520
00:28:59,480 --> 00:29:02,720
I'll be honest, I got here 18 months
ago and I walked into the place and

521
00:29:02,720 --> 00:29:05,000
I thought, "Where's the rest of the
distillery?"

522
00:29:05,000 --> 00:29:07,040
It's tiny. The scale is crazy.

523
00:29:07,040 --> 00:29:09,960
I mean, we talk about hand-crafted
back in Scotland,

524
00:29:09,960 --> 00:29:13,480
and you're talking 250-300,000
litres.

525
00:29:13,480 --> 00:29:15,160
Here, we make 120 litres a day,

526
00:29:15,160 --> 00:29:18,480
so we can actually handcraft
everything at the distillery.

527
00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:21,120
We ferment different to back in
Scotland,

528
00:29:21,120 --> 00:29:24,360
we make all of our cuts here by how
the spirit tastes.

529
00:29:24,360 --> 00:29:28,320
We've got a longer fermentation than
you have in most places back home.

530
00:29:28,320 --> 00:29:29,840
We've got seven days.

531
00:29:29,840 --> 00:29:31,160
But really, the big one for us is

532
00:29:31,160 --> 00:29:32,800
coming to the end of the
fermentation.

533
00:29:32,800 --> 00:29:35,960
Based on how it tastes, we'll
actually open the lid and let the

534
00:29:35,960 --> 00:29:39,200
natural bacteria from the vineyard
up the road into the ferments and

535
00:29:39,200 --> 00:29:40,520
that sours up the...

536
00:29:40,520 --> 00:29:43,680
Of course, you have the bacteria in
the air already!

537
00:29:43,680 --> 00:29:46,320
So... Because this is vineyard
country, isn't it?

538
00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:48,880
Absolutely. So Frogmore, our pals up
the road,

539
00:29:48,880 --> 00:29:51,920
make some of the best wine here.
Some of the best pinots in Tasmania.

540
00:29:51,920 --> 00:29:53,480
And we get all the benefit from that

541
00:29:53,480 --> 00:29:55,640
culture, from those yeasts and
bacteria.

542
00:29:55,640 --> 00:29:57,280
So the whisky that you guys have
created,

543
00:29:57,280 --> 00:29:58,720
when will it be ready for sale?

544
00:29:58,720 --> 00:30:02,840
We are looking at about six to seven
year maturation in quarter cask.

545
00:30:02,840 --> 00:30:04,400
So something Tasmania has,

546
00:30:04,400 --> 00:30:07,320
we have this really unique climate
where we have a huge temperature

547
00:30:07,320 --> 00:30:11,320
variation from 2-3 degrees to about
40 degrees.

548
00:30:11,320 --> 00:30:13,040
What happens, that fluctuates every

549
00:30:13,040 --> 00:30:14,840
day and the pressure fluctuates
every day.

550
00:30:14,840 --> 00:30:18,120
That really drives the spirit
in and out of the wood and drives

551
00:30:18,120 --> 00:30:19,640
that angel's share so

552
00:30:19,640 --> 00:30:22,680
we've got a really quite high
angel's share here, seven degrees.

553
00:30:22,680 --> 00:30:25,240
Our strength usually goes up, so we
might get a spirit coming...

554
00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:27,440
So what percentage will you lose
every year?

555
00:30:27,440 --> 00:30:29,120
About 7%. 7%? A year?

556
00:30:29,120 --> 00:30:30,520
7%, every year.

557
00:30:30,520 --> 00:30:33,320
Guys, I've said that Tasmanian
whisky...

558
00:30:33,320 --> 00:30:36,120
You're winning the awards, the
whisky awards around the world,

559
00:30:36,120 --> 00:30:37,800
you're the cheeky young upstarts.

560
00:30:38,960 --> 00:30:41,440
How much debt do you owe to the
Scotch whisky industry?

561
00:30:41,440 --> 00:30:43,400
So much, so much.

562
00:30:43,400 --> 00:30:45,440
I don't think the industry here
would be...

563
00:30:46,840 --> 00:30:52,560
..in any strength without the year
on year, on year, on year help from

564
00:30:52,560 --> 00:30:56,400
the Scottish industry. We've been so
lucky with their generosity.

565
00:30:56,400 --> 00:30:58,360
We talked before about that sense of
community.

566
00:30:58,360 --> 00:31:00,440
It is not a community, in Tasmania,

567
00:31:00,440 --> 00:31:02,680
or Hobart, or Australia, or
Scotland,

568
00:31:02,680 --> 00:31:04,640
or Japan, it truly is this global,

569
00:31:04,640 --> 00:31:06,840
global community and really you feel
that.

570
00:31:06,840 --> 00:31:09,920
Like, you go to Scotland and you
ask a question and you get a

571
00:31:09,920 --> 00:31:11,640
genuine, passionate answer.

572
00:31:11,640 --> 00:31:14,120
Yeah, we are indebted to the
Scottish industry.

573
00:31:14,120 --> 00:31:16,680
This place wouldn't be what it is
without Scotland.

574
00:31:16,680 --> 00:31:18,160
We are essentially living in

575
00:31:18,160 --> 00:31:21,280
the Australian version of what
Glenlivet was in 1850.

576
00:31:21,280 --> 00:31:24,440
And I think if you said to any
distiller back in Scotland, you

577
00:31:24,440 --> 00:31:27,080
know, if you could go back to 1850
and work in Glenlivet and see

578
00:31:27,080 --> 00:31:29,080
how things started, would you take
that choice?

579
00:31:29,080 --> 00:31:30,720
Every single one of them would.

580
00:31:30,720 --> 00:31:32,960
We are still mashing by hand with a
paddle here.

581
00:31:32,960 --> 00:31:37,200
We've essentially brought whisky
forward into the 1800s at Lark!

582
00:31:37,200 --> 00:31:41,520
So to be in this position,
but then also to be able to call on

583
00:31:41,520 --> 00:31:43,840
the history and the mistakes
that have been

584
00:31:43,840 --> 00:31:47,400
made by the Japanese and the Scots
and the Americans in their

585
00:31:47,400 --> 00:31:50,800
whisky-making process, puts us
in a unique position.

586
00:31:50,800 --> 00:31:53,560
We've got hundreds of years of
experience to call upon and then we

587
00:31:53,560 --> 00:31:55,440
can create our own story from that.

588
00:31:55,440 --> 00:31:57,920
There are stories that people expect
to see when they buy

589
00:31:57,920 --> 00:31:59,560
into a whisky.

590
00:32:00,720 --> 00:32:02,840
So in Scotland,

591
00:32:02,840 --> 00:32:06,040
we can sometimes be a little bit
trapped by that and that's how

592
00:32:06,040 --> 00:32:08,280
people get to love this stuff.

593
00:32:08,280 --> 00:32:10,080
On the other, you've got countries

594
00:32:10,080 --> 00:32:12,000
in the rest of the world that are
now

595
00:32:12,000 --> 00:32:17,000
making whiskies and can almost be a
bit more creative in how they come

596
00:32:17,000 --> 00:32:19,920
about that and the sort of offering
they can present.

597
00:32:19,920 --> 00:32:21,920
The competition element I think is
brilliant,

598
00:32:21,920 --> 00:32:25,200
because any good athlete or
performer is going to say,

599
00:32:25,200 --> 00:32:28,040
your best performances come when
you're under the most pressure.

600
00:32:28,040 --> 00:32:31,360
So, you know, we are kept on our
toes by the growth around the world,

601
00:32:31,360 --> 00:32:33,320
but I think that's a pretty good
thing.

602
00:32:33,320 --> 00:32:35,800
We've talked for a long time about
what is whisky.

603
00:32:35,800 --> 00:32:40,000
It's an experience. It only becomes
whisky once someone puts it in their

604
00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:43,800
glass and they drink it, they
experience it with their mates.

605
00:32:43,800 --> 00:32:47,240
It's on the most important days of
your life that you drink whisky.

606
00:32:47,240 --> 00:32:51,360
Some people, it really is on the
most important days and they choose

607
00:32:51,360 --> 00:32:53,200
to share that with you as
distillers.

608
00:32:53,200 --> 00:32:57,440
It's people that get to be the
caretaker of a distillery or

609
00:32:57,440 --> 00:32:59,120
process, and that's what it's about.

610
00:32:59,120 --> 00:33:03,160
It's about understanding that if
you're not spot on your game every

611
00:33:03,160 --> 00:33:06,120
day, then you're not doing justice
to that person that got that bottle

612
00:33:06,120 --> 00:33:11,040
for their wedding, or maybe for
their divorce or to commiserate over

613
00:33:11,040 --> 00:33:14,080
a loved one's death. That's what
drives

614
00:33:14,080 --> 00:33:17,320
that get better, get better, get
better.

615
00:33:17,320 --> 00:33:19,640
And that's what whisky's about,
you're right.

616
00:33:19,640 --> 00:33:22,440
It's about people. It's always been
about people.

617
00:33:22,440 --> 00:33:27,080
It's about community and people and
you can't help but love the spirit,

618
00:33:27,080 --> 00:33:29,440
because the people are wonderful.

619
00:33:29,440 --> 00:33:31,960
Wow, Chris! That's the most
beautiful,

620
00:33:31,960 --> 00:33:34,040
poetic description I've
ever heard.

621
00:33:47,200 --> 00:33:52,080
Sullivans Cove is another of
Tasmania's flourishing distilleries.

622
00:33:52,080 --> 00:33:55,760
Its architecture and design is
somewhat more functional than that

623
00:33:55,760 --> 00:33:57,160
of a Scottish distillery.

624
00:33:59,960 --> 00:34:02,240
The idea of making whisky came
along, at first,

625
00:34:02,240 --> 00:34:04,760
I thought it was a bit of a crazy
idea, to make whisky here in

626
00:34:04,760 --> 00:34:07,200
Tasmania. Where did it come from?
Well, Bill Lark.

627
00:34:07,200 --> 00:34:09,320
Bill and Lyn Lark, actually.

628
00:34:09,320 --> 00:34:13,080
But I can remember him trying to
sell the idea to us up

629
00:34:13,080 --> 00:34:14,600
at the pub one night.

630
00:34:17,360 --> 00:34:22,280
And how him and his father had been
up in the lakes here fishing

631
00:34:22,280 --> 00:34:24,000
and they were drinking a bottle of

632
00:34:24,000 --> 00:34:25,960
whisky and wondering why we don't
make

633
00:34:25,960 --> 00:34:28,640
whisky in Tasmania, we've got the
climate, we've got the water,

634
00:34:28,640 --> 00:34:30,560
we've got the barley. Everything's
here.

635
00:34:30,560 --> 00:34:33,000
You've got the peat. Got the peat.

636
00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:35,080
We've got everything we need. Why
don't we do it?

637
00:34:35,080 --> 00:34:39,160
And so he came, and one night up at
the pub he told us

638
00:34:39,160 --> 00:34:41,000
this idea and what

639
00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:44,400
a marvellous idea it was and I can
remember thinking, "No, Bill,

640
00:34:44,400 --> 00:34:47,480
"this is not a good idea. This is
not one of your better ideas."

641
00:34:47,480 --> 00:34:48,880
But I was wrong.

642
00:34:48,880 --> 00:34:51,880
It's one of these things where,
to be honest,

643
00:34:51,880 --> 00:34:54,280
we didn't know we'd ever survive or

644
00:34:54,280 --> 00:34:56,880
even get our product out of
Tasmania.

645
00:34:56,880 --> 00:35:00,400
It was a struggle for a long time to
get anybody here to even try it.

646
00:35:00,400 --> 00:35:03,840
In the early days, you know, people
thought,

647
00:35:03,840 --> 00:35:06,480
"Oh, look, isn't that a nice idea?
They're having a go,

648
00:35:06,480 --> 00:35:08,280
"trying to make a bit of whisky."

649
00:35:08,280 --> 00:35:09,840
But you've got to earn your stripes.

650
00:35:09,840 --> 00:35:13,560
It's not a matter of just making a
product and everybody will buy

651
00:35:13,560 --> 00:35:15,360
it just because you make it.

652
00:35:15,360 --> 00:35:18,520
You have to prove that it's worth
buying in the first place, or in our

653
00:35:18,520 --> 00:35:23,120
case, worth drinking. And it took us
a while to get it right and some of

654
00:35:23,120 --> 00:35:27,680
the earlier whiskies that were made,
I have to say, weren't the best.

655
00:35:27,680 --> 00:35:31,280
But once we got the theory right, we
got the practice right,

656
00:35:31,280 --> 00:35:33,560
we started making good whisky.

657
00:35:33,560 --> 00:35:36,560
We found that we could sell it.

658
00:35:36,560 --> 00:35:39,360
But mostly overseas.

659
00:35:39,360 --> 00:35:42,240
So it was France that first
took us on.

660
00:35:42,240 --> 00:35:44,200
Once we'd won

661
00:35:44,200 --> 00:35:46,920
the world's best single malt

662
00:35:46,920 --> 00:35:50,160
whisky out at the UK, the
World Whiskies Awards,

663
00:35:50,160 --> 00:35:53,280
everything changed. From that
morning on,

664
00:35:53,280 --> 00:35:55,600
it hasn't stopped. I mean,

665
00:35:55,600 --> 00:35:58,000
I can remember standing in our bond

666
00:35:58,000 --> 00:36:00,360
store a few years ago and we had
over

667
00:36:00,360 --> 00:36:03,320
1,000 barrels, thinking,
"What have we done?

668
00:36:03,320 --> 00:36:05,760
"We've made too much whisky, we'll
never sell this.

669
00:36:07,040 --> 00:36:08,880
"What are we going to do?"

670
00:36:08,880 --> 00:36:10,880
And now, I look at our whisky and I
think,

671
00:36:10,880 --> 00:36:13,240
"God, I wish we had ten times more."

672
00:36:13,240 --> 00:36:16,960
The extent of the Tasmanian whisky
revolution is startling.

673
00:36:16,960 --> 00:36:18,560
It is a surprise.

674
00:36:18,560 --> 00:36:21,480
Yet, when you're here, it makes
perfect sense.

675
00:36:21,480 --> 00:36:24,840
In some ways, this place is a mirror
image of Scotland.

676
00:36:26,320 --> 00:36:29,360
Closer to home and yet aesthetically
different to Scotland,

677
00:36:29,360 --> 00:36:33,040
there is another surprisingly
vibrant whisky country.

678
00:36:33,040 --> 00:36:34,040
Sweden.

679
00:36:40,480 --> 00:36:44,680
Ingvar Ronde from Malmo compiles
the Malt Whisky Yearbook,

680
00:36:44,680 --> 00:36:46,960
seen by many as the bible of Scotch.

681
00:36:54,960 --> 00:36:58,760
Ingvar is leading the way to the
small island of Hven,

682
00:36:58,760 --> 00:37:01,320
visiting its distillery and spirit
laboratory.

683
00:37:06,880 --> 00:37:11,560
I think the interest in whisky
started probably in the...

684
00:37:11,560 --> 00:37:13,880
I would say '60s and '70s,

685
00:37:13,880 --> 00:37:16,520
when we started to watch all of

686
00:37:16,520 --> 00:37:20,080
these fantastic TV series from
England,

687
00:37:20,080 --> 00:37:23,320
where every two minutes, they were
drinking whisky.

688
00:37:23,320 --> 00:37:26,240
Coming home after work, they were
sipping a whisky.

689
00:37:26,240 --> 00:37:29,360
And we always, in Sweden, and
in Scandinavia in particular,

690
00:37:29,360 --> 00:37:34,000
have been influenced by
British culture.

691
00:37:34,000 --> 00:37:38,560
So that's when I think we started to
embrace whisky.

692
00:37:40,240 --> 00:37:45,320
Then it took off fantastically in
the '90s where it wasn't just about

693
00:37:45,320 --> 00:37:48,600
drinking whisky, it was about going
to the distillery to see how it's

694
00:37:48,600 --> 00:37:51,080
produced, about learning about
whisky.

695
00:37:51,080 --> 00:37:53,200
I know some Scotch whisky brand

696
00:37:53,200 --> 00:37:55,840
ambassadors who come to whisky
shows in

697
00:37:55,840 --> 00:37:58,280
Sweden, they are absolutely amazed

698
00:37:58,280 --> 00:38:02,280
about the knowledge that Swedish
whisky drinkers have.

699
00:38:02,280 --> 00:38:06,800
Hven distillery was founded in 2007
and is one of eight in Sweden.

700
00:38:06,800 --> 00:38:09,480
As well as making whisky,

701
00:38:09,480 --> 00:38:11,920
it houses a state-of-the-art
laboratory,

702
00:38:11,920 --> 00:38:15,440
providing services for drinks
companies across the world.

703
00:38:15,440 --> 00:38:18,320
What we do here is, it is our
Swedish whisky, it's our whisky,

704
00:38:18,320 --> 00:38:23,200
not definitely just Swedish or
Scottish.

705
00:38:23,200 --> 00:38:26,640
Still, most of the Scottish people
are just Vikings

706
00:38:26,640 --> 00:38:28,200
not travelling back,

707
00:38:28,200 --> 00:38:30,480
so you have the heritage from
us anyway.

708
00:38:30,480 --> 00:38:33,520
But at the end of the day,

709
00:38:33,520 --> 00:38:38,480
there is so many different whiskies
and one doesn't kill off the others.

710
00:38:38,480 --> 00:38:40,480
There's a whisky for all.

711
00:38:40,480 --> 00:38:44,800
What we're doing here is, we're very
particular about our oak maturation,

712
00:38:44,800 --> 00:38:47,040
but also how we create the cut.

713
00:38:48,240 --> 00:38:49,880
Obviously, being small,

714
00:38:49,880 --> 00:38:54,080
we need to have our unique selling
points and we need to make something

715
00:38:54,080 --> 00:38:55,960
that really tastes, really scents.

716
00:38:55,960 --> 00:38:59,640
Because volume can't be our sale
thing.

717
00:38:59,640 --> 00:39:05,120
So we go into special varieties of
fermentation, special yeast strains,

718
00:39:05,120 --> 00:39:08,000
special varieties of wood, for
example.

719
00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:10,880
But also, with the laboratory,

720
00:39:10,880 --> 00:39:14,200
where we have the unique possibility
of actually seeing what's happening

721
00:39:14,200 --> 00:39:15,720
during maturation,

722
00:39:15,720 --> 00:39:21,080
we do analyses for a wide variety of
distillers around the world.

723
00:39:21,080 --> 00:39:23,200
Well, a lot of people say that now,

724
00:39:23,200 --> 00:39:26,560
the Scotch whisky industry is in
big trouble,

725
00:39:26,560 --> 00:39:29,120
because they are being chased by
so many

726
00:39:29,120 --> 00:39:31,000
producers around the world.

727
00:39:31,000 --> 00:39:34,960
Yes, there is more competition now,
but, at the same time,

728
00:39:34,960 --> 00:39:38,200
we have at least 100 distilleries in
Scotland.

729
00:39:38,200 --> 00:39:41,880
We have 400 or 500 years of
tradition in Scotland.

730
00:39:41,880 --> 00:39:46,560
You can't just wipe that away just
because our new distilleries started

731
00:39:46,560 --> 00:39:50,680
10, 15, 20 years ago producing in
Tasmania or Sweden.

732
00:39:50,680 --> 00:39:56,560
They make beautiful whisky, but for
the next 20 or 30 years,

733
00:39:56,560 --> 00:40:01,240
I don't see them as a huge
competitor to Scotch whisky.

734
00:40:23,440 --> 00:40:26,840
Back on the mainland in Malmo
is The Bishops Arms,

735
00:40:26,840 --> 00:40:29,680
a cosy British themed pub
specialising

736
00:40:29,680 --> 00:40:35,000
in single malts and run by Croatian
whisky fanatic, Maja Kozul.

737
00:40:35,000 --> 00:40:38,160
I'm very curious about everything,
to be honest,

738
00:40:38,160 --> 00:40:41,000
and I think whisky is very good

739
00:40:41,000 --> 00:40:43,760
to have, enjoy.

740
00:40:43,760 --> 00:40:46,280
It's very much about people.

741
00:40:46,280 --> 00:40:49,160
There is a difference between
driving a Ferrari and there is

742
00:40:49,160 --> 00:40:50,960
difference between riding a bicycle.

743
00:40:50,960 --> 00:40:54,320
And obviously if you compare a
whisky with something else.

744
00:40:55,520 --> 00:40:57,600
Every Bishops Arms staff member is

745
00:40:57,600 --> 00:41:00,680
trained to become a whisky
specialist and advocate.

746
00:41:07,600 --> 00:41:10,040
Service is very important.

747
00:41:10,040 --> 00:41:14,040
People come in our bar and they look
on the shelves and say,

748
00:41:14,040 --> 00:41:17,200
what is all that? And you start
there.

749
00:41:17,200 --> 00:41:21,480
And you start there and,
"Can I have a double whisky?"

750
00:41:21,480 --> 00:41:24,520
And we start off often saying,

751
00:41:24,520 --> 00:41:28,320
"Well, would you like to have
three smaller ones, same amount,

752
00:41:28,320 --> 00:41:31,160
"same money and just discover
something new?"

753
00:41:31,160 --> 00:41:33,080
So you kind of have to educate your

754
00:41:33,080 --> 00:41:36,240
guests as you are educating your
staff at the same time.

755
00:41:39,680 --> 00:41:43,560
The Bishops Arms has won two
prestigious awards.

756
00:41:43,560 --> 00:41:47,000
Maja is spending the prize money on
a celebratory staff trip.

757
00:41:48,160 --> 00:41:54,320
We are going to spend that money
with a trip to Scotland, of course!

758
00:41:54,320 --> 00:41:58,360
We're visiting Glenkinchie
Distillery and we're just going to

759
00:41:58,360 --> 00:42:02,440
have an inspiration trip with my
staff so we can keep it alive.

760
00:42:04,600 --> 00:42:07,320
Glenkinchie is a Lowland distillery

761
00:42:07,320 --> 00:42:10,120
outside of Edinburgh, founded in
1837.

762
00:42:23,240 --> 00:42:25,560
That's a pleasant smell.

763
00:42:28,320 --> 00:42:30,400
And you finish with the distilling?

764
00:42:39,560 --> 00:42:43,520
By the old port of Leith, it's time
for a trip to Teuchters Landing,

765
00:42:43,520 --> 00:42:48,000
a pub whose assets include a
high-stakes game of hoopla.

766
00:43:03,880 --> 00:43:06,440
We were just checking if they
have any whisky we don't.

767
00:43:07,640 --> 00:43:08,840
So we'll try that one.

768
00:43:10,080 --> 00:43:12,760
It's very good to see how other
people work with the whisky,

769
00:43:12,760 --> 00:43:13,840
not just us.

770
00:43:13,840 --> 00:43:15,560
It's a living product, not just

771
00:43:15,560 --> 00:43:17,680
something you pour into a bottle and
pour

772
00:43:17,680 --> 00:43:20,840
colour into. It's a living product
that goes into casks and is made of

773
00:43:20,840 --> 00:43:25,960
barley. It makes it a lot more real
to see a distillery and see why you

774
00:43:25,960 --> 00:43:27,960
should appreciate whisky.

775
00:43:27,960 --> 00:43:31,480
Our guide, Clive, was very good.

776
00:43:33,440 --> 00:43:35,480
I thought he was really good.

777
00:43:35,480 --> 00:43:38,600
He showed us a picture up from
about 100 years ago with

778
00:43:38,600 --> 00:43:41,200
about 50 people who used to work

779
00:43:41,200 --> 00:43:44,840
there and it was really interesting
just

780
00:43:44,840 --> 00:43:47,640
seeing that that must have been the
whole village

781
00:43:47,640 --> 00:43:49,160
worked at the distillery.

782
00:43:50,360 --> 00:43:52,560
And now, you told us that it's two

783
00:43:52,560 --> 00:43:55,000
people work 12 hours and two people
do the late

784
00:43:55,000 --> 00:44:00,880
shift and the whole thing runs off
that and how the whisky making has

785
00:44:00,880 --> 00:44:04,000
changed over 100 years, but they
can still get the same product.

786
00:44:07,920 --> 00:44:09,200
I get a bucket of ice!

787
00:44:13,720 --> 00:44:15,920
Shall we have a hoop? We should?

788
00:44:15,920 --> 00:44:19,120
We should have a hoop. We'll have to
hide away all the single cask

789
00:44:19,120 --> 00:44:21,040
Ardbeg though.

790
00:44:21,040 --> 00:44:25,080
I'm not sure how that's going to
work out with the Swedish alcohol

791
00:44:25,080 --> 00:44:28,360
law, because selling alcohol in
Sweden's not allowed to be fun.

792
00:44:31,160 --> 00:44:33,760
It has to be quite straight and
direct.

793
00:44:34,920 --> 00:44:37,240
There's no such thing as happy hour
in Sweden.

794
00:44:38,720 --> 00:44:43,080
Spending time with this impassioned,
knowledgeable Bishops Arms team,

795
00:44:43,080 --> 00:44:45,600
I wonder whether we in Scotland
train our own

796
00:44:45,600 --> 00:44:50,400
bar staff enough and even if we
take Scotch for granted?

797
00:44:50,400 --> 00:44:53,400
Very often, you can walk into a bar
in Scotland, anywhere, and say,

798
00:44:53,400 --> 00:44:56,520
"Oh, can I have an Islay whisky,
please?"

799
00:44:56,520 --> 00:44:57,920
"Oh, I don't know, you'll need to

800
00:44:57,920 --> 00:44:59,800
"come behind the bar
and have a look."

801
00:44:59,800 --> 00:45:01,920
15 years ago, if somebody came to
our bar and said,

802
00:45:01,920 --> 00:45:03,640
"Could you tell me a good whisky?"

803
00:45:03,640 --> 00:45:05,320
Then they came straight to me,

804
00:45:05,320 --> 00:45:08,160
because the lassie didn't have a
clue behind the bar, so we thought,

805
00:45:08,160 --> 00:45:10,880
right, we'll sort this out. So we'll
get some of the distilleries in,

806
00:45:10,880 --> 00:45:12,880
we'll get some proper staff
training.

807
00:45:12,880 --> 00:45:15,600
Because there's no point having the
stuff if you can't sell it.

808
00:45:15,600 --> 00:45:19,000
So the guys all came in and we'd go
up to the Whisky Experience.

809
00:45:19,000 --> 00:45:21,360
No, so it's good. We kept meeting

810
00:45:21,360 --> 00:45:24,160
people who worked in bars and
sometimes,

811
00:45:24,160 --> 00:45:26,280
they worked in the very best hotel

812
00:45:26,280 --> 00:45:27,600
bars in Edinburgh,

813
00:45:27,600 --> 00:45:30,680
where we knew all the international
visitors were coming,

814
00:45:30,680 --> 00:45:33,160
some really high-end visitors
were coming and staying,

815
00:45:33,160 --> 00:45:37,560
in those beautiful five-star hotels
that we have and at that time,

816
00:45:37,560 --> 00:45:40,200
they weren't necessarily getting
great information

817
00:45:40,200 --> 00:45:41,440
about Scotch whisky,

818
00:45:41,440 --> 00:45:46,000
and I have to say, that's changed
massively in the last 15 years.

819
00:45:46,000 --> 00:45:47,720
Both in terms of the number of

820
00:45:47,720 --> 00:45:49,840
whiskies available, the number of

821
00:45:49,840 --> 00:45:52,280
specialist whisky bars that
there are.

822
00:45:52,280 --> 00:45:55,240
But there's still much, much more to
do and I would

823
00:45:55,240 --> 00:45:59,360
completely agree that across a very
broad portfolio in Edinburgh,

824
00:45:59,360 --> 00:46:01,840
if you look at lots of places
that you can taste whisky,

825
00:46:01,840 --> 00:46:04,000
you aren't necessarily going to find

826
00:46:04,000 --> 00:46:06,840
everybody serving you that really
knows

827
00:46:06,840 --> 00:46:09,320
about Scotch whisky and is
passionate about it.

828
00:46:09,320 --> 00:46:11,720
If you talk to whisky drinkers
around the world,

829
00:46:11,720 --> 00:46:13,560
"How did you find out about Scotch
whisky?"

830
00:46:13,560 --> 00:46:15,040
They were introduced to it by a

831
00:46:15,040 --> 00:46:16,480
bartender, by a brand ambassador.

832
00:46:16,480 --> 00:46:18,440
They came on holiday to Scotland,

833
00:46:18,440 --> 00:46:19,800
they visited a distillery.

834
00:46:19,800 --> 00:46:21,240
And it's so important.

835
00:46:21,240 --> 00:46:24,320
So, even it goes back to the
starting of whisky and you know,

836
00:46:24,320 --> 00:46:26,280
what happened there, the
introduction.

837
00:46:26,280 --> 00:46:28,360
The personal contact remains
absolutely key.

838
00:46:42,800 --> 00:46:44,400
This is the great city of London.

839
00:46:46,080 --> 00:46:49,520
A city that has quaffed whisky for
hundreds of years.

840
00:46:49,520 --> 00:46:53,560
It's also a city that has begun to
distil its own whisky yet again.

841
00:46:53,560 --> 00:46:57,480
And it's also the city that has
stoked a debate about how exactly

842
00:46:57,480 --> 00:46:59,600
this drink should best be devoured,

843
00:46:59,600 --> 00:47:02,040
and that includes - and this is
heretical -

844
00:47:02,040 --> 00:47:05,920
a mutiny against tradition for
some, including myself,

845
00:47:05,920 --> 00:47:07,680
drinking whisky in cocktails.

846
00:47:07,680 --> 00:47:11,400
Now, I'm about to go into this hotel
to talk to the

847
00:47:11,400 --> 00:47:14,280
2015 World Barman of the Year

848
00:47:14,280 --> 00:47:17,640
and if he mixes me a cocktail, he's
going straight to the Tower.

849
00:47:24,800 --> 00:47:29,680
Ryan, on a daily basis, you commit
sacrilege in this bar.

850
00:47:29,680 --> 00:47:31,320
Because you take some really,

851
00:47:31,320 --> 00:47:34,040
really decent whiskies that take
years to mature

852
00:47:34,040 --> 00:47:35,560
into all the richness of

853
00:47:35,560 --> 00:47:37,040
flavours, and then you throw in all

854
00:47:37,040 --> 00:47:39,240
sorts of other liquids and you
throw in

855
00:47:39,240 --> 00:47:43,000
strawberry crushes and botanicals
and you make dreadful cocktails out

856
00:47:43,000 --> 00:47:45,240
of them. I'm guilty of that.

857
00:47:45,240 --> 00:47:48,080
Why? To me, it's been the beauty of
whisky.

858
00:47:48,080 --> 00:47:49,600
It does have big, bold flavours,

859
00:47:49,600 --> 00:47:52,760
it's got all of these interesting
characteristics and to me,

860
00:47:52,760 --> 00:47:55,080
a cocktail is just a new way of
experiencing that.

861
00:47:55,080 --> 00:47:59,240
To me, it's not about masking any of
the flavours and hiding it away as a

862
00:47:59,240 --> 00:48:02,960
bland alcohol, the beauty of using
Scotch in these things is it has all

863
00:48:02,960 --> 00:48:06,960
these characteristics. Whisky should
be drunk any way you want it to be.

864
00:48:06,960 --> 00:48:09,720
I am a big fan of not being
prescriptive about drinking whisky

865
00:48:09,720 --> 00:48:12,640
and I think we are seeing that more
and more nowadays.

866
00:48:12,640 --> 00:48:16,000
I love whisky cocktails, whisky
highballs, whisky neat,

867
00:48:16,000 --> 00:48:20,520
whisky on the rocks... In a nosing
glass, being more professional,

868
00:48:20,520 --> 00:48:23,720
or literally out of a flask when I'm
walking up a big hill and it's

869
00:48:23,720 --> 00:48:25,480
freezing cold. I think the industry

870
00:48:25,480 --> 00:48:27,280
need to find a way of keeping their
older

871
00:48:27,280 --> 00:48:29,520
consumer happy, by doing what they
love and what

872
00:48:29,520 --> 00:48:31,200
they're going to keep buying,

873
00:48:31,200 --> 00:48:33,000
but also not being scared to
innovate and

874
00:48:33,000 --> 00:48:34,480
not being scared to talk about

875
00:48:34,480 --> 00:48:37,520
putting in mixers and talk about
putting in ice and water and getting

876
00:48:37,520 --> 00:48:40,560
more people to experiment with it
and find out what they like,

877
00:48:40,560 --> 00:48:42,520
rather than using the old method,

878
00:48:42,520 --> 00:48:45,600
where it was preached and you were
told you must drink it neat,

879
00:48:45,600 --> 00:48:47,440
you mustn't do this, you mustn't do

880
00:48:47,440 --> 00:48:50,280
that, and that image has
turned a lot of people off.

881
00:48:50,280 --> 00:48:52,240
So, however you
want to drink your Scotch,

882
00:48:52,240 --> 00:48:54,200
you drink your Scotch however you
like it.

883
00:48:54,200 --> 00:48:56,000
And don't let anybody tell you
you can't.

884
00:48:56,000 --> 00:48:58,240
But, there are limits.

885
00:48:58,240 --> 00:49:00,200
So, I got my father for one
Christmas

886
00:49:00,200 --> 00:49:02,800
a really expensive bottle of
Highland Park.

887
00:49:02,800 --> 00:49:05,560
Highland Park is a
beautiful Scotch,

888
00:49:05,560 --> 00:49:09,880
and I took it around and we were
celebrating Christmas and the first

889
00:49:09,880 --> 00:49:12,120
thing he did was he opened it,

890
00:49:12,120 --> 00:49:15,240
and there was a bottle of dry ginger
at one side and this really amazing

891
00:49:15,240 --> 00:49:17,400
bottle of Highland Park at the
other.

892
00:49:17,400 --> 00:49:19,320
And they both went in the same
glass.

893
00:49:19,320 --> 00:49:21,440
So that is where you draw the limit.

894
00:49:21,440 --> 00:49:24,680
If you want to get somebody to
experience a new spirit,

895
00:49:24,680 --> 00:49:26,720
something different, a new flavour,

896
00:49:26,720 --> 00:49:28,840
it can be a bit much just giving
them a neat dram,

897
00:49:28,840 --> 00:49:32,360
especially when you've got something
cask strength or smoky and all of a

898
00:49:32,360 --> 00:49:35,560
sudden they are put off by it.
Everybody's got that story of

899
00:49:35,560 --> 00:49:38,360
drinking whisky, stealing it from
their dad's cabinet and going,

900
00:49:38,360 --> 00:49:40,720
"I don't like the stuff," and they
stick with that idea.

901
00:49:40,720 --> 00:49:44,280
Whereas, whisky runs this amazing
gauntlet of flavour and you've got

902
00:49:44,280 --> 00:49:48,120
light, delicate, Lowland drams,
through to big, smoky, rich Islays.

903
00:49:48,120 --> 00:49:50,280
And you want people to go,
"Right, actually,

904
00:49:50,280 --> 00:49:52,080
"there's a new way of
experiencing this."

905
00:49:52,080 --> 00:49:53,920
And using a cocktail, if you do it
delicately,

906
00:49:53,920 --> 00:49:55,920
is a way of introducing new flavours
to them.

907
00:49:55,920 --> 00:49:58,840
Actually, this drink's been on our
menu since the beginning.

908
00:49:58,840 --> 00:50:01,000
And I've always tried to involve
whisky cocktails.

909
00:50:01,000 --> 00:50:02,920
It's my favourite spirit. It's one I
have loved.

910
00:50:02,920 --> 00:50:05,640
I lived in Scotland for a long time.
It's very close to my heart.

911
00:50:05,640 --> 00:50:08,720
So, this is essentially a twist on a
whisky sour.

912
00:50:08,720 --> 00:50:11,280
But it is a bit of an unusual one.

913
00:50:11,280 --> 00:50:13,680
So, I'm going to warn you of that
before I get started.

914
00:50:13,680 --> 00:50:16,120
If people want to enjoy their
whisky with a lot

915
00:50:16,120 --> 00:50:19,400
of nosing and sniffing and looking
at the colour, well good for them.

916
00:50:19,400 --> 00:50:21,360
It's their whisky, they've bought
it.

917
00:50:21,360 --> 00:50:25,600
If they want to slam a glass full of
ice and stick a branded cola on top

918
00:50:25,600 --> 00:50:28,880
of it, well, I might wince.

919
00:50:28,880 --> 00:50:31,680
It might not be for me, but it's
their whisky.

920
00:50:31,680 --> 00:50:32,840
It's a free world.

921
00:50:34,160 --> 00:50:37,360
On they should go. As long as they
enjoy it.

922
00:50:37,360 --> 00:50:40,920
This idea that,
"Thou shalt not touch,"

923
00:50:40,920 --> 00:50:43,040
really only is about 30 years old.

924
00:50:43,040 --> 00:50:44,680
And I think it's done irreparable

925
00:50:44,680 --> 00:50:46,760
damage to the Scotch whisky industry

926
00:50:46,760 --> 00:50:48,520
because people...
It's a strong drink.

927
00:50:48,520 --> 00:50:51,720
And people take a sip of it because
you're not allowed to add water to

928
00:50:51,720 --> 00:50:53,240
it and it's... Come on.

929
00:50:53,240 --> 00:50:55,280
It's about pleasure, guys. It's not
about pain.

930
00:50:55,280 --> 00:50:59,200
So, you know, I would add anything
you want to Scotch whisky.

931
00:50:59,200 --> 00:51:02,040
Just enjoy it because it might be a
great, complex drink,

932
00:51:02,040 --> 00:51:03,760
but it's just a drink.

933
00:51:04,800 --> 00:51:06,440
Ryan, the more I explore whisky,

934
00:51:06,440 --> 00:51:09,440
the more I realise it is a form of
alchemy.

935
00:51:09,440 --> 00:51:10,520
Mm-hmm.

936
00:51:10,520 --> 00:51:13,280
And you're taking it a stage
further, aren't you?

937
00:51:13,280 --> 00:51:16,760
Well, to me, you know, your whisky
blenders, be that blended whisky,

938
00:51:16,760 --> 00:51:20,280
be that single malts, they are
essentially making cocktails.

939
00:51:20,280 --> 00:51:22,840
They're bringing all these different
elements together.

940
00:51:22,840 --> 00:51:25,520
Creating a harmony that tastes
greater than the sum of its parts.

941
00:51:25,520 --> 00:51:28,920
Hopefully, this is going to be a new
side of this whisky that you won't

942
00:51:28,920 --> 00:51:31,920
have tried.
This will be a first time for me.

943
00:51:31,920 --> 00:51:33,640
OK. I'm hoping this works.

944
00:51:59,160 --> 00:52:00,480
Slainte.

945
00:52:09,440 --> 00:52:11,200
That's surprisingly refreshing.

946
00:52:11,200 --> 00:52:12,360
Dare I admit it.

947
00:52:12,360 --> 00:52:13,880
THEY LAUGH

948
00:52:13,880 --> 00:52:16,040
I'll probably lose half my friends.

949
00:52:25,400 --> 00:52:28,760
So, what does the future hold in
store for Scotch?

950
00:52:28,760 --> 00:52:33,120
Not only is there an explosion of
small-scale craft distilleries,

951
00:52:33,120 --> 00:52:35,400
some of the older, established
producers

952
00:52:35,400 --> 00:52:37,000
are investing big money, too.

953
00:52:39,720 --> 00:52:41,880
This is Strathspey in the north-east
of Scotland.

954
00:52:41,880 --> 00:52:43,360
It's an area that contains the

955
00:52:43,360 --> 00:52:45,480
greatest density of whisky
distilleries

956
00:52:45,480 --> 00:52:46,960
anywhere in the world.

957
00:52:46,960 --> 00:52:49,440
It is also home to The Macallan,

958
00:52:49,440 --> 00:52:52,520
one of the best loved and most
revered whiskies in the world.

959
00:52:52,520 --> 00:52:55,440
Macallan have been here for over
200 years.

960
00:52:55,440 --> 00:53:00,160
But currently, the demand for
Macallan is outstripping supply.

961
00:53:00,160 --> 00:53:02,240
So, the company are investing the

962
00:53:02,240 --> 00:53:05,640
small sum of £100 million in
creating a

963
00:53:05,640 --> 00:53:09,000
cathedral of whisky, due to open in
2017.

964
00:53:13,920 --> 00:53:18,080
This beautiful new distillery on the
Island of Harris is proof, too,

965
00:53:18,080 --> 00:53:21,480
that there is confidence in the
future of Scotch.

966
00:53:21,480 --> 00:53:23,920
It's a very exciting time, I think,
for distilling.

967
00:53:23,920 --> 00:53:25,440
Especially here in Scotland,

968
00:53:25,440 --> 00:53:27,440
we've got a lot of new distilleries
appearing.

969
00:53:27,440 --> 00:53:30,120
There's a lot of gin distilleries
which are going to be leading into

970
00:53:30,120 --> 00:53:31,720
making whisky. But the same thing's

971
00:53:31,720 --> 00:53:34,160
happening all across mainland
Europe, all throughout Asia.

972
00:53:34,160 --> 00:53:36,320
And there's a
lot of new distilleries appearing.

973
00:53:36,320 --> 00:53:39,080
But I think it's very important that
Scotland doesn't lose focus,

974
00:53:39,080 --> 00:53:41,200
so that they keep creating very high
quality spirit.

975
00:53:41,200 --> 00:53:42,720
But I think that we're lucky in a

976
00:53:42,720 --> 00:53:44,480
way because we have the heritage
that

977
00:53:44,480 --> 00:53:47,480
all of these mainland European
distilleries and Asian distilleries

978
00:53:47,480 --> 00:53:49,920
will never have the same heritage
as Scotland has.

979
00:53:49,920 --> 00:53:53,320
The big challenge in whisky is
trying to balance innovation and

980
00:53:53,320 --> 00:53:57,240
tradition. I think it's very
possible to do that.

981
00:53:57,240 --> 00:53:59,440
And to produce something amazing.

982
00:53:59,440 --> 00:54:02,720
I don't know if it's going to turn
out just as fine as everyone in the

983
00:54:02,720 --> 00:54:05,000
industry thinks and hopes and
believes.

984
00:54:05,000 --> 00:54:07,240
And there are going to be some
casualties along the way.

985
00:54:07,240 --> 00:54:09,480
Maybe some of those small craft
distilleries

986
00:54:09,480 --> 00:54:11,040
are going to fall by the wayside

987
00:54:11,040 --> 00:54:13,400
in a kind of creative destruction of
the marketplace.

988
00:54:13,400 --> 00:54:16,040
But overall, I think we probably
will take the right turn.

989
00:54:16,040 --> 00:54:18,160
I think we will go on to the sunlit

990
00:54:18,160 --> 00:54:22,040
uplands and I think there is a
bonnie future for Scotch.

991
00:54:22,040 --> 00:54:26,880
We've made Scotch whisky
for hundreds of years.

992
00:54:26,880 --> 00:54:29,440
It has proved the test of time.

993
00:54:29,440 --> 00:54:35,840
It is revered as the pinnacle of the
distiller's art worldwide

994
00:54:35,840 --> 00:54:39,360
because of its character,
its quality,

995
00:54:39,360 --> 00:54:44,480
its soul.
And it will continue to do well.

996
00:54:44,480 --> 00:54:47,200
I see it actually as a
moment of opportunity for Scotch

997
00:54:47,200 --> 00:54:49,040
whisky because the more the

998
00:54:49,040 --> 00:54:51,640
Scotch whisky industry is looking
over

999
00:54:51,640 --> 00:54:54,920
its shoulder, sort of going, "Oh,
well, bourbon's becoming popular.

1000
00:54:54,920 --> 00:54:56,760
"Maybe we should be like bourbon.

1001
00:54:56,760 --> 00:54:58,400
"Or Japanese is becoming popular.

1002
00:54:58,400 --> 00:55:00,040
"Can we be like Japanese?"

1003
00:55:00,040 --> 00:55:03,240
Then you've lost it. You've lost the
battle completely.

1004
00:55:08,640 --> 00:55:11,600
But not everyone is as confident
about the future.

1005
00:55:12,880 --> 00:55:17,480
I actually think that if you look at
whisky, the historic whisky graph,

1006
00:55:17,480 --> 00:55:19,400
it goes up and down. If you remember

1007
00:55:19,400 --> 00:55:21,280
in the '80s with the whisky lake
and

1008
00:55:21,280 --> 00:55:24,160
shut half of Scotland's
distilleries. It's coming.

1009
00:55:25,480 --> 00:55:29,160
What have Scotland done? Doubled
production in the last four years.

1010
00:55:29,160 --> 00:55:32,320
The moment that whisky is live and
ready for sale...

1011
00:55:33,640 --> 00:55:37,200
..we haven't suddenly got twice as
many whisky drinkers in the world.

1012
00:55:37,200 --> 00:55:39,280
Therefore, this is just going to...

1013
00:55:39,280 --> 00:55:41,800
There has to be a mountain of
whisky building.

1014
00:55:41,800 --> 00:55:44,400
And at some point, it will all go
down and we'll all have a bit of a

1015
00:55:44,400 --> 00:55:47,200
downturn. And then we'll...

1016
00:55:47,200 --> 00:55:48,760
Yeah. So, what do you...?

1017
00:55:48,760 --> 00:55:50,520
What's your opinion on say the

1018
00:55:50,520 --> 00:55:53,920
Macallan spending 100 million on
this new facility?

1019
00:55:53,920 --> 00:55:55,280
Brilliant. Really cool.

1020
00:55:55,280 --> 00:55:57,600
But you know, they've doubled
production.

1021
00:55:57,600 --> 00:55:59,480
Do they think they can sell twice as
much whisky?

1022
00:56:00,960 --> 00:56:02,000
If they can, brilliant.

1023
00:56:02,000 --> 00:56:04,200
But that means someone else isn't
selling any.

1024
00:56:05,960 --> 00:56:09,280
We haven't suddenly got everybody
buying twice as many bottles.

1025
00:56:09,280 --> 00:56:13,320
So, the industry has to do a bit of
a dip.

1026
00:56:13,320 --> 00:56:16,000
And those that have got their

1027
00:56:16,000 --> 00:56:19,640
houses in order will be fine and
those that have borrowed to the hilt

1028
00:56:19,640 --> 00:56:22,680
and are expecting it to continue
willy-nilly probably

1029
00:56:22,680 --> 00:56:25,360
will wake up with a headache.

1030
00:56:25,360 --> 00:56:27,680
But we'll see. That's the joy of
whisky.

1031
00:56:27,680 --> 00:56:30,520
I mean, you design a business to
work over generations,

1032
00:56:30,520 --> 00:56:32,200
not over a decade cycle.

1033
00:56:36,920 --> 00:56:41,560
As I have seen, Scotch whisky
sprung from Caledonian terrain and

1034
00:56:41,560 --> 00:56:43,520
bewitched the world.

1035
00:56:43,520 --> 00:56:45,480
Its ascendancy has been driven by

1036
00:56:45,480 --> 00:56:47,880
pioneers, from early innovators and

1037
00:56:47,880 --> 00:56:52,400
the entrepreneurs who first exported
our wares, to today's scientists,

1038
00:56:52,400 --> 00:56:54,200
blenders and craft distillers.

1039
00:56:55,560 --> 00:57:00,280
Yet what strikes me most is, despite
all that, the drink itself remains

1040
00:57:00,280 --> 00:57:02,280
a charming enigma.

1041
00:57:02,280 --> 00:57:04,600
The causes of its sumptuous taste,

1042
00:57:04,600 --> 00:57:08,800
impossible to agree upon and even
opaque and mysterious.

1043
00:57:10,480 --> 00:57:14,080
There will be peaks and troughs and
pretenders to the throne.

1044
00:57:14,080 --> 00:57:16,120
But because of that sorcery,

1045
00:57:16,120 --> 00:57:19,320
Scotland's tipple of genius will
always prevail.

1046
00:57:20,960 --> 00:57:23,640
The future's bright.
The future's amber.

1047
00:57:30,640 --> 00:57:33,200
We're getting very near last orders,
folks.

1048
00:57:34,600 --> 00:57:35,640
And the end of my journey.

1049
00:57:37,200 --> 00:57:40,480
A wonderful journey through the
magical world of whisky.

1050
00:57:40,480 --> 00:57:42,520
I hope you've enjoyed it.

1051
00:57:42,520 --> 00:57:45,000
From Highland crofter to Hobart
visionary,

1052
00:57:45,000 --> 00:57:48,960
there's an amber thread that
embroiders the globe.

1053
00:57:48,960 --> 00:57:52,480
When a cunning alchemist distils
a spirit,

1054
00:57:52,480 --> 00:57:56,880
a liquid drops forth into a cask and
there something truly,

1055
00:57:56,880 --> 00:57:59,080
truly colossal happens.

1056
00:57:59,080 --> 00:58:04,800
Scotch whisky affects history and
defines identity.

1057
00:58:04,800 --> 00:58:09,920
It embraces science and big business
and the land, and yet...

1058
00:58:09,920 --> 00:58:13,040
And yet, at its heart, this mixture
of water,

1059
00:58:13,040 --> 00:58:16,240
barley and yeast is just a simple,

1060
00:58:16,240 --> 00:58:20,000
beautiful taste of
heaven in a glass.

1061
00:58:20,000 --> 00:58:21,440
Slainte.