Event: CreateEatWhisky

Whisky is one of the many things that I know very little about. Gin - a bit. Wine - the basics. Tea - I can wax lyrical. But for some reason, whisky has passed me by. I was very excited when I found out that Jelly and Gin were hosting CreateEatWhisky in collaboration with Jura Whisky as part of this year's World Whisky Day celebrations. 

The Nestle Milk Factory on Leith Links - our venue for the evening.

Ghost sign - the only hint of the building's former purpose.

Beautiful lighting, subway tiles.

Custom built candleholders.

Origami lighting.

Rows of tables, copper piping, paper lights.

The tasting begins - whisky number one - Jura Elixir. Our place mats summarised each for us.

Music plays in the background - recorded onsite at the distillery - with instructions on how to taste

Our tasting glasses were not your typical whisky tumbler shape.

How dark is the colour? Rich, golden, pale?

As instructed, we all held up the glass to inspect further.

I've never been sure how much water to add. Enough to create a "marble" effect as the liquids mix, said the chap next to me. 

Breathe it in deeply, edge of the glass to the bottom of the nose. 

What does it smell like?

And now onto the taste.

Take a sip.

Move it around your mouth.

Enjoy.

Tasting notes followed the instruction video, giving us hints. 

Beautiful wooden tiffin boxes, containing the first food pairing.

Oatcakes, Ayrshire bonnet cheese, pineapple & ginger chutney, venison salami.

Whisky number two - Prophecy. The music changes, the lighting changes.

A smoke filled cloche arrives.

Loch Duart hot smoked salmon pate, pickled cucumber, squid ink breadsticks.

Whisky number three - Origin. 

Tasting notes: honey.

Pear compote, honey cream, pecan brittle. Coffee and liquorice scent vials.

Whisky number four - Diurachs' Own.

Steaming copper cauldrons, seaweed mist.

Chocolates: lavender, matcha tea, salted caramel.

To finish: scenes and sounds from the distillery.

Jura.

With thanks.

Collaborators.

More collaborators.

CreateEatWhisky.

Our hosts: Jelly & Gin.

Four drams later, four delicious tasters, and I feel a little more confident with whisky. Turns out I like a dash of water in my malt to tone down the harshness of the alcohol. I was also surprised by the whisky I liked best - number two - Prophecy. My previous experiences of whisky had put me off strong smoke and peat flavours, but with the salmon and cucumber pickles, it really, really worked. I've already made a mental note to do something similar for a dinner party starter soon. A rather marvellous multi-sensory evening, and a great way to learn about something new.

Forward Planning for 2014

The view of the Hogmanay fireworks from my living room. 

It's not the end of the festive season yet. I have the luxury of not having to go to work until 8.15 tomorrow morning, which means that it is still the "holidays". Sort of. I've had a fortnight off, which has been utterly lovely, but incredibly busy. The first week was spent in Yorkshire, seeing family and friends, and "doing" Christmas. The second week has been mostly spent in Edinburgh, and it's gone way too quickly. In a good way - full of friends and cake - but I am feeling a bit overwhelmed about the list of tasks which I've not got around to doing. I always have grand plans for productivity for holidays, which always fall by the wayside.

I've spent the first few days of 2014 doing a bit of forward planning. I find list writing therapeutic, which is probably how I am now addicted to Pinterest. How did I not discover it before? I've decided against resolutions for 2014, and instead have decided to adopt a word, after seeing a few people discussing it on twitter. I like it. It's a lot more positive.

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I will grow fruit and vegetables. Last year I took my first step onto the property ladder. Although I am on the top floor, my flat does have shared access to a garden. It's not received any love for a couple of years, so I have decided to take over part of it and attempt a vegetable plot. I am excited, but also have no idea how or where to start. 

I will grow fitter and stronger. I will continue walking home from work, and try harder to allow time to walk there too. I will swim more regularly, because it is relaxing as well as strengthening. I would like to get strong enough to move into the advanced Pilates class.

I will grow my recipe repertoire. I tend to cook the same things on a rotational basis for weekday dinners, so I will try some new ideas and think outside the box a little more.

I will grow my skills. I will practice my photography and learn how to use editing software. I will remind myself how to sew. I will crochet, because it is both relaxing and satisfying. I will write more, because I enjoy it, and because you don't get better at something unless you practice. 

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Share Advent: Wreath Wednesday

I've never had a front door wreath before. I quite like them, there's something very welcoming and cheery about them. Today's Share Advent prompt - Wreath Wednesday - seemed like a good time to aquire one.

I spent Sunday night browsing the web, trying to find one I liked that I could pick up on the way home from work. I'm a bit torn about Christmas decorations. I can't decide whether I like traditional (by which I mean berries, colour coordinated baubles, tartan bows and holly) or something a bit more, well, modern.

Clockwise from top left: Felt door wreath £15 Mini tree wreath £6 Pom Pom garland £8 Pom Pom bauble £2.50

I did find myself drawn to these lovelies, sadly all either too small or out of my budget – and in a moment of madness and rare optimism, a plan was formed. I was going to… duh duh duhhh… make a wreath myself.

If I was a remotely crafty (in the glue and glitter sense) person, this wouldn't have been quite the traumatic experience that it turned out to be. Monday evening was spent trying to work out how on earth to make pom poms. This resulted in a lot of tangled wool, my boyfriend Jonny ringing his mum (a Home Economics teacher) to ask her, and a very unhelpful conversation about wouldn't it just be easier to buy a wreath from John Lewis?

But... I googled, I found instructions that told me to wrap wool around a donut shaped bit of card, and I realised it was going to take me flipping ages to make 10 pom poms. Jonny got involved. The cat got involved. I got cross and impatient and threw my half made pom pom across the room. The cat got cross and impatient and bit me when I tried to reclaim it off him. It was all very stressful. Jonny made two pom poms. I made two cups of tea.

On Tuesday I had a minor panic about having to make 8 more pom poms without Jonny's assistance (he was out) in order to get this bloody wreath done for Wreath Wednesday. So I googled again, and found some quicker ways to make a pom pom. I became a pom pom demon. Hurrah! Time to attach them to my hoop... and they didn't fit. It looked a bit like one of those "send in your attempt at a Blue Peter project" photographs.

At which point I got cross and impatient and declared it a disaster, until it was pointed out that I could simply make a few more in a different colour to pad it out. So I angrily did that, all the time muttering about how I shouldn't ever do craft ever again and that it was a stupid idea in the first place.

And then it turned out alright, albeit slightly Italian.
Hooray! Wreath!

Well, at least the kitten looked impressed.

 

Share Advent: Joy To The World

As bloggers go, I am not a "good" one. I don't blog every day. I don't blog every week. My photos are often crappy iPhone snaps, and I can't be bothered learning how to write code so that everything is pretty. Really it comes down to the main reason I post my musings - because it encourages me to try new things.

It's in the spirit of trying new things that I've decided to join Anna at Skin & Blister in her Share Advent countdown. I don't normally "do" Christmas in a big way. Aside from a few traditions when I was growing up, I don't remember it being a huge deal, just a really nice day. In many ways I think that's a good thing. This year though, I am going to attempt to embrace the festive cheer, expand my horizons (beware, there may be non-food posts!) and have a crack at it.

The main reason for embracing the cheer is because I am not so good at winter. We used to like each other, and I used to think it was preferable to summer. But a couple of years ago when I stopped working shifts, and started to realise how little daylight I now see, we fell out spectacularly. I struggle to get up on a morning because it's so dark (sunrise tomorrow is at 8.20am - the time when I leave for work), and rather than enjoying my walk home through the city, I find myself fighting through crowds like an angry commuter instead of a friendly local. Combined with a serious aversion to being cold, and I'm not a happy winter bunny.

I reckon that this the reason that there are so many festivals of light in the winter. We need the light as a reminder of warmth and brightness, and a way of bringing people together. They bring a bit of joy to the otherwise dark world. I grew up in a multicultural city, where my friends celebrated Diwali, Hanukkah, Christmas and (at that time) Eid in the winter months. Each year we gathered for school assemblies where the stories of the festivals were told and celebrations were shared. The thing that always struck me was how many similarities there are in between the differences - a chance for a gathering, a celebratory meal after a period of reflection, a time for families and friends to reunite, and an opportunity to be thankful.

I am so glad that I have something lovely to look forward to every week in December. A friend's wedding, a trip to London, dinner with friends, and a week back home in Yorkshire. It is going to be a very happy Advent.