The straight story: distinctly American, straight whiskies continue to grow in popularity

Cheers, Sept, 2002 by Michael Sherer

STAFF TRINING Straight whiskies, especially ultra-premiums, are still best sold by hand. That means your staff has to know something about how they're made and what they taste like.

"We like to develop our own tasting notes so we don't favor one whiskey over another," said Moore of 15 ria. "When you have a distributor come in they'll spend time selling their own products, but they can really help our when it comes to tasting expensive products like Distiller's Masterpiece. I don't mind breaking open an $11 bottle of Rebel Yell for the staff to taste, but that's hard to do at $300 a bottle."

Often, representatives from distilleries, including master distillers, make the rounds and are available to meet with staff. "We've had Lincoln Henderson from Labrot & Graham up to the restaurant a number of times to talk to the staff," said Adam Seger, general manager of Tru in Chicago.

SPECIAL BOTTLINGS More distillers are now letting customers buy single barrels. Jacking Daniels, Buffalo Trace and Blantons are among the brands offering single barrels.

The Oakroom carries several "Seelbach Selections bottled exclusively for the hotel, including single barrels from Knob Creek, Buffalo Trace and Woodford Reserve.

DISPLAY Distillers have become as creative with packages as they have in their expressions of straight whiskey. Unique bottle shapes and label designs are very eye-catching and should be displayed where customers can see them.

The management staff at Tru recently met with Henderson, Woodford Reserve's master distiller, and evaluated 10 barrels, first at barrel proof (130[degrees] to 135[degrees]) then at 90 proof. They played with different combinations and finally ended up combining and bottling three specific barrels of 9 and 10-year old unfiltered whiskey. Bottles have a special "Tru Selections" label signed by the distiller.

The Oak Room keeps its whiskey collection in a bookcase in the bar. The straight whiskies sit on protruding tiles standing out from the rest of the spirits.

Experiment a little. Find what works for you With patriotism running high promoting a little American spirit of your own is bound to find favor with your customers.

SUPPLIER'S HELP

"There's a new group of consumers looking at these products now," said Henry Preiss of Preiss Imports. "Like Scotland where 100 distilleries produce totally different single malts, we have to do the same thing in the spirits industry. Wineries have done it with varietals and vintages. Distillers have to continue to offer high quality crafted products and new tastes to make it interesting and unique, products that have a heart and soul."

Consumers are quickly discovering that there are more products like that available than ever, and that's helping the entire category. While total straight whiskey volume was down slightly last year, the top 10 brands, which account for more than 83 percent of category sales, were up 1.2 percent. Growing much more rapidly are the super and ultra-premium brands that offer consumes something different.