Advice for a hotel

[Beatmonkey]

Evening, a bit of a cheeky first post this one, I'm rejigging the hotel I work ats whisky selection and want to make sure it isn't too skewed to my personal taste (The Islay's with a drop of Highland Park)

I've got room for 5 single malts and want a nice broad selection representing all the major styles and all likely to sell well. Also they need to be fairly cheap (so 10 and 12yo expressions) as our bar by no means specalises in whisky.

Also we have Jonny Walker Black alongside our Grouse, Jack and Jamesons (as top sellers, they're staying) does anybody see the need for a 'premium' blend?

In short: recommend me a list of 5 cheap single malts that cover all bases nicely.

[Alexppp]

Hmm, you've got to have some kind of Islay representation so Laphroaig is the obvious cheapest choice. Maybe the Quarter Cask as opposed to the 10? It wouldn't be any less popular among the uninitiated and it will be more attractive to regular single malt drinkers since it's a more unusual choice.

Other than that, I'd say Balvenie Doublewood, one of Talisker 10/Highland Park 12, a lighter fruity choice such as Glenmorangie 10 or Glenlivet 12 and a sherried one like Macallan 10.

Easy! (but I'm sure you'll get lots of different suggestions...!)

[Beatmonkey]

Thank you for the response.

We have Laphorig presently and I wasn't thinking of changing it as it's a lovely drop and the cheapest of the Islays. Just checked and I can't get the quarter cask from our suppliers, shame as it was a good suggestion as long as it wouldn't have raised the price too much.

We have Talisker 10 currently as well, I think I'm going to change to HP12 as it's my favourite out of the two, and also that finish is something I can easily train my bartenders to sell!

We also have Glenfiddich (probably staying as it's so recogniseable) Glenmorangie and Macallan. It's this side of things where I don't have so much experience and was looking for advice really.

[Alexppp]

I'd say between Glenfiddich, Glenmorangie and the Macallan you've got most bases covered as far as non-smoky whiskies are concerned. Is it the regular Macallan 10 or the Fine Oak? If it's the Fine Oak maybe substitute the original one (now called Sherry Oak) for it.

For five others, I'd go with something that covers the fruity, honeyed Highland style such as Dalwhinnie 15 or Aberfeldy 12, Highland Park 12 (I know I'd love to see both Highland Park and Talisker in a bar since I love both!), Balvenie Doublewood (it's the one I'd recommend to anyone trying a single malt for the first time) and perhaps something non chill-filtered to appeal to the connoisseurs? The new Bunnahabhain 12 has been getting rave reviews for example, and isn't a 'heavy' Islay.

[Beatmonkey]

Thanks once again, much food for thought. Am putting a premium spirits section in our wine list so will want opinions on my tasting notes once I've made the final selection and writen them!

I'm tempted to put both Talisker and HP on, I too love them both and they are very differnt drams.

The Macallan is the sherry oak, so I think I'll stick with that. Was lucky enough to have a tasting with the Dalmore people the other day and they've converted me to the more heavily sherried styles.

Dalwhinne 15 is a little out of price range I think unfortuantly. We are really talking bottles that will cost you no more then £25 in the supermarket. The prices I pay our supplier our so similar to supermarket prices you wouldn't belive it. And the trouble is if I go too 'interesting' I'm stuck with a £30 bottle of whisky that just isn't selling.

Any thoughts on whether I can get rid of Jonny Walker Black? I'm tempted to replace with either Bushmills or a Bourbon other then Jack.

[r900p]

Throw an Amrut in there- something completely different. My local got it in after requests and sell loads of it.

Rob

[Alexppp]

[Alexppp]

Also what's the Amrut like, Rob?

[Innes]

The brands that people know best will always sell, such as Glenfiddich 12 and Glenmorangie 10 so it is always good to stock these and you wont be left with them as they will always sell. As most people already know Glenfiddich then i would suggest the Glenfiddich 15 Solera Reserve which you can usually get for not much more than the Glenfiddich 12. The Glenfiddich 15 would offers your punters a step up from the 12 and it is a quality malt that any whisky drinker would enjoy and i am sure would sell itself once tasted.

Balvenie 12 Doublewood as suggested above usually goes down well.

Having both Talisker 10 and Highland Park 12 is also a good idea.

If the Laphroaig already sells well why not consider the Ardbeg 10 or Lagavulin 16 or perhaps a less peaty Islay such as Caol Ila 12.

The Dalwhinnie 15 suggested above is also a good idea, you can get it at a decent price and the extra age can help encourage sales.

If Macallan Sherryoak already sells well why not offer Macallan 10 Fine Oak.

You may want to consider a lowland malt such as Auchentoshan.

Does the Johnnie Walker Black Label currently sell well, if so keep stocking it.

Have you considered encouraging sales with promotions such as Malt of the Month, something like Highland Park 12 for £2 a drink. I see this sort of promotion in a lot of pubs now and it seems to encourage further sales of none promotion malts.

[Beatmonkey]

Again, thank you all for your responses. In answer to much of the above but in no particular order.

I am considering doing a 'malt of the month' but it would probably be along the lines of having a 'guest' single malt in much the same way pubs have their normal ales on draught and then a guest ale. I'd do up a nice looking point of sale sign for it with tasting note and probably a paragraph about the distillery. These would be things along the lines of a Lagavulin 16, slightly older expressions with a £30-50 price tag. I'd just get the 1 bottle, when it's gone, it's gone and we move onto the next guest malt.

A Glenfiddich 15 is a very good suggestion actually, keep the 12 but offer the 15 as well for somebody who is thinking of paying that little bit more and the lure of extra age while still being a brand they know is more likely to tempt them then the product of a little known distillery, no matter how good that may be.

I've been considering Auchentoshan, tried it for the first time myself a few months ago and loved it. Lowland malts aren't something you see very often anywhere, let alone in a 28 room hotel.

So, my current dream line-up:

Laphroaig 10
Highland Park 12
Talisker 10
Glenfiddich 12
Macallan Sherry Oak 10
Auchentoshan 10


Although I think maybe swap out the Talisker for a Glenmorangie, The Glenmorangie is very popular and this is unfortunately about sales, not what I'd like to drink my way through in the evening.

I'm currently leaning toward getting rid of the Jonnie Walker, it sells OK but not really great. I'm just worried if there's a sort of collective expectation amoung travelers to see it in a hotel bar.

I'm also interested to know what Amrut's like. I tried Yamazaki 12 just the other day, and while I thought it was nice it finished ever so abruptly and didn't quite have the complexity of some of my favourite drams. I didn't really have enough to properly get to grips with it though (always the way eh?)

[Kenny M]

Both the standard Amrut and Amrut Peated are excellent. But my choice from the Amrut range is the Amrut Fusion, fruity, loads of oak , smoke and dark chocolate. If you enjoy Clynelish, Talisker and Highland Park then you will enjoy Amrut as i would say there is a bit of each in the Fusion.

[5-12-1908]

World of Diff between Talisker and Ardbeg, and obviously the Talsiker covers a wider customer base I should imagine.

Glenfiddich 15 carries the brand name, and is the best of the bunch for me. A changeover period would see people swapping over..depending on the price diff.
Glenmoragie or Glenlivet are recognizable names and would give the customers perceived choice of "quality" whisky.
Why not have guest bottles and keep changing them depending on demand or feedback?


Who knows? I tend to find Ardbeg gets ever better the further down the bottle I get...positively fantastic by the 3/4 mark.

[Alastair]

I am guessing a lot of customers will be passing trade and not regulars so rotating the selection to see what sells best should be no problem as you may not be disappointing regulars too much.

[whisky_collector]

[Beatmonkey]