Edinburgh-based whisky brand Wee Smoky has launched six premium canned cocktails, designed to challenge the perceptions of smoke and whisky cocktail culture.
Founder, Rory Gammell, spent the past six years on a mission to elevate cocktails by adding ‘a hint of smoke’. After traveling the world with his flagship liquid, Wee Smoky, a smoky whisky for mixing, he realised many people thought they didn’t like whisky, until they experienced it “in a perfect cocktail”.
After years of balancing smoke with other flavours, Gammell and his team have now created a Wee Smoky RTD range. Each flavour is bold, balanced and designed to appeal to all cocktail drinkers, even those who don’t think they like whisky.
Working with liquid development partner, Jack Sotti, previously crowned World Class Bartender of the Year, Wee Smoky has transformed six iconic cocktails into premium ready-to-drink serves, in a quest to prove that a hint of smoke can elevate almost any cocktail.
The range has four traditionally non-whisky cocktails: the Margarita, Salted Caramel, Espresso Martini, and Wee Smoky’s take on the Paloma, the Grape-fruit-arita, were crafted with the non-whisky drinker in mind. The Old Fashioned and Manhattan were created for the whisky fans.
Gammell said: “In consumer testing, so many people who swore they wouldn’t drink whisky really enjoyed our cocktails, saying they would order them at a bar. There is so much opportunity here because instead of turning away from smoke, people are excited about it.
“Smoke has traditionally been seen as intense. Whisky has traditionally been seen as intimidating. We believe both deserve a wider audience.
“Imagine finding out that your favourite Margarita, or indeed Paloma, turned out to be Scotch whisky-based. For me that’s what success would look like – playing our part in a broader perception shift of our category.”
The new Wee Smoky RTD range, which claims to be the first dedicated smoky whisky cocktail range of its kind, comes in a 10cl can format.
Wee Smoky was created in 2020 as a single-grain Scotch whisky specifically designed for mixing.
