Dennis Steckel
Angel of Amrut
Hello from cold, snowy Sweden. This past week, we’ve had temperatures between -7°C and -15°C where we live, quite the opposite of India’s weather.
Before explaining what a whiskywalk is, let me share my story.
My name is Dennis Steckel. I am also known as the “Angel of Amrut”. I am 52 years old and married to Linda Steckel. We have three wonderful children, Tea (23), Liam (21), Disa(19) and two adorable British Shorthair cats named Aston and Enzo.
My family and I live in the hometown of IKEA, which is also my workplace. I have worked there for 10 years. With so many job opportunities at IKEA in our town, quite a few people from India have moved here. Our population is about 10,000, of which around 650 are from India.
I am the sort of person who, if I do something, I do it 110 per cent.
My first encounter with Amrut was in 2013. Some of my friends were not too sure about Indian whisky, but I found it intriguing because it came from India.
The first Amrut I tried was the single malt at
46% ABV, and it was so good that I decided to explore more. I bought some single cask
bottlings, and they were really ‘snice’. At that
point, I began to swap my collection, which
was mostly comprised of Scottish and
Japanese whiskies, for Amrut bottlings.
Within a year, my shelf was full of Amrut
single malts. During this time, Amrut
released its first Greedy Angels bottling, and
I fell in love with both the whisky and the
angel design on the bottle. That is when I
knew Amrut was the brand for me. I loved it
so much that I got a tattoo of the angel on
my arm, with my children’s names
underneath. It felt like I had caught Amrut
fever, and that is when I came up with
“Amrut Fever”.
The next step was starting a Facebook group called Amrut Fever, where everyone could share their experiences and love for Amrut. Four to five months later, it had grown to 450 members from around the world. That is when Amrut reached out to me. They thought it was amazing that someone from Sweden had created a group for the “Nectar of the Gods”. They asked if they could join my journey and make Amrut Fever their first and only club for Amrut lovers.
My first trip to India was to visit Amrut in August 2016. That is when I met the Amrut family and toured their distillery. It was an amazing experience, though hard to take in all the differences, going from our small town to Bangalore, which has a larger population than the whole of Sweden.
Since then, I have visited India and Amrut several times. In 2018, my wife Linda and I went together. It was a chance to show her what Amrut means to me and what I mean to Amrut. I also had the opportunity of a lifetime to inaugurate their new distillery plant. As part of the event, we each filled a barrel. Those are now bottled as Mr Fever, Angel of Amrut, and Mrs Fever, Wife of Angel of Amrut.
In 2019, I travelled with my father, who was 78 at the time and had never been outside Europe. Sharing that experience with him is a memory I cherish, and he mentions it every time we meet.
Then COVID struck, making travel difficult for a few years. My next trip was in 2023, a special year for Amrut, as they celebrated their 75th anniversary. I was the only person from outside India invited to the celebration and one of the speakers at the gala dinner, attended by about 400 people from India and one crazy Swede! It was another fantastic memory.
My latest trip was in 2025. It began with a whisky fair in Dubai, followed by Bangalore. The focus was on releasing Amrut’s oldest whisky to date: The Expedition 15 Years Old, The Diamond Jubilee Celebration Bottle (just 75 bottles in total). It was also the first time I held two Amrut Masterclasses for journalists, whisky enthusiasts, and Amrut staff.
My next trip is planned for this summer, with more Masterclasses lined up.
On to the whiskywalks
Some people walk their dogs, but I walk my whisky. I enjoy the beautiful nature around my hometown and take the chance to snap ‘snice’ photos of great whiskies. I used to fill a basket with different bottlings and glasses to capture the essence of our four seasons, by bike if possible, or by car for farther spots. I do this to showcase Amrut bottlings to the people in the Amrut Fever club, posting at least one photo a day, 365 days a year. My Facebook page, Dennis Amrut Fever Steckel, now has more than 33,000 followers.
Some people walk their dogs, but I walk my whisky. I enjoy the beautiful nature around my hometown and take the chance to snap ‘snice’ photos of great whiskies. I used to fill a basket with different bottlings and glasses to capture the essence of our four seasons, by bike if possible, or by car for farther spots. I do this to showcase Amrut bottlings to the people in the Amrut Fever club, posting at least one photo a day, 365 days a year. My Facebook page, Dennis Amrut Fever Steckel, now has more than 33,000 followers.
Here are photos from my latest whiskywalk at the frozen lake Möckeln, near my home, in January. The world is sometimes very small. During the shoot, I met an Indian couple walking on the lake. Believe it or not, they were from Bangalore and working at IKEA!
PS: If you’re wondering, “snice” means super nice, in one word. Just like Amrut!
