I was delighted and honoured to be invited to give a Masterclass at the Puerto Rico Whisky Expo 2025 last weekend.
My remit was to speak about “Tradition & Innovation in Scotch Whisky” and to include the following topics:
- Explore how traditional whisky-making is evolving with new fermentation techniques, yeast strains, and sustainable aging processes.
- How AI, data science, and advanced blending techniques are changing the game.
- The impact of women in whisky innovation: how female master distillers, blenders, and scientists are leading groundbreaking research and redefining production techniques.
In addition, the session should end with a guided tasting featuring an experimental or limited-edition whisky showcasing innovation.
Puerto Rico is a dynamic market and I looked forward to the added bonus of the opportunity to visit this beautiful island. I wasn’t disappointed as the entire Puerto Rico Whisky Expo was really lively and interesting.
The VIP tent was packed for the Masterclass sessions which were brilliantly organised and attended by very enthusiastic whisky lovers. I spoke about each of the topics in turn, looking back at how Scotch whisky has reacted to change in consumption patterns and demand abound the world over the last 25 years and then focussing on a series of women at the top of their game.
At the end of my Masterclass it was a great pleasure to share a toast of a dram of the recently launched Chivas Regal Ultis XX with the VIP guests and no surprise at all that was greatly appreciated! It was only recently that I had the opportunity to taste this new expression in the Chivas Regal range for the first time while a guest Chivas Brothers at Linn House in Speyside.
An added bonus was that the Puerto Rico Whisky Expo provided a great opportunity to get three Keepers of the Quaich on stage together following our respective masterclasses. Arturo Savage of Diageo is on the left and Joe Cabassa of Academia de Whisky is on the right.
The Whisky Expo continued throughout the evening with a great variety of whiskies exhibiting at stands and in pavilions throughout the Parque de las Ciencias [Science Park]. The event ended with a rousing concert.
Organiser Ricardo J Rivera O’Neill commented, “Let’s do this again, Ann! 😏 We’re extremely grateful that you accepted our invitation to meet and educate #whiskeros in Puerto Rico!”
Exploring the island of Puerto Rico
My trip began a couple of days before the Whisky Expo when I was able to spend most of a day in the old part of San Juan, capital city of this delightful island. I enjoyed a guided tour of the cobbled streets with colourful colonial era buildings as well as the forts which the Spanish colonisers began to build during the early sixteenth century with my old friend and Joe Cabassa of the Academia de Whisky who is a fellow trainer with the Edinburgh Whisky Academy. Earlier he had treated me a delicious lunch of local specialities in a traditional restaurant. After watching the sun set over the harbour, we visited his friend who has an Aladdin’s cave of whisky – an amazing collection of rare and interesting bottles. We tasted a few delicious drams before jet lag finally got the better of me!
A second day exploring this Caribbean paradise began with a trip to the seaside, followed by a fascinating visit to an artisanal coffee producer high in the mountains which cross the centre of Puerto Rico. Getting there proved to be a real adventure as we travelled through thick vegetation along seldom frequented tracks. Once we arrived, we learnt about each stage of the process from picking the coffee beans from the bushes which grow on vertiginous slopes until it is ready to brew. Our visit ended with the chance to enjoy a comparative coffee tasting on the veranda overlooking the coffee plantations. On our return trip we made a short detour to a tasting of Dewar’s blended and single malt whiskies – the perfect end to a great day in excellent company.
On my third day the highlight of the trip was an in-depth tour of the Bacardi Distillery. After all Puerto Rico is world renowned for its tradition of producing rum. We saw all the steps in the production process and our visit was punctuated half way through with a fascinating tasting in a maturation warehouse.
The scale of the operation, with its many fermentation tanks and vast maturation warehouses is almost overwhelming. However, I realised that this scale is essential as the majority of Bacardi which is enjoyed in the world is produced in this one location. Our visit ended with an exclusive tutored tasting of mature rums in the bar followed by cocktails in the shade from the midday sun. Before long as night began to fall, it was time for another convivial whisky tasting, this time of Diageo’s range of malts and blends.
Altogether this trip to Puerto Rico was a wonderful opportunity to spend time with many people with a genuine thirst for knowledge and an impressive appreciation of Scotch whisky as well as to explore an island paradise.