Tips on getting the most out of attending WhiskyFest San Francisco

Trying to manage all that WhiskyFest has to offer.

What do you get when you combine hundreds of whisky lovers armed with nosing glasses and over sixty booths staffed with industry professionals featuring various whiskies such as single malt and blended scotch, Irish, bourbon, Tennessee, Japanese, Welsh and Canadian along a few other booths featuring vodka, rum, gin and chocolate? One word: WhiskyFest. This year, San Francisco’s 3rd annual WhiskyFest took place at the San Francisco Marriott on October 16, 2009.

WhiskyFest is a journey of education and endurance. Attendees are encouraged to walk up to any of the booths, taste the products and learn about how each product is made from the brand representatives themselves. In keeping with the education theme, there are also a variety of 45-minute seminars hosted throughout the evening by brand managers, brand ambassadors, master distillers and industry experts discussing their various product lines, product history and production. All of the seminars are first come, first served so attendees are recommended to arrive early for guaranteed seating.

This year was my first experience at WhiskyFest. I have to admit, I was a bit overwhelmed at first. I mean where is a thirsty girl supposed to start when presented with a room full of free whisky for the tasting? I found that the key to surviving WhiskyFest on both feet was simple: smell, sip, swirl and spit. Some whisky lovers might find it a sin to throw out any part of a remaining sample, but I had a number of booths I wanted to visit so I found using the dump buckets provided at each booth to be a necessity. WhiskyFest attendees are wise to do their homework before attending the event by scouting out the Pouring List on the event’s website, making a list of whiskies they want to try first.

VIP ticket holders were privy to experiencing the event a whole hour earlier than the regular admission attendees. Not only were there less crowds during the VIP hour at the tasting booths and food buffet lines, but many of the booths brought out the really good stuff that wasn’t available once the event opened up to the regular admission attendees. I had the opportunity to taste incredible whiskies that I’ve never had access to before such as Bushmill’s 1608 (which celebrates the distillery’s 400th anniversary), The Maccallan Cask Strength, The Glenlivet 25 year and Jameson’s Gold Reserve and Rare Vintage. I found that if you add one ice cube or a couple drops of water to any of the whiskies, it opened up the whisky into a whole new tasting adventure.

In addition to being able to try various whiskies individually, a few of the booths offered mixed cocktails featuring many of the whiskies being represented at the event. Cask Spirits (along with the boys from Bourbon & Branch and Rickhouse) offered two different whisky-based cocktails for attendees tasting pleasure. The United States Bartenders’ Guild offered a variety of mixed cocktails throughout the entire event. The award winning Basil Hayden's cocktail I tried was incredible. Crown Royal and Bulliet bourbon also featured a couple different cocktails that were served in souvenir glasses.

It is not recommended that one enjoy WhiskyFest on an empty stomach. Food doesn’t sober a person up, but it can slow down the process of one becoming overly intoxicated. This is why multiple food buffets were set up throughout the entire room allowing for attendees to refuel in-between all of the tastings.

And what is an event like this without all the cool swag attendees get to take home? All attendees received a canvas bag that included an extensive program guide (complete with an alphabetical booth list and color-coded map), a nosing glass to sample all of the whiskies with during the event and a one-year subscription to Malt Advocate magazine.

On the floor, I received a number of different shot glasses from the many booths I visited. I also took home two small bags of Poco Dolce toffee chocolates (sea salt toffee and espresso toffee double shot, both covered in bittersweet chocolate.) But my favorite piece of swag that I brought home was a copy of the first modern edition of Cocktail Boothby’s American Bar-Tender book from 1891, given to me by the guys at the Anchor Distilling booth. The book is a reprint of the original edition from the California Historical Society, which includes William T. Boothby’s Ten Commandments for the Bartender, dozens of never-before-published recipes and newly discovered photographs and biographical material.

If you plan on attending WhiskyFest next year, remember the event is a marathon, not a race. Here are some things to consider:

1. Be sure to pace yourself.
2. Drink lots of water during the tastings and pay a visit to one of the number of food buffets set up in the room.
3. Do some research ahead of time and decide which of the booths you want to visit first so that you don’t get overwhelmed upon arrival.
4. Take advantage of the Early Bird ticket discount by getting your tickets early. If you can afford the splurge, I highly recommend going for the VIP tickets.
5. Come to the event light-handed because you’re going to wish you had at least three hands to juggle all of the swag, cocktail samples and whisky samples you’ll receive.
6. Most importantly, have fun.

Must be 21 to attend WhiskyFest.

For more information on WhiskyFest, be sure to check out the event’s website.