The King over the Sea: Part 9
It's Saturday and it's the Isle of Mull and Tobermory. Today we womble down to the distillary to sample and (they hope) buy some of the delightful intoxicant.
Tobermory, a quiet fishing town and a thousand inhabitants going about their lawful doings without let or hindrance. As we approached the slipway in our trusty Zodiacs it was clear something was amiss - big time. We've landed smack in the middle of their annual Traditional Music Festival - and the place was jumping. All the parking spaces were full of unbelievably expensive travelling homes and camper vans, black Mercs and BMWs and lots of, what looked like, intoxicated party goers.
Frankly, we were disgusted - that we hadn't been invited. We were on a visit to the Mull Museum and their famous Tobermory whisky distillary. There are no photographs from the museum as we were on a tight schedule not wanting to miss a wee dram or two of the elixir of life.
At the distillery we were greeted by a lovely guide who was to show us the secrets of whisky making. There's much mashing, mixing and evaporation to create the colourless spirit which is magically transformed into something worth quaffing after a few years in charred oak/sherry barrels.
At the beginning of the tour, we were given one wee dram of 10-year-old whisky from American Bourbon casks. At the tour's end we had a wee nip of 10-year-old out of sherry casks. It's all down to the grain, water, and peat. Clearly the excise people have made a strong impression on our guide since she made great play of how they lock the casks away behind barred windows and doors, so the excise people don't get their hands on the stuff.
At the end of tour, we found ourselves trapped in the shop and the only way out was to buy something - preferably alcoholic - they do a gin as well. I was worried when told that the day before they'd sold a bottle of Scotch for £3,000. I spent significantly less than that.
How you make Scotch in picture form:
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