If we reviewed shows solely on their “wow” factor then The World Whisky Experience would get near top marks. Christ Church in Spitalfields  is an icon of the area and a stunning event space. Walking through the door you’ll marvel at the white baroque columns, polished wooden balconies and golden chandeliers before you’ll even spot the whisky.

Organised by luxury drinks magazine Club Oenologique and the IWSC the World Whisky Experience is set up to align with the latter’s awards ceremony in London. It’s a fledgeling show with a mission to promote the diversity of world whisky. The show nails this mission with 13 countries represented among the 200 whiskies on offer, although some of those were with just one bottle. The show was dominated by English, Scottish, Irish and American products but in a far better balance than most whisky shows which skew towards Scotch just by nature of the market.

The exhibitors varied in size from major distilleries to new brands with inaugural releases and everything in between. The selection was mostly the various core ranges of every brand with only a few bottles priced over £100. That isn’t to say the show is entry level, most of what was on sale here is only available from specialist stores and not on the supermarket shelves. For instance, Whyte & Mackay brought mid-range and limited release products from Jura, Fettercairn and Dalmore rather than the core range.

Whilst there’s few “rare” whiskies here there’s still plenty to get excited about if you are an enthusiast. The highlight of the show is the IWSC stands that carried a range of world whiskies with many that are not available in the UK. For a Bourbon fan the selection would have been enough to spend the entire show drinking with numerous bottles that are nearly impossible to get in the UK.

Christ Church isn’t just beautiful, the space is airy and the noise carries well. A show where you aren’t sweating or shouting yourself hoarse to be heard is rarer than you’d think. The layout of two large rows means there’s plenty of space in general to enjoy a chat with friends but the stands were clustered very close to each other meaning overspill was common. However, this was mitigated by a calm and slow-paced atmosphere with there being enough time to sample almost everything on offer if you wanted. 

It’s getting rarer and rarer to be fed at a whisky show as organisers would rather keep costs lower and cut back addons than risk raising prices too high in the face of inflation. The World Whisky Experience is one of the few shows to include a hot meal. We had the jerk chicken and rice as well as the ribs with mac and cheese. Both were flavourful and filling. The ticket also included a CBD cocktail token from brand Mola. What was interesting was the staff here were clearly having fun and trying to make interesting things for show guests. The range of spirits on offer too was at the higher end of what you’d expect to find in your cocktail. This little setup didn’t have to be impressive, but it went above and beyond what competing shows offer.

So overall we’ve got a show with a lovely selection, gorgeous venue and decent refreshments included. What’s the catch? The price.

We paid £75 for our Early Bird Standard Friday tickets to The World Whisky Experience back in July. In early October I was served relentless social media adverts offering me 50% off. The same ticket, at Standard Rate, was lower than Early Bird at £65 and with the discount it came down to £32.50! That’s a massive 57% reduction being shoved in my face online every day. There is nothing illegal about this pricing, events can do what they like, but it is deceptive, unprofessional and rips off the most eager of enthusiasts. I know of no other event that has so widely advertised such large discounts, nor an event that has made its Standard Rate cheaper than Early Bird.

We reached out to Club Oenologique and The IWSC to get a partial refund down to this new rate of £32.50 to be informed it was a “flash sale” and that we could buy more. It was only after posting on our social media about this that they offered a partial refund to myself and other affected enthusiasts. Once we had our refunds we kept an eye on the site and this discount was run regularly up until at least the day before the event.

Compared to other shows The World Whisky Experience is not worth anything near £75. The Whisky Event costs just £10 more and has a vastly larger selection, many more rare whiskies, cocktails and a buffet. The Whisky Exchange Show’s 2025 Friday Early Bird is also £75. That same price gets you access to well over a thousand drams. The final price of £32.50 puts it in line with similar sized London shows like Croydon Whisky Festival or Harrow Whisky Festival. Had this been the Early Bird price to begin with we would be telling you all it’s a great deal.

We sincerely hope the World Whisky Experience returns next year –  without the pricing problems. It wasn’t just a charming show for consumers, November is a great time for brands to be promoting with Black Friday and Christmas around the corner, plus there’s no other London shows around this time. Perhaps we’ll see you back here next year for an updated review?