SCOTCH TOM McLELLAN Where’s ourScotch guy?


By BRIAN WARREN Hard to believe, but someone


who knows nothing about Scotch is writing this column. (We’ll get to why later.) At our first editorial advisory


board meeting for the year, we were throwing around ideas for upcoming issues of Bounder. Tom McLellan, our Scotch columnist, suggested a regular Scotch-tasting night. Everyone readily agreed that it


was a great idea. Some wanted to be there for the first one. So Tom left the editorial meeting that night with a mission to put together a gathering (in a short window) so he could review it in this issue of Bounder. So far so good. Tom lined up


Carol Anderson, an expert on Scotch, who hosts events both public and private. Then we needed a location.


Tom and I met with James at The Glen Scottish Pub in Stittsville a few days later. James said he would match Scottish fare to complement the five Scotches that Carol had chosen. (Don’t you love it when a plan comes together?) A quick email-blast and in


short order we had 22 people signed up. Everything was falling into place. Finally the Scotch-tasting


night arrived. I headed over early to make sure that everything was


48 BOUNDER MAGAZINE


in order. James and his people at The Glen had everything set up and ready to go and promised some fabulous fare to go with the Scotch. This was going to be great. But, where oh where was


Tom? Carol hadn’t heard from him. James hadn’t heard. Yikes. Carol told me that she had a great audio-visual presentation of some of the featured distilleries, but Tom would be bringing the projector. Double yikes. People were arriving, and there was no Tom. So there I was... someone with


limited knowledge of Scotch (I’m a Wiser’s man), introducing Carol to our guests. Well, after that things went


smoothly. Explaining how to sample


Scotch and what to look for in taste, Carol expertly presented the first Scotch. It was a Redbreast 12-year-old Pure Pot Still Irish whiskey produced at the Middleton distillery in the south of Ireland, and is one of only three distilleries in the country. It is 40 per cent alcohol by volume (ABV) and sells for $48. This was my favourite. Our second was a Dalwhinnie


15-year-old Highland Single Malt Scotch whisky. This comes from the highest distillery in Scotland (1400 feet) and is located at the top of Drumochter Pass. It was founded in 1897. This whisky is 42 per cent ABV and sells for $85.


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Our third was a Nikka Yoichi, a


10-year-old Japanese Single Malt whisky. If you have read our last Scotch column, you will probably recall that Japan is the second largest producer of Single Malt whisky in the world. This whisky sells for $86 and is 45 per cent ABV. Number four was a Laphroaig


Quarter Cask, Islay Single Malt Scotch whisky. Laphroaig is Gaelic for ‘’the beautiful hollow by the broad bay’’. The distillery was built in 1815. There is quite the process to create the distinct taste and aroma to this 10-year old blend. This whisky is 48 per cent ABV and sells for $70. Our last sampling was Aberlour


A’bunadh Speyside Single Malt Scotch whisky. This 10-year-old “after dinner” whisky is a frequent winner of medals and competitions. James paired it with a chocolate


dessert which was a perfect match. This whisky is a hefty 59.5 per cent ABV and sells for $94. So there you have it: an amateur


Scotch drinker writing a Scotch column. And by the way, we finally found


Tom. He was on an emergency conference call to China with no way to contact us and no way to cancel his important business call. (Ahhh… the perils of running a magazine with writers who have real jobs…) Special thanks to Carol Anderson


who seemed unfazed without her audio-visual presentation. She educated and almost converted me into a Scotch drinker. And to James and the staff at The Glen Scottish Pub who served us pork pastry, roast beef, salmon, and a fabulous dessert. Great job, everyone! We are planning another Scotch-


tasting event later in the year, and it was suggested a wine tasting night is also in order. If you would like to be on the list for these upcoming events, send us your co-ordinates at boundermag@gmail.com.


www.bounder.ca BOUNDER MAGAZINE 49


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