Tall and cheery Andrew Soetiono is affectionately known in the drinks lovers community by his self-styled moniker “Whiskyhobo”. When he first adopted the moniker, Andrew was poking fun at himself for being a “struggling artist” type in comparison with other big spenders in the whisky community. Yet today, the Whiskyhobo is doing incredibly well by many measures.

Having started the largest whisky society in Indonesia, Andrew is one of the most important figures who helped to build a community of Indonesian whisky lovers. He is owner of three high-profile whisky bars in Indonesia – Bar Mirai, The Oak Room and Highlander Inn Jakarta, and has been the organiser of Whisky Live Jakarta. He is currently the General Manager of Pancaniaga Indoperkasa – the largest premium alcohol distributor in Indonesia.

Outside of Jakarta, Andrew is best known as the most popular label artist Whiskyhobo amongst whisky and rum indie bottlers. He has done plenty of label art that many a whisky / rum devotee would have spotted, for the likes of Thompson Brothers (Scotland), M&E Drinks (Singapore), Aloha Whisky (Tokyo), Whisky Mew (Tokyo), The Mash Tun (Tokyo), and Roger’s Whisky (Netherlands).

There’s just a sense of purity about his passion for art that could be felt by bottlers and drinkers alike. While graphic design is now a side pursuit for Andrew (who is busy managing Pancaniaga by day), his work as Whiskyhobo continues to feel ubiquitous and impossible to ignore. His designs come in incredibly varied styles – from Japanese comics to Southeast Asian batik, to art deco and even Chinese ink painting. Spirits bottlers are always scrambling to have his designs on their labels. 

Today, we're sitting down to talk with Andrew, who radiates sincere a love for art, cats and his goal to educate all about great spirits. Andrew’s story is one of friendship across borders, chance encounters over drinks and an exploration of just how far indulging in a hobby could take you.

Join us in this fireside chat with Andrew, our favourite Whiskyhobo!

"I never even thought I’ll be able to design a whisky label until I met Mitch of M&E Drinks over drinks at Swan Song when he was looking for a label designer and that opened a lot of doors for me."

– Andrew Soetiono / Whiskyhobo

[88 Bamboo]: We’ve been meaning to ask you. Why did you choose an Instagram handle and nickname like @Whiskyhobo? Is there a story behind that?

[Andrew]: I started using Instagram with the handle @andrewsoetiono to document my whisky journey and connect with whisky lovers around the world, but I find that many people overseas find it very difficult to pronounce my surname, and during that time (2015~2016) I see so many whisky related Instagram with cool suffixes pop up: boss, king, prince, hustler etc - also whisky in Indonesia is seen as an elitist hobby - so the circle I joined is full of big shots, and I was just a struggling freelance graphic designer, hence I am the hobo in the circle.

[88B]: Next, let’s talk about what you’re best known for: your incredible label art!

You’re perhaps most well-loved by folks in the whisky scene as one of the best label artists, and it’s not difficult to see why. Not only is every label beautiful, your designs could come in incredibly varied styles – including pop art, Japanese comics, art deco and even Chinese ink painting. As a Singaporean, my favourite Whiskyhobo label remains the batik print-inspired design for the Singapore and Indonesia exclusive Thompson Bros 31 Year Old Islay Scotch.

Could you tell us more about your background as a graphic designer? How long have you been a professional graphic designer and how did you land your first few gigs to design a whisky bottle’s label? Tell us a little bit more about the creative process for each label.

[Andrew]: I have always been inclined to art and illustrations since young but I wasn’t very good at it so what I did was emulate different styles, upon graduating I landed a job in an advertising agency in Singapore and worked for four years, there I was exposed to the world of F&B, our main clients were Raffles Hotel, Fullerton Hotel, Grand Hyatt Singapore and the fateful client was Bacardi Singapore - where I met and fell in love with Scotch whisky for the first time. I never even thought I’ll be able to design a whisky label until I met Mitch of M&E Drinks over drinks at Swan Song when he was looking for a label designer and that opened a lot of doors for me.

My approach have always been: understand the distillery, try to weave in a story linked to the label, find an art style and emulate it. For example the batik label you mentioned, that was one of my favourite as well - I’ve always liked patterns, especially symbolic ones like batik, so I put myself in the mind of a batik designer and came up with a modern batik incorporating our countries’ shared elements into it - it came out quite similar to Singapore Airline’s batik pattern and I was really happy with it.

[88B]: If there is an online portfolio of your work, please share it with us! We would love to see it!

[Andrew]: Unfortunately I have none, right now my main focus is on the beverages business and design really takes a back seat so I haven’t been able to find time to compile a portfolio.

[88B]: We absolutely adore this label you created for this privately bottled Thompson Bros. Arran Single Malt, especially since most of us in 88 Bamboo are cat fanciers ourselves.

What was your inspiration for this design?

[Andrew]: This was a very special project I did for a fellow whisky lover from Japan, Phil Thompson introduced me to him as he was looking for a label designer for his cask of Arran he purchased during his honeymoon in Scotland. This was actually a rendering of a photo he took on the island (see below). I incorporated ukiyo-e style to his photograph and that was it.

[88B]: Could you share with us one of your most memorable labels and describe your inspiration for it?

[Andrew]: That will be the label for Highlander Inn Chichibu

I visited the bar in late 2019 for the first time, it was late evening and I was awestruck with the building architecture and mood of that moment, I spent the remaining time of my trip sketching and drawing it as how I pictured it in my mind, it was a personal project I did for fun, and when I posted it on Facebook, I got many compliments, including Tatsuya Minagawa, that’s when he asked if he can use that for his label - of course I jumped and say yes without thinking much.

[88B]: You mentioned that the batik print Islay Scotch reminds you of Earth, Wind & Fire’s September. What music do you listen to when you’re creating these labels?

[Andrew]: My friends all say I have a very weird musical taste, I listen to everything from classical, enka, pop, to heavy metal depending on the mood and task in hand, for example when I want to create something very Japanese, I listen a lot to Japanese lo-fi and enka music; when I wanted to create something fun and energetic I can go disco or punk rock - but one rule I have is, as much as possible, it must be in a language I don’t understand or it doesn’t have lyrics so it became a background noise.

[88B]: Many malt lovers imagine opening a whisky bar one day, but for most of us, this is a far out dream that remains a fantasy. You are living the dream as owner of two of the best whisky bars in Indonesia – Bar Mirai and The Oak Room. You have even gone on to co-open a third one, Highlander Inn Jakarta!

How did you find yourself a whisky bar owner? Have you always known that you wanted to be a bar owner, or was this path taken out of serendipity?

[Andrew]: Actually ever since secondary school, I like alcoholic drinks (please drink responsibly) and always look up to bartenders, there’s a certain romanticism in this line of work. During college I always host my friends over at my apartment for poker and cocktail nights and told them someday when I retire I want to open a bar, the sleepy and small kind in the middle of nowhere where only regulars would come in with myself and my wife running it - it came true earlier than expected.

[88B]: How does Bar Mirai differ from The Oak Room and then Highlander Inn Jakarta? What’s the thought process behind these concepts and is there a common theme or direction you’re headed in?

[Andrew]: Bar Mirai is my ideal bar where I only serve what I like and it’s a platform for whisky lovers in Indonesia to taste and learn more about whisky, I hope it can be a stepping stone for Indonesia’s whisky journey - a place for fellow bartenders and enthusiasts to learn - hence the name Mirai (future in Japanese).

The Oak Room is more of a music lounge where friends gather, have a good selection of whisky and cocktails and listen to live music.

Highlander Inn happened during a super late drinking session with Tatsuya and Kei in Craigellachie and I shamelessly asked if I want to open a next bar, can I use the Highlander Inn banner and he said yes! I find Highlander Inn necessary because as the whisky market grows in Indonesia, the consumers will benefit from having a legendary establishment to act as a lighthouse to guide the way and shape the market - it can be a wild west of whisky otherwise.

[88B]: You have had a long relationship and deep involvement with whisky – having started Whisky.ID, the largest whisky society in Indonesia, being cofounder of two of the best whisky bars in Indonesia, and being the organiser of Whisky Live Jakarta and now you’re the GM of Pancaniaga Indoperkasa which distributes many whiskies in Indonesia.

You’re one of the most influential people in the Indonesian whisky community!

Could you tell us about how you first fell in love with whisky, and how you progressed along that journey to become who you are today in the regional whisky community?

Also, what’s something that about the Indonesian whisky community that people outside of Indonesia don’t know about and might surprise them?

[Andrew]: I believe there are many people more talented and knowledgeable about whisky than me in Indonesia, but I just happened to be the first person to do this full time so it is easy to set the bar when there are none.

I think my meeting with whisky was by fate, I used to hate whisky for the strong smell and I only drink white spirits and cocktails until my advertising gig for Bacardi Singapore in 2009, where I worked on the launch of Aberfeldy at Clarke Quay, that’s where Malcolm Murray, then ambassador to Aberfeldy forced me to drink Aberfeldy 12 neat.

I was blown away by the taste that night and started exploring more. I lost contact with him for 12 years until I won a trip to Scotland, sponsored by The Macallan in 2018. There I met a Scottish couple who happened to know him and they reconnected us in the small town of Stirling in Scotland in 2021. I think of him as my Jedi master.

When I came back to Indonesia in 2012, I tried to convert as many friends I can to whisky and in 2015 with the help of social media, I gathered a few like-minded friends and started whisky.id, a society for whisky lovers to gather and share whisky - this gained the attention of the new Scottish trade envoy to Indonesia as he was looking for a neutral, non-brand affiliated party to run Whisky Live in Indonesia and through that event I managed to worm my way into the industry and land myself the role of GM in Pancaniaga Indoperkasa.

I think not many people know there are hardcore whisky enthusiasts and collectors in Indonesia, when Nadi Fiori of Intertrade visited, a few of our friends brought in their vintage Intertrade bottlings for him to sign and he was really surprised to find such collection in the world's largest Muslim country.

[88B]: As a bonus, could you also divulge a secret talent or skill you have that few people know about? Graphic design and whiskies don’t count!

[Andrew]: I am very good at sleeping, even a fire alarm or an earthquake won’t wake me up.

[88B]: Which styles of whisky are your favourites? Are there a few distilleries or expressions that you constantly find yourself returning to, and why?

[Andrew]: Like my music, I don't think there's any particular style I prefer, I like it when it's well made and balanced, not the aggresively peated or heavily cask influenced ones. I love Clynelish (meow) and Chichibu.

[88B]: Good bottles of whiskies are getting increasingly rare these days. If you could travel back in time to any rare or vintage drams you’ve had in the past, which one would you revisit and what would be the whisky in your glass?

[Andrew]: Ben Nevis 21 YO bottled for J’s Bar and Maltoyama. David of Aloha Whisky brought me to J’s Bar in Ikebukuro and recommended that dram, that’s the beginning of my love affair with bourbon cask Ben Nevis.

[88B]: Tell us about your most memorable moment drinking whisky. What was the context and what were you drinking, and who was it with? Or alternatively, if you could share a dram with anyone, who would that be and why?

[Andrew]: Year 2009, It was a rainy evening at The Highlander Bar in Clarke Quay Singapore, I was just there by the stage to oversee the event I helped set up at my work, it was the trade launch of Aberfeldy single malts. Malcolm, the brand ambassador, was about to do a toast to the guests and media. He called me up the stage and said, “Hey Andrew, you set this up, let's do a toast,” and he handed me a Glencairn glass with Aberfeldy 12 in it. "But I can't drink whisky, I might puke in front of everyone," I protested. "Trust me," he said, so I took a sip and you know the rest.

[88B]: You've been an avid collector of Japanese whiskies and Scotch for several years now. Could you tell us about your collection? Which styles and brands do you focus on, and how do you decide if a bottle is worthy of a place on your shelf?

Which two of these bottles are your favourite conversation pieces?

[Andrew]: I actually bought and drank Japanese whiskies because I had no money, back then Japanese whiskies like Hibiki 17 can be found at Isetan Supermarket in Scotts Road for $90 a bottle. I thought that was great value for the taste, and they have very cool limited edition bottle designs so I bought and collected them. I also travel a lot between Singapore and Indonesia and will always travel early to Changi airport and camp at the duty free and try all the whisky samples they have and buy whatever I think was the most interesting that day, without any particular focus or bias.

I always show people my empty Hibiki 17 Heron bottle that I opened during a drunken episode and lament about how I could have traded that bottle for a second hand BMW now. Another one would be Glenfiddich Snow Phoenix which I thought was an expensive marketing gimmick when I saw it at Changi DFS for $110 but bought anyway (highest amount I paid for a duty free bottle back then, but it shows how the whisky prices have changed)

[88B]: In many Asian cultures, whisky is something that is often enjoyed along with our meals.

If you could choose one whisky (any expression) to pair with one Indonesian dish to be eaten for the rest of your life (any dish), what would be that unbeatable pairing that you would enjoy for the rest of your days?

 [Andrew]: Tahu Sumedang (fried tofu) and most Islay whisky!

[88B]: Many outside of Indonesia have the impression that alcohol is rarely consumed there. Yet Indonesia actually has a rich history of making alcohol, like Balinese rice wine and distilling arrack (made from palm tree sap).

How would you describe Indonesian drinking culture – whether for whisky or other alcohol types?

[Andrew]: We actually have a very rich drinking culture across Indonesia! In many tribes local liquor are integral part of rituals or given to visitors as sign of welcoming them into the village.

Alcoholic drinks traditionally play a very important role in community bonding and we have many varieties of arrack, they differ from region to region. Sadly religion plays a big part in banishing these traditions to obscurity.

[88B]: From the perspective of an experienced bar owner and spirits distributor, what is the market like for spirits in Indonesia, and do you see growing consumer interest in any categories?

[Andrew]: Indonesia definitely have a big appetite for spirits and can be a powerhouse within the region but regulations and tax structure are hampering the industry's growth. The great thing about the market in Indonesia is we are so economically and socially diverse. What sells in Bali are mostly gin, rums and tequila; while Surabaya prefers whisky and gin, Medan goes for peated whisky, I handle 28 distributors in 22 cities in Indonesia and all of them are unique in their preferences.

[88B]: Looking ahead, what are some of the big themes in whiskies right now that give you the most excitement?

[Andrew]: I like how some distilleries have focused on the topic of their new makes and the stages before distillation. This is a very overlooked aspect in whisky making, whisky is not just about the casks. You can have a single distillery but if you add the variables of barley variety, fermentation time and different cut points, you can have an infinite number of styles. I think this is very important for any whisky enthusiast to understand.

[88B]: One final question before we let you go: If someone was new to Jakarta and has 3-4 days to spend there, how should they spend it? What are your itinerary recommendations and travel tips?

[Andrew]: Jakarta is all about the food and vibrant nightlife. To avoid wasting time in Jakarta’s famous traffic jam, I’d recommend exploring Jakarta by areas: The North and the South. I’ll list out the food and places here so you can form your own itinerary:

• Food: Bakmi (Indonesian Ramen), Nasi Padang, Nasi Goreng, Soto Betawi, Sate Padang, Sate Madura, Nasi Uduk, Gado gado
• Places: Remboelan Indonesian Restaurant, Cork & Screw Country Club, The Cocktail Club, Chao Chao, Golf Island PIK
• Bars: Koda, D.Classic, The Cocktail Club, Pantja for cocktails and for whisky: Miles Whisky Bar, The Oak Room, Bar Mirai, Highlander Inn

For an example, my ideal day out will be starting the day with Bakmi as breakfast around Golf Island and going for walk and coffee around the island, followed by Sate Padang for light lunch before heading over to the South, and chilling by the pool at Cork & Screw Country Club with cold beer while enjoying the sunset. For dinner I’ll go for a hearty Nasi Goreng then barhop around Senopati, starting with Highlander Inn for a couple of drams before heading to Pantja for some cocktails, and depending on mood, if I want to party I’ll go right next door to The Cocktail Club, or if I want a quiet evening, I’ll head to Oak Room and listen to live jazz.

We at 88 Bamboo have been big fans of Andrew's work. We would like to thank Andrew for taking the time for this interview, sharing his thoughts on the Southeast Asian spirits scene, and for letting us learn more about how Whiskyhobo came to be :) 

@CharsiuCharlie

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Bar Mirai | Information

Open Mondays – Saturdays, 4pm to 12am

Pantai Indah Kapuk St, Kamal Muara, Penjaringan, North Jakarta City, Jakarta 14460

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The Oak Room | Information

Open Mondays – Saturdays, 5pm to 12am

LDS building, Jl. Suryo No.34, RT.10/RW.3, Rw. Bar., Kec. Kby. Baru, Kota Jakarta Selatan, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 12180

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Highlander Inn Jakarta | Information

Open Mondays – Saturdays, 4pm to 12am

Jl Senopati 17 Lv.2

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