If you like whisky in all its incarnations, Whisky Fest is both heaven on earth and a window into the tradition-bound world of the dark liquor. This gathering of whisky makers from around the world, which is open to the public, is held periodically at a big hotel in a big city. It's the brainchild of Malt Advocate, the magazine for whisky enthusiasts.

In November, a cavernous ballroom at the Marriott Marquis at Times Square was stuffed to the rafters with Scotch distillers in kilts calling you "laddie" and pouring yet another wee dram; comely Colleens laying their lilting accents on thick along with samples of their Irish whisky; and southern bourbon purveyors describing their wares with a certain antebellum dignity that called to mind Rhett, Scarlett, the Kentucky Derby and copper-pot stills, all in a great sour mash.

A single whisky seller's table sat outside the ballroom near the coat check. It called to mind the Thanksgiving dinner table outside the dining room where the youngsters ate in turkey exile. And that image isn't far off. Because in the whisky industry, Jon, Mark and Robb's Easy Drinking Whisky Company is an upstart, both literally and by design.

JMR is the product of three thirtysomething guys -- a Scot and two Brits -- who started selling anti-establishment whiskies a couple years ago. Their three products eschew what David "Robbo" Robertson calls the "fogs, bogs, hillsides, stags and tartan" image of Scotch and bring an "irreverent and funky" sensibility to whisky. For example, their Smokey Peaty One whisky has hints of smoke and peat, but not the mouthful-of-smoldering-sod flavor of Laphroaig Scotch. It's soft and pleasant, like their other two whiskies, the Rich Spicy One and the Smooth Sweeter One.

The goal, says Robbo, a former master distiller for the Macallan, is "to create easy-drinking whisky. We don't want anything that's super sweet or too dry. There are no medicinal or iodine flavors."

In addition to the names, the labels, the formulations and the hipper-than-thou marketing, the JMR whiskies are relatively cheap: $30 a bottle.

These are not single-malt whiskies, which means they do not come from a single batch from one distillery. They are blended whiskies. But they are blended from single-malt whiskies, rather than from single-malt whiskies and other alcohols, which is often the mix in cheaper, harsh whiskies. For example, the Smokey Peaty One is blended from six malt whiskies from the island distilleries Caol Ila, Bunnahabhain, Bowmore, Laphroaig, Ledaig and Highland Park. The Rich Spicy One is also a mix of Scotches, while the Smooth Sweeter One mimics an Irish whisky and is made from 70% single-malt whisky from Cooley's, Ireland, and 30% single-malt whisky from Bunnahabhain Distillery, in Islay, Scotland.

With the popularity and rising price of Scotch, it's a testament to JMR's contacts that it can get famous distilleries to sell to the company at all. Robbo says that although these distillers won't sell barrels of 12-year-old or 18-year-old whisky, they will part with a 6- or 8-year-old product. "Because we're buying such small quantities, we're not going to deplete their casks," he says. It's also a testimony to Robbo's blending skill that JMR whiskies don't have the rough edges that are often characteristic of younger whiskies.

How good are JMR's whiskies? The Rich Spicy One and the Smokey Peaty One are definitely gateway Scotches. I found not enough smoke and peat in the Smokey Peaty One to make it worthy of the name. Still, it's a pleasant drink. The Rich Spicy One, infused with a lot of spice and fruit flavors, provides a pleasant bouquet blast. The big surprise is the Smooth Sweeter One. This is a tasty mélange of vanilla and coconut -- the mix of Cooley's and Bunnahabhain is a bit of genius.

I often like smoke, peat and even a bit of iodine. But marketing aside, there's something to be said for whisky that's not a challenge to the taste buds. Then again, I often look with envy at the Thanksgiving kids' table, wishing I could be building mashed-potato castles with gravy moats, too.

MORE: Kiplinger.com | Spending Wisely

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