A glass of scotch

I am very impressed with this render and it immediately drew me in from the thumbnail; instant wow factor I guess. Here are some key qualities I noticed:

+ It looks very realistic; enough to make it hard to guess whether it is a render or simply a photograph that has had some digital alterations for printing purposes.

+ I like the simplicity of the environment. A single glass of whiskey on an otherwise empty counter top. It draws the focus to the glass.

+ The depth of field blurring also adds to the ambiance of the solitary whiskey glass isolating it from the surrounding "noise". It enhances the realism of the scene.

+ The choice to add a Whiskey Label to the glass was a great decision. It makes it look more believable and the emboss is very nicely done. Also adds some additional color and style to the picture.

- As a minor nitpick, the liquid and particularly the edges of the liquid meniscus upon closer inspection give the glass a bit of a painted-on look.

A bit of thickening of the meniscus (visual distortion?) I think would help. And perhaps some surface reflection.

More on the liquid detail I think the counter-top is not visible enough through the whiskey especially given all the light that is coming from behind adding illumination and reflection to the counter-top.

Extending that further, I feel blue reflections should be visible in the whiskey. Perhaps that is what is causing a bit of the painted look.

+ However, the reflection and the overall detail of the piece is very nice. Especially the detail of adding the reflection of the ceiling lights at the bottom of the glass is a nice touch. I also like the distortion of the ice cubes, and the weight of the glass that can be felt with the distortions in the heavy base.

- The wood grain of the counter-top while nice and believable could use some additional detail to make it a bit more realistic I think. Perhaps additional pitting and irregularity of wear.

+ The choice to not make it a standard circular tumbler adds to the style of the piece a well as adds a refined quality to the reflections in particular at the "edges of the triangle".

+ The lighting in the background adds a very nice contrast with the otherwise brown tones. It also turns an otherwise dark broody picture into one of solitary drink on a lonely afternoon.

Overall, excellent. Thanks for creating it. It was a real treat.