I met Johanne McInnis over the phone in 2017. I had just started NextTribe, and we were publishing a story about the surge in women whiskey drinkers. I needed a photo for the story, and found the image below on a Google search. I knew I couldn’t use it without asking permission, and I noticed that it went with an intriguing story about the “Whisky Lassie.”

I tracked her down on the phone, and what I thought would be a quick five-minute call became a 45-minute conversation. Johanne is charming, funny, and so knowledgeable. I read that she was a blogger about whiskey, judged competitions. and taught classes around the world. Still,  I didn’t realize at the time that I was talking to a celebrity in the whiskey world. Indeed, with her background in organic chemistry and distillation, she is one of the most prominent women in the spirits industry. 

We have a few more spaces left for our Insider Tour of the Scottish Highlands, June 12-20, which is led by Johanne McInnis. 

We stayed in touch over the years, particularly after I did a bike tour of the Scottish island of Islay, which is famous for its whiskies. I couldn’t wait to share with her my impressions of the distilleries and the island. (One of the whiskies she talks about below, Ardberg, is distilled on Islay.)

When NextTribe started doing more trips, I realized that she would be the ideal person to see Scotland with. In fact, she’d led trips to the Highlands before. For those of us on the NextTribe trip to Scotland, we’ll get the benefit of her experience and her fun-loving nature. 

She lives in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada but spends as much time as possible in Scotland. Here’s what she had to say.

Read More: What to See and Do in Scotland: An Opinionated List

That First Sip of Scotch

Q: Do you remember your first taste of whiskey? What was the situation, and what was your reaction?

A: I have two very specific moments that defined my whiskey journey… One was tasting Canadian whiskey in the back alley of my high school (please don’t tell my mom).  It wasn’t unpleasant, and I liked the taste but was too chicken to really drink much.  The second time was likely the defining moment that truly brought this passion into my life: I had just started dating someone pretty special and was about to have supper with him and his parents. It just so happened his dad was a scotch drinker.  When he asked me if I liked whiskey, I said, “Yes, absolutely,” so he said, “Excellent” and poured me an Ardbeg 17 Year Old.  

Now for those who don’t know what that scotch is – it smells really smoky and tastes like a beach bonfire that has a tractor tire on it, with some seaweed and charcoal (sounds appetizing doesn’t it?!).  My reaction was immediate Cue Bugs Bunny faces and sputtering. 

That scotch smells really smoky and tastes like a beach bonfire that has a tractor tire on it. It actually did grow on me.

My future father-in-law laughed and said keep sipping on it; it will grow on you. A. The whiskey actually did grow on me, I love peated whiskies very much.  B. I think I passed the daughter-in-law test that day. 

Q: What do you love about whiskey?

A: It’s the only spirit that I can think of that I’ve never gotten bored with, that I’m still completely enamored with, and that, no matter how hard I could try (until the day I die), I will never fully understand the chemistry/alchemy that goes into making such a versatile and interesting spirit.  Whiskey is made worldwide, and none of it tastes the same, even though most distilleries follow the same basic recipe:  Water, grain, yeast – put it in a barrel.  It’s a fascinating drink!

Q: How did you learn so much about whiskey?  Did you take courses?

A: I’m naturally inclined to throw myself down the Alice in Wonderland rabbit holes in the things that I love, whiskey being one of them.  Again, the determining factor was likely when I became the president of the Saint John Whiskey Tasting Society. and I realized people would look to me as the “knowledge” person.  So, head first I went learning everything I could: books, festivals, internet and lots of travel. I graduated from college with my certification in chemical engineering technology which certainly comes handy when it comes to distillation!

Unleashing Her Inner “Whisky Lassie”

Q: When did you become the “Whisky Lassie,” and how did you develop your reputation?

A: Another great question with an even more bizarre answer.  In 2012, an event planner reached out to our society.  Yearly, she organized a women’s one-day event called “It’s a girl thing.” I was asked to host a whiskey tasting for 75 women. The organizer asked me what my Twitter handle was, I said: “Pardon, tweet-errrr what?”  She explained that’s how she was doing most of her advertising and she was getting all the presenters to chime in on Twitter, so I created an account called “Whiskylassie” and quickly grabbed the rest of the social media handles and email with that it as well.  

Over a decade ago, an event organizer asked me what my Twitter handle was. I said, “Tweet-errr what?” and then grabbed the handle “Whiskylassie” 

As far as my reputation went, I had a really great one locally in New Brunswick, so going international on social media catapulted me into an area I certainly wasn’t expecting.  Within a year, I was judging whiskies, attending and presenting at festivals across Canada, the U.S., and Scotland. The one thing I’m the proudest about with regards to my whiskey reputation is I’m known for my integrity as far as being honest with how I feel about whiskey and the industry in general.

Q: Why is whiskey traditionally considered to be a man’s drink?

A: When I really started drinking whiskey 20 years ago, it was a man’s drink.  That’s changed quite a bit in North America, where 40% of whiskey drinkers are now female on average.  Some countries are still a little slow like Denmark and Japan, but the future’s looking bright with women working in all aspects of the business and consumers demanding better from the companies that make it.

Q Have you ever encountered resistance or disrespect from men since whiskey distilling is considered a man’s world?

A: I have more examples than I care to admit, especially early on.  I was often argued with, tested, or ridiculed by what I now refer to as the “dinosaurs” – the men who still firmly believe it’s a man’s drink/world.  

The moment that I’m likely most proud of, still, was back in 2013, I noticed two friends on Twitter having a discussion about a whiskey ad they felt was inappropriate, so I clicked on it and literally gasped. It was one of the most disrespectful ads I had ever seen.

It was one of the most disrespectful, sexist ads I had ever seen. I tweeted at the whiskey company and within 24 hours, they took it down.

In it, a wingman intercepted a plus-sized woman to ensure that the hero could make it to the hot tub where the sexy, slimmer, younger women were. I immediately tweeted the company, which led to many people jumping on the Twitter feed, and I demanded they take down the ad; we also started a petition. It took less than 24 hours, the company took it down and about six months later, they invited me to sit in on their upcoming commercials that painted women in a much more positive light.  

The Whisky Lassie Takes NextTribe to Scotland

Q: We can’t wait to travel to Scotland with you. What are you most excited to show us?

A: The answer is everything!  Just because I’m called the Whisky Lassie doesn’t mean this trip is whiskey-centric.  I’ve been traveling to Scotland for almost 20 years, and you name it, I’ve done it there: nature, culture, food, hidden gems, hiking. I’ve made many friends and learned the out-of-the-way, hang-out-with-the-locals areas of Scotland. The tour is just the tip of the iceberg that will hopefully make most people want to come back again and again.  

Read More: Meet the Master Distiller Who Revolutionized Your Cocktails