CTSC Day 4

2014-08-06 Day 4–Multi-Tour Day

Early morning fire alarm–this should have happened the next day when I have to get up to catch a 07:30 bus to the airport.

Having returned the bike upon my return last evening, a new transportation plan was clearly indicated.   The Bowmore distillery was on the next block down the road from the Lochside, so I signed up for the 10AM tour.  Then a 12:30 bus would take me down to Port Ellen, and from there it's a walking tour.

One thing to be prepared for is that even if your tour starts at 10:00, some sites will push a glass of whisky into your hand right at the start.

The Bowmore malt mill.

Bowmore's mash tuns, notably different in style relative to Bruchladdich.

Wash tuns, soaking with a cleaning solution.

Carbon dioxide buildup is the major industrial hazard around the wash tuns.

The bottle-your-own option wasn't on that day, so I settled for a commemorative  water pitcher.

Bowmore town square.

The main street, including the Co-op where thankfully I was able to buy some fizzy water.

I'm sure WMATA and TTC have rules about bringing your doggie to work, but that doesn't seem to be an issue around here.

The wharves of Port Ellen.

I seem to have reached a crossroads of some kind.

From Port Ellen, three of my top distilleries are within a 3 mile walk and the weather cooperated.  Not a lot of shoulder on the roadway in some spots, but traffic is light and many drivers wave as they make way for you.

Laphroaig is the first port of call.  I opted not to go on the tour as I had two more stops to make that afternoon, and now that I was there the 'Find your own plot' gig seemed rather gimmicky.  I might have gone for it if I'd had more time.

Instead I opted for a bottle of Triplewood and headed off down the road.

A couple of hints that I'm headed in the right direction.

The whole industry prides itself on being low-tech, right down to the ad hoc lettering.

The Port Ellen distillery is a legend in these parts, and I'm not going to be trying out their stuff anytime soon (even though it's on the list at the Lochside).

The 2PM Lagavulin tour was fully booked but after seeing them off, our hostess set up myself and another guest with a free shot and stamped our "Classic malts" passbook–just 11 more stops to fill that in, and none of them were on the roster for this trip.

The last stop, again with its own signature color.  Thanks to a couple of no-shows, I was able to get on the last tour of the day.  I'd miss the last bus back to Bowmore, but there are alternatives.

Flavour wheel.  That's a lotsa aromatics.

Tour guide Jenny with the malts.  Ardbeg is one of several that buy their from the Port Ellen maltings.

Ardbeg mash tuns and stills.

Some sample displays from the Ardbeg tasting room.

What to make of a Scotch branded "Rollercoaster"?

The last bus of the day had already left from Ardbeg but Jenny offered to give me a lift back to Port Ellen for a 20-minute wait for the Bowmore bus.  By that time the weather had turned so I didn't follow through on my plan to get a few last shots from the road.

For the last night at the Lochside, I hung around for their dinner, prawn salad (rather conventional, with a cream sauce that was a bit smothering) and salmon, a bit more overcooked than I would have done it, but as I found through the rest of the trip, that fish stands up to all kinds of mishandling.