johnnie walker - go, johnnie, go 7.05

8/6/2019 Johnnie Walker - Go, Johnnie, Go 7.05

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Johnnie Walker is 200 years old. Ian Buxton

looks at the history of a whisky iconGoJohnnie

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20 WHISKYMagazine Issue 48

020-023_Johnnie_Walker_WM48.qxp 20/7/05 14:25 Page 20


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Whisky legends

Idoubt if John Walker would recognise

the firm he first founded. Yet his name

lives on in the worlds best-selling

Scotch whisky.

With more than four bottles consumed

every single second, more than 10 million

cases of Johnnie Walker are sold every year

in more than 200 countries. Not bad for a 15

year old laddie, deemed too young to

manage a farm.

On July 25th this year, Ill raise a glass to

John, the legend he created and the enduring

success story of Johnnie Walker. After all, its

the 200th anniversary of his birth and in

many ways the story of Walkers is the storyof Scotch.

As you probably know, this story began in

Kilmarnock, then the bustling centre of a

significant coal-mining industry. Like so

many whisky pioneers, the Walkers were

tenant farmers but, when Johns father

Alexander died, his executors determined

that his son should go into trade.

So an Italian warehouse, grocery and wine

and spirit business was purchased and, in

1820, the fledgling firm of John Walker was

founded. John Walker dropped his plough,

pulled on an apron and found himself

running a little grocers shop.

At the outset tea seems to have been moreimportant than whisky, though the skill of

blending is common to both and shrewd

trading an asset in any class of business.

The blending of grain and malt whisky

was unknown at this time or, to be more

accurate, it was illegal which suggests it

was certainly known! Malt whiskies were

heavier, oilier, peatier and greatly more

inconsistent than is the case today and grain

whisky often characterised by a burnt

flavour from the shallow stills employed by

the Lowland distillers.

The invention and development of the

continuous still by Stein and Coffey in the

1830s changed all that.

A lighter, more palatable and consistent

product was produced. John Walker began

blending these grain whiskies and a dynasty

was born.

It survived turbulent business conditions;

grew through the early Victorian era and

after literally being washed away in the great

Kilmarnock flood was rebuilt in 1852. Itsurvived John Walkers death, in 1857, and

the transition to another tyro Alexander,

Johns elder son. He was just 20 when the

responsibility for the family business was

thrust on him.

Then, his moment. In 1860 the law was

changed to permit the blending of grain and

malt whisky. Alexander acted, expanding

his general trading all the while.

In 1867 he copyrighted a design for

Walkers Old Highland Whisky, in a blend

we now know as Johnnie Walker Black

Label. Moreover, he packaged it with a

slanting black and gold label and a striking

square bottle. Sounds familiar? Youdrecognise it today, almost 140 years on.

Trade developed phenomenally in the late

nineteenth century, for Walkers and their

rivals. The British Empire was expanding;

Scotland was growing ever more

fashionable and Scotch was displacing

cognac as the drink of the smart set (thanks,

in part, to the efforts of the phylloxera vine

Issue 48 WHISKYMagazine 21



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22 WHISKYMagazine Issue 48

Whisky legends

pest destroying French vineyards).

Alexander passed on the business to his

two sons George and Alexander junior in

1889. They evidently made up in confidence

what they lacked in years: advised by theirdirectors to consolidate and rein in the

business, they sacked them and proceeded

to expand dramatically.

No doubt they were impressed by the

success of their rivals Dewars, Buchanans

and the Distillers Company and no doubt

wiser men shook their grey hair at the

impetuosity of callow youth.

1893 saw a major change in strategy.

Hitherto, solely blenders and merchants,

Walkers acquired the Cardhu distillery on

Speyside. Now they were distillers a

proud distinction and immediately

proclaimed their confidence in the precise

nature and quality of the principalcomponents of their blend.

Beating the Distillers Company to the

hotly-contested prize of Cardhu only added

to the satisfaction.

But trade was not easy. The boom

conditions of the late 1890s overheated, as

booms are wont to, and 1898 saw the

collapse of Pattisons, the Enron of whisky.

The loss of confidence and withdrawal of

credit following the trial of the Pattison

brothers had a big knock on effect and pulled

under at least nine other firms.

As one informed commentator remarkedof Robert and Walter Pattison as they were

led to gaol: they infused into the trade a

reckless disregard of the most elementary

rules of sound business.

Actually, they were crooks. But the

Walkers were made of sterner stuff.

Faced with an industry-wide crisis they

expanded agents were appointed in South

Africa; the Australian business was

reorganised; competitors acquired and

London bonds and bottling works built.

The whiskies were still known as Walkers

but, by 1909, new blends had been

introduced; the famous Striding Man

created and the foundations of the businesswe know today were firmly laid. Extra

Special Old Highland Whisky had evolved

into Johnnie Walker Black Label and Special

Old Highland Whisky to Red Label.

More agents were appointed; more

markets conquered; distilleries were

purchased: the firm survived war, price-

cutting and tax increases. Output was

restricted, sales restricted to mere

allocations.

Discussions were held, then abandoned,

regarding a merger with Buchanan-Dewars

and the DCL. By 1925, though, the pressureof trading conditions brought these three

houses together Walkers days as an

independent were at an end.

The General Strike passed over; the

Depression came and went. The American

market succumbed to the madness of

Prohibition and, in consequence, rationing

became a thing of the past.

In 1929 a six-wheeler lorry was acquired

and the company newsletter observed that

orders received in London office up to

4.30pm are delivered the following day.

Little wonder: with America closed to

legitimate business there were a lot of sales

to make up and a lot of salesmen ready tohelp out.

The restless and forceful Sir Alexander

Walker headed the firm at this time. He

continued to experiment with blending,

introducing Swing, a luxury blend

designed for the affluent customers of the

great Atlantic liners. It remains a favourite

today in Asian markets.

The view at Linkwood , one of

Johnnie Walkers core malts



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Issue 48 WHISKYMagazine 23

Whisky legends

Scribbling in his notebooks he left behind

tantalising hints of blends unrealised. They

passed to the archives, emerging only

occasionally as one-off special bottlings for

the directors and privileged friends.But wait.

By 1945, Johnnie Walker Red Label was

the worlds best-selling Scotch whisky. DCL

re-organised; re-organised again and

emerged as Diageo. Red Label is still

number one.

The range of whiskies has expanded,

though. The ultra-luxury blend, Johnnie

Walker Blue, was introduced in 1992.

According to the marketing manuals it is

confident, intelligent, ambitious and

exclusive. Its certainly expensive but, look

out, a 2,000 special edition Cask Strength

Blue Label is on the way.

Id like to say its fabulous. Thats what Idlike to say but, with just 4,000 bottles

available worldwide in a one-off celebration

of John Walkers 200th, not a drop has

passed my lips.

It comes in a Baccarat crystal decanter, in a

soft blue leather box, with a limited edition

book. I didnt write it, but I wish I had.

It doesnt stop there. The blenders have

excelled themselves with 1805 a 200 bottle

edition (correct, two hundred) of ultra-

premium extravagance, derived largely

from now silent stills.

This is to be found in a hand-madeVictorian style writing case, with antique nib

pen, a replica of Alexander Walkers

blending book and a gold bust of John

Walker. Its valued at 10,000 apparently.

Dont bother reaching for your cheque

book. If you qualify, Walkers will give you

one. The snag is, you have to be one of 200

individuals deemed to have made the most

significant contribution to modern life.

Thats going to be interesting. How do

they choose? Who gets to choose? What

qualifies you? What if you win and dont

like whisky? How do you feel if youre not

on the list? What if youre 201st? This could

be trickier than it looks.Back in the world of mortals, we find 12

year old Black Label, with its distinctively

smoky taste and the sophisticated Gold, an

indulgent 18 year old blend (dominant,

prestigious and luxurious).

They got that from Alexanders pocket

book. Nice one, Mr Archivist.

At 15 years old, Green Label is the new

vatted malt with a selection of vibrant 15-

year-old malts - selected for their intense

flavours and distinct tones. Ironically, Green

seems to fit better into this world of colours,

its signature malts Talisker, Cragganmore,Linkwood and Caol Ila providing a fresh

and lively take on this new category.

Ninety-six years on even the Striding Man

appears in robust health. He seems to have

partially faded away in his latest incarnation

(I call him the Disappearing Striding Man)

but the swaggering style is still there.

Back in the roaring nineties (thats the

1890s by the way), an Australian distributor

had the temerity to write to the first

Alexander Walker complaining that the

firms prices were too high to compete in the

general climate of discounting and cut-

throat competition. He was firmly rebuked.

We are determined to make our whiskyso far as quality is concerned, of such a

standard that nothing in the market shall

come before it.

Its a fine motto. And it seems to have

worked. Wherever your journey takes you

youll find Johnnie Walker.

Happy Birthday Johnnie for a lad from

Kilmarnock youve come a long way. I

Below: Johnnie Walker Green Label; Left:

Cragganore and underneath it Caol ila, two of the

brands signature malts


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