A Philistine Amongst the Whisky Nerds

Apr 11, 2026

Today’s edition is rather long and may be truncated in your email. If this happens, you can see the entire post by clicking the “Read In App” button above this note. Your email platform might also include a “view entire message” link.

Last Saturday, shortly after sending the newsletter, I went to a Scotch tasting, which was a new experience for me. A good friend belongs to the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, a club whose members can purchase whisky from small distilleries, and I joined him for the event.

About thirty attendees were seated at long tables. Each place setting had six pre-poured glasses, a bottle of water, a pen, an eyedropper (for adding water to the drinks), and a score sheet.

We were supposed to guess each sample’s vintage, the type of cask it was aged in, and which microdistillery made it. Amazingly, several knowledgeable fanatics hit the mark fairly consistently.

I bluffed my way through discussions of “nose” and “flavour profiles” with mixed success. I did my best to describe scents and tastes, but also had some fun with it. My scribbled notes included “toffee,” “cedar,” “charred marshmallow,” “vanilla,” “brine,” and “herbs.”

Each bottle came labeled with tasting notes, which were quite amusing.

I knew in advance you could get away with almost anything based on this label my friend showed me years ago. None of my descriptions was as outlandish as “wrestler’s armpit.”

I only tasted a bit from each glass, drank plenty of water, and had some food from the buffet table, tempering the effects of the alcohol. After the ride home (in a Lyft), I didn’t feel drunk, but was a little “off” for the next two or three hours.

On Sunday morning, I appreciated my first sip of coffee more than usual.

The experience and the company were enjoyable, but I probably won’t do that again, although it was fascinating to observe a roomful of enthusiastic aficionados. Plus, I got a nice ballpoint pen as a souvenir.

The only activities of last Saturday to be repeated are this newsletter and a fresh blog post.

Looking Ahead & Looking Back

The cartoons I worked on recently included a contented castaway with a decent food supply.

From Duplex Planet Illustrated, we have another “Ken’s Corner” page. The drawing of Ken in panel 4 is pasted on, so I must have been unhappy with the art under it.

Thirty-two years later, I like the caricatures of Dolphy (title panel) and Xavier Cugat (panel 3), but I hate the Carmen Miranda drawings in the bottom tier, particularly the panel with that drifting left eye.

Ken’s meandering reaction to the Eric Dolphy record remains as delightful as ever.

Behind the Page

Here’s the strip version of Wednesday’s Bizarro comic.

Knowing that converting from portrait to landscape orientation would be tricky, I planned the drawing so it could be cropped into either configuration.

Here’s a scan of the original art overlaid with the panel and strip frames. I wasn’t sure where the wheeled can would end up, so I drew that as a separate element for ease of placement.

The recycling bin found a spot that worked in both layouts. A small portion of the garbage truck didn’t make it into either version, and I had to move the license plate, but overall, I was pleased with the results. Maybe I should plan ahead more often.

Studio Outtake

I made an alternate version of Saturday’s “orientation” gag, from the new employee’s perspective. Dan and I thought the original was more effective at delivering the joke, but that doesn’t mean I won’t share the variant with you in the newsletter.

That wraps up another missive from Bizarro Studios North.

Thanks for your readership, support, questions, and comments.

Don’t forget to file your taxes by Wednesday, and have a great week.

Your cartoonist,

Wayno