
After a decade of heavy dramming (most of it without any real purpose or structure) we
felt it was time to draw up an 'official document'
with a few words about our philosophy
and our guiding principles. Although the size of our team was limited to 24 certified malt
maniacs for many years, the composition of the team changes from time to time. This
'manifesto' gives new team members (and those aspiring to become team members) a
general idea of
the privileges and responsibilities of a certified malt maniac. Very much
like the 'Communist Manifesto' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, our manifesto is
all about principles. But that's where most of the
comparison ends, I'm afraid...
|
|
Introduction'Malt Maniacs' is an international collective of circa 24 independent malt whisky aficionados
who are dedicated to enjoying, understanding and discussing single malt whiskies. Our enjoyment and understanding is enhanced further by our discussions - and the
sharing of our insights and opinions
with each other and the rest of the (whisky) world. The Malt Maniacs community is non-commercial and primarily web based; our thoughts are published via an E-mail newsletter with thousands of subscribers and our web site www.maltmaniacs.org. Mission StatementSince the early, humble beginnings of the Malt Maniacs collective in the 1990's our mission statement has evolved from the fairly selfish 'helping each other find the best single malt whisky in the world' to a more 'missionary' one; 'Expand and enhance the appreciation and understanding of malt whisky amongst ourselves and throughout the world by publishing independent information
and opinions about (single) malt (Scotch) whisky. If and when we feel so inclined we may publish other material of interest to ourselves and/or fellow aficionados as well'. PrinciplesFirst and foremost, Malt Maniacs is about freedom of speech and respect for the opinions of others. Malt Maniacs is fiercely independent and non-commercial. Malt whisky is one of the last remaining truly authentic products in our modern world and the malt maniacs would like to keep it that way. To maintain our independence Malt Maniacs does not solicit samples, advertising or financial contributions from the whisky industry. For a few years, the certified malt maniacs even paid a membership fee to help cover the costs of publication and hosting. After the invention of 'Google AdWords' we could start to use some modest advertising on the Malt Maniacs site, because we have no influence whatsoever on which advertisement is shown where and when. Certified malt maniacs do not use their membership in the team for personal gain. Malt Maniacs promotes the responsible consumption & enjoyment of whisky (and whiskey). MembershipMembership of the 'certified' malt maniacs is by invitation and is predicated on the requirement that each member make regular contributions to www.maltmaniacs.org. Once invited to join the team, individual Maniacs remain on the team as long as they continue to contribute regularly to the website and participate in our on-line discussions. And how does one get such a coveted invitation? That's simple; just submit one or more E-pistles (articles) as a 'foreign correspondent' for publication in our E-zine. Once a year we discuss the E-pistles that were submitted by these foreign correspondents - and invite the most promising writer(s) to join our team at the end of the year. Malt Maniacs is not a traditional club and does not have an elected executive. There is a balance among countries
represented so as to maintain an international organisation. The maximum number of malt maniacs from one country is three. Malt Maniacs includes among its members whisky lovers in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and North America - and hopes to welcome members in South America one day. ResponsibilitiesMalt Maniacs was established primarily to share freely with other malt aficionados and thus its primary focus is building a comprehensive alternate source of accurate and reliable information for beginners and knowledgeable malt aficionados alike. While individual malt maniacs may publish widely, it is strongly encouraged that information gained through association with Malt Maniacs be contributed to our audience and community (first) rather than other websites or publications. That information should reflect an independent perspective on whisky. Several professional whisky writers are certified malt maniacs and contribute significantly to discussions. HistoryThe community developed on the World Wide Web around the Malt Madness website (www.maltmadness.com) that founder Johannes van den Heuvel
launched in 1995. Several visitors to the Malt Madness site started posting their comments on the site in 1997; the international 'Malt Maniacs' community
gradually evolved from there. Malt Maniacs Manifesto 3.0 – March 1, 2010 |
|
|
For one thing, our manifesto is a much quicker read...
Those with overly flexible minds might see parallels between the eternal struggle
between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie described in the Communist Manifesto and
the struggle of the certified Malt Maniacs
and 'the industry'. The minds of those people
are indeed 'overly flexible'. We may not always agree with everything that happens in
the whisky industry (and feel free to voice our opinions when we feel like it) but they still
make the stuff we love. So,
we are strong supporters of the whisky industry - whether
it's in Scotland, Ireland, Wales, the USA, Japan, Taiwan, India, Australia or anywhere else.



