Hey there, Substack world! I’m new here and loving how community-driven it is, so I thought I’d stop being shy and do a wee intro.

My name’s Shelly—an American who’s made a home in the UK, and I did my PhD in Kent. It says Medieval and Early Modern Studies on the diploma, but it was really an inter-disciplinary research project that covered cultural history, drama, folkloristics, mythology, women’s studies, medical theory…the list could go on!

I looked at the way that ancient folklore and mythology is adapted in contemporary contexts to shape cultural identities.

During my years of research, I was working in a teeny tiny pub in a 16th-century building just SE of London, where a long-running whisky society held monthly meetings. I listened to them every first Monday of the month, and (after about 6 months) I somehow got myself a secret invite, slipped behind the bar when I wasn’t looking, and I became the first woman ever to become a full member!

Since then, I’ve obsessed! Once I saw whisky as a cultural artefact that shapes just as much as it’s shaped by the culture it’s in, well…I was hooked.

I’ve started this Substack as a way to put my research into practice.

I’m lucky enough to have Vic Cameron, a celebrated whisky expert and educator with over 30 years of experience, as my mentor, publication advisor (he checks EVERY word for accuracy), and also the coauthor of our forthcoming book on the land, science, and myth of Scotch whisky.

Here on Substack, I’m writing consistent, research-based, and scientifically accurate articles about whisky—for my own learning, and (hopefully) yours as well!

I’m starting with primer overviews, and we’ll get more in depth as we go.

Thanks SO much for joining in!

(P.S. This is pretty much the only photo I got on graduation day with my PhD…I was too excited to sit still! But I stopped into my lovely neighbor’s house, and she snapped it.)