How F1 Driver Charles Leclerc Slows Down: Piano, a Good Read and His Debut Whisky

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Aside from being one of the best drivers on the Formula 1 grid, Charles Leclerc is a man of many talents — piano, chess and, as of late, whisky making.

What began as an official partnership between Scotch whisky brand Chivas Regal and Leclerc in March 2025, where the Ferrari driver was named global brand ambassador, has now turned into their debut co-created expression: a blend of 16 whiskies, each aged at least 16 years, to symbolize the number that has defined Leclerc’s life and career.

Just ahead of Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix, The Hollywood Reporter caught up with Leclerc to talk life off the track: his favorite book (he’s an avid reader), his music endeavors (yes, he’s also a self-taught composer) and his newly launched 16-year-old blend co-created with Chivas Regal Master Blender Sandy Hyslop.

A million brands want to partner with you — Why Chivas Regal?

More than anything, a brand’s values need to fit with what I represent. Chivas will always push boundaries, while never forgetting where they come from, and this is something that really resonates with me in sport. I’ve always told myself that I should never forget where I come from, but at the same time, you always want to try to get out of your comfort zone and learn from new experiences.

You’ve been a Chivas brand ambassador since early 2025, but how did the idea of creating your own blend come about?

I had the chance, at the very beginning of the collaboration, to go to Scotland where I could learn the whole process from beginning to end. The amount of passion and attention to detail was really, really mind-blowing, and that trip actually started the idea of coming up with my own product that was more personal and could represent my taste together with the heritage of Chivas.

What was the creation process like?

I arrived in Scotland with a very open mind, so I really chose what felt most natural and what I loved most as the foundation of the whisky. And then we came and added all these different whiskies together… 16 is a very meaningful number for me, so there are 16 different whiskies, aged for 16 years, which is a first for Chivas.

You also have your own ice cream brand, Lec. Which flavor would you pair your whisky with?

Probably salted caramel. I think that will fit quite well.

Is Lec coming to the U.S.?

We really want to develop our [current] markets perfectly before expanding, so I don’t know when, but the plan is to come to the U.S., yes.

Since this is THR, I have to ask: Are there any TV shows you’re watching right now?

Oh, I actually quite like to read more than watching TV. I fall asleep so easily watching TV so I never finish what I start, which is a big, big problem with me and my wife, Alexandra. We always fall asleep after 10 or 15 minutes in front of the TV.

So what’s your favorite book?

I love The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.

Were you able to relax at all during these past few weeks or were you focused on this race?

I’ve been training massively and [doing] quite a lot to prepare for the second part of the season — I mean, not the second part because we’ve only done three races, but to prepare for that part of the season. So even though it looked like holidays from outside because there were no races, it was actually quite a lot of things going on. 

And have you been working on any music lately?

Oh, this is the thing that I’ve put on standby at the moment. I mean, Formula 1 is taking quite a bit of my time. So whenever I’m home, I always like to go on the piano because that helps me to disconnect from everything else, but I haven’t had time yet to record these songs that I’ve been thinking of. So I need to take some time in order to release some new music. It’s been a long time.