Throughout history, men have fought over whiskey, cried over whiskey, and even died over whiskey. Here are some of the most poignant phrases ever to be uttered about this magical elixir.
- I Like my whisky old and my women young. ~ Errol Flynn
- Anybody who hates dogs and loves whiskey can't be all bad. ~ W.C. Fields
- Too much of anything is bad, but too much of good whiskey is barely enough. ~ Mark Twain
- Whisky is liquid sunshine. ~ George Bernard Shaw
- I should never have switched from Scotch to Martinis. ~ Humphrey Bogart's reputed last words
- Inspiring bold John Barleycorn!
What dangers thou canst make us scorn!
Wi' tipenny, we fear nae evil;
Wi' usquebae, we'll face the devil!
~ Robert Burns - For a bad hangover take the juice of two quarts of whisky. ~ Eddie Condon
- Don't you drink? I notice you speak slightingly of the bottle. I have drunk since I was fifteen and few things have given me more pleasure. When you work hard all day with your head and know you must work again the next day what else can change your ideas and make them run on a different plane like whisky? When you are cold and wet what else can warm you? ~ Ernest Hemingway
- What butter and whiskey won't cure, there is no cure for. ~ Irish Saying
- My friends, I had not intended to discuss this controversial subject at this particular time. However, I want you to know that I do not shun controversy. On the contrary, I will take a stand on any issue at any time, regardless of how fraught with controversy it might be. You have asked me how I feel about whiskey. All right, here is how I feel about whiskey.
If you mean whiskey, the devil's brew, the poison scourge, the bloody monster that defiles innocence, dethrones reason, destroys the home, creates misery and poverty, yea, literally takes the bread from the mouths of little children; if you mean that evil drink that topples Christian men and women from the pinnacles of righteous and gracious living into the bottomless pits of degradation, shame, despair, helplessness, and hopelessness, then, my friend, I am opposed to it with every fiber of my being.
But, if when you say whiskey you mean the oil of conversation, the philosophic wine, the elixir of life, the ale that is consumed when good fellows get together, that puts a song in their hearts and the warm glow of contentment in their eyes; if you mean Christmas cheer, the stimulating sip that puts a little spring in the step of an elderly gentleman on a frosty morning; if you mean that drink that enables man to magnify his joy, and to forget life's great tragedies and heartbreaks and sorrow; if you mean that drink the sale of which pours into our treasuries untold millions of dollars each year, that provides tender care for our little crippled children, our blind, our deaf, our dumb, our pitifully aged and infirm, to build the finest highways, hospitals, universities, and community colleges in this nation, then my friend, I am absolutely, unequivocally in favor of it. This is my position, and as always, I refuse to be compromised on matters of principle.
~ Noah S. “Soogy” Sweat, Jr. in a speech delivered to the Mississippi House in 1952 - The proper drinking of Scotch whisky is more than indulgence: it is a toast to civilization, a tribute to the continuity of culture, a manifesto of man’s determination to use the resources of nature to refresh mind and body and enjoy to the full the senses with which he has been endowed. ~ David Daiches
- There are two things a Highlander likes naked, and one of them is malt whisky. ~ Scottish proverb
- The water was not fit to drink. To make it palatable, we had to add whisky. By diligent effort, I learnt to like it. ~ Sir Winston Churchill
- We frequently hear of people dying from too much drinking. That this happens is a matter of record. But the blame is always placed on whisky. Why this should be I never could understand. You can die from drinking too much of anything — coffee, water, milk, soft drinks and all such stuff as that. And so as long as the presence of death lurks with anyone who goes through the simple act of swallowing. I will make mine whisky. ~ W.C. Fields
