PARTNER BAR
The Malt Vault with Giusi Condurso
Giusi Condurso started out as a cleaner at The Malt Vault in Utrecht, The Netherlands, as a 20-year-old with no whisky knowledge. But just four years later she finds herself manager of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society’s partner bar. SMWS ambassador Monique ten Kortenaar sat down with Giusi to chat about how she stumbled into her career in the whisky industry, and what makes The Malt Vault the perfect place to enjoy a dram
M: What’s your background and how did you get into the whisky industry?
G: My name is Giusi, I’m from the south of Italy and I’m 24-years old. I got into the world of whisky at 20, which is when I started working here at the Malt Vault in Utrecht. At the time I didn’t know anything about whisky or about alcohol in general. My dad was very much into beer and my mum likes her wine, but I never liked either of those things for one reason or another. I started working here doing the cleaning, I didn’t really have any experience in anything at the time. But things moved fast and Said [Bijary], who is the owner, noticed how much I was enjoying working there and offered me a full time job. Then with a lot of his mentoring and a lot of reading came the passion for whisky.
M: There are still some people that have, in my opinion, a misconception about women and whisky. People even still sometimes refer to drams as “a typical women’s whisky”. Is that something you’ve come across?
G: I experience that very, very often from a lot of people!
M: What type of whiskies they are referring to mainly?
G: They refer to certain types of whiskies or even certain types of cocktails. This would definitely be something unpeated, sweet, floral and light, maybe a Japanese whisky. A lot of the time when you have first time drinkers who are women, they don’t think: “Oh, I need to find a more feminine or girly whisky.” It can be quite confusing being told you’re not supposed to like a certain type of whisky. I think it can leave some women questioning what they should drink or what they should try. They have no idea.
We treat all beginners exactly the same. We start with three basic flavour profiles, light, full-bodied and smoky. We recommend they try one of each and find out what they like and what they don’t like. There are no rules that says women should like lasagna and men should like chicken with roast potatoes – it depends from person to person. It’s taste and it’s genderless, or at least we believe it is. Normally, if you like complex taste and texture and good food you will also appreciate a good drink. If you’re put in the right conditions to enjoy it, of course. If you’re being asked to take a shot at the club, it’s a different story – I speak from experience!
“If you like complex taste and texture and good food you will also appreciate a good drink. If you’re put in the right conditions to enjoy it, of course.”
GIUSI CONDURSO
M: Is there a new generation of whisky drinkers? And if so, what’s the difference with the previous generation?
G: We have a lot of different people coming here to drink and there is definitely a freshness to new drinkers and people who are younger. Some of our most regular customers are below 25-years old and we know them by name, but that happens in every age, I guess.
There’s something about the curiosity of finding out new things, a lot of these people come to me wanting to try something weird or outlandish. That’s definitely something I notice more with younger people but I don’t know if that’s necessarily the new generation or just the case with the ones that visit us.
The atmosphere that we create here, with 90 per cent of our staff being women and not your stereotypical bartender with a beard and a hipster hat, is great. We really ask about what our customers like. A lot of the time you have a man coming in asking for the same Macallan 12 he drinks every time. But if we don’t have that we talk about what they like and what they would like to try, because there’s no point in trying something you’ve already tried.
I would say that works in the sense that people enjoy their stay 99.9 per cent of the time.
So even if they didn’t enjoy that one particular drink they will still hopefully leave with a smile. What’s bigger than a new generation, I would say, is this idea of a new approach to drinking whisky where people explore different flavours.
ABOVE: Giusi encourages trying something new
M: Can you tell me more about The Malt Vault. You have two places now, in Utrecht and Den Haag. What’s special about these two venues?
G: Well, the concept of the three flavour profiles is definitely the strongest point in the sense that it can really help people understand what they like, which makes it less intimidating for beginners. I also love the fact that we change [whisky] menus once every week. I am lucky enough to be in charge of ordering, which is always fun. We receive orders on Wednesday and Thursday which always feels like Christmas has come early.
Behind the scenes, the openness of our boss, Said, to employ people who are passionate, young and willing to learn, really creates an atmosphere here that is so relaxed. You can just sit back and try things and there’s no pressure from us about what you should or shouldn’t like, which means you can really experience a wide range of whiskies. We have about 400 whiskies here, another 415 in Den Haag. It’s definitely a world of flavours and the location is very beautiful as well.
It’s like why the SMWS don’t include the name of the distillery on the label. It’s not about the fact that you like Tullibardine – let’s talk about why you like that. There are so many different expressions where you can find yourself through the flavours instead of just the names. I of course understand the value of that as well, but for independent bottling companies it’s a little bit more fun.
M: I can tell you’re really knowledgeable and that you know what you’re talking about, because my last question was: “How do The Scotch Malt Whisky Society and the Malt Vault fit together?” But you’ve already answered that!
G: Yeah, I think that’s why it fits as well, because you do the same, you help people explore. We don't like to use the term experience, because you don't need experience to enjoy a good drink, just like you don't need experience to enjoy a good meal.
It's just about what you like. Everyone is welcome, whether they've been drinking whisky for 10 years, 20 years, 30 years, or they never had a drop of whisky in their lives. We’re open to everyone who's willing to just relax and have an experience.
ABOVE: The Malt Vault in Utrecht
ABOVE: Giusi with the team