The Spirited Origins of Instagram

I ran across this fun tidbit recently — Instagram’s roots are soaked in whiskey!

Back in 2010, Kevin Systrom, a Stanford University graduate and self-proclaimed whiskey lover, launched an iPhone app called Burbn. The app was designed to let users check in at bars, plan whiskey meetups, and share photos along the way.

As fate would have it, Burbn didn’t catch on — at least not for its intended purpose. Users weren’t particularly interested in the check-ins or event planning features. What they did love was sharing photos.

Seeing this, Systrom and his team decided to change the app's focus. They reworked Burbn down to a simplified photo-sharing platform, creating a streamlined app that put photos front and center. That app became Instagram.

From The Rise Of Instagram: From Burbn To A Billion-Dollar Buyout:

The initial prototype of Instagram was called Burbn, inspired by Systrom’s love of fine whiskeys and bourbons. It allowed users to check in, post their plans, and share photos. However, after receiving seed funding of $500,000 from Baseline Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz, Systrom and Krieger decided to pivot towards creating a photo-sharing app. They studied Hipstamatic, which lacked social media-sharing capabilities, and decided to build an app that bridged Hipstamatic and a social media platform like Facebook.

Burbn was stripped down to its photo, commenting, and “liking” functions, and was renamed Instagram. Their focus was on creating a minimalist app that would require as few actions as possible from the user. After eight weeks of fine-tuning the app, they gave it to friends to beta test and evaluate its performance. On October 6, 2010, the Instagram app was launched, and it had 25,000 users in one day. At the end of the first week, it had been downloaded 100,000 times, and by mid-December, the number of users had reached one million.

Today, Instagram has more than 2.1 billion monthly active users worldwide — all thanks to one guy’s love of whiskey.

If you’re one of those 2 billion Instagrammers, I invite you to follow my own whiskey and cigar adventures over at @va_sigfan.

Cheers!

A Refresh for Musings Over a Barrel: New Look, Same Spirit

I’ve been gradually updating and tweaking Musings Over a Barrel over the past couple of weeks. The colder weather has meant more time spent indoors, perfect for refining this space. However, within the limitations of the Blogger platform, there’s only so much I can do—after all, you get what you pay for. If you’re reading on a mobile device, you may not notice the design changes as much. Curious? Scroll to the bottom of your phone screen and click “View web version,” but be ready to squint a bit.

In addition to refreshing the look, I’ve focused on updating the link compilation pages in the sidebar. While reviewing the blogs and sites I link to, it’s clear that fewer people are blogging these days. Many of the links I’d previously shared are inactive or gone. Platforms like YouTube and Rumble seem to have taken over. (And let’s not even start on the mind-numbing content on China's TikTok.)

Back in the early blogging days, reciprocal link networks were all the rage. Content creators worked to build communities by sharing links. These days, bloggers seem to prefer a more insular approach, often limiting links to paying sponsors. Personally, I enjoy sharing interesting sites I frequent—no strings attached—for the enlightenment of my readers.

For those of us feeling “old school,” RSS feeds are still around. I rely on an RSS reader daily to browse through roughly 100 feeds that interest me. If you’re similarly inclined, you can subscribe to an RSS feed of Musings Over a Barrel via the sidebar. Sadly, Google has done away with the subscribe-by-email functionality.

Speaking of sponsors, this blog remains a hobby, not a source of income. While I occasionally review products, I only do so if they genuinely interest me and might appeal to my readers. At times, I’ll use an Amazon or other sponsored link to offset minor costs—Blogger might be free, but domain registrations and related services are not.

Lastly, photo sharing on Instagram has become quite popular among cigar and whiskey enthusiasts. My Instagram account gets frequent, in-the-moment updates. If photos of cigars, whiskey, and craft beer pique your interest, I invite you to check it out!

Cheers!

When Are They Open?

I get that not everyone is adept at online marketing and social media. But clearly telling customers when you are open should be pretty simple. And a priority. While researching a local brewery to visit during my vacation, I came across this confusing mess.

First, I checked the brewery website for their hours.

Mon - Tues: Closed

Wed - Thurs: 3pm - 9pm

Fri - Sat: Noon - Midnight

Sunday: Noon - 11pm

Maybe I'll visit on Wednesday or Thursday, I thought. 

Next I looked at their Facebook page and saw a slightly different schedule.

Mon - Tues: Closed

Wed: 3pm - 9pm

Thursday: Closed

Fri - Sat: Noon - Midnight

Sunday: Noon - 11pm

However, Wednesday still looks good. 

Then I started scrolling through the brewery's posts, and saw a post labeled "Winter Hours."

Mon - Tues: 3pm - 8pm

Wed - Thurs: Closed

Fri - Sat: Noon - Midnight

Sunday: Noon - 10pm

So, Wednesday is out? Monday or Tuesday? Which listing is current, and correct?

Maybe I had better call them. 

Now on Instagram

A few months ago, I succumbed and opened an Instagram account. My motivation for adding another social media account was to follow some cigar-related accounts. As such, most of my Instagram activity will be focused on cigars. I'll include some shooting, beer, and whiskey posts on occasion too. After all, they do go hand in hand at times.

Click the logo above to see the content. And follow if it interests you.

For those interested, I'm also active on Twitter.