Robert Spangle
Actor, writer, producer and director Paul Feig has had a hand in some of the most iconic films and TV shows of the past 20 years. He was nominated for two Emmy Awards for creating and writing the beloved show Freaks and Geeks. He directed the films Bridesmaids, Spy and the 2016 reboot of Ghostbusters and episodes of series like The Office (for which he received two more Emmy nominations), Arrested Development, Weeds, 30 Rock, Mad Men and Nurse Jackie. More recently, Feig directed Last Christmas which was written by Emma Thompson and starred Emilia Clarke and Henry Golding. He was an executive producer of the new HBO Max series Love Life starring Anna Kendrick and will be directing the monster movie Dark Army which he also wrote.
His latest endeavor is more distilled. After being a self-described gin fanatic for most of his life, Feig launched his own gin, Artingstall’s Brilliant London Dry Gin, earlier this year. It’s named after his mother, whose maiden name was Artingstall. Feig was my guest on CNET’s I’m So Obsessed podcast and explained the role of gin in his life and why he wanted to make his own.
“I’m a real work hard, play hard kind of guy. When I make a movie, we work our asses off. And then once we stop, the reward is I’m going to have a martini,” said Feig. “The fact is I just love gin so much and had never really found the gin that I thought was the perfect gin that I would like to drink. I found ones that I liked, but never one that had everything. So now I got my own.”
He connected with Minhas Micro Distillery, based in Canada, to create a premium gin. Prior to working with Feig, Minhas was known for making spirits for Trader Joe’s. Feig described how his years as a gin lover translated into being a gin expert.
“As I’ve traveled the world over the years, I just became, like, a gin archaeologist or something, and tried every gin I can find and went, like, “Oh, wow! This is cool.” Like in Spain, they have these savory gins. And over here, they get more citrus, and they’ve got these ones that are dry, and these ones that are sweet. There’s an endless amount of things you can do to gin because it’s all about this mix of botanicals,” said an ardent Feig.
During my interview, you can hear Feig’s passion come through as he explains what makes a good gin. We also talk about his dapper style, his Instagram show Quarantine Cocktail Time and how he approached the infamous dress-fitting scene in Bridesmaids. He also shares a story about the time he acted on the show Facts of Life and got ogled by the studio audience.
Listen to my entire conversation with Feig on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Follow Feig on Instagram to see his Quarantine Cocktail Time and check out the website for Artingstall’s Brilliant London Dry Gin to learn more about his liquor. Also, you can subscribe to I’m So Obsessed on your favorite podcast app. In each episode, Connie Guglielmo and I catch up with an artist, actor or creator to learn about work, career and current obsessions.