We were hungry and we decided, on a whim as we passed, to eat at a restaurant in the Chinatown area.  I don’t regret the decision – the food was decent and the service from the waiting staff was generally good, although the management were much less polite, as you will see.  All in all, an average experience, although the combination of food and service were probably not quite worth the higher-than-average price I feel we paid.

But I want to draw attention to one specific thing which seems to have been happening at this and other restaurants around the UK, for some time, despite recent changes to legislation.  And this is the main reason I will not return to this restaurant or others like it.

The Great Tap Water Scam
My wife loves to drink water with food.  She often drinks as much as 2 litres in the course of a meal.  That’s a lot of water.

When we sit down in a restaurant, we are often asked immediately if we would like something to drink.  This is good hosting, but very often we’ll be ordering beer or wine with the meal and will simply ask for water while we look at the menu to decide on food and drinks.  Specifically, we always ask for “a jug of tap water” as we know we will drink at least one jug-full.

This is what we did in this restaurant but our waiter explained that “there was a problem with the water filter” which meant that they could not serve tap water.  My wife declined the offer of bottled water and we ordered beer and wine.  However, as we waited for these drinks to arrive, she decided that this was probably just a ruse to get people to buy bottled water and so, when the beer and wine arrived, she asked again for tap water, saying she would take her chances with unfiltered tap water.

This time a manager was brought across and she explained that it wasn’t a problem with the filter, but that the whole water supply was affected and was yellow-brown.  Getting into her stride now, my wife feigned horror and asked loudly whether her food was “being prepared with tainted water!?”  The manager quickly and quietly assured her that the problem only affected the water at the bar and that the kitchen was fine.  So my wife asked for a glass of water from the *kitchen* tap.  Having been backed into a corner, the manager seemed ruffled and, picking up our menus (we hadn’t ordered food yet!), she stomped off.

No water arrived.  Having had our menus snatched away by the manager, we asked a waiter for some more menus and, when we ordered the food, we enquired about the glass of tap water.  The waiter flipped straight onto autopilot and told us – yes, you guessed it – that they couldn’t serve tap water due to a problem with the water.  My wife patiently informed him that she had already spoken with the manager and that a glass of tap water was being brought from the *kitchen* tap.  The waiter scurried off and, a few minutes later, the glass of water finally appeared.

If you recall, my wife drinks a lot of water and so this glass lasted all of 30 seconds.  She asked a passing waitress for another and was told, yet again, that there was a problem with the tap water to which she explained, yet again, that the now-empty glass on the table had previously held tap water from the *kitchen* tap which was, luckily, providing clean water.  The waitress scurried off and, a short time later, another glass of water arrived.  My wife checked whether this had come from the *kitchen* tap and was told that no, this had, in fact, come from the *bar* tap, as the problem had resolved itself and the water was now clean again.

At this point, my wife could contain her sarcasm no longer and squealed “AMAZING!” (cue jazz-hands).  I fought to contain my laughter, not wanting to shower my wife, the waitress and fellow diners with bits of half-chewed crispy shredded duck, cucumber, spring onion, pancake and plum sauce.

With hindsight, I wish I had thought to stand up and announce to the restaurant that the water problem was now fixed and that those who wanted to drink tap water would be able to do so.  If I ever find myself in this situation again, then perhaps I shall.

You will probably know from your own experience that asking for tap water can leave you feeling like something the waiter has scraped off his shoe.  But, just in case this hasn’t happened to you, here are a couple of links to other people’s stories:
Little Yang Sing, Manchester (Good review, but see Mark Hayes comment from June 24th – sound familiar?)

Vermillion Cinnabar, Manchester

Bob Bob Ricard, London

The Law
I’m not a lawyer.  But, from what I can tell, if you are in a venue that does not serve alcohol, then there is no legal requirement for them to serve free tap water, though many will happily do so.  However, if you are in a venue which is licensed to serve alcohol, then they are legally required to provide you with tap water, free of charge, if you ask for it.  Please refer to the following links and politely, but firmly, quote this to anyone who refuses to serve you tap water!

In Scotland, any licensed venue must provide tap water free of charge per the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005, Schedule 3, s.9(2).

In Englandand Wales, the Licensing Act 2003 (Mandatory Licensing Conditions) Order 2010 Condition 3 (in force since 6^th April 2010) also requires all licensed venues to provide free tap water. 

 It is interesting to note the following, taken from Condition 3 of the England and Wales document:

Many premises already offer free tap water. This condition means that all premises have to give customers tap water for free if they ask for it. This helps people to space out their drinks and not become intoxicated quickly, which reduces the risk of crime and disorder occurring.

The tap water you provide should be suitable for drinking and must be provided where reasonably available.

What is meant by “reasonably available” is a question of fact; for example, it would not be reasonable to expect free tap water to be available in premises for which the water supply had temporarily been lost because of a broken mains supply.

You can see how, in my recent experience, the restaurant appears to have taken advantage of this semi-loophole whilst conveniently ignoring the fact that tap water suitable for drinking was still “reasonably available” from their kitchen tap.

A Compromise?
There are two sides to every story, so I understand that venues must pay for their water supply and must clean the glasses and jugs used to serve free tap water.  Some venue owners would even point to the additional cost of ice and lemon for the water.

But I contend that tap water is generally cold enough to drink without ice and I actually prefer it without lemon.  I further contend that the miniscule cost of washing one extra glass per person, and maybe a couple of water jugs per dining party (even adding in the cost of some ice and lemon), isn’t really going to destroy their operating margin, based on average spend per table, especially where alcoholic drinks are also being consumed.  However, at £3+ per bottle of mineral water sold, at a probable wholesale price of under 50p, you can see why people are loathe to offer free tap water!

So, being an understanding sort of chap, I’d at least accept a compromise – a nominal charge to each tap-water drinker of no more than 10-20p to cover the cost of providing ice, lemon and clean glassware from which to drink the free tap water which they must offer by law.  This charge would be per person, not per glass of tap water.

Any bar or restaurant operator who thinks it is costing them more than this is clearly out to lunch.

Real Whisky?

I’m on holiday this week, so finally have a wee bit of time to catch up on various forums with my Brand Ambassador hat off and my whisky drinker hat on.  Please note these are my opinions, not those of my employer, William Grant & Sons.

One of the most interesting debates I’ve come across recently is the Campaign for Real Whisky (name and acronym still TBD), which is being discussed on Mark Connelly’s WhiskyWhiskyWhisky forum.  I started to write a brief contribution to the discussion but, as I thought about it more and more, I realised this is actually a very complex issue and one that requires careful thought before action.

So I thought about it.  A lot.  And my potential forum post got so large I decided it would disrupt the flow of the forum, so I decided to put it here on my blog instead, and post a link in the forum.  I certainly don’t have an answer to the debate – but this will hopefully generate some additional food for thought.  Here goes…

Many good points have been made in the discussion thread already and the forming opinion seems to be that clearer information on labels is the only way forward.  But how much additional information is really required for each individual to make their own informed choice?  Is it enough to simply highlight which whiskies are non-chill-filtered (NCF) and non-coloured (NC)?  These are certainly key features of a whisky, but they are not the only factors on which a purchasing decision should be based.

Many people would claim that NCF/NC produces a “traditional” whisky – but where, and when, does “tradition” start and end?  Others would claim that colouring is an additive, and so should be banned – but surely the influences from any previous contents of a cask used to mature Scotch whisky are additives as well?  And these influence colour and flavour much more than a drop or two of E150a.  Neither is banning of colouring for Scotch whisky analogous to banning colouring for Bourbon, as Bourbon barrels must be made from virgin oak and so there is no “additive” influence from the cask, other than from the wood and the char level.

So chill-filtration and colouring are only two of the influencing factors.  And neither of these is any more or less “traditional” than a host of other factors.  If we believe there is a need for labelling stating NCF/NC, why not mandate that all single malt and single grain whisky labels must include clear information on every character-influencing factor?

Taking some examples from single malts; barley species, nitrogen content of the barley, peating level (of the original barley and the final whisky), mash tun type, mash temperatures and times, yeast strains/forms used, fermentation period and temperature, still shape and size, distillation temperatures, timings and cut-points, filling strength, an age statement and the water source used at the various stages of the process.  All of these factors, and others, will influence the final whisky to some extent – and what form of each of these factors would we accept as being truly “traditional”?

Current prevailing wisdom is that a large proportion of a whisky’s character potentially comes from the cask, so the labels should also clearly state the precise provenance of the cask used.  This would include, but not be limited to wood type, original source (eg the name of the bourbon/sherry/wine/rum/port rather than the forest from where the wood was cut – although maybe the forest is the key factor!?), the level of toast/char, the number of times the cask has been reused and, if also applicable, which other Scotch whiskies have been matured in that barrel, or in a barrel using any of the staves currently comprising that barrel.  If a whisky is double-matured or otherwise re-casked, all information on all casks and the period in each cask must be included on the label.  These factors potentially contribute significantly more to the final character than NCF/NC – so it surely makes sense to fully spell out this information so that potential buyers can be better informed?

The label should also advise what type of warehouse was used, along with the precise location of that warehouse and the location of the cask in that warehouse.  If the cask is moved during maturation, all warehousing information must be included on the label.

This obviously isn’t limited to single-cask bottlings.  Clearer labelling needs to apply to all “traditionally married” single malt bottlings.  And, bearing in mind that most of the bigger brands of malt will usually marry together hundreds, if not thousands, of casks to create a batch, some labels may need to come in book form.  Or on a DVD.  This could have an impact on production costs and therefore on price, but hopefully everyone will happily pay the extra for the privilege of informed choice.

Of course, for blended malts/grains/Scotch, each label should clearly state the proportion of each component malt and grain, as well as all of the provenance information discussed above for each of those component whiskies.  We might need a DVD box-set for the label information on these…

And what about nutritional information?!  I need a red-amber-green pie-chart on my bottle, dammit! In fact, it would be great if a suitably qualified person can explain for my benefit which of NCF or CF is better for my heart and waistline!

So you see, NCF/NC is only part of the story.  Only with detailed labels comprising all of the salient factors are we each able to select whisky that ticks all the boxes we each like to be ticked.  Or at least, we *think* we like to be ticked.

Or we could just taste the whisky and decide whether we like it, rather than making a decision based on partial information and the resultant preconceptions.  It is interesting to note that the NCF/NC movement has only really taken off in the wake of certain European countries requiring producers to include this information on labels.  Before this, people drank a given whisky because they liked the taste, regardless of how that taste was achieved.

Has CAMRA stopped the production and sale of “non-real” beers/ales?  No – a quick bit of internet hunting suggests real ale currently accounts for around 6% of the total beer consumed in the UK.

Will a “real whisky” campaign stop the production and sale of “non-real” whiskies?  Probably not.  But unless it is very carefully thought through, it has the potential to cripple the entire industry.  Why?

Firstly, remember most “real ales” are only available in their country of origin, whilst Scotch malt whisky is globally available.  It should also be borne in mind that the majority of real ales are purchased and consumed in pubs where the landlord will be only too happy to answer your questions and let you try before you buy, whereas the majority of whisky is purchased for consumption at home, and so it can be hard to ask questions and even harder to taste before purchase.

This is where specialist shops, private tastings, clubs and, perhaps especially, whisky festivals come in, as they provide a wonderful way of tasting whiskies without the associated expense of buying a whole bottle.  If I then want more information on a whisky I have tasted, I can ask.  For me, asking questions and attending masterclasses plays an important part in a good whisky festival (as opposed to just seeing how many unusual or lost-distillery bottlings I can quaff in 4 hours).  This allows a distiller or bottler to explain the details to people who are sufficiently far along the whisky-explorer path to want to know why a given whisky tastes the way it does.  Whilst we’re on the subject of festivals – it’s worth considering whether the rise and rise of whisky festivals around the UK is contributing to the demise of the traditional whisky bar, as these used to be the only places where you could easily ask questions and taste whiskies without paying for a whole bottle…

But coming back to the main point of “real whisky”.  I currently have around 50 open bottles of whisky including distillery and independent bottlings.  Some are old, some are young, some are CF, some are NCF, some are coloured, some are non-coloured and so on.  And there are occasions for all of them.  Moments when I think “I fancy a such and such”.  I have chill-filtered/coloured bottlings from large volume producers that are absolutely wonderful.  And I have non-chill-filtered/non-coloured bottles from independents that I probably wouldn’t have bought had I tasted it first.  And vice-versa.

So, clearer labelling with NCF/NC may well provide additional information to individuals who believe that the only type of whisky fit to grace their lips is un-coloured and NCF.  But what about all of the other factors that contribute to the drinking experience?  I find it more than slightly worrying that so many people appear to be of the opinion that anything other than NCF/NC is not worth drinking.  Information on a label cannot guarantee a better experience and (here’s the rub) may actually stop people from being adventurous enough to taste a whisky that doesn’t tick the right box on the label.  If you stop to think about it, this could have very serious consequences for the industry as a whole.

Having grown up in Speyside and lived through the horror of distillery closures in the 1980s, the malt enthusiasts of today have a huge debt of gratitude to all producers for keeping the flag flying against all the odds.  Variety is the spice of our currently flourishing global Scotch whisky category, and that includes the big guys, the little guys, the tiny guys and the independent bottlers.

So rather than expending energy on pushing for additional, (mis?)information on labels, we might do better to keep an open mind, try (and retry!) as many whiskies as you can find and ask questions about them.  And keep buying the ones that you like, and that you can afford, regardless of whether they’re young/old, CF/NCF, coloured/non-coloured, malt/grain, single/blended, etc, etc, etc.  Because surely any whisky you enjoy is “real whisky”?

Slainte!
Jamie.

Slainte!
Jamie.

Perhaps best of all so far - I spent an evening in the company of Ian Murray as he hosted a Glenfiddich Taste The Future event at Boisdale of Bishopsgate in association with Whisky Magazine.  Ian has been flying the flag for Glenfiddich in the UK (the unofficial Brand Ambassador, if you will) for many years and I learned a lot in one night about how to mingle facts and fun, education and entertainment.  A true Masterclass in every sense.  Thanks, Ian.

Next week sees me going “home” to Speyside, where I grew up.  I’ll be spending the week at the Glenfiddich Distillery, along with our Global Ambassador, Ian Millar, and the entire team of Glenfiddich Ambassadors from around the world.  We’ll be covering a whole host of topics relating to Glenfiddich and the wonderful world of malt whisky.

The following weekend, a few of us will be taking a trip to Islay (my first time) to gain a better understanding of how the peatier Cratur is made.

Then, in the first week of May, I’ll start to deliver my first training sessions – for hotel/restaurant staff.  Currently planned in are a session at the Radisson in Edinburgh and Oloroso, also in Edinburgh.  Then, perhaps, a trip to London to speak with the staff at China Tang in The Dorchester.  Better look out my best suit for that… 

Slainte!
Jamie.

I look forward to trying it soon!

Slainte!
Jamie.

Update 20/03/10:
Got to try the new Glenfiddich Rich Oak 14yo a couple of days ago.  As you’d expect from the name it’s pretty oaky, which works well. Lots of vanilla sweetness and fruitiness (orange?).

Apologies in advance for a long post, but this is the start of a big year and some great new adventures.  So hopefully you’ll allow me a wee ramble.

Deep breath…

Our ”English Adventure” is over and we have returned – older, and hopefully wiser – to our old home in Glasgow’s West End.

We’ve been down south for 5 and a half years, with over three of those in London.  Before that, we had an “All Aussie Adventure” when we spent a year in Sydney enjoying the Aussie lifestyle (which really is as great as they like to make out!).

We’ve met loads of wonderful people and made lots of great friends, seen some fabulous sights, eaten in many wonderful restaurants, drunk in many bars, danced in many clubs (and ceilidhs!) and enjoyed loads of gigs, plays, musicals and operas.  I even owned an open-top kit car – well, when else was I going to see as many dry and sunny days per year as they get in East Anglia?!

I’ve been a virtual nomad since I started studying Aerospace Engineering at Glasgow University back in 1990.  In that time, by my reckoning, I’ve had 15 different “homes” in 7 towns/cities in 4 different nations – Scotland, Ireland, England and Australia.  I count a “home” as somewhere where I’ve owned a property, registered to vote, paid taxes/utilities, or something of that sort of permanence.  If I included everywhere I’ve lived for any length of time…well, I’ve lost count.

So it’s time to put down some roots.  This is important, because solid roots make a firm foundation for fantastic new growth.  And 2010 is a year of New Beginnings…

“The boss” has finally become a Consultant Paediatrician.  Her “dream job”, as she puts it, in Acute Assessment.  I’m so proud of her - she has worked hard  to get to this point, since graduating 12 years ago.  And this is what has brought us back to Glasgow.

With a move back to Scotland, I have also had to re-assess my own career as, gradually, the realisation dawned on me that it wasn’t a sustainable option to live in Scotland and continue as a Lead Consultant with my Ipswich-based employer of the last 5+ years - Smart421.

I’ve really enjoyed my current role with my current client – using all of the experience I have gained in my career as Business Design Authority/Business Architect to help manage a period of massive change across the client’s business.

I’ve had a great time at Smart421.  I’ve learned and contributed lots – including developing our Business and Enterprise Architecture offerings, creating the foundation for a training structure for our Business Analysts, and constantly breaking new ground, by creating and delivering new propositions to new customers.  So the company and I have both grown a lot in the last 5 years.

I have also had the privilege to work with some of the most talented people I have met in my career to date.  Smart421 may be relatively small, but the quality of the people allow it to punch way above its apparent weight.  I’ll miss them.

So this has not been an easy decision, by any means.  But I’ve been offered an opportunity I couldn’t resist.  It’s a very different role and is a chance to explore a different side of my talents (public speaking, performing, entertaining, educating!) whilst returning to my roots.  And my real roots are in Speyside, where I grew up.

I’ve been offered my dream job (no, not Cheryl Cole’s bathtowel fluffer) my other dream job - UK Brand Ambassador for Glenfiddich.

After 15 years building a career in the IT/Consultant/Business Architect space, this is an equally exciting and terrifying prospect.  Giving up a lot, but with the prospect of building on my existing knowledge and love of “The Cratur” (as whisky is affectionately known).  Most exciting of all is the opportunity to pass on that knowledge and passion to many other people and, just as important, to learn from others’ experience.

I’ve spent much of my life in and around distilleries, as my Dad was an Exciseman.  We started out near Cameronbridge grain distillery in Windygates, Fife and then moved to Keith, Speyside, where we lived at the top of the hill above Strathmill distillery.  I worked as a tour guide at Glenfiddich during university summer holidays from 1990-1994.  I even met my wife (and our best man!) at Glenfiddich, where they were also tour guides.  And, during my year in Australia, I worked with some of the best bars in Sydney and Melbourne on the Essential Serves marketing campaign for Glenfiddich.

So this is very much a homecoming for me – hence “New Beginnings amongst Old Friends”.  I will be representing the world’s favourite malt whisky; one of the pioneers of the malt whisky category; the most awarded malt whisky in the world.  I will be helping to re-establish awareness of the quality of the brand within the trade and among consumers in the UK market.

This is obviously a huge change for me and I know I have a lot to learn and re-learn.  And, although I can see part of the path ahead, I’m still not sure what the final destination might be.  But that’s OK, because this is a journey of exploration, and very few explorers know exactly what they’re going to find before they set out.  But I know I’m going to have a heck of a lot of fun along the way, so how could I say no?

Slainte!
Jamie.

This is a great opportunity for me to use all of the experience I have gained in my 15 year career to help the client develop a more structured approach to understanding and documenting strategy, processes, structures and requirements. The client has clear business objectives including significant growth within current markets, entry to new markets, improving consistency and effectiveness of their processes and doing all of this in a controlled and sustainable manner.

We could have come in and tried to impose a rigid top-down architectural approach. We could have focused on the lowest level requirements for their new core business system and worked bottom-up. But neither of those would have worked in isolation.

So we’ve taken a middle-out approach. Sort of. What we have actually done is to be pragmatic in helping to make sure that progress is being made against key business milestones and deliverables, whilst bringing in more rigour and structure to the way that things are done. For example…

We’ve confirmed that the strategy, principles and business objectives for the next 5 years are clearly understood and communicated.

We’ve worked with key stakeholders to define and document a new product that will allow the client to enter their key new market segment. We’ve taken this product definition and assessed it for impacts throughout the organisation – what changes to areas such as people, processes, information and technology are needed in order to sell and service the product? And now we’re delving into the detail of each of these areas to ensure that there will be “just enough” capability in place to be able to meet the immediate needs of the business – but in a way that can be scaled quickly as demand for the product increases.

We’re looking at existing processes and have brought in a method and templates for process documentation from “Level 1″ right down to “work instructions” where necessary.

We’ve mapped the entire Application Landscape – a few larger/core systems in a sea of Access databases and Excel spreadsheets. And we’re working on a strategy that will gradually bring more of the “sea” under tighter control, whilst keeping some of the existing flexibility and adaptability. We’re also looking at how and where the applications can be hosted to best meet the needs of the business.

And yes, we’re also keeping a careful eye on the detailed requirements for the new core business system and elsewhere – because, as we all know, the devil is always in the detail.

I could go on. But you get the idea. It’s about doing whatever adds value NOW, but with an eye on a more structured, sustainable, strategic future. It’s about saying what you’ll do and doing it. It’s about keeping the communications channels open so that the whole organisation can find out what’s going on, how this programme of change will help them and how they can help the success of the programme.

And it’s about having some fun along the way!

Slainte!

So I try to keep up with what the brand is doing and, as I browsed their website late last year, I noticed a blog post by Ian Millar, the former distillery Manager and current Global Brand Ambassador (who I’m very fortunate to know!).  The post spoke about the term “dram” and offered some great new information that I was totally unaware of.  Rather than repeat it all here, I’d suggest you take a look at Ian’s informative post.

I couldn’t resist adding a comment with my Dad’s definition of the word – which is one I’ve used when introducing my friends down south to the wonderful world of malt whisky.

A dram is a measure which is pleasing to both host and guest.

Not too big.  Not too small.  Just right.  Best of all, that means you can try a few in one night!

Just checked the Glenfiddich blog again this evening and I see Ian approved my comment, so my Dad’s excellent definition is there for all to see!

Slainte!

Recently I’ve been spending a lot more time than usual reading whisky books and browsing the web for news and reviews.  And today, I came across this chap – Ralfy – who seems to be bidding to be the Michael Jackson (deceased beer/whisky guru not deceased pop star) of Web2.0?

Take a look and I’m sure you’ll agree it’s awesome stuff!  Great to see someone taking a down to earth view of the wonderful world of malt.

I especially like the fact that Ralfy’s opinion of Glenfiddich 15yo is similar to mine.  I’ve been saying it punches way above its weight since about 2002 – it’s just amazing VFM!  He gives a really great description of the process as well.  It’s not everyone that can get their head around the three-woods and never-less-than-half-full-Solera-vat idea…

But I wonder what was so wrong with the 18yo that he’s not going to review it?  I wonder so much, in fact, that I’ve emailed him to find out!  Watch this space.

I had a bottle of the 18yo “Ancient Reserve” a few years ago and I remember it as quite decent.  My tastebuds prefer the 15yo, but the 18 certainly wasn’t a minger.  I notice Ralfy’s 18yo bottle is the old style packaging (it’s no longer called “Ancient Reserve”, just “18yo”).  The branding was revised about 2-3 years ago, so maybe it was stored badly in the shop?  Maybe it had a dodgy cork – I got a 15yo when it was known as “Solera Reserve” that had a slightly dodgy looking cork and tasted unpleasant.  I sent an email to the distillery, who sent me a replacement within a fortnight.  Lovely people.  Although the fact I was a tour guide at the distillery for 5 years probably helped.

Getting back to Ralfy, however…I think it’s a fantastic, fresh approach to whisky reviewing.  Yes, there are probably others out there doing something similar and I just haven’t found them yet.  But I have found Ralfy, and he’s got himself another fan.

It’s high time we moved malts firmly out of the old-boys-club and he’s making a fantastic start of that.

Have a great Xmas and Hogmanay!

Slainte!

Chin-chin, old boy.
Jamie.