Whiskey
BillB (NC/FL)
A: While American and Irish whiskey is spelled with an "e", only Scottish
whisky is spelled without it. The Scots apparently had to save their e's
for the screams of people who find out what haggis is. EEEEE!!!!!!
--
BillB (Daytona FL) "If I only had a little humility, I'd be perfect."
Sinclair
favourite Glendronach, at the end of a day warmed by the hand the rich aroma
in your nostrils can take away the cares of the world.
Whisky is inextricably woven into Scotland's history, culture and customs.
Drunkenness is not. Distillation was known in the ancient Orient, but true
whisky is a purely Celtic contribution.
No one can say when Scotch Whisky was first distilled. The origins of
distilling are lost in the soup of pre history, distilling was attempted in
Asia as long ago as 800BC, and to have found its way to Europe via Egypt.
The Ancient Celts practised the art and had an expressive name for the
ardent liquid they produced - uisge beatha - the water of life. To the Celts
its power to revive tired bodies and failing spirits, to drive out chills
and rekindle hope was a veritable gift from God.
In 432 AD. Saint Patrick, a native of Scotland was sent to Wicklow to spread
Christianity and introduced distilling to the pagan Irish.
The earliest documented record of distilling in Scotland is in 1494AD, when
an entry in the Exchequer Rolls listed "Eight bolls of malt to Friar John
Cor wherewith to make aqua vitae" (water of life). This was sufficient to
produce almost 1500 bottles. Distilling must have been well-established. .
Whisky was lauded for its medicinal qualities, it was decreed for the
conservation of health, the prolongation of life, and for the relief of
colic, palsy, smallpox and what ever else ailed you. Scots used whisky from
cradle to grave.
Whisky became an ingrained part of Scottish life - a reviver and stimulant
during the long, cold winters, and a feature of social life, a welcome to be
offered to guests upon arrival at their destinations.
The Duke of Gordon, on whose land some of the finest illicit whisky in
Scotland was being produced proposed in the House of Lords that the
Government should make it profitable to produce whisky legally.
In 1823 the Excise Act was passed, which sanctioned the distilling of whisky
in return for a licence fee of £10 and a set payment per gallon of proof
spirit. This legislation laid the foundations for the overtaxed Scotch
Whisky industry as of today. Scotland biggest foreign exchange earner.
In USA whisky 13.14 % of the spirit market with a Sterling value £283.72
million pounds
In the European Community excluding UK 33.13% market share value
£823.04million pounds
All Scots whisky (also spelt whiskey in American) is made from grain or malt
(sprouted grain), or from both, and water. All Scots distilleries have
access to spring water that passes up through granite or limestone.
Whisky-making begins when whole grain is steeped in water promoting
germination. Starches are converted to fermentable sugar by malt: For
Scotch, self-generated malt is produced by arresting germination of the
barley; for most other whiskeys, malt is added to the basic grain mixture.
(In the production of Scotch, the malted grain is dried at this juncture,
over peat fires from which the characteristic smoky flavour of finished
whiskey is developed. It is then lightly milled. Hot water is added to the
malted grains, and the resultant mash is stirred or shaken until the sugars
present are dissolved. Wort, a liquid is produced, then strained into
fermenting vessels; fermentation is then activated by the introduction of
yeast, which converts the sugars to alcohol and the mixture to a crude
whiskey, called wash, with a low alcohol content. The wash is distilled,
after distillation, the still-colourless whiskey is put in charred wooden
barrels and left to mature, mellow, develop colour, and purge itself of
impurities..
Sinclair
"BillB (NC/FL)" <BillB...@Prodigy.net> wrote in message
news:%yona.62234$NV.14...@news.direcpc.com...
Sinclair
Proper Scot's Gaelic has only eighteen letters. The relationship of one
consonant to another determines a vowel sound. The 'e' in the language is
implied when 'h' and 'y' are written.
Irish, Manx and French Gaelic include more letter and the use of the 'e' is
common.
Sinclair
"BillB (NC/FL)" <BillB...@Prodigy.net> wrote in message
news:%yona.62234$NV.14...@news.direcpc.com...
DAE
It never ceases to amaze me what the ancients could do. The process you
describe is a complicated one that takes time to complete. I still don't
know how and why the ancients could come up with these procedures given the
equipment and education they must have had.
Don and his Devil
"Sinclair" <labeh...@wanadoo.fr> wrote in message
news:b7l79c$far$1...@news-reader12.wanadoo.fr...
Carl Edgar
>From: "Sinclair" labeh...@wanadoo.fr
>Date: 16/04/2003 11:56 PM Eastern Daylight Time
>Message-id: <b7l8n7$ltq$1...@news-reader12.wanadoo.fr>
>Proper Scot's Gaelic has only eighteen letters. The relationship of one
>consonant to another determines a vowel sound. The 'e' in the language is
>implied when 'h' and 'y' are written.
tell them about seth and toth, Sinclair--will blow away their fantasies about
Ye Olde Inn
not gaelic but tangentially on-topic if that's not an oxymoron of the worst
water
carl
It's a small world until you try to paint it
Yoj
cataract surgery. I did some research on the subject and found that
cataract surgery is much older than I thought. Developments to improve
the process occurred in the mid-1700's! It had been done for hundreds
of years before that. Of course, the implant lenses weren't developed
until 1948, but still it amazes me how much they could do so long ago.
--
Joy
"You can never do a kindness too soon because you never know how soon it
will be too late." _Ralph Waldo Emerson
"DAE" <d.e...@attbi.com> wrote in message
news:4nBna.226845$OV.285029@rwcrnsc54...
Jean B.
>
> You're right about that, Don. I recently gave a speech about my
> cataract surgery. I did some research on the subject and found that
> cataract surgery is much older than I thought. Developments to improve
> the process occurred in the mid-1700's! It had been done for hundreds
> of years before that. Of course, the implant lenses weren't developed
> until 1948, but still it amazes me how much they could do so long ago.
>
procedures? I imagine there was a good risk of serious infection
too....
--
Jean B., 12 miles west of Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Toddy
The only drawback was that the patients spent 6 weeks on their back in
hospital with bandages round their eyes and heads kept in foam stabilisers
so they didn't move around too much.
It was good nursing, we got to know the patients and their families really
well, and there was the grand ceremony of removing the bandages and the
excitement of being able to see again.
Toddy
"Jean B." <jb...@rcn.com> wrote in message news:3E9F4397...@rcn.com...
Yoj
The articles I said didn't mention infection. They did say that in the
early surgeries, the lens was simply pushed to one side, so light could
get into the eye. With no lens, the people couldn't focus (before
eyeglasses were invented), but at least they could perceive light and
dark, and see well enough to get around. Some time during the 1700's a
doctor figured out that if he pushed on the eyeball with his thumb, he
could pop the lens out. Five years later somebody invented tiny suction
cups to use instead. One of the things that got me was that, for
hundreds of years, there was no anesthetic. A strong man was hired to
hold the patient's head still during the surgery. The first anesthetic
for eye surgery was eye drops made of cocaine.
Joy
Tex Simmons
unopened for over 30 years. Ought to be getting pretty good about now if it'd
age in the bottle..
--
Regards,
Clark, in Round Rock Texas USA
Dialup Internet Service Throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Web Based Computer Training
http://xld.com/public/xldata/net.htm
God Bless America and her Allies!
"BillB (NC/FL)" <BillB...@Prodigy.net> wrote in message
news:%yona.62234$NV.14...@news.direcpc.com...
---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.471 / Virus Database: 269 - Release Date: 4/11/2003
Sinclair
Alas once bottled Whisky no longer ages.
Sinclair
"Tex Simmons" <cl...@xld.com> wrote in message
news:b7oci0$2sn38$1...@ID-76126.news.dfncis.de...
Jean B.
>
> They were really successful in the 60's Jean.
> The only drawback was that the patients spent 6 weeks on their back in
> hospital with bandages round their eyes and heads kept in foam stabilisers
> so they didn't move around too much.
> It was good nursing, we got to know the patients and their families really
> well, and there was the grand ceremony of removing the bandages and the
> excitement of being able to see again.
> Toddy
>
So what on earth were they doing before then--even back to the
1700s????
Toddy
In the 60's they were just removing the lens.... not replacing it with new
ones.
Toddy
"Jean B." <jb...@rcn.com> wrote in message news:3E9FEC01...@rcn.com...
Jean B.
>
> The articles I said didn't mention infection. They did say that in the
> early surgeries, the lens was simply pushed to one side, so light could
> get into the eye. With no lens, the people couldn't focus (before
> eyeglasses were invented), but at least they could perceive light and
> dark, and see well enough to get around. Some time during the 1700's a
> doctor figured out that if he pushed on the eyeball with his thumb, he
> could pop the lens out. Five years later somebody invented tiny suction
> cups to use instead. One of the things that got me was that, for
> hundreds of years, there was no anesthetic. A strong man was hired to
> hold the patient's head still during the surgery. The first anesthetic
> for eye surgery was eye drops made of cocaine.
>
attempting such things that early. I never would have guessed
that. Must have been mighty hard to keep those heads still too,
and even the smallest movement would probably have had nasty
consequences.
Yoj
Yup. I'm glad I waited until now to have the surgery. ;-)
Joy
Di Wall
done and bandaged for so long?
I have nightmares about elderly folk with their heads bandaged climbing over
their bedrails at a rate of knots!!!!
The very same escaping wrinklies that we were treating so carefully as
triple-lifts!! Jumping about like rabbits in a pen!
You are right about 'bandages-off day'...it was very special!
Di....:))
PS Sid, my nextdoor neighbour and husband of one member of 'the Greenwith
Summit', had a right cataract done on Monday.... we chatted whilst he mowed
his front lawn today! Vastly different from days of yore!!
"Toddy" <tod...@q-net.net.au> wrote in message
news:b7nsvv$2q6ob$1...@ID-32583.news.dfncis.de...
Toddy
family news, listening to the radio, trying hard not to make them laugh !!
I don't remember anyone jumping over the guard rails though !!!
It is wonderful how things have improved !
Toddy
"Di Wall" <diw...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:b7r0a3$3hs7o$1...@ID-27999.news.dfncis.de...
Yoj
bit worse before having the surgery if I'd had that to look forward to,
especially since I have mild claustrophobia. I am very grateful to
modern advances in medicine.
--
Joy
"You can never do a kindness too soon because you never know how soon it
will be too late." _Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Toddy" <tod...@q-net.net.au> wrote in message
news:b7r2an$3p567$1...@ID-32583.news.dfncis.de...