The Future of Bushmills

[Luke Gough]

Does anyone out there have information/news/opinions re the future trajectory of Bushmills.

The 1608 blend apart there have been no changes, addtions or improvements in the range.

It wouldn't take too much effort to release 16YO or 21YO at 46% NCF, would it?

How about an 18YO malt? The stock is there!

Granted, the industry worldwide is in a bad way, with survival being paramount, but to my poor brain it seems that Diageo have no strategy for development of the brand.

Comments/opinions/shouting please.

[IrishWhiskeyChaser]

Hi Luke,

During the summer I had the pleasure of being able to have a good chat with Colum Egan.

There is good and bad news. The good news is that Bushmills have dramatically upped their out put and are seriously planning for increased sales. They have basically trippled their out put since 2005 from 1.5 mla to 4.5mla and they are pretty much at capacity.

However they have no plans to bring out any new bottlings due to current financial conditions and are concentrating on building a stronger following on core products. That includes single cask releases like a few years ago. The 1608 400th Ann edition was due to be with drawn from market after 2008 but they have decided to allow limited supply to be available in the Distillery shop and selected travel retail out lets.

Colum says he has plenty of ideas but it is all down to the marketing department to decide how they proceed and consolidation of the current range is presently top priority.

[jcskinner]

Adrian's pretty much said it all. Bushmills has expanded capacity significantly and is now seeking to chase down Jameson as the Irish whiskey brand worldwide, rather than innovate in what is, after all, difficult times.
There's an awful lot of things I'd like to see Bushmills try, and I'm sure the lads up there would love to try some new ideas too.
But Diageo are currently running around mothballing and closing capacity in Scotland. So perhaps, even though they remain very successful, it might be wise from a corporate basis for Bushmills to truck along quietly for a while.
In Black Bush they have a truly iconic world-renowned whiskey, and in the single malt range, they lead the way for Irish whiskey.
It would be great to see a wider range (something younger than 10, something between 16 and 21) on the malts, and I would probably do backflips of joy if they ever decided to try a pure potstill.
But the 1608 anniversary edition shows that at Bushmills they were being more imaginative than I am. They've clearly been playing with malts, and did so pretty successfully with that release, and apparently there is quite a lot of rum-finished Bushmills ageing away in the warehouse somewhere, indicating perhaps that they were considering going further down the finishes road.
But for now the word seems to be to consolidate what they're doing already. But that still leaves us with a pretty great range of whiskeys for which I for one am thankful!

[TheWhiskeyBro]

I tend to agree with JC, at the global sales end build on what they have already, as is happening with our friends at Jameson. There is definitely room for two global brands of Irish Whiskey with Cooley filling the gaps. What I think both could do for the niche connoisseurs/collectors market as have a series of varied single casks. These one off casks tend to generate a lot of publicity in the whisky blogosphere for little cost , and despite the fears of the marketing/branding guys, they generally do not dilute the brand image. The niche category is easily catered for by releasing a few casks per annum. Usually at this end of the market people appreciate that these can vary a lot. However the point is that the committed whisky drinker/follower takes pleasure out of unusual casks that emerge. Often distilleries just blend out casks that might be a little idiosyncratic, whereas the niche guys like us would be happy to try these, experimental casks too can recieve unexpected feedback if released to the market. Think of it as trial run without the marketing costs of a new launch.

A good halfway house example is the initial 300 bottle run of the Sherry, Port & Madeira Tyrconnell finishes which were never destined for the commercial market but turned out to be a huge success and resulted in a full commercial release.

Innovation is not confined to building a new product in the overall line-up!

[jcskinner]

Totally agree.
Perhaps it's a time or inconvenience thing, or at least is seen as such by the number crunchers. The potential return on a one-off cask (even when priced at a premium) is perhaps thought of as being insufficient reward for going to the trouble of bottling single casks.
Yet somehow, most Scottish distillers with smaller capacity seem able to do it, including some within the Diageo stable.
It's confusing why Bushmills don't run free of the leash a little more often, even if it is a tad inconvenient to go to the trouble of single cask bottlings.
Because the goodwill generated by releasing such bottlings to the hardcore whiskey drinkers like ourselves does generate a lot of publicity that spills over onto the core brands.
I think a lot of people will have for example caught the publicity about the Karuizawa vintage single cask bottlings that attracted a lot of positive interest from whiskey fans last year.
As a result, I suspect strongly that both the brand name of Karuizawa and their more usual bottlings are attracting a lot more interest in European whiskey circles.
While pretty much every single cask Bush I've ever had has been good quality, I do feel that at one point perhaps too many were floating around on the market, and mostly at a pretty steep price. 100 euro plus for a 14 yo single bourbon cask Bush isn't seen as value when an extra 20 euro could get you the 21 year old, or when you might source two of the 16 yo single malts for around the same price.
But this is a problem that affects nearly all Irish whiskey single cask bottlings, and some Scotch ones too. It's not unique to Bush. However, the perception may have been there that there was a bit of a saturated market for single cask Bushes, especially since some of the stock released some years back in Germany and on the continent in general are still available and clearly haven't entirely shifted at that price range, even after some years.
If Bush were to go the single cask route, something either older than before or cheaper than before, or else something novel, like a malt experiment along the 1608 lines, would have to emerge for any new single casks not to hang around on the market as long as previous bottlings have.

[Luke Gough]

Gentlemen,

The best news I've heard this past three years is that someone in Bushmills is thinking about the future! (Thank you Adrian!)

Given the current climate it's the probably the best we could have hoped for.

The Kindest Regards to all who've commented on this enquiry. We all love what Bushmills are capable of, a little prompt now and again couldn't hurt.

I look forward to seeing ye all on Wednesday in Brooks - the Very Best of Health to Ye!

Luke.

[varizoltan]

they were busy with the 400 anniversary, so they have time now to do something special again
all we have to do is wait for the surprise, becouse they wont tell before they release

[Fionnán]

So Diageo have a rather strong presence out here in San Francisco and i've actually started working for them under the Bushmills budget. Anyways, i was talking to my boss Steve Beal about a week ago on the subject of the vanishing Redbreast 15 which in turn led to a discussion regarding Pure Pot Still whiskeys in general and the apparent decision on the part of Dingle to produce both a single malt and a PPS. He got got rather keen on the possibility of a well crafted PPS from the Bushmills stills (especially as they have a pre 1880s historical connection to the style) and the long and the short of it is that, as Beal's meeting with Colum Egan in a few weeks to discuss possible future directions for the brand, they may be having a talk about the possibility of a bushmills heritage PPS expression. It's only a whisper of a suggestion of a wink at this stage and possibly nothing will come of it but i thought you guys might like to be updated nonetheless.

[JohnM]

That would be a very welcome development. It might even make IDL up their game further...

[Fionnán]

I totally agree John. I'm thankful to IDL for keeping the style alive these past decades but it really needs to be taken out of their sole hands if we're to see it grow and develop again. Dingle have promised to do this with their range and an expression from Bushmills would really pave the way for more creative competition in the future

[Willie JJ]

That would be a very welcome development. It might even make IDL up their game further...

Not to mention causing JC to do backflips of joy.

I understand consolidation, but find it a little boring. I think it would be great if there was an occasional (perhaps annual) release of smething interesting. Something along similar lines to Diageo's annual release of Lagavulin 12. That would make it affordable and give folks something to get excited about on a regular basis without disrupting the core range.

[IrishWhiskeyChaser]

I understand consolidation, but find it a little boring. I think it would be great if there was an occasional (perhaps annual) release of smething interesting. Something along similar lines to Diageo's annual release of Lagavulin 12. That would make it affordable and give folks something to get excited about on a regular basis without disrupting the core range.

Totally agree with you Willie, don't know why they don't take a leaf from the Scotch distillers books as it is very popular and would actually create it's own buzz therefor free promotion of the Brand.

[Whiskey Pilgrim]

Kaixo Chico's,
Here in Spain after a year more or less of the Diageo take over of Bushmills,i have been waiting calmly for a new marketing push on Bushmills waiting waiting .....nada de nada !!!
At two recent Whisk(e)y fairs in Bilbao where Diageo had stands, Bushmills was nowhere to be seen,on taking to the reps just getting a run around.So i guess the big pregunta is why did they spend the big bucks on the Bushmills Distillery,,to mothball it and get rid of the Irish competition ???
Any way the focus is on the "Classic Malt" range ie Cardhu,Tallasker,Lagavulin,Dalwhinnie,Oban etc..i am doing my best to market Irish but with Cooley on their own with small distributers and Diageo doing f all with Bushmills,,,,and then critiques of "Irish abroad bars" complain of lack of Irish whiskey !! fake irishery etc ,,dont blame the bar owners,Even the Jameson reps are more interested in pushing their Scots range..
Its very frustrating and de moralizing to back out national spirit without Industry back up !!!!

[varizoltan]

wow, that is make me thinking why, and make me sad, but i can not remember when did i see a bushmills promotion in Hungary
people at home think chivas 12 and johnny walker 12 is a premiun whiskey, becouse all the bars are full of that muck for a higher price than their other blends, which is sad
but a good bushmills and some cooley will beat any of the aboveones
i hope they realise this and do something about it

[DavidH]

It was the end of 2005 when Diageo took over Bushmills. Since then they have hugely expanded production. But it takes years for the greater volume of whiskey to mature and appear as product. Be patient!

[IrishWhiskeyChaser]

Yes I tend to Agree with David ... these things happen slowly and I reckon they are biding their time until they have the stock to push.

Further I have never seen as much promotion of Bushmills in Ireland as I have this year. SO maybe they are concentrating on the home market first. Remember Ireland counts for about 10% of the total sales of Irish whiskey which is a very big chunk.

[Fionnán]

I agree with David; As someone whose been hired under the new Bushmills budget myself, i can assure you that Diageo are building up for a push; I was talking to one of the seven Diageo malt masters last week and he mentioned that, at least out here in San Francisco, Bushmills is actually his largest budget. The question remaining is where to go with this initiative and how to channel it effectively; on the subject of the 1608 release, my boss was telling me that they had been at their wits end trying to come up with a special release for the whole 400 year anniversary angle (yes, i know the use of that date as the founding year is more than a bit sketchy) and it seemed that the options had been dried up by years of neglect from Pernod before they stumbled on the crystal malt experiments that had been done at the site years before.

Personally, i dont see why Bushmills is distinguished from the classic malts line in the first place. The ingenious angle of the classic malts was to encourage new drinkers to explore not just one whiskey but a variety of drams by emphasizing regional differences. The inclusion of Bushmills as a representative of "Irish malts" into that line would be sure to attract attention from the same audience and would have a lot more validity than the faux regions like "skye" that they've come up with to include more highlanders in their lineup

[Michael Foggarty]

....validity than the faux regions like "skye" that they've come up with to include more highlanders in their lineup

Since when was Skye a region? It only has one distillery on it and it is classed as an Island whisky.

[jcskinner]

I'm not sure I'd be that keen to see Bushmills lost among the other Diageo classic malts.
Ireland is not a sub-set of Scotland, and nor is Irish whiskey a sub-set of Scotch.
I'm happier that Diageo deal with Bushmills entirely separately from their Scotches for the most part. And they have in fairness invested in equipment and manpower in Antrim, whereas in some parts of Scotland they've been doing the exact opposite.
I'm gratified to hear that Bush is finally getting the sort of marketing push by Diageo that was previously reserved for their Scotches, though.
I also remain confused at Skye being designated a whisky region. If so, then presumably Clydebank (Auchentoshan) is a whisky region too.

[Luke Gough]

Re Scotch Whisky regions:

http://blog.maltadvocate.com/2009/11/30/new-scotch-whisky-regulations-take-effect/

So much for "Skye" as a Diageo "region"!

[Fionnán]

I didnt mean to call Skye a region at all which is why i called it a faux region; in the marketing for the classic malts, Diageo have previously presented the regions (at least here in the states) as Lowland, Islay, Speyside, Highland, "West Highland," and "Skye" which i always found rather silly...

http://www.malts.com/en-us/learnaboutwh ... efault.htm

Thanks for the link Luke, i'll be rather happy to see that take effect

[Fionnán]

I'm not sure I'd be that keen to see Bushmills lost among the other Diageo classic malts.
Ireland is not a sub-set of Scotland, and nor is Irish whiskey a sub-set of Scotch.
I'm happier that Diageo deal with Bushmills entirely separately from their Scotches for the most part.

You know on second thought, i'd like to retract my remark about the classic malts. As much as i'd like to see more Scotch drinkers introduced to Irish single malts, JC makes a good point that Irish whiskey really ought to be dealt with on its own terms and i wouldnt want to see that lost. Plus, Bushmills is starting to receive quite a bit of special attention from the company that might be lost if it were simply subsumed into the Classic malts. For example, at a given whisky festival here in the states, there'll be a table for the "Classic Malts" as a whole and an entirely separate table for bushmills with the full range laid out from the blends to the 21 yr old

[Willie JJ]

I agree entirely that Bushmills should be kept out of the Classic Malts range. I still think an annual Bushmills release is worth doing.

[jcskinner]

Plus one on the annual Bushmills cask, please.