John Glaser, who founded Compass Box in 2000, is routinely described as a whisky maverick. Last week, the boutique Scotch whisky company specializing in blends, publicly challenged a Byzantine Scottish law that prohibits the communication of detailed information about the age of whiskies used in blends. According to the rules, no age statement can be listed on labels or in marketing materials unless it refers to the youngest spirit in the blend.
Glaser’s a champion of transparency who has spoken out against ingrained industry practices like caramel colouring and chill-filtration (a purely cosmetic clarification process that removes flavourful compounds from finished whisky). Over the past few years, these once-unspoken norms have been dragged out into the open and discussed at length. Now brands that use them usually admit it, while those that don’t use them consider it a point of superiority.
Compass Box is rallying support via an online petition at compassboxwhisky.com that states, “I believe that Scotch producers should be given the freedom but not the obligation to include the age of all the component whiskies that go into their blends to bring them into line with the vast majority of other industries where total transparency is not only permitted but encouraged.”
Openly questioning and resisting convoluted, antiquated laws that solely benefit big business (and whisky and spirits in general are a very big business) is crucial for progress. As indie producers gain mileage with a more educated consumer base, laws related to all aspects of the industry – from age statements to adjuncts, marketing, sales and taxation – are coming under scrutiny.
Close to home, the Toronto Distillery Company is fighting seemingly arbitrary tax regulations enabling the LCBO to collect a massive cut of every bottle sold at the distillery’s shop – effectively making it impossible for the company to sustain long-term operations. Owners Jesse Razaqpur and Charles Benoit, both lawyers, have filed a suit against the LCBO arguing failure to uphold the constitution.
Monopolies and multi-billion-dollar corporations aren’t established by playing by the rules, but then they have the money muscle to hold on to their position. But even the titans of the beverage alcohol industry are dependent on the vices of us thirsty minions.
We have power to help the little(r) guys in a fight that will ultimately deliver transparency, variety and quality goods to consumers: donate to Toronto Distillery to help fund its constitutional case sign the Compass Box petition purchase products directly from companies stay informed.
