I mean really? Is there really a need for an international women of whisky day? Really?

This year, day 3 of the Speyside Whisky Festival showcased an inaugural day devoted to "International Women in whisky" to which I and Alwynne Gwilt, Annabel Meikle and Angela D'Orazio were presenters. It was a FANTASTIC DAY and I couldn't have been prouder to be a part of. A few posts about it here:

http://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2014/04/womens-role-in-whisky-celebrated-with-festival/

http://whiskygirl.nl/lets-hear-it-for-the-girls-girls/

http://whiskycorner.co.uk/news/spirit-of-speyside-festival-2014/johanne-mcinnis-the-whisky-lassie-sensipedia-of-whisky/

http://whiskycorner.co.uk/news/spirit-of-speyside-festival-2014/soswf-miss-whisky-chocolate-whisky-masterclass/

http://whiskycorner.co.uk/news/spirit-of-speyside-festival-2014/annabel-meikle-explains-taste-of-the-senses/

Our classes were very well attended (a few sold out) and we had a great mix of men/women. We created a hashtag (of course) -> #IWOWD and asked people to post to social media. We had over 1200 photos, well wishes, etc..  It was so successful we plan on doing it again for the festival next year as well as make it bigger world wide.

Great you say, lovely story and congratulations and all that... so then why do I feel the need to write this piece and how do I create a blog about the importance of women in whisky without sounding like I'm a male bashing crazy feminist!?  Hmmmm, like I do everything else in my life:  One small step at a time...  

I'm a woman. I have a vagina, nipples and sometimes I like wearing pink or high heels. I make a huge assumption that almost 100% of people who read this blog know that. I love whisky, I think that's another easy assumption considering it's mostly what I like to write about. (You still with me? Good...) So if you are a guy reading this I assume you love whisky as much as I do and you have a penis, breasts and you might also enjoy wearing pink or in some cases heels. 

With me so far -> We are mostly alike except you have an "outie" and I have an "innie".  So what happens then, why are we treated so differently when it comes to the world's perception about drinking whisky? I can tell you a few huge differences from my perspective. When you go to one of my classes vs one of Davin De Kergommeaux, Charlie McLean or any other "guy" presentation, I guarantee, unless you are gay (and even then I'm not so sure...) that you will never look over at me and say: "I'd like to F_CK him, just look at that rack". Or watch one of the male participants slip their hand on Charlie McLean's ass and give it a little pat/squeeze... 

Don't think that really happens?? Yes, it does but thankfully less and less. The point I'm trying to make, in case you still don't get it is some men still are quite sexist. You would never hear: "He must have been hired because he's really sexy" or overhear a bartender say: "Excuse me sir, are you ordering this whisky for your wife?"...  

So, it wasn't until I walked into one of the most reputable whisky establishments in the Speyside region to pick up a whisky for my presentation that I was put in what I felt was an awkward situation. While waiting for the whisky, Graham mentioned that I was one of the four lovely ladies speaking for the International Women of Whisky (#IWOWD) and the man behind the counter literally clenches his fists and said: "Oh don't get me started! I hate it when women feel the need to have a day. Why do you have to have a day?" and the rant began. I stood politely trying to "justify" why we needed it.  In hindsight, I think I did a piss poor job. I simply floundered and it bothered me for months hence my need to write something about it.

BECAUSE OF COURSE WOMEN DRINK WHISKY WITH STRAWS??!

The reality is most people (male & female) don't know many women who drink whisky. The statistics, based roughly on the top 5 countries clearly demonstrate we are the minority. On average 1 in 3 whisky drinkers is a woman. This could explain the lopsided attempts to advertise whisky to my demographic...

WE TOOK DEWARS DOWN BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T THINK SHE WAS WORTHY OF THEIR WHISKY

Or why people still see it as my father's drink and not my own. Or why women don't work in the whisky industry as much as men do?!  Do you know there has never been a female cooper at the Speyside Cooperage or that 99% of the distilleries don't have a female working on the "floor" in any capacity? Is it because they refuse to hire them... NO it's because women don't choose these places as part of their career path.  

But wait a second, has there been an abundance of female doctors, judges, heads of state, marathon runners or firefighters during the last 50 years or so?  Not really... and why is that? Was it partly because it's what "men" always did and women simply didn't? And what happened when women could be all those things and more... -> We simply started doing it. Why? Because the next generation saw it was possible. It started the wheels in motion and when we saw other women becoming top paid athletes or running their own corporations others started to follow. I graduated from a class of chemical engineering technologist in 1995. We were a class of 135, of that 12 were women. In 2015 the graduating class from that same program is expected to be 156, 83 are women. That's progress! 

Did it not begin to change how men saw women in those fields? I think so personally. I am respected and considered an equal in my field of project management and I would dare say any man that is a part of our whisky society seems me as an equal if not a leader there as well.

Let me reiterate why I'm stressing this point.  I'm not demanding that men "let us in".  I'm not bashing males. I'm not screaming from the soap box about GIRL POWER. What I'm saying is, the more we (men & women) show everyone that women exists and are respected in all sorts of dimensions of the whisky world:  we drink, we write, we judge, we make, we showcase, we market, we LOVE whisky then the more it will be become a gender neutral spirit that is shared by all. 

So... instead of rolling your eyes and getting all huffy that an international women of whisky day was created why not consider and help promote the following:

International women of whisky day was not created to satisfy a need to celebrate that we demand to be recognized in the whisky world. Au contraire mon frère: It was created with the hope that being "visible" will foster the fact that it's quite normal to see a woman drink whisky and even more normal to pick it as a career.  

ALLSON PATEL - BRENNE WHISKY FOUNDER

The only way whisky will stop being a "man's drink" is if we are celebrated as the norm and we continue to show that it's simply a drink for people... with really good taste ;)  

And...  I might add to the gentleman who said to me: "I'm going to start our own movement and create a man's international whisky day" I wish I would have said:  "Be thankful you never needed one to begin with". 

Just one whisky person hoping to see/effectuate change...

Johanne   

PART 2 - Tribute for International Women's Day - THE LASSIES

Tomorrow's women

Unbeknownst to these two young women, I was impressed by them the first time we "met".  All virtual of course since it was on twitter.  Last summer I had asked one of the two to answer a few questions for me and that I would eventually blog about her, since she is a whisky "woman".  When I was done reading what I wrote, I deleted it.  It simply wasn't what I was trying to convey.  It bothered me for the longest time.  What was I trying to say?  What was the message I wanted people to "get".  It sat...  I waited.   Then in November, after I met Cis and Dot (Part 1) it hit me and I instantly knew what I wanted to write.  Funny enough, Alwynne contacted me about two weeks before International Women's Day and asked that I take part in her blog about it.  I gladly did, still keeping my secret about posting about her...   (Sorry Alwynne, hehe)

http://misswhisky.com/2013/03/06/inspirational-whisky-women-for-intl-womens-day-part-1/

The other woman I am writing about today is a daughter and wife at this point in her life.  Again, as I posted in my last blog:  Did she win a nobel prize? Is she famous? Do most of you even know her?  The answer to all that is no.  She's just "some girl" who lives down the street from her dad in Bedford who is married, has a couple of dogs, likes whisky (like I do), works a full time job and also goes to university.  So why am I writing about these two women? Because unlike Cis and Dot Caron (Part 1 - Grand Dames), these two lovely young ladies are from the same generation as my daughters:  the "Yers".  These women are in their 20's to early 30's.  Labelled as tech savvy, educated, focused, family-centric, achievement/team oriented and attention craving.  Let me explain the last one especially as it's not what it seems.  They are a generation of women who look for guidance and feedback.  They like being kept in the communication loop and openly seek and benefit from having mentors.  This generation put themselves first with regards to their choices about education, marriage, beliefs, religion, etc...   AND if/when ready to have children are more likely to find a balance between home life and work.  Choosing to stay home for the first years or making arrangements through work (if either is possible) with the end result being to make their work hours more flexible.  They have a completely different vision of workplace expectations and try to prioritize family over work.  It's what my mother's generation fought for and my generation struggled to find.  So here is what I love about Alwynne and Kat's story.  It was shaped by men; more importantly their dads.  This in my opinion is where the shift in society has clearly taken place.  Men stepped in and did the most wonderful thing.  They raised their daughters. 

ALWYNNE GWILT:  Born and raised in Canada.  Her mother passed away just as she was becoming a teenager.  A difficult time enough for most young girls. Her father did not skip a beat and raised her as a single parent. When she turned 17, he gave her plane tickets to Colombia as a grad present.  Not some cash or a car but a trip to South America.  Why?  Because he instilled in his daughter that life is about taking chances and spreading your wings when you can.  He strongly encouraged taking risks and always choosing your own path to achieve your goals.  So she did.

Side by side....

Alwynne went to South America that summer.  When she came back, she didn't attend a local university in British Columbia.  She left and chose a university on the east coast (the opposite end of our very expansive country).  After she finished that, she moved to England.  After that, she started her adventure into whisky and then writing about it.  Not once did her father judge or deny her choices.  Her dad didn't keep her in his shadow or try to protect her but did just the opposite: he let her go. Would she make mistakes?  Probably, we all do.  But how else could Alwynne become a strong independent person. She is a well respected, smart, educated, friendly and knowledgeable whisky persona.  I asked her once if she thought men and women had different whisky profiles (sparked by some companies coming out with "feminine" whiskies...) and she replied:  "I think people have different profiles because every person has a different palate".  She takes the gender out of the whisky equation and as a result it's changed the way I think about it too. 

KAT PRESLEY:  Born in Thailand. At a very early age her biological father was no longer in the picture and by the time she was seven Dave Worthington stepped in.  He married her mother a few years later, they had more children and they never looked back.  Dave did not have to "be" her dad but he loved her like she was his own and raised her accordingly.  The eldest of three, she is about 10 years older then her brother and little sister.  Kat moved out before she was even 20 and has been independent and making it on her own ever since.  I don't know alot about her. She is married, has two beautiful dogs, works full time and still manages to take university classes part-time.  I had the opportunity to skype with her and Dave one afternoon and I was in awe of how comfortable and at ease she seemed not only about herself but life in general.  She and her dad share a whisky passion and blog together.  She is smart, funny, close to her mum and dad and seems driven to succeed.  Good head on her shoulders, a sense of humor and like Alwynne had a strong positive male influence in her life. 

Men who chose to take on the responsibility of raising daughters.  Keyword: CHOSE.

Adele - Before?

Adele - After?

There is a sad part of this though.  In my opinion, Alwynne and Kat don't remotely represent what advertisers want us to believe is tomorrow's woman.  We seem to still be stuck in a moulded, air brushed, anorexic looking, bubble headed plastic version of something that most size 12's don't recognize.  Anybody know who Leymah Gbowee is? How about Kate Rubins? Maybe Julia Rivard? No hunh...  Well do yourself a favor and look them up.  Those are the women of today and tomorrow! So why do our teenage daughters not know or read about them?  Because "News" channels get much better ratings announcing the 20th time Lindsay Lohan crashes her car while talking on her cellphone drinking vodka.  Women making a positive influence for others is simply not news.  Snooky getting pregnant, what dresses were worn at the Oscars and the Mobwives, now that sells and impresses.  Seriously?!

I rest my case....

I remember when Brittany Spears first came on the scene in 1998, my youngest was 8.  She sang along to her songs because she heard them on the radio and of course her older sister and her friends listened to the music too.  Both wanted me to buy her CD for them.  Then, something wonderful happened.  They saw the video "Hit me baby one more time" on Much Music (Canadian version of MTV).  The eldest who was almost 15 and a sports jock was utterly disgusted.  The youngest who was a bit of a tomboy and skateboarder sat mesmerized.  Why is she dressed like that?, she asked.  I didn't want to push my own judgments on my daughters so I turned the question around on them.  Why do you think she is dressed like that in that video?  Both sat and watched the whole video.  When it was done, the 14 year old said I don't think she dressed herself.  I think a bunch of adults who were responsible for making the video decided how she should act and dress.  The youngest listened wild eyed.  But why?  Why would they do that?  So, I explained to them both how I felt.  That sometimes people who make the decisions don't always do what is the smartest.  That if some girls watched those videos they would think that is how they are suppose to look and act.  Nothing more was ever said about Brittany Spears in our house and even when they both had money of their own, not one CD ever appeared. 

I digress...  As I do sometimes (sorry... hehe).  I guess the point I am trying to make is that some women from this generation had fantastic role models, some not exactly maternal or even related to them but in the end it is what I think made the difference.  The fantastic part of being the parent for the children of this generation is watching them soar.  The hardest part:  Letting go.  Especially of our little girls.  The world can still seem like such a cruel place for women at times.  I would like to think that we have prepared the Alwynne's, Kat's, and Erica's (mine) of today.  Chances are bad things will still happen but I have a sense of pride in knowing that whatever they decide they will be ok.  That their voices will be heard when it needs to be and gender injustices will continue to melt away.  My mother's generation was angry and opened the door to change.  My generation put the laws in place and started the change.  The Y generation is by far more educated and they are in a position to create global change, but it takes time.  We have come a long way since Betty Friedman published The Feminine mystique in 1963 (50 years exactly....)  In an interview in 1982 she stated she envisioned a future where women and men raised their children together, where the duties of the family as a whole would be fair.  Where women would be in positions to create change in a peaceful manner and that their husbands would be there to support them.  She died in 2004 so I'm not sure if she thought we had achieved that or not.  What I do know is that looking at the women like my daughter, Alwynne and Kat, I have a sneaking suspicion we have. 

To all the women who came before us paving the way and for those to come I leave you with this, my favorite quote from Betty Friedman, 1963:  "Some people think I'm saying, Women of the world unite - you have nothing to lose but your men.  It's not true.  You have nothing to lose but your vacuum cleaners" 


Looking far ahead on the whisky trail, I remain... Grandaughter, Daughter, Mother (and maybe Grand Mother before I'm 50)...

Me & Erica now... Girl's night facials

Whisky Lassie 

Tribute for International Women's Day - THE GRAND DAMES

DATA COLLECTED BY LAUREN STREIB

I am a Canadian woman born in 1966.  Less then 50 years after women were recognized as "persons" and no longer considered an object owned like livestock or a coffee table.  I have the right to vote, marry whom I choose, drive, wear pants, own property, get an education, receive equal wages, be free of sexual harassment, have my own bank account or go out on my own without fear of prejudice, imprisonment or death.  According to a study done in Newsweek Magazine in 2011, I live in one of the top three countries in the world when it comes to the rights and quality of life for women. It's hard to comprehend living in a time where I would have to ask my 13 year old brother's permission to get $50.00 from my own paycheque so that I can buy myself a bra or worse where the simple act of getting on a bus by myself would automatically equal being gang raped.  However, the sad and sobering reality is that in 2013 this does still happen in almost half the countries on this planet. It seems like a heavy burden for the generations to come.  I have hope that before I pass, education and changing times will create better living conditions for women everywhere. 

The point of my blog on this day is to write about two generations of women I have met and come to be inspired by.  They are not famous.  They didn't win Nobel prizes, invent a life saving piece of equipment or do anything to warrant them time on your local TV news channel.  They are four women who have lived under different circumstances simply following the path they have chosen for themselves.  I hope their stories make you smile and appreciate them for who they are:   Strong Women. 

GRAND DAMES (Part 1) - It all seems too strange now in hindsight.  Bob Caron and I befriended each other on Twitter in August of 2012 totally by accident really.  I believe he tweeted something about his love for two Canadian whiskies.  I tweeted back and in the end because I travel for work to Maine on a regular basis I was able to mail him some within a few weeks. A couple of days after receiving his package he sent me a lovely picture of him, his two aunts and the evening that ensued.  I was delighted.  It seemed befitting that I would meet all three of them on my birthday in November when we traveled to New Hampshire and after spending a day with these two women, I was compelled almost immediately to tell their story.   Here it is...

Dot & Cis - Basketball in the 50's

Willie and Josephine Caron were French Canadians looking for a life that didn't involve farming. After the birth of their first two boys, Izzy & Lucien, they picked up roots and moved to the US where Hurb and Moe soon came along.  Cis was born on May 5, 1930 and Dot on September 13, 1933 in Nashua New Hampshire where they both still reside today.  They went to school and helped around the house.  While the other girls graduated from high school and searched for the perfect husbands, Cis and Dot took a non-traditional road and went to work for electronics companies.  Secretaries?  Nope:  Cis started her career in production then moved to quality control until her retirement whereas Dot started as a circuit board resistor assembly line employee then moved on to circuit design and drafting.  They both lived at home, which certainly helped the family financially. Both involved in sports: softball, basketball and Dot also was proficient at bowling.  Most of the sporting events usually ended with a bit of socializing.  Dot says: "Nobody drank vodka back then, it was mostly just beer and whisky".  She recalls her first whisky was Seagram's 7 and eventually switched to Canadian Club with water or sometimes on the rocks.  The Canadian whiskies were commonly referred to as Rye.  Cis, on the other hand had Scotch as her first experience.  She was at a company Christmas party and her plant manager plopped a glass of whisky in her hands:  "This is what you should be drinking and this is how you drink it".  It was Chivas Regal.  To give you a bit of perspective of the times:  The bars, clubs and lounges in New Hampshire in the 50's were gender segregated.  Men were free to be in the women's lounge without an escort however women could only enter the men's lounge by invitation only.  The neighboring state of Massachusetts did not have the same restrictions so post game partying often headed there instead.  Cis being of legal drinking age would sneak Dot in by showing her own ID and claiming that she and Dot were twins, it worked every time.  Back then their whisky journey wasn't a varied one.  It was more about the camaraderie and having a good time with friends.  "There wasn't much to pick from and there was not much guidance".  

Heading up the volcano - Canary Islands

Life moved on as did the ladies.  Together they have rode a camel in the Canary Islands, drifted in a balloon over the African Savannah, rode in a Tundra Buggy on a polar bear expedition in Canada, visited exotic places like Iceland, Hawaii, Australia and New Zealand as well as toured most of the US by car.  All the while living in the homestead in Nashua.  Luckily enough for them, the house had been partitioned.  Upstairs was their brother Hurb's family (including son Bob) whereas downstairs housed Cis, Dot, two of the brothers and their parents.  Hurb was the only one of the siblings to have children so Cis and Dot always felt like they had all the advantages of having kids but without any of the hassles.   This from Bob: "If we were being a pain in the butt while we were downstairs, they would simply send us home  but as you can probably tell my aunts and uncles were the coolest adults on the planet to us so we did our best to not misbehave. Growing up in a big extended family seemed like nothing out of the ordinary until we got a bit older and compared our lives to those of our friends.  We quickly realized just how lucky and grateful we were to have them in our lives."  I asked the sisters if they had ever looked back on their lives with any regrets or whether they would have done anything differently given the chance?  Their reply:  "We figure that everything turned out just the way it was suppose to and near perfect.  No regrets what so ever".   So, what makes two sisters buck the trend and do things that were practically unheard of in that era?  How does one look around and say I don't care what others are doing, I am doing this!  From my perspective my mother pounded into  my head the importance of education, self reliance and independence but I was born and raised in the late 70's & 80's.  Cis and Dot beat most of us by almost 40 years.  I asked what value did they hold dearly and were most proud of about themselves.  "Perseverance.  Hanging in there through the toughest of times.  Also, not having any regrets".

Their outlook on life seems to be that everything they have lived happened as it was suppose to.  It was how they dealt with each situation and not the situation itself that they learned the most from. Neither waited for Mr. Right to come along or retirement to start living.  Their lives were and are still full of adventures. I'm always fascinated with what advice people can give to the next generation.  In this case Cis and Dot have lived and experienced so many things that some of us could only imagine.  The sisters advice:  "Follow your gut feeling every time.  Live your life on your own terms and not by what others or society may expect of you.  Above all, be true to your yourself".  Bob recollects asking aunt Dot once why she never married.  She answered: "Because I never found anyone I liked more than I liked myself".  This touched Bob profoundly and I can't help but wonder how many divorces would be avoided as a result of that advice.  How could you possibly fully commit and love someone else until you truly loved and respected yourself.    

The love and adventure of whisky came back to Cis and Dot's lives when Bob started coming home with a whisky he would have bought for the "boys".  He quickly realized that his "aunties" not only knew a little bit but really enjoyed them too, so began the tradition of bringing whiskies home for them to try every time he came to visit.  Over the years they have come to love some of the delicious bottles Bob has introduced them to.  They both took a shining to Johnnie Walker Green Label for a while and neither are big fans of the heavily peated or sherried drams.  As a bit of an experiment for this blog Bob gathered 13 different whiskies and set up a blind tasting for the three of them.  He diluted all the drams so that they would all be 40%.  He gave Cis & Dot score cards and they were to rate the whiskies on a scale of 1-10.  Although their noses may not work as well as they used to, their taste buds are still quite reliable.  Amid some giggles and good conversation they worked their way through all 13 whiskies.  There was some Japanese, Scotch, Welsh, Irish, French and American whiskies there that night.  But for Cis and Dot the overwhelming winner and best whisky thus far for both is   Brenne French Single Malt Whisky (Allison Patel's baby that I reviewed a few months ago).     

What can those of us learn from these two lovely octogenarians who have not slowed down: Everything.  Their decisions to live their lives entirely the way they wanted to must have been difficult.  Maybe not always for them but for the people around them.  Did Josephine ever wonder why her daughters didn't want to marry or have children?  Were Cis and Dot judged for working instead of marrying or for travelling abroad as two young single sisters in an era where that really wasn't acceptable?  Were they stigmatized or shunned somehow?  What about feared?  Did married women see them as the ultimate threat?  How were they treated in a mostly male dominated work force?  We will probably never hear the answers to those types of questions because frankly these two women don't dwell on the negatives.  They will probably disagree with me on this next statement:  Although they were not feminists burning bras and demanding equal rights they were two women in charge of their own destinies, decisions and lives.  Something every single one of us should have the right to do.  I can only wish I would have had women like this in my life as role models.  Not saying the ones that were there weren't good, but every young girl should have an aunt she can look up to and want to grow up being like.  I hope to see Cis and Dot again someday soon.  In the meantime I revel in the stories and photos that Bob sends me.  Whisky has changed my life in many ways.  This is yet another wonderful part of the adventure that touched me.

If you are a woman or love the women in your life please pass this story along today and remember the fantastic generation of those who came before us.  Some more quiet than others but still creating the place I call the whisky fabric.  Maybe someday when I'm in my 80's some young whipper snapper will sit with me and share a dram just like I hope to do again soon with the Grand Dames of New Hampshire.  

To Cis and Dot, my respect, love and complete admiration.  I am in awe and aspire to living my life the same way you did.

Cis and Dot today, in their home in Nashua New Hampshire

Celebrating being a proud woman, I remain...   Whisky Lassie.

PS:  Bob left the bottle of Brenne at his aunts' house stating he'd be buying more.  "After all, nothing but the best for my Aunties".