Leap Year - Enter The Kracken

So today is a fairly uncommon day. It's not every year that in Gregorian calender tradition we add an extra day to the year, thanks to Mr Julius 'I came, I saw, I conquered' Caesar. Every 29th February unmarried men the world over bury their heads in the ground for fear of the marriage-starved gaze of their girlfriends, who for one day every four years become a dazed engagement-proposing zombie. On this day a small quantity of the population also celebrate their birthdays, enjoying extended youth through the division by four.

Noah inspecting his new home

With all this rarity knocking around I have also indulged in a rare extravagance. I, with Mrs Peatreek, have purchased a hamster. This idea was formulated by my pet starved girlfriend adopting the wide-eyed pleading, as seen by the wedding-gown starved girls mentioned above, for something small and cute. As much as I'd love a dog I can't afford one and I have refused to accept any other pet. However, finally, I cracked and in a wave of excited mania Ellen purchased everything under the sun you would need to own a hamster... including a name. So all that was left was to choose a hamster to fill a cage... and a name. For all my reluctance it took barely a minute. After a couple of hamsters whored themselves before the glass screen it was a little man with an inquisitive face that caught my eye. This was Noah, the hamster, the hero, the legend. With that we packed him off back to the flat where he is currently indulging in a running wheel and some carrot.

So to conclude this rare blog, I'm going to finish with a rare review. I don't review spiced rum as a matter of principle. I like to taste spirits and wine that are untainted by additives, including spices. However, this spiced rum has caught my eye for a while and with its excellent branding luring me in, I couldn't resist. Packaged in a Victorian-style flagon I give you the Kracken!

Kracken
40% - Black Spiced Rum - Caribbean Origin
Nose: Obviously spicy; cinnamon, clove, nutmeg. Followed with muscavado sugar and heaps of vanilla. There is also a Pepsi element for the Sailor Jerry fans.
Palate: Burnt caramel, vanilla intermingle with cloves and ginger in an exceptionally soft palate.
Finish: Vanilla, cinnamon and lime. Very tropical and very Caribbean.
Overall: A good spiced rum. The flavours I enjoyed, but the caramel/vanilla element lingered longer than was pleasantly required. I would have liked some Kracken-eske edge personally, hint hint more alcohol less E150a.

Peatreek Whisky Mince Pies

Ready to go in the oven.

Despite being snowed under at work, like a Glenfiddich Cask in 2010, I have found time to embark on a little experiment. My theory was that whisky is an ideal accompaniment to any Christmas cuisine, then I hypothesised that mince pies may be an excellent example of this. Mincemeat has brandy or rum stirred through it so why not whisky?

The base of my mincemeat was Bramley apples, medium cider and soft dark brown sugar. Then enhanced with some lemon zest and juice, almonds, raisins, currents, and a spice combination. Once this had stewed and cooled I stirred through a generous dose of whisky. The choice of whisky was a no-brainer, only the Compass Box Spice Tree would do. Its cardamon, clove, nutmeg and cinnamon flavour profile would perfectly harmonise with the mincemeat.

The first lesson I learnt was that although the mincemeat tasted fantastic (I apologise for the vanity, but it really did), it didn't taste overly whiskyfied. Maybe the Spice Tree complimented the mincemeat too well? So my next move was to make whisky butter. Now I make rum butter (one part butter, one part light brown sugar, a little Nutmeg and complete saturation with rum) to go with Frei Kirk. Frei Kirk is a Scottish Christmas pudding from a recipe passed down through my Dad's side of the family. The recipe is a secret so I am forbidden to divulge it here, although please feel free to drop by my flat on Christmas day for a taste. So my plan was to substitute the rum for the Spice Tree and by jingo did it work. I separated the lids from the (cooked) mince pies and spread the whisky butter over the mincemeat before replacing the lid. What I was left with was a mince pie with a distinct whisky flavour that didn't overpower the mincemeat but added more depth and warmth to a Christmas staple.

I am now thinking of stirring whisky through the pastry instead of water, maybe some Bowmore Tempest (Batch 3), who knows?

Peatreek Whisky Mince Pies & Butter
ABV Unknown - No Age Statement - Baked at Peatreek HQ
Nose: Pastry
Palate: Stewed apple, spice, sweet butter and Scotch Blended Malt Whisky.
Finish: Moreish!
Overall: The start of further whisky-food-combinations.

An Exception To The Rule... BenRiach Arumaticus Fumosus

The world is full of exceptions to rules. The English language is positively riddled with them, "'I' before 'E' except after 'C'" being a flawed classic. Laws, especially when applied to those who make them, are diseased with exceptions and I am sure any game ever invented has a few thrown in for good measure (except perhaps connect four). Although exceptions make the world a more interesting and intriguing place they are also a major annoyance. For example: explaining a relatively simple concept to someone and, just when you think they've finally understood it, having to say "however there is an exception...". The whisky world is rife with exceptions. Quite often through my work I have to teach people the ins and outs of whisky. To keep it simple I work around the whisky regions of Scotland but of course every region has its exceptions. Islay has Bunnahabhain, the Islands have Arran, and Speyside has BenRiach. I usually skip over exceptions to keep things simple however it also means I forget about them. So recently I thought I'd pay more attention to these anomalies. The distillery I chose to explore was BenRiach, the peated Speyside. It was a distillery that I was dubious of, partly because I hadn't heard much about it but also because I had my doubts that Speyside could match the peaty passion of Islay - having previously tried the Benromach Peat Smoke I should have known better...

BenRiach Arumaticus Fumosus
46% - 12 Year Old - Dark Rum Finish
Nose: This whisky is meaty; smoke infusing itself in a hog roast lathered with sweet barbecue sauce.
Palate: Reminds me of punch, a rum kick from the cask finish with barley sweet flavours and some peat to boot.
Finish: Heathery and floral at first but then spicy and smoky with coffee following.
Overall: Arumaticus Fumosus is apparently Latin for 'smoky rum', for all that rum that was drunk in Roman times. That aside, I was impressed with this dram. It had layers of flavour that complimented its peating. BenRiach do a lot of different finishes so I couldn't say if this was comparatively under par or high quality, but it has intrigued me to find out. It is an exception to the rule I can live with, and I am curious to try more!