Whiskey is my favourite go-to spirit. "Maritime whiskey" in particular, although I'm not sure if that's the official name. It's an Islay subtype that carries hints of the sea, sometimes described as an old ship's rope dipped in tar.

Sounds unpleasant, but if you like a smoky single-malt punch in the face on a cold night, just ask your bartender for a Talisker Storm or an Ardberg Corryvreckan.

They don't make this kind of booze here in Perth, but we do have a couple of lovely distilleries around Western Australia. They've been popping up over the last ten years.

In 2014, some friends and I visited East Perth's Whipper Snapper Distillery for a "behind the behind-the-scenes" tour ahead of their official opening.

We learned about the whiskey-making process. First, it starts with making a grain mash to ferment (into beer!). The liquid part is then distilled in a giant steampunk looking machine.

After distillation, you get alcohol. "Moonshine", you'd call it when you're making it on the sly at home, except these guys are doing it legally, and really distilling the fuck out of it, more than any normal person would.

From there, the spirit is aged in barrels, where is takes on flavours and colours from the wood. Once aged, it may be called "whiskey".

Whipper Snapper's whiskey was still in barrels when we went through, but they had some bottled moonshine on hand, which is pretty much pure alcohol, watered down to make it consumable.

I may reconsider my highbrow prejudice against drinking something called "moonshine". The feeling it leaves in the mouth is exactly like the first 5 seconds of chomping on cool mint chewing gum, only it seems to stay fresh forever.