John Walker (whiskey maker)
John Walker (born July 25, 1805 near Kilmarnock , in the county of Ayrshire , † October 19, 1857 ) was a Scottish whiskey manufacturer and founder of the Johnnie Walker whiskey dynasty.
Life
John Walker was born to dairy farmers Elizabeth and Alexander Walker near Kilmarnock on Todriggs Farm in Ayrshire, Scotland. After his father died in 1819, he and his mother sold their parents' farm to open a general store in neighboring Kilmarnock. Whiskey was soon added to the store's range. Since most of the whiskeys sold at that time were still scratchy and rough, John soon tried to blend - the targeted mixing - of whiskey in order to improve the taste. The inspiration for this approach was the blending of tea, which was already known at the time. In 1833 he married his wife Elizabeth, and the marriage resulted in their son Alexander , born in 1837 . After the death of his father in 1857, he took over the business and established the world-wide fame of the brand named after his father.
Building the company
- 1823 - The newly passed "Excise Act" allows the distilling of whiskey against a tax.
- 1852 - A flood in Kilmarnock destroys almost all of the business. With a lot of his own strength and his good reputation with customers, Walker creates a new beginning.
- 1853 and 1855 - Tax increases reduce the demand for (malt) whiskey, due to a price war and overproduction of grain whiskey, this is a cheap alternative. Blends are the best combination of the flavor of the malts and the price of the grain whiskeys.
The company after his death
After John Walker's death, his only son Alexander took over the business. He had already supported the father and now started to expand the business relationship. Among other things, he founded the first branch offices outside Scotland. When he died in 1889, his sons George Paterson and Alexander Walker II took over the management of the company. The history of the family business John Walker & Sons ended in 1925 when it merged with the Distillers Company Ltd. founded in 1877. However, the Johnnie Walker brand persisted and became one of the most famous liquor brands in the world. After various mergers, Johnnie Walker has been a brand of the Diageo Group since 2002 . In 2005, on the 200th birthday of John Walker, a special bottling of the Blue Label whiskey was released, limited to 4000 bottles . The price is around 3,000 euros per bottle.
The Striding Man
The well-known "Striding Man" - the logo of Johnnie Walker Whiskey - is a caricature of John Walker drawn by Tom Browne in 1909. Although originally only drawn on a menu on the side, the figure became a symbol of the best-selling whiskey brand in the World. Over the years, the figure has been repeatedly redrawn and adapted to the brand's image. Among others, Basil Partridge , Leo Cheney , Clive Upton and Michael Peters were responsible for the redesign.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Walker, John |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Scottish whiskey manufacturer and founder of the Johnnie Walker whiskey dynasty |
| DATE OF BIRTH | July 25, 1805 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | at Kilmarnock , in Ayrshire |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 19, 1857 |