Women And Whiskies: Why Brown (Liquor) Is The New Black

A whiskey tasting menu sat at each place setting in the second-floor room of the NoMad Hotel in New York City, with six mini-sifters filled with whiskies and single malts surrounded by bowls of cheese and chocolate. The group sat attentively listening to a representative explain the history of bourbon, Scotch whisky, and Tennessee whiskey. And sure enough, the questions kept rolling in: how to order a whiskey with water at the bar (answer: whiskey with a water back), where whiskeys were made, where the best whiskey bar in New York is.

But the event wasn't filled with a group of men wanting to learn about the brown liquor — it was all women. In fact, the only men in the room were the waiters. As boots and heels clacked, phone cameras went off, Twitter blew up with #notjust4men and #whiskeybrigade, and whiskey cocktails (made with Auchentoshan Three Wood whisky, sherry, vermouth, and crème de cacao) were passed to women filing in, master blender of whiskey Rachel Barrie smiled — this was her kind of group.

The whiskey tasting event was put on by Campari's women-only group, Women & Whiskies. The group (hosted by Campari America) began in 2010, when PR manager Randal Stewart began noticing more and more women at the company's tastings, because men would bring their girlfriends. But there was no outlet for women to voice their drink choices, or to learn about the whiskies they were trying; from there, the group grew naturally. Now, Women & Whiskies hosts whiskey tastings and events for women (usually for free; the NoMad event asked for a $20 donation to Dress for Success in lieu of payment). They even held an event during the Manhattan Cocktail Classic, the "cocktail party" of the year, just for women.

They have inspired more female-only whiskey enthusiasts groups over time; in 2011, Glenfiddich whisky also introduced a Women and Whiskey group. And worldwide, more female groups have opened to explore whiskies, including groups in India and — you guessed it — Scotland.

Barrie, one of the few women distillers in Scotland and the head distiller for Morrison Bowmore Distillers, grew up knowing whiskey. Her grandmother would give her a hot toddy when she was sick from age seven on; after studying chemistry in school, she considered going into the perfume business — but she couldn't stray away from whiskey. She spent 16 years at Glenmorangie before moving to Morrison Bowmore in 2011. Barrie knows all too well that the whiskey business is a man's world. But as she relaxed with a cocktail in hand (she prefers her whiskey neat, though), she said she was happy to see women taking the liquor by the horns. Over the 17 years Barrie's been in the industry, she's noticed her own tastings have become populated by half men and half women.

"There's something about whiskey that brings people together," she said. "And it brings up something so much more emotional than other spirits — the aroma, the taste, it brings up memories and feelings. You don't get that from every drink."

And as the cocktail resurgence thunders on, it's clear that women are in the driver's seat. The newest round of statistics show it's the women of the house who make the majority of the at-home liquor choices, and when ordering drinks at restaurants. Some spirits companies are using that buying power to appeal to women's desires, but that often comes out in a low-cal, sugary sweet, concoction. Take Bethenny Frankel's Skinnygirl drinks, which have hit a sweet spot in the market, or even the introduction of alcoholic whipped cream — they're the guilty pleasures of the liquor store.

But while Skinnygirl rages on, brown liquors continue to persuade female drinkers to come to the dark side. What's appealing about whiskey to women? For many of the women The Daily Meal talked to, it seemed to be a sense of connection, particularly to the men in their lives. One female drinker learned the ins and outs of whiskies so she and her father could share a drink together. Others picked up a glass because of a true curiosity about the liquor. With notebooks in hands and a PowerPoint presentation to follow, these women weren't just drinkers — they were scholars.

And for others, they turned to whiskey for the sense of adventure in a glass. Barrie, a wife and a mother to three sons, is also an avid vintage motorcycle collector. That's the kind of women you expect to be holding a whiskey neat at the bar.

What used to be a man's territory is now finding more and more women coming in — and it's changing the perception of female drinkers everywhere. Let's face it, the Cosmos of the Sex and the City era just don't cut it at the bar anymore. Take it from this writer's personal experience: ordering many a vodka soda at the bar next to my girlfriend ordering a whiskey and ginger became more and more of a buzzkill over time, as I watched guys fly out of the woodwork to buy her drinks. Strangely, my clear drink order wasn't picking up any dudes — and it's a phenomenon the women at the event recognized. Order brown, and the men will come.

So what, you might ask — girls should be drinking whiskey in order to seem cool or pick up guys? Hardly. If anything, Barrie said, the drink choice isn't for the men — it's the sense of empowerment for the woman ordering it. So when I put that to the test: This week, I took notice of my drink orders to see the reaction I would get. When out with a guy, I asked for a vodka soda at the bar, and he hardly batted an eye. But the next time I was out, I ordered a Bulleit (on the recommendation from said date) and ginger — and sure enough, a guy to my right picked up on my order. Sure, it was no love connection, but at least it was a shared interest. But screw the guys — the reaction I found most surprising was my own. After all, anyone who knows me I'm hardly a dull person, so why would I let my clear, watered-down spirit reflect that? Brown in hand, I danced a bit more, flirted a bit more, enjoyed myself a bit more. I could blame it on the alcohol, of course, but I think it was the drink in hand that gave me a bit more confidence. After all, if the female distillers of the world are out there riding motorcycles, I could stand to have a little adventure, too.