Joel Harrison | Spirits Consultant | Club Oenologique

Joel Harrison

Club Oenologique contributor

Joel Harrison is an award-winning spirits writer, Keeper of the Quaich, Musketeer of Armagnac and Gin Guild ‘rectifier’. Now 40, he has given up all hope of ever playing for Oxford United.

Recent Articles

The perfect blend? Inside Johnnie Walker’s new £50k luxe whisky experience

FeaturesThe Collection

A new luxury experience from Johnnie Walker gives whisky lovers the opportunity to meet the distiller's master blender and take away their own bespoke blend. Joel Harrison tries a £50,000 trip to the Johnnie Walker Vault

by Joel Harrison

Johnnie Walker Vault

Meet the indie bottlers

FeaturesThe Collection

From a long-established company in Aberdeen, to a youthful, up-and-coming London outfit, Joel Harrison profiles six independent whisky bottlers, each with its own approach to the art

by Joel Harrison

More stories

Rye: The wild side of whisky

The Collection

by Joel Harrison

bottles of fielden, kyro and whistlepig rye whiskies

Why the people who make whisky matter most

ColumnsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

iain macarthur with commemorative lagavulin bottle

Beyoncé launches SirDavis, a whisky with a Texas twist

Spirits

by Joel Harrison

Beyonce SirDavis whisky cover

The new era of long–aged Irish whiskey

SpiritsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

irish whiskey grandfather clock noma bar illustration

Spirited celebrations: Tips to enjoy Christmas drinking

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Are we in a golden age for whisky?

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Bourbon barrels

Château de Lacquy 1978–2014

by Joel Harrison

Back to the future: retro cocktails deserve to be in the mix

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Cocktails on a table at the El Fuerto hotel

A trophy for the cabinet: Tequila’s new level of quality

Columns

by Joel Harrison

A field of agave

The Glen Grant’s 70-year-old Devotion defies the odds of age

SpiritsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

glen grant devotion whisky in display decanter

A clutch of rare gems: House of Hazelwood’s new mature blends

Features

by Joel Harrison

Sunshine on Speyside

Kanpai! Toasting 100 years of Japanese whisky

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Suntory Yamazaki distillery

Going beyond ice and a slice

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Joel Harrison on the link between chefs and spirits

ColumnsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

bartender garnishing cocktail

Why rum is for life, not just for summer

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Rum in glasses and bottle, white background with hard light, shadows and sun glare, copy space stock photo

A drink lover’s guide to Kentucky

Features

by Joel Harrison

A view of rural Kentucky

The Martini: a pre-prandial drink with its own private language

Columns

by Joel Harrison

connaught bar martini cocktail with lemon twist

On the joy of nosing

ColumnsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

nosing wine

The Old Fashioned: a product of place

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Mezcal: agave with edge

Columns

by Joel Harrison

agave pinas outside tequila distillery

Licence to chill: the vital role of ice in cocktails

Columns

by Joel Harrison

ice cube over whisky

Midleton Very Rare 1985–2022

by Joel Harrison

Midleton Very Rare whiskey bottles

What your choice of Cognac says about you

FeaturesThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

cognac

Spirit trends to look forward to in 2023

Columns

by Joel Harrison

paloma cocktail

‘Spirits can be creative, but they also need to follow the rules’

ColumnsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

spirits

On a budget? You can still get into the Christmas spirits

Columns

by Joel Harrison

budget spirits christmas

The rise and rise of Irish whiskey

FeaturesThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

jameson

What makes a bar the best in the world?

Columns

by Joel Harrison

paradiso

What makes the perfect Negroni?

Columns

by Joel Harrison

negroni

Inside the House of Hazelwood

Features

by Joel Harrison

house of hazelwood

How the drinks trolley became the new status symbol

ColumnsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

home bar cart

Holiday cocktails go from kitsch to world-class

Columns

by Joel Harrison

le 300 bar at the maybourne riviera

Are whisky casks really worth the investment?

Columns

by Joel Harrison

cask whisky investment

Make the contents of your spirits cabinet pack a punch in summer drinks

Columns

by Joel Harrison

martini cocktail on orange backdrop with palm tree

How whisky went global

FeaturesThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

new world whisky new zealand cardrona

Best New World whisky: 18 bottlings to know about

SpiritsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

best new world whisky

Is Scotland the drink destination to rule them all?

Columns

by Joel Harrison

scotland

Vermouth is on fire: in the mix, on the rocks and even served neat

Columns

by Joel Harrison

glass of red vermouth on ice

Big up to blended Scotch whisky, a drink greater than the sum of its parts

Columns

by Joel Harrison

blended whisky

Move over, Guinness – Irish spirits are the way on St Patrick’s Day

Columns

by Joel Harrison

midleton whiskey distillery in ireland

Drinking independently bottled spirits is like a liquid treasure hunt

Columns

by Joel Harrison

whisky pouring

Top Scottish rum for Burns Night and beyond

Features

by Joel Harrison

rum barrels

Spirit trends to look forward to in 2022

Columns

by Joel Harrison

whisky glass held up in distillery by barrels

A spirited Christmas cocktail guide

Columns

by Joel Harrison

christmas whisky cocktail

The best books for food and drink lovers this Christmas

Features

by Fiona Beckett, Louella Berryman, Joel Harrison, Adam Lechmere, Laura Richards & Guy Woodward

Books for food and drink lovers

Drinks cabinet reshuffle: who’s in and who’s out this autumn

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Spirits bottles – drinks cabinet

Cognac and côte de boeuf: spirit and food pairings to live by

Columns

by Joel Harrison

A glass of Cognac paired with steak

The new trend for really, really old whisky

Features

by Joel Harrison

Macallan – old whisky

The best of Berry Bros & Rudd autumn spirit releases

Features

by Joel Harrison

The return of travel: prized bottles, luxury lounges and in-flight drinks

Columns

by Joel Harrison

clouds and plane wing from window in flight

Single malts: Distillery originals vs Independent bottlings

Features

by Joel Harrison

scotch whiskey

Don’t forget dark spirits during the lighter months

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Mint julep

Why collect wine when you can collect whisky?

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Collect whisky

The best aged rums to suit every budget

SpiritsThe Collection

by Joel Harrison

Pot stills 101 – everything you ever wanted to know

Features

by Joel Harrison

Glenfiddich – pot still

What the return of Scotland’s ghost distilleries means for whisky lovers

Features

by Joel Harrison

Port Ellen – ghost distilleries

Can-do attitude: why canned cocktails are here to stay

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Canned cocktails

Finally, farewell to the Quarantini

Columns

by Joel Harrison

mixologist behind the bar at claridge's hotel

Should spirits play by the rules?

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Joel Harrison

‘There’s a revolution under way in Scotch whisky’

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Illustration of Joel Harrison with whisky in hand

The Cognac bounty hunter

Features

by Joel Harrison

Why there’s no place for non-alcoholic spirits in my drinks cabinet

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Alcohol-free spirits

Master whisky blender Richard Paterson OBE on continuing his legacy

Features

by Joel Harrison

The Dalmore master blender Richard Paterson

Back to the Future: the best Scotch whiskies to pair with movies from the 1980s

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Macallan 1980s advert

The best winter cocktails to make at home

Columns

by Joel Harrison

Bartender experimenting with creating new cocktails

The best rye whiskies from around the world

Features

by Joel Harrison

Bowmore and Aston Martin join forces for £50,000 bottling

News

by Joel Harrison

Bowmore distillery in the evening light

Vive la révolution! Cognac reinvents itself

by Joel Harrison

Keeping spirits alive: Scotch distilleries set to release new bottlings

News

by Joel Harrison

Casks of Aberfeldy Whiskey

Distilleries may be closed, but the show goes online for whisky lovers

News

by Joel Harrison

Islay, Scotland: the darling of the whisky world

Features

by Joel Harrison

Bowmore distillery

Lockdown cocktails – keeping the spirit alive

Features

by Joel Harrison

Bee's Knees cocktail

Ten “exceptional expressions” of WhistlePig whiskey on offer at Fine+Rare

News

by Joel Harrison

Whistle Pig Whiskey Barrel Room

The rarest and most collectible Scotch whiskies

Features

by Joel Harrison

Scotch whisky