Category Archives: Whisky and Writing

Thoughts on whisky and writing. Stories of distilleries and the people behind them. Musings on how whisky is a metaphor for the larger picture of life.

Whisky Live from the Other Side

I once had a girlfriend who always snapped at me, tossed things at me or punched me whenever she saw me looking in a mirror. Or a window. Or a silver metal object. Apparently, at that point in my life … Continue reading

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Timing Is Everything in Whisky and Life

I just opened a bottle of 28 year old Scotch distilled at Glenglassaugh Distillery. A bottle I’ve held on to since I bought it in September of 2005 in a London whisky shop. It was distilled just before Christmas, 1976. … Continue reading

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Making Time for Whisky and Writing

The malleability of time. That’s the title of a chapter in my new book, Distilling Rob: Manly Lies and Whisky Truths. The chapter deals with the passage of time and the perception of time, which are two significantly different ways … Continue reading

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The Slog to Blog

“You don’t drink whisky?” Variations of that reaction have escaped my lips numerous times while meeting or interviewing people who work in the whisky industry. Not the brand ambassadors, of course. Nor the distillery managers or the master blenders. The … Continue reading

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Robby O’ILL and the Little People

Durmod wiped the perspiration from his brow with a scrap of cloth that looked huge in his hand. His companions, Teig and Ronan, were equally as slathered in sweat. Though the 60 degree nighttime winter temperature was cool by Los … Continue reading

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A Dram for Living Deeply

“People living deeply have no fear of death.” – Anais Nin I’ve loved that quote from the first time I heard it. The words express everything I feel about life and living: absorb it all, good and bad, every step … Continue reading

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Whiskey and Democracy: Let Your Voice Be Heard

On this day, when we inaugurate Barack Obama to a second term as U.S. President, I’m going to take a little time to get all political with this post about whiskey.  I’m going to talk about democracy, the rights of … Continue reading

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Unfiltered Whisky and Writing

Last week, I participated in an improv comedy show here in LA at the M.I. Westside Comedy Theater. The theme of the show was diaries. I was one of three readers who shared a passage from their secret jottings in … Continue reading

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Independence in Writing and Whisky

“Every path but your own is the path of fate. Keep on your own track, then.” ― Henry David Thoreau, Walden “Independent” has such a strong, rebellious connotation that burns beneath the word. Independent means you’ve clawed over the walls … Continue reading

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Vampires, Whisky and Writing Give My Book a Kickstart

“Vampires. Kinky sex. I should have had vampires and kinky sex.” That was the thought that stumbled into my head around 3:30 this morning as I tossed and turned with the half-conscious gauziness that covers one’s brain in the middle … Continue reading

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