The Isle of Eigg The Isle of Eigg (Eilean Eige) is one of the Small Isles of Scotland and part of the Hebrides. It lies about 15 km off the west coast of Scotland, to the south of the Isle of Skye. It may only be about eight km long and five km wide, but it’s a singular place. This …
Vegetarian Haggis – It’s Not so Offal
Vegetarian Haggis – It’s Not so Offal Vegetarian Haggis? A contradiction in terms. Hold on, not so fast. In the early 1990s, while staying in the Bruntsfield area of Edinburgh, we happened by chance on Macsween’s butcher’s shop. It was there that the late John Macsween built his reputation as a premier Haggis maker. On entering, we discovered his Vegetarian …
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Caol Ila. Try a Dram on World Whisky Day
Caol Ila. Try a Dram on World Whisky Day Pronounce Caol Ila as Cull-eela, Gaelic for the “Sound of Islay”. It’s the name of a distillery on the northeast coast of the Scottish island of Islay. Islay or eela, as the late Iain Banks once wrote, “does not rhyme with outlay”. Islay has the distinction of being one of the five …
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Highland Park 12yo Single Malt Whisky
Highland Park 12 yo Single Malt Whisky Orkney comprises over 70 mostly low-lying, virtually treeless islands. Located where the North Sea meets the Atlantic, it’s wild, wet, and windy – kept habitable by the Gulf Stream. These islands have been settled for over 5,000 years, shown by the preserved remains of Skara Brae village. Orkney was a Viking stronghold (featuring …
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Scotch Missed. Talisker 10-year-old single malt whisky
Scotch Missed. Talisker 10-year-old single malt whisky On a summer trip to the Isle of Skye, the weather was typical. The rain began as soon as we crossed the Skye Bridge from Kyle-of-Lochalsh. Even the SatNag was defeated. There were soaking sheets of horizontal rain and thick fog all at once. Temperatures felt not far from freezing. Couldn’t see a …
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