Many, Many Thanks!

[Mark C]

I'd like to thank the exhibitors who took a chance on a new event. We hope you weren't disappointed. Similarly thanks to everyone who took a chance and bought a ticket. The feedback has been fantastic and we're really chuffed with the response to it all. Thanks also to Glasgow's Whisky Club members who volunteered on the day and helped with the organisation. And lastly a big thanks to my partner Toshie who came along for the ride.

Any criticism/thoughts/suggestions for next year will be gratefully received.

Thanks!

[toshie]

Thanks to every single person who made Saturday such a success. Exhibitors and visitors alike told us they'd had a great time. Special thanks to members of Glasgow's Whisky Club who were willing volunteers, and worked like Trojans throughout. We'll see you next year!
Bill Mackintosh

[pompey-G]

Came up from Portsmouth for the event and thoroughly enjoyed the day so hats off to all those involved in organising what was the best event of this kind i've been to so far, can't wait for next year cheers

[Willie JJ]

It was a great event. A genuine alternative to the Whisky Fringe.

Suggestions for next year? Yes, do it again.

Cheers

[MacDeffe]

Make it a 2-day event

Thanks for organising it, Mark and Bill and everybody else from GWC

Steffen

[Malt-Teaser]

Mark & Toshie,
well done, from all I've heard it was enjoyed by all, but I have to agree with MacDeffe that you should make it longer.
A 2-day festival is ideal, then people can get the most out of the stands plus maybe spend a day attending the (hopefully) many masterclasses.
When a festival gets big enough, then it should also have a press / VIP time allocated which could be Saturday morning before opening to the public, or even Friday evening.


I know that general concepts seem to be totally different between the UK and mainland Europe, but I still don't personally favour a "one price to include all samples". As we have spoken before on here, if I attend a festival it is to get as many new (to me) samples to try as possible, which means I am more than prepared to pay for them, so allow the stall holders to sell their drams / measures which again will bypass any problems with folk who may wish to then pour them into their own sample bottles.

I can understand why organisors and stall-holders may be a wee bit perturbed by someone paying a 15-20 GBP entry fee, then coming away with perhaps 30 samples for this price.

Malty

[MacDeffe]

I really think its a very small minority that would attend a whisky festival to collect samples, correct me if I am wrong

Free pours removes a lot of barriers and is a time saver, and its great when the crowd is well behaved

(I did swop and pass on loads of samples with friends, so got away with plenty. Bought plenty of miniatures as well)

Steffen

[Malt-Teaser]

I really think its a very small minority that would attend a whisky festival to collect samples, correct me if I am wrong

Free pours removes a lot of barriers and is a time saver, and its great when the crowd is well behaved

(I did swop and pass on loads of samples with friends, so got away with plenty. Bought plenty of miniatures as well)

Steffen

I may be in a minority, but I want to get the most out of an event, especially where there are dozens of whiskies I haven't tried and prefer not to leave being carried out on my back due to over-indulgence.

[Jimmy321]

I know that general concepts seem to be totally different between the UK and mainland Europe, but I still don't personally favour a "one price to include all samples". As we have spoken before on here, if I attend a festival it is to get as many new (to me) samples to try as possible, which means I am more than prepared to pay for them, so allow the stall holders to sell their drams / measures which again will bypass any problems with folk who may wish to then pour them into their own sample bottles.

I can understand why organisors and stall-holders may be a wee bit perturbed by someone paying a 15-20 GBP entry fee, then coming away with perhaps 30 samples for this price.

Malty

Including the samples in the price helped the show run more smoothly, it was really busy and cutting out vouchers or money helped, I never saw anyone pour them in to sample bottles.

If you want to try as many samples as possible just ask for a smaller pour or drink less, most of the 30yo + drams were around 5ml and standard Whiskies up to 35ml, at the end of the day it's up to the stall holders and they were more than happy to provide them, I managed to try loads prob in the high 20's.

[Mark C]

I really don't want to get into the taking samples away debate again here apart from to say I disagree with it entirely.

A couple of points on the longer or two-day event suggestions. The length of the day was determined by exhibitor consensus beforehand. Four hours is plenty of time and it works for Whisky Fringe. Any longer on Saturday and I fear there may have been a few casualties. Making it a two-day event ups the cost for many exhibitors which would mean more accommodation, stock, stand, staffing, etc. Many of the smaller ones, whom we want to attract, would perhaps decide that they couldn't attend.

I'm sifting through all the great feedback we received and a few things will be tweaked for next year.

Oh, we did have a trade hour beforehand which didn't work too well but might work next year with some more work on it.

[Colin Auchentoshan]

I was working at it and really enjoyed it. Cheers to everyone who came and kept me company on the auchentoshan stand. It was a great day and I cant wait for next year.

[martin grant]

I really enjoyed the festival this year, and will be there again next year (if I'm invited!).
It was great to see so many enthusiasts showing a real interest in our whisky. For what it's worth I reckon one day is long enough. To spread the festival over 2 days in November is asking a lot of the exhibitors who are already extremely busy at this time of the year. 1 day worked well this year, and I reckon it will work well again.
Also not sure there is any need for exhibitors to pour samples into bottles. Of all the festivals I've attended, I've never once been asked to do this. To do so would probably also throw up licencing issues.

[Drew]

I really enjoyed the festival this year. I found the format really good, having just enough time to get round all the stands I wanted to and have a good old chat in between. The pour size from most of the exibitors was very generous for a festival, so much so that I had to stop a couple and dare I say - empty a few into the spittoons.

Great job!!! Thanks Mark and Toshie

[Malt-Teaser]

Including the samples in the price helped the show run more smoothly, it was really busy and cutting out vouchers or money helped, I never saw anyone pour them in to sample bottles.

If you want to try as many samples as possible just ask for a smaller pour or drink less, most of the 30yo + drams were around 5ml and standard Whiskies up to 35ml, at the end of the day it's up to the stall holders and they were more than happy to provide them, I managed to try loads prob in the high 20's.

5ml? Firstly, that's less than 1cl and certainly not enough to write a sensible review, which is what I want.

If you tried "prob in the high 20's" then I really wonder how many after about 6 or 8 you really tasted?


Yes, to Mark, Toshie and all exhibitors, I do wish to discuss the idea of sample bottles as a festival is one of the few chances to experience, buy or get hold of many whiskies at the same time without having to buy full bottles.
I appreciate all the ethical issues of paying a small entry fee and then actually taking away as many samples as possible, which is why I suggest stands are allowed (if they wish) to sell measures to be either consumed or poured into a small bottle.

We all know that UK alcohol licensing is medieaval to say the best, but really I also don't see why I shouldn't be allowed to do what I wish with a whisky I have bought, whether drink it now or save it for later. It can't be an issue of a take-away license as you have a festival shop!

Sorry, but I for one could never justify travelling for a four hour event.
I would normally expect a choice of somewhere between 6 and 8 masterclasses and then time to get round all the stands.

I find this sad as there is potentially a great festival in Munich which I will continue to attend, it's a two and a half day event and I usually go for a whole day (which means around lunch-time until maybe 10pm), plus a second shorter day if there are any extra masterclasses I like the idea of which clashed on day 1, but unfortunately it is going own the pan as it moves further away from whisky. The organisor seems more intent on mirroring the City's neon-lit cocktail bar image with cocktail competitions and a "Bar Trail" in the week beforehand which visits those said neon-lit palaces and ignores true whisky bars.

As many of you know, I had built my own business plan for another festival, just outside of Munich, which would have been a return to true whisky values. Sadly I have no financial opportunity to make this a reality now, so a true whisky festival in this part of the world remains a dream of many, myself included.

I don't wish to make enemies over this, but you asked for feedback, I gave it and I encourage you to visit festivals like Limburg and yes, to a degree Munich. Then you'll see what can be done.

I'll say no more,
Malty

[MacDeffe]

Well there's always more to a festival than just the 4 hours on location, so even thou I asked for 2 days, its never gonna be essential for me. I used this opportunity to model a small whisky trip for myself and I think the weekend has been well spend

Thursday : Whiskyshopping in Edinburgh, RMW and Cadenhead, later a Jolly Toper Tasting
Friday : A bit of Sightseeing, St. Mary's Close, Travel to Glasgow, A wee pubcrawl of MacSorley's (Abhainn Dearg), a couple of West End Pubs and then Bon Accord which was full of whisky people and almost a pre festival in itself!!
Saturday : GWF
Sunday : relaxed a bit, visited Kelvingrove, then went to Bon Accord to sample a couple, the selection of whiskies is fantastic! Met the owner of Inveralmond, which I visited in 2004 and talked whisky with a couple of local festivalgoers that just happened to be in
Monday : Deanston and Glenturret

So when people say, I won't go to Glasgow for just 4 hours, they should know there will easily be a lot more going on and that you can organise things yourself

This isn't just aimed at you Malty, being a prolific whiskydrinker and sampler like you, I do realise it will take more to attract you to events. Normally, when I go to Scotland I have no problems setting up a group of travel companions, but I simply couldn't find any for this weekend, I tried thou . The argument was that a 4 hour festival wasn't worth the trip, and this DID include people, where going to an event like GWF, would be an unusual event, most people I know drink slightly less whisky than me

Steffen

[Mark C]

I think I need to chop this into another thread as there's so much going on here. Malty, I'm really disagreeing with you here on many points and as Steffen said you have to realise that most people are not there to write tasting notes and you also have to look at it from the exhibitors' side of things or else they won't come and you won't have a festival at all.

[peaty001]

I think there is a lot going on in here and having prepared something of a reply I see that Mark has covered some of the same points.
In the context of licensing in Glasgow it should be acknowledged that Scotland and UK in general has identified problems with the use of alcohol that has attracted negative attention and contributed to health problems for some years now. There are many conflicting arguments on how best to deal with it. Liberal opening hours, age limits, minimum pricing, campaigns for responsible drinking, which Glasgow's Whisky Club and Festival supports. The consequence is that the City of Glasgow are very cautious about what they will tolerate and licence. Having been party to some of the negotiations it seems complicated and time consuming in a way that can stretch anyone's patience. Rightly or wrongly that is the history that imposes itself on the process. To have managed to get a licence for samples without a ticket system was a major achievement and made for a direct connection with exhibitors. On top of that to obtain licence for 'off' (take it away) sales was impressive. Edinburgh Whisky Fringe does not have this option. The spectre of drunken people getting carried away and buying more alcohol is not an image that sits easy with those authorising licences.
Malty I think you are talking about another festival in another place. I was more than blown away by the experience and mighty chuffed it happened in my city. And very proud to know the people who made it happen. It was more than I imagined possible especially when compared to what has come and gone before. I'm looking forward to next year and as Steffen suggests it is worth making a few days of it. There is more to Glasgow and Scotland than whisky.

[Malt-Teaser]

Yes I agree, the UK has always had alcohol problems and no, liberal opening hours are still not to be had anywhere in the UK.

I speak as a previous bar owner who had a 24h licence.

I also add that in my opinion, the problem is some strange gene that many idiots in the UK seem to have overdeveloped when it comes to not knowing how to treat alcohol.
I also hasten to add that in saying this, I'm sure I speak of nobody within this forum!

Please also see the discussion I have opened in Whisky hat about this subject.
Malty

[Mark C]

I also have to say a big, big thank you to Fishers Cooperage for lending us the barrels and allowing me to stencil them. They really added to the venue.

[fishboy]

I wanted to add my thanks to those of other posters. Mark, Bill and helpers did a fantastic job. My two friends and I had a great time and sampled some wonderful whiskies.

Top drams for me were the Balvenie peated cask and the wonderful Bunnahabhain we tried in the Douglas Laing Masterclass. I didn't have a bad whisky all day and came away with 3 bottles as well as the 2 forum bottles I picked up from Mark on the day.

Only a year to go to the next one! I'll be there!

FB

[JethroTull]

Great event Mark.

Fine location and length of event.

The only quibble, something you have no control over, is that Diageo and Chivas just brought along bog standard stuff but then that meant I went to the smaller fry to sample their wares.

Would be handy if I could buy direct from the table but, if I can't, I'll try and pick up my favourites at a later date.

[Mark C]

Great event Mark.

Fine location and length of event.

The only quibble, something you have no control over, is that Diageo and Chivas just brought along bog standard stuff but then that meant I went to the smaller fry to sample their wares.

Would be handy if I could buy direct from the table but, if I can't, I'll try and pick up my favourites at a later date.

Yeah, I was actually thinking of discussing that with exhibitors who only bring standard bottlings. Selling from each stand would be a licensing nightmare as you have to specify in your licensing plan each and every section of a premises that will hold alcohol for sale and how long it is etc. You can't just say the whole venue. That would mean we would need to reapply for the license every year (which is actually the venue's license) depending on how many stands we were having and where they were going to be. It's just not workable.

[Jimmy321]

Instead of having a shop rent the bar area could the exhibitors not leave stock in that area and someone sells it so people can buy what they have tried at the show and come to some agreement on a percentage of the sales.

[Mark C]

Instead of having a shop rent the bar area could the exhibitors not leave stock in that area and someone sells it so people can buy what they have tried at the show and come to some agreement on a percentage of the sales.

Well, there's a few reasons why that could have happened but didn't. Next year will be different as there will be a new retailer at the event...

[Livvy]

I loved this event....friendly faces everywhere. The venue was fantastic...I loved the water bottles placed on the barrels...much better than the water coolers at other events...you could put your glass down and have a wee blether to other folks round the barrel...very sociable
In fact it was sooo friendly out on the floor that I forgot to go to some tables I intended to lol...but I had tried enough braw drams to put a smile on my face.
I will definetly be back next year...a whisky event for the people..by the people!!