In Holland, the International Whisky Festival, which joined the Whisky Live organisation in September, took place for the seventh time and was the best yet.

It all started in 2000 in Amsterdam and proved increasingly popular during the years.

From an unheated church in Amsterdam it moved to The Hague and now for the third time it was held in the Pieterskerk in Leiden.

The event has always taken place in a church.

However only the one in Amsterdam is still a working church, so on the Sunday morning the holy ceremony was held with a nice spirited odour still wafting around.

Being organised in a church the event created a really spiritual feeling. Most foreign visitors are surprised that an event like this can take place in such a building.

This was echoed by one Scottish exhibitor when he saw the venue: “Whisky in a church…This must be Heaven.” The formula has been more or less the same; there are four sessions of four hours in a weekend.

This year there was a record crowd of more than 4,500 visitors equally divided during the four sessions.

Majority of the bookings are made through the website. Most of the visitors are from across Holland, but there were whisky enthusiasts from Belgium, Germany, England, and Scandinavia.

Masterclasses are held in separate rooms and were attended by 650 persons in 30 different masterclasses presented by several brand ambassadors.

There is always room for improvement and innovations and this year the Bourbon Street bar was introduced next to the existing Whiskies of the World bar, Mackmyra, Swedish Whisky was at the festival for the first time.

A session by invitation on Sunday morning from 11am till 1pm, especially for the trade, attracted 170 professionals and looks like to be continued next year.

It is not only whisky companies who display their wares but also stands with food, clothing and tourist information.

Also there is entertainment by Celtic and Highland dancers, bagpipes and sing along songs.

New for this year was a demonstration of the art of barrel making by cooper Gary Taylor from the Speyside Cooperage.

Leiden is 20 minutes by train from Amsterdam Schiphol airport; the church is 15 minutes walk from the station.

Remember to make a note in your diary for next year’s festival

Coming Soon