Where’s our BrewDog moment? Part II: Should we call independent bottlings ‘craft whisky’?

A few months ago, we wrote a long thought-piece that pondered two central questions:

Why aren’t independent bottlings as popular as craft beer? And what can the whisky industry learn from craft beer?

The question isn’t as ridiculous as it might sound, either. Beer and whisky are – until the point the liquid is distilled – very similar indeed. On top of that, beer has brushed off a stale image – one of note-taking, bearded CAMRA members – to appeal to drinkers of all ages.

Whisky, as of yet, hasn’t quite managed that.

One of the conclusions that we drew was that whisky suffers from an image problem: it feels a little stuffy, a little exclusive and a little impenetrable.

In short, to the casual drinker, it’s a little off-putting.

Now, since writing that article, we’ve been pondering it some more. And we’re not quite done with it yet.

We talked about the marketing strategies of BrewDog compared to independent bottlers, but we didn’t consider something that was more fundamental to craft beer’s success: the word ‘craft’ itself.

As a marketing term, the word craft has become dime-a-dozen over the past half a decade or so. We’ve had craft beer, craft chocolate and craft coffee. In fact, we’ve had so many craft products that the word is almost meaningless.

However, you can see its appeal. The word craft instantly suggests a strict, almost religious, dedication to doing things in a way that is going to produce a better product, regardless of efficiency or profit margins.

The key to the concept of craft is a focus on quality. Everything the crafter does is geared towards producing the best possible end product.

Which raised the question:

Should we start calling independently bottled whisky ‘craft whisky’?

At Whisky Foundation, we’re the number one supporter of all things independent bottling, but we know that – even among whisky drinkers – independent bottling remains a bit of a niche. A bit of a hidden secret.

Which is a shame.

Because independent bottlings are awesome.

So, should we start calling independently bottled whisky ‘craft whisky’?

If you look at the facts, there’s no reason not to.

Craft products are a la mode right now. Craft stuff is selling like hot cakes, craft beer is still incredibly popular and profitable and – importantly – craft perfectly suits the process and thought that goes into independent bottling.

In our original article, we said this:

The real shame is, independent bottlings have everything that the new generation of alcohol drinkers look for in a product:

•They’re produced by small, artisanal bottlers who take a great deal of pride and care in their work.

•They’re authentic – bottled at cask strength without chill filtration, added colouring or dilution.

•And – most importantly for the image – they’re anti-establishment. Independent bottlers are doing exciting things with their whiskies and selling small batches of unique, individual and once-in-a-lifetime whisky. They’re not mass-producing whisky and diluting it or adding things to enhance profit margins.

All they need is a little push in the right direction. A signal flare to a whole new audience of whisky drinkers unaware of the malty delights on offer.

Perhaps that signal flare would be a rebranding of independent bottling as craft whisky?

It’s has worked for other companies – cough, BrewDog, cough – so why not use it to bring independent bottlings to wider audience?

Legally, it could get a bit tricky:

The Scottish Craft Distillers Association have stated that a craft distiller is one who produces less than 100,000 litres of pure alcohol (lpa) per annum.

However, as we know, independent bottlers don’t distil their whisky. They simply bottle it. (We’ll leave this one to the lawyers to sort out)

Once that issue is out of the way, a rebranding of independent bottling – a process steeped in tradition and heritage (which are very important to the idea of ‘craft’) – as craft whisky could be the thing that independent bottling needs to finally break free from its niche, hidden secret image to a much wider audience.

However, we’re not 100% sold on the idea. The word craft has become so ubiquitous that it might even detract from the authenticity of independent bottling.

Decades and decades of tradition and of doing things differently, authentically and ‘properly’, from the very first Gordon & MacPhail bottling to the plethora of fantastic independent bottlers of today, mean that independent bottling is as close to craft whisky as you’re going to get.

However, the word craft is, undoubtedly, a marketing trend that’s going to die off soon. Rebranding independent bottling as craft whisky would tie it to this recent trend and render all of that history, tradition and heritage meaningless.

So, here’s what we’ll conclude: independent is craft whisky in every way, but let’s not call it that. There are better ways to bring new drinkers to the table, without having to piggyback on a dying trend.

What are your thoughts on the term ‘craft whisky’? Hate it? Love it? This is a question for every lover of IBs, and we’d love to hear your thoughts.