Planning on heading out to the 2019 Whiskytown Festival? We’ve put together this guide to help you prepare for a great time with great whiskies. The festival takes place on Saturday, August 10 from 5:00pm to 8:00pm. Tickets are available online.
SHORT BUT SWEET
The event is only three hours in length. You’ll be able to enjoy a cocktail or sip on whisky while listening to Max Marshall perform in a garden party setting.
HANG ON TO YOUR GLASS
While it’s not a keepsake, you should hang on to your glass for the duration of the festival. Also, don’t worry about contaminating any samples. There will be stations to rinse your glass before each sample.
DIGITAL AND HARD TOKENS
Yes. You read that right. We’re going with a hybrid token system that allows you to use both coin tokens or digital tokens through your phone. We’ve partnered with Token Mobile to use their system and eliminate having to stand in line to purchase tokens or carry a mother-load of tokens in your pocket.
How does it work?
Visit tokenmobile.ca or go to tokenmobile.ca/download from your mobile device.
You can even buy tokens in advance. If you’re at the event and need more tokens, simply purchase them on your phone. You’ll save time and money by avoiding lineups and heavy pockets. You’ll even be able to view the whisky lineup all from your phone.
Token Mobile allows you to view vendors and purchase and redeem tokens right from your phone. This means make sure you arrive with a full charge on your phone.
Each token has a value of $1 and is redeemable for both food and drink. Also, if you’re going to purchase hard tokens, it’s cash only and there are no ATMs on site.
ARRIVE EARLY
Since the festival is short and sweet, arrive early so you can get your ticket scanned in and enter the site as quickly as possible and maximize your whisky and cocktail tasting time. The gate opens at 5:00 p.m.
SHARE YOUR PHOTOS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
We love seeing our festivals and events through the eyes of those attending. Take lots of photos throughout the festival and share them on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter using the #WindsorEats and #WhiskytownCanada hashtags.
NO RE-ENTRY
Because it’s only a three hour event, there will be no re-entry once you leave the festival grounds.
OUR WHISKY LIST
Be sure to check our ever updating whisky list before and during the festival. There’ll be everything from some great entry whiskies for those new to this beautiful, golden nectar, to bottles like the Writer’s Tears Cask Strength to The Balvenie 14 Year Caribbean Cask to Canadian Club 41 Year Old.
TASTING, NOT BINGE DRINKING
This event was created to allow you to enjoy a variety of whiskies, so tastings are 0.5 ounces each. We want you to be able to stroll the grounds and taste some amazing blends and possibly find a new favourite whisky.
GARDEN PARTY
It’s going to be a beautiful evening and we hope we’ve created a quaint and cozy atmosphere for you to sip on some great whiskies and enjoy your surroundings. Our idea for this event was to create a garden party atmosphere.
COCKTAILS
WindsorEats, Walkerville Eatery and Maiden Lane Wine & Spirits will be offering up craft cocktails at the festival. These won’t be your run of the mill whisky and colas, that’s for sure!
WHISKY+BEER=AWESOME
The Grove Brew House has created the only non-whisky beverage at the festival. We’ll be serving up their whisky infused imperial stout. It’s an intensely-flavoured, big, dark ale with a wide range of flavours that will challenge your taste buds.
Firstly, an intense roasted malt coffee flavour is followed by a hint of malt sweetness and the intense character of fine whisky. At 10% ABV, the beer has a deep dark colour and a warming, bittersweet finish. Despite the intense flavours, the components meld together to create a complex, harmonious beer.
DRINK AND MINGLE WITH THE PROS
There will be more than a handful and brand ambassadors on site to allow you to ask questions and learn more about your favourite whiskies.
Dr. Don Livermore is in the house! The legend that is the J.P. Wiser’s Master Blender will be on site to mingle and talk whisky all throughout the festival about his creations. The man is a wealth of knowledge and this really is a special treat to be in the presence of what we consider whisky royalty.
LIMITED & LOVING IT
Some of the higher end whiskies will be limited in quantity, so we suggest planning your tastings accordingly. One they’re done, they’re done…unless you go out yourself and buy a $300+ bottle.
LEARN ABOUT WHISKYTOWN, CANADA
Learn about why Windsor is known as Whiskytown, Canada. Authors Elaine Weeks and Chris Edwards will be in attendance with a display of historic Walkerville items. They’ll be discussing Old Walkerville’s history and will be doing a book signing of their book “Walkerville – Whisky Town Extraordinaire”.
