Whisky events are booming in the UK with new shows popping up across the country. The organizer of the UK’s biggest show, The Whisky Exchange, has gotten in on the action with a new whisky festival that’s targeted at beginners.

Not everyone gets into whisky by trying a gentle Jameson or Glenfiddich at their local pub. My first whisky was Laphroaig as that’s what my father drank. I loved the heavy smoke, the sea air and the wet grass that punched out from the glass whenever I drank it. It was years until I finally found unpeated Scotch and Irish whiskies I enjoyed, and I know there are others like me out there. Welcome to Whisky is a bold attempt by a UK retailer to jump start this journey.

Targeting beginners is a wise move from The Whisky Exchange and I hope the marketing brought new folks into the fold but for us enthusiasts there’s perhaps better names to summarise it. I’d call it the “Affordable Whisky Show” show with (almost) everything on the tables costing £100 or less. It was also the “Core Range Show” with most products being readily available at retail and unlikely to vanish any time soon. Is a show focused on core ranges and affordable whisky going to turn off some enthusiasts? Absolutely. The absence of ever-refreshed independent bottler selections to dig into is something you’ll feel, but core ranges are core ranges for a reason. It dawned on me as I went about the show how few I’d actually tried before: Glendronach and Tomatin for instance are brands where I’ve tried some of the premium offerings but completely missed the basics until this show.

It’s really hard to find a flavour gap at Welcome to Whisky, with around 250 whiskies from 13 different countries all styles were covered. The Whisky Exchange covered any possible gaps with their own stands. Alongside a Whisky 101 stand to teach the foundations (a service I loved at their Cognac Show) there’s a World Whisky, American Whisky and Scotch Whisky stand. The selection was incredibly curated to cover maximum range with minimum bottles. The American stand had Bourbon, Rye, Corn, Wheat, Single Malt and Tennessee Whisky. The Scottish stand featured single grains alongside interesting malt finishes and the World Whisky stand was a lineup of global wildcards you can see pictured below. This section had a few drams that were big surprises for seasoned drinkers like the Kimchangsoo Whisky from Korea which was a whirlpool of sweet sherry, dry wood and salty smoke – one of the best things I tried at the show.

With every show the Whisky Exchange Team gives plenty of extras beyond the tastings. You get water, oatcakes and a show guide upon arrival as well as a highball token. I redeemed mine for a refreshing Smokey Cokey with Smokehead Sherry Bomb. As a peat and sherry lover I found this single malt a little underwhelming neat but it really was pleasant with the Fever Tree Cola. It stood out against the soda better than many other peated whiskies I’ve mixed before in an attempt to replicate Dave Broom’s original without the need to buy a Lagavulin 16. An impressive little bonus treat at the show. There’s also a programme of stage presentations with a focus on food pairings and cocktails rather than the usual distillery or region focuses you get at other shows. The fact that the audience might be more interested in boilermakers over fermentations and cuts is acknowledged and catered for.

On the education front the Brand Ambassadors mostly did a lovely job. We had conversations to explain not just the basics like grain versus malt but more in depth tutorials like the profile of highland peat vs Islay peat, how the STR (shaved, toasted, recharred) process works and much more. There were absolutely some Brand Ambassadors that went in with the enthusiast-level chat at the start, perhaps because the Friday consumer session followed the trade one, but by the end the rhythm had definitely been found.

Glaziers Hall is a venue we’ve visited before for the Rum Show and the Cognac Show and it’s used in an identical way by The Whisky Exchange for this newest venture. We arrived five minutes before and were inside minutes after the doors opened. The downstairs is a large open room with bigger brands and then smaller stands can be found upstairs across three separate rooms. It never gets too crowded or loud and is a comfortable space to spend four hours drinking, however, I always recommend starting upstairs first and going downstairs later to dodge peak busyness.

I clearly enjoyed the show, but did the newbie I brought along? They certainly did! It’s a difficult thing not to enjoy your first whisky show unless you overdo it. They enjoyed the discussions with the brand representatives and discovering new flavours. However, they did find that palate fatigue set in early which isn’t surprising given that plenty of cask strength stuff was on offer even at the sub £100 price tag.

The Whisky Exchange has confirmed that Welcome to Whisky is returning in 2026 so let’s tackle the big question – is it worth your money? At a competitive £45+ the answer is mostly yes, but it depends on who you are.

For enthusiasts the Welcome to Whisky show is a fun evening out with some great drams but ultimately you’ll get more out of the many other enthusiast festivals around London in the Spring (Croydon, The Whisky Event and Summerton Whisky Festival) even if the cost is higher or the selection smaller. As The Whisky Exchange publish exhibitors and dram lists in advance you can always wait until closer to the event before pulling the trigger.

However, if you’re just getting into whisky then Welcome to Whisky is a compelling offer. The festival has smoothed out the wrinkles for beginners and that’s easier said than done. My festival journey started with various awkward moments that could have turned me off entirely. At my first whisky festival I remember choking on something cask strength I wasn’t warned about and wrecking my palate for the rest of the show. I also recall being admonished for not knowing certain facts, jostled out of the way by a sudden crowd that had heard about a rare dram, and even flat out ignored at a stand because someone more important has rocked up. By centering the show around beginners you can create a smooth experience and put everyone on the same page, brands included. The only other London (ish) festival I’d recommend to complete beginners that’s a similar price tag is Summerton Whisky Festival. There’s no jostling crowds and the show attracts as many curious locals as it does diehard enthusiasts.

The Whisky Exchange has had an ideal maiden voyage with this new idea, but that’s to be expected from a team that runs so many other shows. With how competitive London is for whisky festivals we’re curious to see how they grow it in 2026.

[A complimentary festival ticket was provided by The Whisky Exchange. All other costs were covered by All But Drams.]