Johnnie Walker
| The Johnnie Walker logo. | |
| Type | Scotch whisky |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | McKenzie River Corporation |
| Country of origin | Kilmarnock, Scotland |
| Introduced | 1820 |
| Proof (US) | 80 |
| Variants | Red Label, Blue Label, Green Label, Gold Label, Black Label |
| Related products | Chivas Regal, Cutty Sark (drink) |
| Website | www |
For other uses, see Johnnie Walker (disambiguation).
Johnnie Walker is a world famous brand of Scotch whisky produced in Kilmarnock, Scotland by Diageo plc.
Johnnie Walker continues to be blended in Kilmarnock, with a large plant just north of the town's railway station. The historic bonded warehouses and company offices (now local authority) can still be seen in Strand Street and John Finnie Street.
Johnnie Walker is currently the most widely distributed brand of Scotch whisky in the world, sold in over 200 countries with yearly sales of over a 120 million bottles.
History
Originally known as Walker's Kilmarnock Whisky, the brand is a legacy left by John 'Johnnie' Walker after he started to blend whisky in his grocer's shop in Ayrshire, Scotland near 1820. The brand became popular, but it was his son Alexander Walker who was largely responsible for establishing the whisky as a widely popular brand.
Walker died in 1859, but his legacy was assured as the Walker family developed the business and grew the Johnnie Walker brand to become world famous.
Blends
There are currently five blends available (in order from least to most expensive):
- Johnnie Walker Red Label - a premium blend of grain whisky and malt whisky, it is the best selling whisky made by Johnnie Walker and the only one marketed with mixing in mind. Prior to 1909 it was branded as Extra Special Old Highland Whisky.
- Johnnie Walker Black Label - a deluxe blend of as many as 40 whiskies, each aged at least 12 years. Anecdotally, this was the favorite Scotch of Sir Winston Churchill.
- Johnnie Walker Green Label - a vatted malt whisky that consists of a blend of approximately 15 individual single malts, the signature malts being Talisker, Cragganmore, Linkwood, and Caol Ila - Aged 15 years.
- Johnnie Walker Gold Label - a rare deluxe blend of over 15 single malts that has at its heart the very rare Clynelish malt. This whisky was derived from original blending notes of Sir Alexander Walker (Alexander Walker II), grandson of the company's founder. He desired to create an exceptional blend of mature malts to commemorate Johnnie Walker's centenary. His efforts were thwarted by a shortage of these malts following WWI. In 1950 the master blender who inherited Sir Alexander's notebooks desired to concoct a blend as a tribute to him using these notes, but was likewise hampered by supply issues following WWII. Now that Johnnie Walker has secured a limited stock of the very rare mature malts required, this centenary blend is finally available in the Gold Label. - Aged 18 years. It is recommended to be served frozen for at least 24 hours in a frozen glass, best accompanied by a chocolate dessert.
- Johnnie Walker Blue Label - Johnnie Walker's ultimate blend. Every bottle is serial numbered and sold in a silk-lined box, accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. Although no age is declared, it is believed many of the whiskies blended are aged for 50 to 60 years. The booklet that comes with each bottle states the following:
- "Johnnie Walker Blue Label is blended to recreate the authentic taste and character of some of the earliest whisky blends created in the 19th century, giving it a rich, peaty taste combined with a smooth, distinctly malty flavour that will appeal to the most expert palate.
- The Blue Label blend echoes those early pioneering days, when Johnnie Walker would select a small number of whiskies in his own local shop, in order to create an outstanding blend for the specific taste of a highly valued customer. Specially selected from the finest and rarest of the Walker Reserves...
- John Walker began selling whiskies in his Kilmarnock grocer's shop in 1820 and quickly established a reputation for excellence. Since then, the Johnnie Walker family of unique whiskies have become best sellers throughout the world, with an unsurpassed reputation for quality. Only the highest quality ingredients - pure Scottish spring water - so essential to the flavour, and the best malted barley, are used in the creation of the Blue Label blend. The addition of the full bodied robust whiskies of the Highlands contribute to the distinctive flavour...
- To celebrate its origins, Blue Label is packaged in the traditional blue-green Walker bottle - a recast of the original - and with the now famous slanting label. In addition, the original design of the cork stopper with seal has been used for this distinctive whisky which echoes the distinguished heritage of Johnnie Walker. Supplies are strictly limited and so each bottle is individually numbered."
Popular culture
In Haruki Murakami's novel "Kafka on the Shore" a character appears named Johnny Walker, his atire based on the red jacket, boots, cane, bowtie and hat worn by the character in the product's logo.