Column: Drinking with Death: Whisky and Memento Mori, or Not?

If you walk into a random liquor store, you'll primarily see bottles of whisky adorned with beautiful animals, elegant designs and Scottish valleys. Yet, there exists an unconventional, shadowy niche with a unique approach. Bottles that don't recall the romanticism of rolling hills, but rather channel themes of mortality.

Did you know, there are various whisky bottles displaying a skull on the label? Think Sea Shepherd Islay, Dead Island, Smokehead, St. Kilian Grave Digger, Whisky of Voodoo – The High Priest, and even a small picture on The Sexton bottle. They all share one feature: a skull as their signature.

What sparks this fascination with skulls?

The skull is a centuries-old symbol. In the medieval ages, it adorned monastery cells and paintings as a reminder of human mortality: memento mori, or 'remember that you must die'. The idea was that you only truly live consciously when you dare to face death.

A whisky bottle featuring a skull does something similar. It is a passion encased in glass, a product that has been allowed to mature over the years. It is often an invitation to drink, yet also a warning: life is finite, seize the moment. Or do we need to warn? Alcohol, in secret, is admittedly not healthy for the body.

Let's not dwell on that now. What we will talk about, however, is marketing. A bottle donning a skull stands out on the shelf, where many other labels look tidy and predictable.

Brands like Smokehead and St. Kilian Grave Digger draw their aesthetics directly from the rock and metal world, where skulls represent freedom, rebellion, and a touch of danger. This isn't just your typical dram—it's got attitude. It has a rugged edge.

For a brand like Whisky of Voodoo, the skull takes on a ritualistic value, especially bearing only the brand's name. Here, it's less about stout rock iconography and more about the magical, the occult.

And what about the ET 51 Premium Canadian Whisky? This bottle morphs into a talisman, a small ceremony in the living room. Each sip seems to bring you closer to the edge of life and death.

Ultimately, what connects these bottles is more than their graphic style. They remind us that whisky is never just alcohol.

It's culture, symbolism, and, at times, philosophy. Perhaps that's the concealed reason why so many distillers dare to imprint a skull: not to glorify death, but to remind us that transience gives meaning to both life and the dram in your glass.

So, raise your glass, look the skull in the eye, and whisper gently: memento vivere. Remember to live.