Amazing Macro Photos of… Dried Whisky?

Phoenix, AZ photographer Ernie Button has been experimenting with this amazing shots of dried single malt Scotch whisky under a microscope. Really? Really.    

So… what’s going on here? Ernie says, 

The idea for this project occurred while putting a used Scotch glass into the dishwasher.  I noted a film on the bottom of a glass and when I inspected closer, I noted these fine, lacey lines filling the bottom.  What I found through some experimentation is that these patterns and images that you see can be created with the small amount of Single-Malt Scotch left in a glass after most of it has been consumed.  The alcohol dries and leaves the sediment in various patterns.  It’s a little like snowflakes in that every time the Scotch dries, the glass yields different patterns and results.  I have used different color lights to add ‘life’ to the bottom of the glass, creating the illusion of landscape, terrestrial or extraterrestrial. 

extraterrestrial, indeed. And now we’re inspired. And thirsty. 

See the full collection of images at Ernie’s web site: ErnieButton.com – “Vanishing Spirits: The Dried Remains of Single Malt Scotch”

H/T: @CapreeK