Johnnie Walker Princes Street

To celebrate Johnnie Walker’s 200th anniversary, Diageo sought to introduce a more contemporary identity for the Johnnie Walker brand and transform the traditional image of Scotch as an exclusive spirit, into a flavourful, accessible drink for anyone to enjoy, any way they wish.

Set within an Edinburgh landmark transformed, offering eight floors of breath-taking experiences, bars, event spaces, and views across the capital, Johnnie Walker Princes Street stands at the heart of Diageo’s £185million investment in whisky tourism in Scotland. Targeted to international and domestic tourists, as well as the local community, Johnnie Walker Princes Street takes visitors on a journey of discovery, where they learn more about whisky flavour creation, Scotland, and themselves.

There are experiences that are visual and immersive, there is the rare opportunity to taste whisky directly from the barrels in a live maturation warehouse or examine historical documents at the side of the Johnnie Walker archivist. The main experience, the 90-minute Johnnie Walker Journey of Flavour, is brought to life by exceptional guides, using technology and performance arts. Guests explore the brand story and process in ways that awakens their senses, then taste the whisky in a variety of ways to discover just how enjoyable whisky can be and how it fits many occasions.

Despite opening under the current Covid restrictions, Johnnie Walker Princes Street is a tremendous success. Tour reservations have been consistently filled since opening and per cap spending among visitors to the whiskey experience is up significantly.

Johnnie Walker has a long tradition of sustainability and ingenuity and has already been awarded Scotland’s prestigious Green Tourism Gold award. Among the many innovations is a custom-made dispensing system that removes the need for single use glass bottles, saving over 40,000 bottles per year.

BRC Imagination Arts has worked across Diageo’s investment to transform their existing Distillery Visitor Centres from production tours into Brand Homes that offer a sense of welcome, hospitality, joy, and connection for a new generation of whisky drinkers.