AM drinking

In one of The Doors’s songs, it sounds like Jim Morrison sings, “Woke up this morning and I got myself a beer.” I’ve heard that’s wrong; what he really says is “got myself a beard” but I’ve been mishearing it for so long that the first way is what I hear. And, from time to [...]

After the whisky comes…electricity

At first blush it seems unlikely that waste material from making whisky could be used to make electricity. Once the liquor is created, it leaves behind dirty water and spent grain and not much else. As has been done for centuries by brewers and distillers alike, the grain is generally given or sold to local [...]

How to sell Punjabi rocket fuel

The quick answer is to not call it that. In practice, that answer led to £60,000 in monthly profits for some Indian entrepreneurs and, eventually, to a half dozen arrests. Here’s what happened. The criminal masterminds in our little morality play were blending a couple of locally produced whiskeys, Signature and Bagpiper, aka Punjabi rocket [...]

Protecting Scotch whisky one country at a time

As you know, the term whisky is generally reserved for Scotch. Whiskey is the word used for the same sort of stuff made outside of Scotland although this distinction isn’t recognized in all cases. Some regions and countries choose to respect this distinction by writing it into law. Add China, Panama and Vietnam to the [...]

Scotch and Water?

Frankly, I know nothing about Joe E. Lewis. But, I can’t argue with his position on water. It just takes up space in the glass that you could fill with more whisky! Whenever someone asks me if I want water with my Scotch, I say I’m thirsty, not dirty. -Joe E. Lewis Part of the [...]

A Case for Scotch

If you want a good quote about pretty much anything but especially alcohol, check in with W.C. Fields. The man knew his one-liners and he definitely knew his booze! Set up another case bartender! The best thing for a case of nerves is a case of Scotch. -W. C. Fields By the way, while we’re [...]

Cold Weather Booze – Whisky and Whiskey

I’m not going to get into the whiskey v. whisky thing again, I think I already stepped deeply enough into that one. But when thinking of cold weather booze I have to mention this beloved brown liquor. When it comes to whiskey, it’s all good – Irish, Scotch or Bourbon. Each one has it’s own [...]

Recovering Lost Whisky

Do you know who Ernest Shackleton was? After Columbus, he might be the most famous explorer who didn’t find what he was looking for. In 1909 he and his team attempted to go to the South Pole. When supplies ran out they had to turn back before making it. Now we know that they left [...]

Nudie Whisky Label Separating the Idiots From the Morons

I think it was George Carlin who neatly divided all other drivers on the road between idiots and morons. The idiots are anyone who is driving faster than you as in “Would you look at that idiot go?” Morons are anyone who is driving slower than you, especially if they are in your way as [...]

Scotch Bottle Art

For most Scotch lovers the art of the thing is what’s inside the bottle. Since Scotch is on the pricier end of the booze spectrum I haven’t had the chance to taste a lot of really fine bottles. But the few that I have tried left indelible sense memories that are as strong as the [...]