In this stimulating conversation with photographer and whisky enthusiast Ernie Button, creator of The Art of Whisky, some of the topics we discuss include:

• How Ernie married his way into a love for Scotch, and how that fondness turned to wonder and curiosity one night when he was about to put his whisky glasses into the dishwasher.
• The collaborative approach that Ernie took to explore this subject, pulling in fluid dynamics physicists at Ivy League Universities, and even resulting in a published paper in an academic journal.
• What it takes to coax the “fingerprint” out of each spirit he photographs, and why these images appear molecular, or planetary, or nebular in shape and structure.
• By way of illustration, we look at a few images from The Art of Whisky, which help to showcase the ways in which whisky scatters and reflects light.
• We also dig into some of the chemical forces responsible for these phenomena, in Ernie’s experience, including the influence of charred oak barrels, cask finishes, and peat.
• Along the way, we discuss exciting developments in the rice whisky world, an encounter with barrel-aged Botanist Gin, why grape-based spirits are just the ABSOLUTE WORST for photography, and much, much more.

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