Of Johnnie Walker Journey and Fashion Night Out

September is really off to a good start. Last weekend was Electric Zoo, this week was Johnnie Walker Tasting Event and Fashion Night Out in line with Fashion Week.

I headed to the city for Johnnie Walker Tasting Event. The last time I went to a tasting event was almost a year ago so I was eager to go to this one.

The event started with a little cocktail hour where guest are treated to a cocktail made with Johnnie Walker Black Label and some hors d'oeuvres. So I tried the Old-Fashioned which had a slice of orange, lemon, cherry, sugar, bitters and water. It was a pretty interesting drink.

Afterwards, they asked the guest to go to the tasting room where a Johnnie Walker ambassadors guided us through the journey of Johnnie Walker. The last time I went to a Johnnie Walker tasting event, the video presentation and lighting effects was really phenomenal. This time around, the video is much different but still quite interesting. It was still quite an experience sniffing and tasting the various labels of Johnnie Walker.

We started off with Black, followed by Red, then Gold, Green and finally Blue. Each brought out a different taste in our palates. Black has that strong aroma while Red had a sweet aftertaste. Gold was served chilled and the ambassador highly recommends it to be chilled before serving. As for the Green, we tasted it differently, the ambassador asked the guest to pour a drop on the palm of our hands, rub them together and sniff the aroma of the Green label. It had the nature flavor to it. And finally, the Blue Label, Johnnie Walker's premium blend with every bottled serial numbered accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and its one of the most expensive scotch whiskeys in the world. I could say that I have drank a Blue Label (cross off my bucket list).



Then came Fashion Night Out...

Fashion Night Out is an event that happens during NY Fashion Week. For one night, stores had special promos and discounts - not to mention celebrities and parties galore - to lure shoppers back and revive the fashion industry. For me though, the lure was DJ Fedde Le Grand playing a set at the Armani Exchange Flagship store in Soho.

So we made our way to Soho and the place was already getting crowded with fashionistas, fanatic fans and bargain hunters. Not to mention food and fashion trucks plying the streets of Broadway, Prince, and Mercer. We stood in line outside Armani Exchange and was awarded with a iTunes gift card which I could use to buy the new A|X Music mixed by Le Grand himself and VIP tickets to Pacha, NYC. He started his set with Back and Forth ("Put Your Hands Up for New York") to get the crowd rocking and kept the momentum with a mixture of House music. A|X store employees were probably surprised while shoppers were mesmerized by the fistpumping crowd  singing and chanting while Fedde played tunes from A|X Music as well as his own tunes. The crowd dissipated after his set was done.

Soho was surely packed and I was surprised that some of the side streets were not closed during the event. I passed by 3.1 Phillip Lim store and the crowd outside was having a great time with the street party and music was blasting from inside the store. While the Piperlime store had the crowd spilling towards the street that traffic was on a standstill. The crowd was apparently there to catch a glimpse of Rachel Zoe. I think that Fashion Night Out was a success this year and cannot wait for next year.

Of course the night didn't ended without having some food, stopping by Bar 89 and had the 89 Club with Chicken and Avocado. It was delicious.

Links: Johnnie Walker | Fashion Night Out | Bar 89 | SoHo | Armani Exchange