Where in the world is our whisky?

I enjoy referencing David Byrne. His musical musings strike a universal chord. In a 2013 TED Talk, he presents what might be the first known echo chamber: a gothic cathedral. The music performed in this abundant space — Gregorian chants — fits perfectly. “Notes are long. There’s almost no rhythm,” he explains. “The room flatters the music. It actually improves it.” Introspective and enclosed, harmonies fold in on themselves, bouncing off walls to swell and expand, puffed-up and grand.

Compare this to the African drum. “The music works perfectly in that setting [the African landscape],” says Byrne. “There’s no big room to create reverberations and confuse the rhythms. It’s loud enough to be heard without amplification.” While monk music makes a warm, sacred womb, drums focus beyond, broadcasting across vast expanses — sharp, direct hits to declare and announce.

South Africa’s whisky cathedral is humming along nicely, with numerous clubs, bars, and individuals all doing their thing, albeit ruffled by the capricious winds of economic change. But are we beating our drums loudly enough? Are we being heard across oceans? How big a bang does our rich culture make on the global stage?

I began asking these questions after Alex de Ujfalussy, owner of online store Navigate World Whisky (NWW) and the NPF Tasting Rooms, shared some reviews that Serge Valentin had given to a number of his bottlings. For those unfamiliar, Valentin is the straightest-talking man in the business, and possibly the most respected. His site, Whisky Fun, may resemble a Xeroxed early rave flyer, but its words — and specifically its scores — are gold.

“Irish whiskey full of Austrian Riesling, bottled for some well-reputed South African company, love the concept,” he writes, referring to the Fercullen 21 Year Old, bottled exclusively for NWW. He scored it an incredibly high 88, gave NWW’s Glenlivet 25 Year Old 90 points, and bestowed 89 on its FEW Single Barrel Bourbon, exclaiming, “This stuff is brilliant … excellently done and selected, naturally.”

That last bit is most important. None of the above are locally produced whiskies, but because of de Ujfalussy’s astute selections, the world knows we know quality. “This is the very first time that bottlings available only to South Africa are getting recognised by the most acclaimed whisky expert in the world, receiving the highest of scores,” says de Ujfalussy. “When international visitors come round, they look for these things.”

The message hits home: we are tastemakers. So yes, we have taste, but we also have makers. And one stands head and shoulders above the rest. Andy Watts has gone solo with The Watts Whisky Company, but for decades he was the shining light at Distell. At James Sedgwick Distillery (JSD), he made gorgeous goodies for Three Ships and Bain’s, which he pioneered because “there’s nothing as 100% South African as a whisky made from local yellow maize”. The whisky world definitely knows him. In 2021, he was inducted into the prestigious Whisky Hall of Fame, and his creations continue winning awards at blind tastings — six “world’s best whisky” titles in 15 years.

Once at the epicentre of our global ambitions, he’s a first-hand witness to what many feel was a missed opportunity. “There was a period between 2016 and 2019 when I seriously thought we were going to take our whisky to the world,” he says. “I spent a lot of time overseas, and everybody was blown away by it.” But as big as this seems, it’s relatively small change in Distell’s ever-expanding empire, and the requisite support and resources never materialised.

Watts’s creations may not be on the lips of an international fanbase, but the aficionados believe they should be. “Before leaving JSD, Andy released wine and sherry cask whiskies that were as good as anything from anywhere in the world,” says Dave Gunns, owner of the fabled Wild About Whisky in Dullstroom. But he’s hesitant about what lies ahead. “I don’t think South Africa will ever be a major player,” he admits, giving a sober reminder of how expensive it is to make good whisky. He believes that, while craft distillers like Pienaar & Son are making excellent spirits, it’s unlikely to arrive on foreign shores.

Which is a pity, as Saverio Cardillo knows. He recently expanded his Bottega brand with a lavish setup located in Departures at OR Tambo. Bottega Whisky and Wine Bar stocks an impressive 1 200 single malts — including Australian, French, and Italian whiskies — for mostly international guests. As it turns out, their oh-so-international predilection is for local liquor. “Our top whisky sellers are Bain’s, Boplaas, and Drayman’s,” he says.

Maybe it’s the uniquely African ingredients or our aggressive climate, or maybe there’s something in the air, but eyes are lighting up and guests are gagging for more. It could also be the exceptional experience that Cardillo has created. “We had a customer go absolutely berserk,” he laughs. “She stays in Switzerland and says she would have expected this in Heathrow or Dubai, then video calls her husband, and he couldn’t believe it.”

While Cardillo is impressing travellers back home, WhiskyBrother&Co founder Marc Pendlebury is travelling afar to engage dram lovers in the heart of whisky’s heartland: Speyside, Scotland. An internationally recognised Keeper of the Quaich whose shops have won twice at the Icons of Whisky awards, he’s got global cred.

But, down in Dufftown, he’s doing it differently. He bought a hotel, which came with a bar, and he’s opened a retail store, right next door. He’s not bringing South Africa to Scotland as much as he’s staying close to the tourists who swarm through this whisky capital every season. Sure, he leverages his homegrown achievements, but he sees himself as an aspiring local, doing what most whiskies do: blend.

Perhaps this is how our music actually works. Maybe that’s what the above-mentioned musicians have always been doing: adding their voices to a global choir. One can imagine they’re a little louder, with a bit more grit, gumption, and guts but, ultimately, they’re on the same hymn sheet. Internationally in tune.