E76 Jamie Johnson

GLENFIDDICH’S NATIONAL BRAND AMBASSADOR, Toronto-based Jamie Johnson, is a highly-respected whisky champion and conversationalist. She is widely known for hosting tasting events and masterclasses across Canada, as well as co-hosting the popular whisky podcast, The Whisky Topic. She has also written extensively about whisky, and whisky culture for publications like Relish & Whisky Magazine and whisky.buzz to name a few. Aside from hosting masterclasses at all the top whisky shows in Canada, Jamie spearheaded – within her first year as a brand ambassador – a Grand Masterclass at Victoria Whisky Festival, bringing all 13 of her Balvenie ambassador colleagues from across the world to Canada to converse about, and champion the Balvenie profile. In her new role, she now takes on the world’s most- awarded Single Malt, Glenfiddich. Jamie’s in-depth knowledge of whisky began with a personal passion project when she invited (“forced”, in her words) friends to her Toronto home to share different bourbon drams and have spirited conversations about flavour, taste, production process, and so on. This informal gathering grew, as interest in contemporary whisky spread outwards, and soon Bourbon Thing became a real thing, with events in bars and restaurants, a fully-fledged website and partnerships with some of the city’s most well-respected bartenders, providing a space for whisky aficionados and neophytes alike to share a dram. Before long, Jamie realised she had found her life’s work – to spread the word about whisky. With her first move to The Balvenie, Jamie was able to turn her private passion into a whole new career and she is now more motivated than ever to hold as many different conversations with people about whisky as possible. Jamie’s ultimate ambition is to help make people realise how easy whisky is to drink; _“to show people that though it is complex, it is not a complicated drink.” _ In 2018 Jamie consolidated and enhanced her whisky knowledge by completing the renowned General Certificate in Distilling, building on her home-grown knowledge “with all that unromantic but crucial stuff”. This achievement gives her a qualification with international recognition underpinned by scientific knowledge and principles of distilling operations. In addition, Jamie recently completed her WSET Level 2 Spirits award. Jamie’s favourite Glenfiddich dram is the 15 Year Old Solera Reserve. She finds to be “incredibly well-balanced, approachable and complex. A perfect whisky to spend some time with”. Over the coming years, Jamie would like to continue challenging people’s conception of whisky, reminding them that whisky is for everybody – if they are up for the adventure. Links @bourbonthing The Whisky Topic Podcast Glenfiddich @the_industry_podcast Email Us: [email protected] Podcast Artwork by Zak Hannah @zak.hannah