A few people have suggested switching from automatic draws to live draws to make the process feel more transparent and trustworthy. While I’m not really the type to entertain on the internet (and I doubt I’ve got the kind of looks to build a fan base! 😄), I do see the value in it.

So, once I’ve sorted out the technical side of going live on platforms like Facebook and YouTube, I’ll begin hosting live draws. I may need to adjust the usual draw day or time to fit around my schedule, but rest assured—it’s on the way soon!

Meanwhile!

I think it’s only right to explain who I am and what inspired me to create this website.

I was born in Edinburgh and spent my early childhood between Beecraigs, Linlithgow, and Armadale. Then, at the age of 12, my life changed completely when my family moved to Bavaria. It was a new language, a new culture, and a fresh start. I left behind friends—and a darker side of life that included growing up around attitudes of division based on religion. In Germany, I quickly learned that such divisions didn’t exist in the same way. It was eye-opening, and it shaped me deeply.

My first encounter with whisky was, frankly, a terrible one. At just 13, I was invited to a birthday party in a friend’s basement. Perhaps because they had a ‘Scotsman’ among them, they thought it fitting to bring out a bottle of Johnnie Walker Red Label. Wanting to prove my Scottish credentials, I drank far more than I should have—only to end up being violently sick over the table. In truth, I should probably have been taken to hospital for alcohol poisoning. That experience put me off whisky for over a decade; even the smell was unbearable.

It wasn’t until 1986, during my first visit back to Scotland since emigrating, that I was encouraged to try a Glenfiddich 12. I have to admit—I liked it. After that, each trip between Germany and Scotland would often include bringing a bottle or two home from duty-free. Slowly, I developed a proper taste for good whisky.

When I moved back to Scotland in 2004, after 31 years away, my travel didn’t stop—my whole family remained in Germany, just a few miles from the Czech border. With the EU making Czech travel shops easily accessible, you could buy spirits in 10-litre allowances. Happy days! My suitcase was often filled to the brim. I’ve posted a picture here of ome I picked up over the years. Back then, my interest in travel-exclusive whiskies had begun, but it hadn't yet grown into the passion it is today.

It was really after Brexit, when the allowance dropped to 4 litres, that things changed. I had to start making tough choices: Which bottles do I bring home this time? That’s when the obsession kicked in.

Even now, I get mobile alerts for whisky offers, and I’ll ask my sister—who still lives close to the Czech border—to pick up bottles for me when the deals are good. Bowmore 10 for €19.99 used to be a regular steal. Sadly, Brexit and COVID put an end to many of the “dead cheap” offers. Still, you can find a good deal now and then.

The next chapter in my travel edition journey was discovering the Amsterdam mini-cruise. And let me tell you—if you’re a whisky lover and haven’t done it yet, you’re missing out. Where else can you sample nearly every travel-exclusive whisky on the market, all in one place? Richard on the King Seaways and Anthony on the Princess Seaways will happily guide you through the options until 10pm. That’s where I really began diving deep into travel editions. Some of them are genuinely superb—often with profiles totally different from their standard counterparts.

And so, here we are. That’s the not-so-glamorous story of how this website came to life. It took a lot of time, money, solicitors, and mistakes—some of them expensive—to get here. I didn’t start this to become a millionaire. I started it to help get these incredible, often inaccessible whiskies into the hands of people who might never travel or wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to find them.