How to Pick an Awesome Scotch

The first thing to know about Johnny Walker, director of wine and spirits at Malmaison, a chain of 11 boutique hotels in the U.K., is that, yes, Johnny Walker really is his name.

This wee, bald Scotsman has a job that almost can't be properly called "work" -- he's in charge of keeping Malmaison's bars stocked with the finest wine and spirits. In the line of duty, he travels to a different country each month, visiting distilleries and vineyards, tasting, sniffing and sampling -- while of course keeping a close eye on all the goings-on in his native Scotland's many distilleries.

At the tender age of 15, Walker became an apprentice cooper, or barrel maker. Ever since, he's been working for distilleries, wineries, and then hoteliers, including Richard Branson. A recent item on his to-do list: building the 55-item whiskey list for Malmaison's latest project, the November reopening of the historic Fox and Anchor bar in London. ...