Experiencing Romania through Carpathian single malt whisky tour

Ramy James Salameh brings to life the London leg of the launch of Romania’s first ever single malt whisky At the centre of any successful event, there is a narrative and story to be told. It is part of the journey, which initially, allows the planner to start to design an event in conjunction with the client’s objectives. The story forms the content, and as we know in this digital age ‘content is king’ and lays the foundations to focus eyes on the brand, providing the tools to develop an experiential ‘live’ event for audiences to engage with the product. In the first quarter of 2022, a limited edition of 930 bottles of ‘Carpathian Single Malt Whisky’ rolled off the production line of a distillery located next to the southern Carpathian Mountains. They collectively formed Romania’s first ever single malt whisky, placing the country on the global map of single malt producers. The person behind its creation is Nawaf Salameh, founding chairman of the Alexandrion Group, Romania’s largest spirits and wines producer and distributor, who was bestowed the title of ‘Keeper of the Quaich’ in 2016. From that point on, he set forth on a journey of discovery to create a world-class whisky product. Salameh is now fondly referred to by peers as the ‘Christopher Columbus’ of Romanian single malt whisky, having charted a sometimes-turbulent course, to a point today, where he has unveiled the product in two key markets (US & UK) and will commercially launch it in Romania soon. This is a story of brand innovation and determination, which was ripe for translating into a successful global roadshow. The London leg of Carpathian’s global tour provides an interesting insight into the power of ‘experiential events’, when using them as springboard for awareness building, developing long-term relationships with key partners and providing direct experience of the product to set in motion various channels to market. Brand authenticity The challenge and opportunity of these events were manifold: to deepen knowledge and perceptions of the brand authenticity, allowing audiences to see, feel and touch ‘Carpathian Single Malt Whisky’ and showcase the natural beauty, culture, and history of Romania; the aim was to seamlessly connect all three. This was supported by a communications strategy in the months leading up to both events, propagating the story and fostering interest in ‘Carpathian Single Malt’. Alexandrion Group planned two distinct London-based events; the first was the ‘unveiling’ of Carpathian Single Malt Whisky in front of almost 200 guests, made up of diplomatic dignitaries, VIPs, drinks industry representatives and a sprinkling of media on the first evening, followed by a more intimate and dedicated press luncheon the following day. The ‘Mountbatten Room’ of the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) in Pall Mall was selected as the venue for the ‘Unveiling’ evening and the iconic ‘Ivy Restaurant’ in Covent Garden provided the exclusive private dining space for the Press Luncheon. Both landmark sites; the former is a private members club dating back to 1897 and the latter has been a fixture on London’s dining and social scene since the early 1970s. This cocktail of exclusivity, heritage and social integration, ideally matched the DNA of Carpathian Single Malt and Alexandrion Group’s own historical lineage. The RAC’s Mountbatten room is a picture of colonnaded elegance, which was strategically dressed to highlight the ergonomic shape of the bottle (leading Parisian Design Agency Appartement 103, member of the Marie Claire Group designed the bottle) and the soft amber colour of the natural whisky inside. This was achieved with five statuesque totems, up-lighting each bottle sitting atop. The totems were situated either side of the entrance, the main stage and in front of a photo-wall alongside Carpathian-branded hostesses, used to encourage a flurry of social media posts. The space was divided into three distinct areas, the main body of the room opposite the entrance provided arriving guests space to network in front of the main stage, whilst enjoying canapes, jazz and Alexandrion Group’s own sparkling wines – Rhein Extra Brut Imperial & Rose, the oldest sparkling wine produced in Romania without interruption for over a century and supplier of the Royal House of Romania since 1904. Evening of two halves A precise and well-planned schedule allowed for an evening of two halves; networking and speeches, followed by a ‘live’ jazz band, the sampling of the whisky in branded tasting glasses at both bars and a buffet offering an eclectic mix of cuisines. Alongside speeches made by the founding chairman of the Alexandrion Group, Nawaf Salameh and deputy ambassador of Romania to the UK, Alexandru Dodan, Carpathian Single Malt’s global brand ambassador and host of the event, Colin C. Lovering, invited the Master Distiller, Allan Anderson, on stage for a Q&A giving extra insight to the product. All of this was supported by professionally made videos featuring inspiring footage of the cinematic beauty of Romania and the distillery processes. What was absolutely key to the success of the event, was two bespoke and branded bars, specifically built for showcasing Carpathian Single Malt. Shipped over from the inaugural ‘unveiling’ event in Washington DC, they were strategically placed either side of the Mountbatten room, naturally separating the space into social and networking areas, providing guests time to interact with the mixologists and to sample all three expressions of the Single Malt: Feteascã Neagrã, Pinot Noir and Madeira. “It was an impressive event at the prestigious Royal Automobile Club. The opportunity to sample the whiskies, from branded bars with trained mixologists was a superb idea,” comments Mike Starling, features editor, TheWeek.co.uk. To really maximise awareness of the whisky, the following day a hand-picked group of senior editors converged on the society restaurant ‘The Ivy’, Covent Garden. Once again, the venue provided a private bar area for networking, behind which a 25-person table was prepared with Carpathian Single Malt bottles flourishing the table, ready and waiting for the master distiller’s masterclass, leading journalists through each ‘expression’ of the single malt, whilst they sampled. Guests of both events went home with a bottle of Carpathian Single Malt Whisky, branded taster glasses and an impressive impression of Romania’s brand new single malt product. Today, Romania and Single Malt Whisky, not only stand side-by-side but seem to be having a serious relationship, let’s wait and see if there will be wedding bells and off-spring. Where Nawaf Salameh is concerned, literally anything is possible!