Ashley Scoby

A guest essay by Ashley Scoby

When Bespoken Spirits founder Martin Janousek asked Jordan Spitzer to come try some whiskey out of his garage, Spitzer wasn’t sure what to expect. Janousek told him that instead of aging whiskey for years in barrels, he had tested using “microstaves”…

illustration: When the numbers dropped for this year’s most watched Super Bowl ads, it wasn’t a usual suspect, like Doritos or Bud Light, at the top. Instead, flashy craft soda brand Poppi reached more households (29.1 million) than any other ad that…

In May of 1964, Congress famously declared bourbon a “distinctive product” of the U.S. By that point, America’s “native spirit” had been produced — both legally and illicitly — for two centuries. And nowhere did the spirit have more of an impact than…

Two days after listing their craft agave spirit, Rancho del Sol, for sale online, the leaders at Shelter Distilling in Mammoth Lakes, Calif. started to sweat a little. “We have to take this thing down and stop selling,” they told themselves. There…

The Samuels family of Kentucky, creators of Maker’s Mark bourbon, has spent decades crafting a spirit that’s meant to be sipped straight. But in their latest venture — renting out The Samuels House, their 200-year-old family home to Bourbon Trail…

Article written for Quarterra by Ashley Scoby of Magnetic Ag The state of global supply chains post-COVID is no secret: things have not been smooth, especially in North America. Demand for goods in the U.S. initially cratered at the beginning of the…

The day I got my Fallopian tubes cut out of my abdomen, I woke up from the anesthesia grinning. I like to think my body just knew, even before my brain woke up, my life had changed for the better. Maybe I was high. But I woke up from surgery, looked…

In an agricultural industry that’s as interconnected and fast-moving as it’s ever been, the potential for product inconsistency and lack of quality is high. And while the brunt of that impact can fall on consumers, a lack of regularly high-caliber…

We’re living in a world where it’s easier to get access to more information than ever before. Of course, not all companies and industries freely share that information with their consumers. But customers are increasingly demanding transparency and…

The food supply chain is one of the oldest industries in the books. People have always needed to eat, after all. Times (and technology) have changed, though, since the days of small-scale farms and wagons filled with produce slowly rolling to the…

The world is globalized to an extent never seen before in human history. With that, comes a fast and furious supply chain that’s ever harder to trace, control, and predict. And with that, comes an increased risk for foodborne illness contamination.…

At Find Your Voice, we believe there is no one-size-fits-all approach to getting your book out into the world. At times, the traditional publishing industry can be frustrating for authors — and it isn’t always the best option! We also know there are…

If you’re a new or hopeful author, even just the word “publishing” can give you anxiety. You have so many publishing questions, you don’t even know where to start: How do you get your book published? What does a literary agent do? What about your…

In these new days of technology and self-publishing options, anyone can write a book. For better or worse, writing and publishing a book is easier than ever. But writing better books is trickier. If you’re here, it’s probably because you don’t just…

“How do I beat writer’s block?” is one of the most common questions we hear from writers. Whether you’re brand new to a writing practice or you’re a seasoned pro, chances are high you’ve dealt with “writer’s block” before. That creeping sense of not…

For most people, the holiday season tends to be the most reflective time of their year. New Years is coming up, which can only mean it’s time to take stock of everything that’s happened over the course of another calendar year, and set intentions for…

When it comes to the week of Thanksgiving, we know the drill. Whether you’re in school, at a company get-together before everyone takes a few days off, or sitting around the table with family and friends, chances are you’ll go around the group,…

As the holiday season approaches, and cold weather descends on most of us, it’s not uncommon to see creativity decrease during this time. Things are busy, so it’s hard to find time to write. When you do have the time, all you want to do is burrow…

Sep 26, 2019 MOMENTS AFTER WINNING a gold medal at last month's Pan American Games, American hammer thrower Gwen Berry stepped to the podium, unaware of what she was about to do or the ripples it would cause. She accepted her gold medal and turned…