FAQ's
ARE YOU A DISTILLERY?
No, we’re a blending house. From our tiny Studio in the Biscuit Factory, Leith, we make connections with distilleries and whisky brokers throughout Scotland (and the world). From them, we source casks of whisky and store them, often placing them into our own specially selected wooden casks to develop the flavours further. We are building a growing library of different flavours, ages and profiles which we use to construct our blends in our blending studio. Distilleries are amazing, but being blenders allows us the freedom to choose elements from the entire spectrum of flavour within whisky to use in our creations.
WHAT’S YOUR STORY?
We are friends who believe that there’s more to blended whisky. A lot more. And while our home is a blending studio in Leith, our mission is global. We want to make this industry, this art, much more human. Much more experimental. Much less industrialised. Much more experiential. Much more, well, fun. But we know we can’t do it alone. Because we know this is bigger than any one of us.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THE TERM 'THE WORLDWIDE WHISKY MAKERS'?
At the moment, beyond our blending studio in Leith, we’ve no fixed abode. This means we piggy back on the facilities of other, more established whisky companies for warehouse storage, vatting and bottling facilities. We also sometimes blend whiskies from right around the world, a practice which must take place outside of Scotland. As such, we are blending across borders, making whiskies from multiple origins. Worldwide whisky makers refers to both how we blend, but also where we blend.
WHY ARE SOME OF THE WHISKIES OUT OF STOCK?
Every Woven experience is made in a single batch, and made from scratch. We blend in small volumes and aim for quality, not consistency. We feel that people would rather have something that tastes really good but is potentially limited, than unlimited in quantity yet average in experience (there are plenty of those already). So, what this means is that when we make a blend, we know we can only make so much of it, and that we might not be able to recreate it exactly again. We concentrate on making it taste the best it can. The down side, if you can call it that, is that when it is gone - it’s gone!
BUT I LIKED IT SO MUCH, I’D LIKE TO DRINK IT AGAIN!
As we grow our stocks, we may seek to bring an experience back, or add to them. Creating new experiences under the same theme for example. Experience 2 could evolve into Experience 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 etc. We’re about experimenting with ideas, flavours and blends in search of extraordinary drinking experiences. Some might be revisited, others not. Tell us what you like, what you don’t like, and what you want to see more of and we’ll do our best to find, blend and make available more of those things.
WHY ARE YOU NOT SOLD IN MY LOCAL SUPERMARKET?
Quite simply - we can’t supply enough whisky to fill the supply chains of huge suppliers. The supermarket retail model necessitates consistent high volume of stock that doesn’t change. We’ll get there one day, but for now we’re happy making small batches of beautiful whisky for you to buy here.
WHY ARE YOU CALLED WOVEN?
Nothing about our company or our ethos is singular. We are a myriad of tiny influences, connections and at a product level, whiskies coming together to create something bigger than the sum of its parts. We believe in blending as a metaphor for a good life - where a more enjoyable experience is obtained through different strands, peoples and ideas coming together. Woven.
WHY DO YOU CALL YOURSELVES BLENDERS?
Because the style of whisky we make is legally referred to as ‘blended’. That means, we take the product of more than one distillery and combine them together, often with the addition of grain whisky.
IS BLENDED WHISKY SINGLE MALT?
No, In Scotland single malt is a whisky produced from 100% malted barley at a single distillery. A blend of different single malt whiskies together is called a Vatted Malt or Blended Malt. A blend of single malt whiskies, mixed with grain whisky is called a Blended Whisky. Woven produces Blended Malts, and Blended Whisky.
WHY IS YOUR WHISKY MORE EXPENSIVE THAN OTHER BLENDS?
Quite simply, we source some outstanding single malts and grain whiskies that would otherwise be destined for specialist bottlings or limited releases for our blends. We believe that using incredible base spirits to blend with gives us the ability to reach heights that other blenders cannot. Other blended whiskies might use more inexpensive, perhaps less interesting malts and grains for their whiskies. They also purchase in such huge quantities that they get economies of scale coming into effect. In fact many of the blended whiskies you’ll see on the shelves will own distilleries to make the main bulk of their blends and add a touch of ‘finishing malts’ to add flavour and texture. In contrast, when a whisky lands on the Woven blending table, we remove labels, price tags, and grandeur, to only focus on its flavour - meaning our blends are built from a flavour first perspective rather than a financial or marketing one.
HOW SHOULD I DRINK WHISKY?
This is one of those questions that comes up a lot. We believe that a whisky should be enjoyed. It doesn’t matter if it’s alone with your feet up, at a party with friends, with ice and a dash of soda, with Irn Bru, in a special whisky glass, or as a cocktail. As long as it's an experience; and one you enjoy, that's good enough for us.
WHAT BARS CAN I FIND WOVEN IN?
Right now, you can find Woven in a number of bars across the country. We sent out a special ‘Experience N.X’ to 20 bars that have influenced us over the years, or became friends with. We will be expanding our bar and restaurant presence as we move along our path.
I AM A BAR / RESTAURANT / DISTRIBUTOR - CAN I LIST WOVEN?
Yes! We’d love to hear from you if you’re interested in listing Woven. Please email: hello@wovenwhisky.com with the subject line: ‘(NAME OF OUTLET) WANTS WOVEN’ and we’ll set up a call.
CAN I BUY YOUR PRODUCTS OUTSIDE THE UK
Unfortunately, we are only able to send our products to customers who are based in the UK right now. We are working on this… so watch this space. However if you’re somewhere else, and think we should be too, please let us know. If you’re someone who can make us be somewhere else (ie. an importer or distributor), and would like to get in touch - please email: hello@wovenwhisky.com with the subject line: ‘(NAME OF COUNTRY) WANTS WOVEN’ and we’ll set up a call.
CAN I HAVE SOME FREE SAMPLES?
Due to the nature of being small, independent, and working in limited batches; we can’t send out free samples on request.
IF I HAVE ORDERED SOMETHING FROM YOUR WEBSITE, CAN I CHECK IT’S PROGRESS?
When you make an order from the site, you should receive a confirmation email or SMS from UPS with a unique tracking code that you can use on the UPS tracking site.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO DELIVER?
We aim to have your order with you within seven days from the date of order. However we are normally much quicker and will have your order with you in a couple of days. Full information can be found on our ‘shipping and returns’ page.
HOW MUCH IS SHIPPING?
Single Bottle |
£5.75 |
Two Bottles |
£5.75 |
Three Bottles |
£7.50 |
Four Bottles |
£7.50 |
Five Bottles |
£7.50 |
Six Bottles |
£8.20 |
Over £150 In Single Order |
Free |
Edinburgh Local Delivery |
£5.00 |
Local Studio Pick Up |
Free |
CAN I RETURN PRODUCTS BOUGHT FROM THE WEBSITE?
We have a 14-day return policy, which means you have 14 days after receiving your item to request a return. To be eligible for a return, your item must be in the same condition that you received it, unused, in its original packaging. You’ll also need the receipt or proof of purchase. To start a return, you can contact us at hello@wovenwhisky.com. If your return is accepted, we’ll send you a return postal bag & label, as well as instructions on how and where to send your package. Items sent back to us without first requesting a return will not be accepted. You can always contact us for any return question at hello@wovenwhisky.com.