What's It All About, eh?

Cape Breton evokes deep memories and strong emotions for me as well as a deep appreciation for the beauty of my adopted island. My hopes are that you too might find the photos evocative - maybe a view you've not enjoyed before, or an 'Oh I've been there', or if from away that you may be encouraged to visit this fair isle so that you might come to love and breathe Cape Breton as I do. One word about place names that I use - some are completely local usage while others are from maps of Cape Breton that I've purchased over the years. I frequently post travel and other photos that are of interest to me - and hopefully you.

On the right hand side bar find my take on Single Malt whiskey - from how to best enjoy this noble drink to reviews (in a most non-professional manner) of ones that I have tried and liked - or not. Also musings, mine and others, on life in general.

Photographs are roughly 98%+ my own and copy-righted. For the occasional photo that is borrowed, credit is given where possible - recently I have started posting unusual net photographs that seem unique. Feel free to borrow any of my photos for non-commercial use, otherwise contact me. Starting late in 2013 I have tried to be consistent in identifying my photographs using ©smck on all out of camera photos I personally captured - (I often do minor computer changes such as 'crop' or 'shadow' etc but usually nothing major), and using
©norvellhimself on all photos that I have played around with in case it might not be obvious. Lately I have dropped the ©smck and have watermarked them with the blog name.

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Walking The Back Wood




03 June 2013

Three's A Crowd

04 June 2013
The river - the North East River - is still tidal here but navigable only by shallow draft boats - think canoes and flat bottomed bass boats - but the wild life crowd love it - here two Mallards and a small turtle prepare to do a little down time snoozing and maybe catching a little sun if it comes out from behind the cloud cover.

Strathisla Pure Highland Malt Scotch Whisky, 12 Year Old - Post II


Lucked out and found a liquor store going out of business and got a nice buy on several single malts, one of which I just sampled, to wit:

Chivas Brothers Strathisla Pure Highland Malt Scotch Whisky, 12 year old, 43% ABV (which also happens to be the prime constituent of Chivas Regal 12)

My initial take agrees fairly well with a lot of reviews that I just read - a very good (75 to 85) rating - and more to the point, fairly smooth after the first taste, oaky, very mildly sweet, and some hints (hints!!) of peat, or at least wood smoke with a nice complex finish. 

More later - (Love the old style flat bottle - so old the cork disintegrated, its a shame the aging stops once it's taken from the cask and bottled in glass - and most importantly I got it for about 60% of the cheapest store around and as much as 40% of some web sites)



The above was posted 29 December 2012 - below is the update as of todays posting:


Michael Jackson's Complete Guide to Single Malt Scotch comments:

   House Style -  Dry, fruity.  After dinner.
     COLOUR   -   Full, deep gold.
     NOSE         -  Apricot.  Cereal grains.  Fresh, juicy oak.
     BODY        -  Medium, rounded.
     PALATE     -  Sherryish, fruity.  Mouth -coating.  Teasing sweet-and-dry character
     FINISH      -   Smooth and soothing.  Violets and vanilla.
     
score 80


NorvellHimself’s take before reading Michael Jackson:

- amber to deep golden brown, slightly oily with nice bite of alcohol, not too strong - just letting you know that it’s whisky with hints of wharf flavor – when I hear reviewers say ‘tarry taste’ it brings to my mind a downer connotation but the Strathisla hints at tarred notes in a mild odour kind-of-way a visual kind-of-way and I imagine poor young kids in the deep south of yesteryear taking fragile tar bubbles from the sleek hot macadam road and tasting them with their tongues onto them – more a mild atavistic memory of flavor of tar – as I swallow the nice liquor a bit to quickly it catches in my throat as a long dying ember of finish – this is just a great whisky with my mind flowing to the sight and nose-taste of long wide tendrils of brown kelp curing in the sun at the Mointeach (mon-yuck as the old Gaelic ones say) – this whisky is not flavours of sweetness (although overtures of mild honey are there) of fruits but a whisky with an earthiness of life moving me to a higher awareness of the usquebaugh of the highlands.  

Well other than in score I don’t seem to agree much with Michael Jackson, eh?