Céad míle fáilte, a hundred thousand welcomes, to this very personal window on whisky, uisge beatha, the water of life. We hope you enjoy the craic, that you learn something new, laugh a bit, and look forward to coming back for more. Make yourself comfy and I’ll start the introductions.
We’re focused on Scotch, not simply because we’re Scottish and live in God’s own country, but because Scotch is, quite unashamedly, the world’s favourite liquor.
We travel around Scotland, each issue featuring a different region, tasting the best of whisky from here and around the world, from independent bottlers to the most ancient of distilleries; discovering the old and the new as we visit lively shebeens and the world’s best bars, explore start-ups and dive into the fluid back catalogues of the industry giants.
Rain or shine we get there any way it takes, by foot, by ferry, by train and track, by mountain bike or motor bike, in our trusty old Landrover Defender. We’ll show you the roads we take, from the challenge of Ben Nevis Cubed in the Highlands, along the relaxing Four Favourites by Foot in Amsterdam, up Edinburgh’s hisotirc Royal sMile to the urban grit and glory of the Glasgow Sub Crawl. We’ll suggest where to find Lost Weekends, and we’ll show you where they make the magic happen. Don’t worry, we’re used to the weather, it’s Scotland after all, we’ve been turning the tears of the sky into the water of life for a long, long time.
We’re always happy getting a trip going, from the Lowlands to the Isles, over the North Channel to visit our Celtic cousins in Ireland, across the pond to roadtrip wild lands of bourbon and rye, or even half-way around the world to savour the delights of Asian whiskies under a monsoon sky. We’ll take it to the edge and leave nothing on the track, and we hope you enjoy the trip.
No A.I. and no filters – on photos or opinions – Liquid Sunshine offers a very personal perspective, and while I’m not saying I’m old, if I were a Macallan I couldn’t afford me, though like all good whisky I keep getting better with age. I will admit I’m old skool, my First Aid kit consists solely of Scotch – a bottle of whisky to cleanse wounds inside and out, and some dusty old duct tape to patch them up – and the only medicine my Hielan’ Grannie ever gave me as a toddler was a hot Toddy, light on the lemon.
Liquid Sunshine isn’t for all, but if this is your kind of thing, I’d much rather be your dram of whisky than everybody’s cup of tea. Just remember, I never said whisky was the answer, but it is worth a shot.
To kick this off I’ll leave you with a bad joke then a toast, and we’ll see where it takes us.
Slàinte mhor a h-uile là a chi ‘s nach fhaic
‘Great health to you every day that I see you and every day that I don’t.’
Issue 0 Absent Friends
Absent Friends is our soft launch, issue 0, the first stop in a journey taking you around some of the finest bars in the world and shebeens in dark alleys, introducing you to industry legends and independent bottlers, exploring busy distilleries and silent memories, and tasting rare drams and the best whisky on the planet.
Next issue we celebrate The Old and The New, focusing on innovators building on the centuries old legacy of Scotch whisky, so join us as we start by remembering silent distilleries and favourite bars now sadly hushed, drams long drunk and roads well travelled.
Always drink responsibly and behave well. 😇