Being a Newby Again

Ryan turned 30 years old on Monday, September 7th, however he did not leave the 20s quietly. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday we partied like college students (well students with a bit more of a developed palette) in Vancouver , BC . Harkening back to the era of running to the border for a legal underage drinking experience, we ran to the border to eat, drink, and be merry. This epic weekend was full of surprises (who knew hardcore, leather-clan Goth kids are often professionals that get simply freaky at night), but one of my favorite surprises was learning that I enjoy scotch.

I love almost all forms of whisk(e)y. Shoot. My favorite drink for years was Jim Beam with ginger ale. However, when Ryan introduced me to the smoky, stinky alcohol called scotch, I was not so impressed. Now, I knew that not all scotches taste like campfires, but after this weekend, I learned how to love the smoke.

As a birthday present to Ryan I arranged a private scotch tasting at the Irish Heather. He loves Ardbeg…a distillery that makes the smokiest of smoky scotches. Armed with that knowledge, our whisk(e)y expert took us on a ride through the best of Scotland . I have to admit that it was a good exercise for me to be a newby taster again. I have a renewed appreciation on how intimidating it is to learn about booze. I felt silly asking base questions.

- Shouldn’t I know the answer to this?
- Will the bartender think I’m stupid?
- Will the people around me think I’m silly for being so interested?
- This tastes like garbage to me. Is it supposed to taste like garbage? Is that what we’re going for?

But like any good booze teacher, our guys at the Irish Heather were not only happy to answer my questions, they were turned on by the fact that we were so curious.

With the Whiskey Bible in hand, teachers at the ready, and seven different scotches to taste with different flavor profiles, I learned not only my favorite, but that with knowledge you can learn to enjoy what was at first a rather icky thing.

So note to everyone thinking about coming to an Elemental tasting…just come. Give it a try. Ask silly questions, and in the end, you may find something you love.

It was a great lesson, and a great memory.

P.S. My favorite was from Clynelish and Ryan’s was the Ardbeg Ugedail.