I’m not a whiskey snob by any stretch of the imagination, but once in a while I like to spoil meself. The amazing and often sordid history of whiskey is fascinating. Particularly in Scotland. The romance of the highlands, the rolling hills, and the barley waving in the wind. Aye! It's such a pleasure to watch the connoisseurs perform the drinking ritual with its meticulous process of swirling the liquid, inhaling its complex aromas, marveling at the colours created by the play of light, sipping, swishing, sucking in the air to explore its bouquet of flavours. I’ve tried such rituals myself but to tell you the truth, I don’t seem to appreciate it as much as others who have made whiskey-drinking their art and industry. To me whiskey tastes like alcohol. Oh yes, once in a while I get hints of barley, and maybe even licorice, but I can never taste the complex flavors that others so rapturously claim to experience. I’m afraid my palette is not refined enough to appreciate the intricacies of this gnomish elixir.
About a month before the shutdown, I got a hold of an Aberfeldy Highland Single Malt Scotch Whiskey. I've never had it before, so there is not much I can say about it except that it has a beautiful amber colour and tastes wonderful. Like alcohol, but better. If I were to get poetic, I’d say it tastes like a saucy lass dipping her toes in an oak barrel full of cold water from the river Tay. The bottle is wonderfully rotund and came inside a container with sketches of the Aberfeldy distillery and other scenes associated with the region: a train, a bridge, a running stream. Old style fonts of varying sizes give it a vintage vibe. Whomever made it knows his/her graphic design. Fantastic presentation.
As you can see from the picture, my reserves are already running low. Once the whiskey runs out, well, there will be whiskey no more. Oh, I could easily go to the store and get me another bottle. But that’s not how it works during a pandemic, me lads and lassies. Perhaps later, once this is over, we’ll raise a glass in celebration and get properly sloshed.
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