I was a victim of group think, when I opened a bottle of Glendronach 18 which I was certain was going to be a very enjoyable dram, because, yes, that is the commonly held opinion. Glendronach 18 is fantastic, the prices are soaring, depending on when you bought it, it has some older whisky (this is, I'm sure, not the case for EVERY bottle of Glendronach bought within a certain time period), grab this up, one for drinking one for saving etc etc. You could say I was a victim of group think when I started to buy a few of them based on my own experience of Glendronach, which was very positive, and all of those other things I mentioned. I was certain this was going to be 'a banger'.
So perhaps it might not come as a surprise given the premise of this blog, that I came to the conclusion that this bottle was 'bad'. I like sulphur well enough, but this was the 'not good' kind, and something I did not want to continue drinking. I would never, ever, pour a whisky down a sink. Never, ever, because you can always use it in a cocktail, or give it away to someone you don't like. I gave it away to someone who likes Glendronach, who admitted it wasn't that great, but, tbf, enjoyed it more than I did. I will say, also, that regarding the person I gave it to, I like very them much.
Ach, I guess that's whisky, or any product that has so many variables, that you can never be sure about any bottle, even bottles from the distillery that have been blended to ensure consistency. You can never be truly sure if one bottle is going to taste exactly the same as the next. Ach!
But why do we have group think in the first place? Fact is, we need truths in this world, we need some kind of guide to help us, because we are rather simple simps when it comes down to it. When learning about something that has subjective elements, it helps to have things like 'this is good', 'this happens when you do this' and 'this is bad' in order to have a foundation from which to build your understanding and knowledge. And of course, there are truths in whisky, technical, scientific and historical facts, statistics etc, those can't be denied. But there is group think too, because there has to be. I mean, there has to be, right? We need that group think, because, well, we have to have a story, we have to explain why things are desirable, we need that narrative! If we can't say things like 'Macallan is too expensive' or 'Benromach is the Springbank of Speyside' then what are we left with, what kind of world is that?
Some more examples of group think in whisky that will help, I'm sure
- Inaugural/early bottlings from a distillery are collectable/good value
- Malt whisky is superior to grain whisky
- Older whisky is better whisky
- Whisky is a man's drink
- Soaking a cloth in whisky and using that as a mask during the pandemic stopped COVID 100%
- You can do a peated whisky aged in sherry casks at a young age and it be palatable
- Expensive gin is a really good deal and you are definitely not being ripped off (how did this get in here)
I mean, I could go on, but I probably shouldn't
I will say though, that overall Glendronach is a really good brand of whisky, and I am not put off by this duffer. Regarding my examples of group think in whisky above, I will be even more specific, and give concreate examples of what I mean (that these statements are not facts or always true), in no order, or with, in some cases, no examples at all, in the following paragraph.
For instance, I am now a little more wary when I purchase bottles, in particular, young bottles from new distilleries, of which I had a very much topsy turvy experience with. No names, but a bottle from a highly regarded new English distillery was a let down, while a much maligned and somewhat controversial youngish Irish distillery impressed me greatly. (Bimber and Waterford respectively). However, again, I will not let that stop me or encourage me from buying either, just to be more careful. I will also say that I have not had a good Raasay yet, but I have to stop having them in sherry or wine casks and try a bourbon one. One of my favourite whiskies of recent times was a grain (a SMWS Dumbarton). Beep, boop, beep. Never, ever buy House of Botanicals Gin.
This is the summing up paragraph, so I'll say this, in summary, quoting the great Rabbie Burns
"Which twitch ye itch, mind fit part o' yer body yer scratchin. Tak it easy oan yer face, go wild on fits covered'
or
'LMAO'
PS - Are there any other examples of group think? Post your comments here, but, tbh probably best posting them on Twitter, which people actually read. One example of group think I can think of, that I have seen a lot of, is that if you don't vote for 'This Party' during this next election, you are 'The Other Party' enabler. Despite this 'logic' being easily applied to every single election past, it's really not good thinking. It goes against the idea that each vote matters, can make a difference, and that you should vote for something you don't like. Would you buy a whisky you didn't like, if everyone told you that the whisky industry would close down, despite it not closing down every few years or so, whether or not you bought that whisky, and it turned out the whisky you bought was very similar to the one they told you not to buy, which was also not the whisky you wanted :(
For heavens sake, buy and vote for what you want, not what other people think you should! Boop, beep,boop.
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