I recently
experienced an evening with THE Glenlivet, unlocking their single malt, CODE.
Hosted at their intimate private guest venue in the De Waterkant area in Cape
Town, the dinner sought to education, entertain and indulge guests in a luxury
experience of a limited edition offering by THE Glenlivet, CODE. My
anticipation of the evening was already heightened from the ‘Save the Date’
email to the physical invitation received – all playing on the key messaging of
unlocking the mystery behind the new product offering.
The venue was
set up to create a low-key dynamic flow of activity. On arrival you received a
complimentary drink with a code on the bottom, which was potentially the key
you needed to unlock one of two safes that evening that hosted the special
edition CODE edition offerings. Once registered, you could grab a snap shot of
yourself against a banner wall, have the image printed as an actual photograph
– which is very rare these days – and proceed to the bar and couch area, just
adjacent to the dining section.
Eugene Lenford,
Brand Manager of THE Glenlivet, opened the festivities with a polite
introduction and handed over most of the talking to Isaac, the Brand Ambassador
for brand across South Africa. One of the key things to come out from his brief
engagement with us was the reasoning behind the bottle’s black coating – which
included the idea of preventing consumers from tasting the whisky with their
eyes, and instead, spend time with the whisky, taste it individually and focus
and concentrate on finding your own flavour in the whisky. Something
interesting to learn was that the brand has been around for approximately 200
years, with many other whiskies using Glenlivet as part of their name –
therefore inspiring this brand when establishing itself calling itself, THE
Glenlivet.
The décor was
dark, tactile, moody; setting a running theme transparent of its origins form
the whisky and the bottle design. Minimalist elements were nuanced with gold,
bronzes and highlights of flora. The menus were a small, yet effective consumer
participating – requiring us to scratch off the surface to discover our main
course of Char Grilled Cutlet and Rolled Shank of Karoo Lamb with Baked Beef
Short Rib, Stuffed Plum Tomato, Sweet Potato Empanada complemented with Fine
Green Beans, Smoked Sweet Potato and Forest Mushrooms. Complimentary drinks
were flowing through the night and there was a seductive selection of
contemporary gqom and deep house music in the background.
Initially we
were encouraged to experience CODE in our own ways. Two main offerings were set
in play, neat with no ice, or neat with a serving of dry ice. My initial CODE
tasting was neat: the whisky played out spicy and rather heavy on the palette.
The aromas burst through the naval cavities and somewhat felt rather too strong
for one who usually does not drink whisky. When I added the dry ice, the spice
trail had simmered to a sort-of turmeric infused swell of liquid gold. The
scents played lightly on the sinus and it was much more palatable for myself.
For a more casual offering, you could have the CODE in a form of one of two
cocktail options, as well.
Generally, the
night was intimate and sublime. It definitely exuded and embodied the body, the
CODE and the messaging it wanted to and needed to portray. It was a pleasant
luxury experience, which is usually a drab experience with the standard
formalities that usually come along with whisky tasting experiences. Nontando
Mposa, Lifestyle Editor, was one of the lucky guests to walk away her very own
bottle of CODE after cracking the lock on the safe!
If you’re a
whisky lover, I definitely recommend getting yourself a bottle or two. If
you’re just a collector and are looking for something new to buy for a special
occasion, this is a great buy. It’s bound to be sold out in a couple of months.
#THEGlenlivet
#CODE
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