Why Scotland needs to look after Whisky.

SCOTCH WHISKY IS A CORNERSTONE OF THE SCOTTISH ECONOMY

PR from Scotch Whisky Association

- New study reveals Scotch Whisky’s massive economic impact across Scotland -

Figures released today (Sunday 30 May 2010) reveal that Scotch Whisky is worth £4 billion a
y ear in added value to the Scottish economy - with the industry spending in excess of £1.1 billion
annually on supplies produced north of the Border.
A new study - The Economic Impact of Scotch Whisky Production in Scotland - by Verso
Economics, also reveals the industry’s annual turnover in Scotland is now £6.4 billion and that
after oil & gas the sector remains the country’s leading manufactured export , with shipments of
£3.1 billion a year.
The spending with Scottish suppliers, which includes £200 mi llion on cereals, helps support
35,000 Scottish jobs, with the industry itself directly employing 10,300 people across the country.
The study, commissioned by The Scotch Whisky Association, also reveals:
 Spending with Scottish suppliers has increased by 61% since 2000
 Export value has grown by 42% since 2000 (from £2.2 billion)
 Capital spending of £355 million a year, of which nearly a third is invested in Scotland
 Scotch Whisky’s economic impact is as significant as tourism - with employees adding
twelve times more value per head
 Industry productivity at £262,000 per employee is six times the Scottish average
 One fifth of Scotch Whisky jobs are in the more fragile rural communities across the
Highlands & Islands
 Scotch Whisky supports double the numb er of Scottish jobs than those in aerospace &
defence, as well as a similar number to those employed in Scottish universities 

... distilling again in Falkirk.

Approval for £5m Falkirk whisky distillery

The new distillery is the first in Falkirk since Rosebank was shut in 1993

Scottish ministers have given final approval to plans for a £5m whisky distillery in Falkirk.

The development will also feature a visitor centre and restaurant and could create up to 80 new jobs.

The Falkirk Distillery Company will create the complex on land near Cadger's Brae, at Polmont.

The distillery will be the first to operate in the town since the famed Rosebank Distillery was shut in 1993.

Historic Scotland had raised objections about the development's proximity to the Antonine Wall, which was given World Heritage Status in 2008.

However, ministers found it would not directly impact on the wall and could boost tourism in the area.

Rosebank Distillery, which was situated beside the Forth and Clyde Canal and dated from the 1840s, produced a triple-distilled single malt. The bottles currently sell for more than £200.

Suggestions that the product produced at the new distillery might carry the Rosebank name have been denied by Diageo, which owns the trademark.

... a rare situation, a New Lowland Malt.

Annandale whisky to flow after 90-year gap

The distillery will be able to return to production after a lengthy break Plans have been approved to reopen a whisky distillery in southern Scotland which closed more than 90 years ago. The Annandale Distillery ceased production in 1919 and the area was turned over to farming use. However, a £4m project has now been granted the green light to start the distilling process once again. The Scottish Whisky Association said that with only five distilleries in the lowland region it would be a "very welcome addition". It said a new distillery could bring sustainable benefits to the local economy in terms of both employment and tourism. The plans also include proposals for a visitor centre, shop and cafe or restaurant. It hopes to attract about 25,000 people every year once it is fully operational. The scheme was approved by Dumfries and Galloway Council's Annandale area committee when it met on Wednesday. It received Scottish government support two years ago with a Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) grant of £150,000. Enterprise Minister Jim Mather said at the time he hoped the funding would help in "resurrecting whisky production" in Annandale.

... Trip to Islay

... on the beautiful Island of Islay at the moment, enjoying the honour of being a guest at my pal's Wedding.
Whilst on location, it would be careless of me not to visit a few Distilleries (spoilt for choice here) and interview a few malt-professionals.

The photo of Kilchomans Dunnage warehouse is a bit of a give-away !

Walk-through interview with Kilchoman's John soon at 'whisky reviews"

Innaugral Loch Ness Fest !

First Loch Ness Whisky Festival promises to be a monster success

FIRST TASTING SESSION WILL TAKE PLACE WITH ICONIC CASTLE BACKDROP

BY NEIL MACPHAIL

Published: 08/05/2010

HERE’S TAE NESSIE: Jon Beach of The Fiddler's Bar gets into the spirit of the occasion

More Pictures

The first Loch Ness Whisky Festival kicks off at a tasting session on the world-famous waters, with the dramatic Urquhart Castle as a backdrop.

The award-winning Fiddler’s Restaurant and Whisky Bar, Drumnadrochit, will host a series of events on Friday and Saturday, May 14 and 15, with tastings, tours and cruises.

Funds raised during the Talisker/RNLI Whisky Cruise will go towards equipment and training of the local volunteers at Loch Ness Lifeboat Station near Drumnadrochit.

Crew from Loch Ness, the newest RNLI station in Scotland, will provide a key element of the tasting when they deliver whisky bottles after completing a rescue and safety demonstration.

Loch Ness RNLI lifeboat operations manager Ewan Cameron said: “We are thrilled that, once again, The Fiddler’s, Drumnadrochit, have chosen to support their local RNLI volunteers.

“We are also grateful to Talisker for their support. They have been helping the RNLI for over three years in various ways, raising over £60,000 each year for our lifesaving service.”

The two-day festival will feature whisky from Talisker, Balblair, Glen Ord, Tomatin and many others.

Jon and Dick Beach from Fiddler’s will be on hand to add their own particular “note” to the tastings. Money raised during the event will also benefit the MacMillan unit at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.

Information and timings of each of the events can be found on the Fiddler’s website at www.fiddledrum.co.uk or by phoning 01456 450678. Fiddler’s is situated on Drumnadrochit’s village green.

The RNLI said while they hope everyone enjoys the event, anyone going afloat or undertaking water-borne pursuits should act responsibly and not consume alcoho

Read more: http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1727158/?UserKey=#ixzz0nSuLACXI

... quite right Ted !!!

Cheers! Centenarian's secret to long life is a glass of whisky every day for past 82 years... and his name's Ted Binge

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 6:20 PM on 4th May 2010

• Having had his first taste of whisky when he was 18 years old, Ted Binge swears it’s the secret of his long life 
• – as he celebrates turning 100.

The great-great granddad still gets through a bottle of Bell's every fortnight as he enjoys a glass served straight with his breakfast alongside a coffee.

Mr Binge, a former railwayman, swears by the stuff and estimates he has downed an incredible 2,100 bottles since his first taste aged 18.

Bottoms up! Ted Binge - pictured at his care home's bar with staff member Shirley Elliot - celebrates turning 100 with a glass of Bell's whisky

And he kissed a bottle of whisky which was one of nine he received as a birthday gift from the five generations of his adoring family.

The centenarian – who insists he is Binge by name, not by nature – lives in Armana House Care Centre in York, which has a fully stocked bar, with his wife Irene, 91.

Their daughter June Ogden, 67, revealed that Mr Binge’s wife of nearly 70 years often teasingly accuses him of nipping up to the bar when she goes to bed.

Mr Binge joked: ‘It's beautiful, wonderful stuff. I love it. It's never done me any harm, maybe they should put it on prescription.

‘I had my first taste of it as a young man, when I had a bit of a cold and my father gave me a nip of whisky saying 'that will make you feel better".

‘It did the trick and I liked it straight away, so I started having a glass of it on a morning. I like it straight as it should be.

'I always say work as long as you can because it's good for you. And I love to have a laugh and a joke, sometimes a bit of a sing, it keeps you going.’ 

Mrs Ogden said: ‘He's wonderful, the whole family love him to bits. He has had a hard life; he lifted heavy sleepers on the railways for 37 years.

‘But you would never know it to look at him; he's barely even got any wrinkles. He looks at least 20 years younger. 

‘His eyesight is going slightly but apart from that he's completely on the ball, he has all the family and the nurses here in stitches with his sense of humour.

‘Him and Irene have rooms next to each other, it's lovely that they can be together. She always goes to bed earlier than him and in the morning she says “have you been out on the town drinking whisky again?”’

‘She only lets him have a little tot of whisky but when she goes to bed he sneaks in a quick glass.’

Mr Binge drinks half a bottle of whisky a week meaning he has enjoyed 26 every year since he turned 18. 

He added that although Bell's is his favourite, he sometimes drinks Glenfiddich or Glenmorangie.

He was born in 1910 in a tiny village near Malton, North Yorkshire, and worked on the land until he was 15. 

He then met cook Irene in Kent where he was working at a country house.

The happy couple returned to Yorkshire and married, and Mr Binge worked as a fitter for British Rail for 37 years. Even when he reached 65, tireless Mr Binge worked for another five years at a butcher.

The couple have another daughter Ann and son, Charles, as well as six grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1272322/Cheers-Centenarians-secret-long-life-glass-whisky-day-past-82-years.html?ito=feeds-newsxml#ixzz0n5NdPa7U

Haggis is ... a mealy-meat savoury pudding !

 

Haggis is traditionally served with whisky, is not actually Scottish and is sometimes used in sports.

Photograph by: Julie Olive / Canwest File Photo, National Post

One in five people in Britain thinks that haggis, the traditional Scottish dish made from the vital organs of a sheep, is an animal that roams the Highlands, according to a survey on Friday.

Commissioned by the online takeaway food service Just-Eat.co.uk, the survey found that 18 per cent of Britons believe that haggis is a hilltop-dwelling animal. Another 15 per cent said it is a Scottish musical instrument while four per cent thought it was a character from Harry Potter.

The survey questioned 1,623 people across Britain to see how well they were acquainted with traditional Scottish food.

Even 14 per cent of the 781 Scottish people polled said they did not know what haggis was.