The Johnnie Walker brand has been in T&T for about 80 years, and has been enjoyed widely by lovers of scotch whisky. The product, though of Scottish origin, has a Venezuelan-born national, Arturo Savage, as regional brand ambassador. Savage began his early studies in England but continued in Caracas, where he obtained a major in industrial engineering. How does an industrial engineer get into the business of alcohol?

In an interview at a tasting at Jenny’s on the Boulevard, Port-of-Spain, Savage, who has an English/Scottish/Latin-American accent, said the culinary arts came naturally to him and he followed his abilities, which led him to become the Johnnie Walker brand Ambassador. “Since I am a chef,” he explained, “I am always interested in everything related with flavours. I was curious about scotch whisky as an opportunity to discover new experiences, in terms of developing new flavours and textures.

“It was really surprising, the broad spectrum of flavours and aromas that scotch whisky offers,” and this expertise became a passion. Savage is now working on a novel about scotch whisky in Venezuela. He is responsible for training brand ambassador teams in Mexico, Panama, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. During his visit to T&T, he said he is not worried about competing with other scotch whisky brands because he is confident that consumers go for quality.

He said Red Label is the hottest seller all around the world, though in T&T it is not sold as much as Black Label. Savage said the first blend of Johnnie Walker was launched in the year 1867 and in 1909 it was re-launched as Johnnie Walker Black Label. Savage is visiting T&T to train newly appointed local amabassador, Kabir Hussain.

By Nadaleen Singh