Wood-Burning & Whisky
Burning wood and sipping whisky is an ideal way to spend any evening, and I feel quite fortunate for the opportunity to do such things for work. I’d be remiss not to profusely thank the kind folks at Laphroaig Whisky and AyatanaXP Event Promotions for hiring me to work several of their tasting events offering attendees personalized gift tags and bottle stoppers using my trusty pyrography pen.
I’ve been a fan of whisky since I was a kid and found my Dad’s bottle of Makers Mark hidden behind some books in the basement cabinet of our childhood home. The mysterious brown liquid was fascinating to me for a couple reasons. My parents rarely drink. So the presence of it in our house was strange in itself. The carefully hidden location suggested the bottle was not meant for my two malevolent brothers and I, and the hand dipped wax around the cap made it look extra fancy.
This is a lengthy introduction to the fact that up until recently, I’ve never forayed into Scotch Whisky. It always seemed a little too fancy. I don’t wear tweed jackets or smoke cigars. It didn’t seem to fit. Kentucky Bourbon always seemed more comfortable.
To put it simply, those preconceptions were a mistake and disservice to myself, because the stuff is delicious. I regret making it into my early thirties without treating my taste buds and blood stream to the delicious smokiness of Laphroaig. Check out their website to learn more about what makes Scotch special. Hint: peat bogs might have something to do with it.
This memory stayed with me, and when I first started visiting the local pubs, drinking halls, and taverns, I began ordering Maker’s Mark. It looked cool, reminded me of my Dad and it was the only thing I knew. It was rough at first, but I enjoyed it more than most of the other cheap whisky I was choking down. Eventually, I grew to greatly appreciate Kentucky Bourbon and even made a long road trip to Kentucky for a Bourbon and Music festival where I sampled some high-quality spirits like Four Roses, Basil Hayden’s and Eagle Rare.
Thank you for supporting a small, sustainable business.
Baller Woodworks is a small woodshop located in Minnesota. We only use recycled and locally sourced wood for our projects. We also have a solar generator which runs all of our power tools, except the planer. You’re support means a ton! Please visit us again soon.
Thank you!
Nate & Crystal