46 | Whisky Bloggers
In around 2008/2009, a new breed of
whisky blogger appeared on the scene. The age of the new bloggers was probably close to half the age of the Malt Maniacs. These blogs were less focused on the geeky side of whisky and seemed more interested in things such as new releases, new distilleries, and general goings on in the world of whisky. It was also around this time that Sam Simmons, who is the Global Brand Ambassador for The Balvenie, made the transition from blogger (blogging as Dr Whisky) to whisky industry representative. This probably inspired many to believe that they too might one day be able to make the leap from blogger to Global Brand Ambassador. By late 2009 this new era of whisky
bloggers had fully emerged, with the likes of The Edinburgh Whisky Blog and CaskStrength. net gaining serious momentum. Interestingly, both websites were founded by a pair of friends who shared an interest in whisky; they didn’t necessarily set out to become fully fl edged members of the whisky industry, even if that is what has happened. They were the fi rst to market, if you will, so
when whisky marketing departments and PR agencies working for distilleries caught on to them, these new whisky bloggers were quick to appear on media lists and press trips. Previously, these press trips would have been reserved for traditional print media journalists, but now the odd whisky blogger was getting to go on these jollies to Speyside, Islay and further afi eld.
Soon enough, everyone reading these blogs wanted to become a whisky blogger too
As well as this, the so-called ‘whisky fairy’ was
delivering near infi nite whisky samples to these bloggers, more than their livers could keep up with. Soon enough, everyone reading these blogs wanted to become a whisky blogger too. There was a time when you could almost guarantee that free whisky and all-expenses paid trips to distilleries would follow if you simply created a credible whisky blog. And this is where things started to become a bit odd. Like most things, the best of the best will rise to the top, but that has not stopped the fl ood of self-proclaimed whisky experts – men and women who come from all walks of life – to declare their expertise on Twitter, website forums, Facebook groups (namely the Malt Maniacs Facebook group) and blogs, causing quite a furore within certain circles. Due to the nature of blogs, unlike newspapers or magazines, there are no editors or fact checking, which has led to the publication of false information. Around this time, circa 2011, the old guard
WHISKY BLOG ROLL
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