By James Wells
Chivas Regal global brand ambassador, Max Warner, has described Australia as a global bartending destination that is taking the industry to the next level.
Warner (pictured below) recently visited Australia to conduct a series of intimate events to launch Chivas Extra in conjunction with GQ Magazine called 'Evenings of Style' held in luxury menswear stores in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
"I visited Australia to support the launch of Chivas Extra and also to celebrate being convivial with local influencers and bartending stars that I have known and met over the last 10 years such as Jason Crawley, Max Greco, Mike Enright, Marco Farrone, Jared Plummer, John Gakuru, Dylan Howorth and Barry Chalmers as well as many others. The Australian bar scene continues to have a unique energy that firmly puts it on the global bartending radar and somewhere to seek out," Warner told TheShout.
"Two months ago we released a new style of blended Scotch whisky by Chivas Regal called Chivas Extra. This will be a permanent expression of Chivas which we specifically launched in Australia. We didn't launch it in Scotland – which is where the brand is from, nor did we launch it in New York where we launched the world's first luxury blended Scotch Whisky in 1909, in fact it's not even available in the UK at the moment. We launched it in Australia because this location has a rich social currency with luxury brands that offer style and substance coupled with the emerging growth of inspired and innovative cocktail bars with bartenders that are giving experiences to their customers that take things to the next level."
Chivas Extra is the first new expression of Chivas since the release of Chivas Regal 25 in 2007. Positioned between Chivas Regal 12 Year Old and Chivas Regal 18 Year Old, it is available both in the on-premise and off-premise with an RRP of $73.
Exclusive sampling programs have been conducted in a range of local venues including Palmer & Co, The Barbershop, Eau de Vie, Coal & Cedar and The Roadhouse in New South Wales; Eau de Vie, Cookie, The Toff in Town and Whisky Alement in Victoria; Cobbler Bar, The Gresham Bar and The Bowery in Queensland; The Botanic, The Collins Bar in South Australia; Bar Lafayette and The Classroom in Western Australia; and Molly in Canberra.