Have you ever attended a whisky tasting and found that, despite the fascinating subject matter, your ability to absorb information was inversely proportional to the volume of whisky you consumed? If this is the case, then pour yourself a dram of 'My Whisky Companion' by former copywriter, Don Paul.
After 25 years in the ad business he has managed to achieve what most copywriters dream of: he's written a very long piece of copy, in fact, 144 pages long. Not only that, he managed to get it published.
It began life as the text book for a four-day whisky workshop, which, once he had added a few war stories from visits to Scotland, expressed a few opinions about bourbon, Irish and blends, soon filled out to become a book.
"Eventually I got to be one of the lucky ones who went on glamorous overseas trips. Sadly, it wasn't to the Maldives with Claudia and Naomi. Instead, I got to go to Scotland, where Johnnie Walker and Arthur Bell introduced me to the intricacies of making whisky. It all took off from there".
Imagine you're sitting on a comfy couch with a good friend, having this wide-ranging conversation about whisky ... that's the style of this book. While it is clearly not for people whose lips move when they read, some pages will have you licking your chops in anticipation while reaching for the bottle. It also has pictures for those who might take the title too literally.
The book is unquestionably about whisky - Scotch, Irish, American and the rest. It dispels the myths and explains the trivia as you drink in the distillery atmosphere. It's also very funny.
Besides describing the various processes involved in turning barley (or mealies) into whisky, the author compares the different national spirits and takes a detour off the beaten path into the heather and the mountains of Scotland to discover the water source for Cardhu.
Don Paul is working towards his pension. His 28 years as an advertising copywriter have provided him with a lifetime of insights into the behaviour of brands, clients, consumers and, occasionally, drunks. But he worries about "life after advertising". What will he do?
His preparations for retirement led him to become a Whisky Consultant to Diageo, the world's leading international liquor group for whom he acts as Mentor for the Johnnie Walker Striding Man Society, the Bell's Fraternity of Connoisseurs and the Friends of the Malts. As a reward for this work, he was recently inducted as a Keeper of the Quaich - possibly the most exclusive whisky club in the world.
Don was born in Glasgow (fortunately losing the Scots accent while growing up in South Africa) and has travelled widely, paying particular attention to the distilleries of Scotland and gaining glass after glass of experience at the source. Far from taking an academic, highbrow view on whisky, he prefers to appreciate the warm, fuzzy and optimistic glow that a wee dram of Scotch tends to put on life.
This published-just-in-time-for-Christmas book is the perfect stocking-filler for the marketer who has taken his nose off the mirror and now aspires to the finer things in life, like whisky. It explains in some detail what, precisely, the brown liquid in the glass is, and how it got to be there.
They say you can judge the value of a friendship by the quality of the whisky you are given. This equally applies to whisky books, and My Whisky Companion tempts you to say "Make mine a double", so that you can give the other copy to a whisky-loving friend.
Published by the Cigar Club of South Africa and available at Exclusive Books, Picardi Rebel bottle stores, Makro liquor stores or online at www.cigarclub.co.za
