Nothing makes me happier than when two of my passions cross paths. On this occasion it was illustration and whiskey, so when I was asked to work on the packaging for Jim Mac whiskey, I leapt at the chance.

The bottle features Jim McDonnell – a mountain of a man; a menacing figure with a heart of gold. The challenge was to portray Jim’s menacing demeanour and friendly nature in a single illustration. Hailing from Tipperary, Jim was a legend on the hurling field so naturally he is holding a hurl and sliotar – not as weapons, you understand, purely for sport…

This was such a brilliant project to be involved with. The client could not have been more informative and enjoyable to work with – and it’s always great when you’re given full creative control.

Some bottles arrived today and I can’t wait to sample some this evening. Is it 5pm yet?