mmm-yoso!!!

Tequila Part 3 - Chocolate and Tequila Tasting at La Rojena, Fonda Chivo y Vaca, and the Sky Bar (Hotel Solar de las Animas)

**** Here's part 3 of my mostly photo posts on our stay in Tequila

We started our last full day in Tequila, with a birote as I noted in my previous post. We wandered around a bit before heading to a tour and tasting I scheduled. We were in Tequila and it would be almost sacrilegious to not visit the oldest Tequila distillery, right? And to make things more entertaining for the Missus, I decided to do the chocolate and tequila tasting as well.

This would take place at Jose Cuervo's Fabrica la Rojena distillery. I mentioned that Jose Antonio Cuervo was the first person granted permission to produce Tequila for sale in an earlier post. Fabrica la Rojena, the distillery was established in 1812, making it the oldest active distillery in Latin America.

Finding the place was easy.....it's located on, you guessed it, Calle Jose Cuervo. The view up that street is quite lovely.

We met in front of the Mundo Cuervo Hall, where that giant crow statue stands and were soon guided on a tour of the place.

Making it to the back of the distillery where we got to see the "pina", the heart of the agave plants being delivered and prepped.

Like the previous day, it was getting pretty darn warm....this is hard work.

I had worried that doing tequila distillery tours two days in a row might lead to a lot of overlap; but to our extreme pleasure, what we learned here actually added to what we had learned the previous day. We got to be much more close up to things as well.

And there were actual displays along the way as well. I didn't know that American Oak barrels were used for Reposado and Anejo aging.

After the tour, the Missus and I met up with the nice young man who guided us thru our tasting which the Missus truly enjoyed.

What I most enjoyed was chatting with him about his life; he was born in Glendale and his family moved back to Jalisco and Tequila when he was 10 years old. Can you imagine how being seprated from your friends at that age must be? And he was more comfortable speaking English at that time. He also liked that we enjoyed the varied tastes of Blanco. And then we asked him about the new Cristalino Tequila; where Anejo is passed thru a filtering process, making it clear, and taking it back to almost being a Blanco....but charging a person even more than a Anejo? He laughed and said it's kind of a hipster thing right now.....'nuff said.

We enjoyed our tour and tasting at La Rojena.

When we were done; it was...well time for lunch. We just wanted something simple and hearty. And yes, we were in Jalisco; so Birria de Chivo was high on our list. And there was a place named Fonda Chivo y Vaca close by!

Turns out it was a three story restaurant with views of the street. We were seated on the ground floor.

Of course we got some Birria de Chivo and also Carne en su Jugo.

The Carne en su Jugo had a very upfront acidity, which was interesting.....the beans were so earthy and perfectly cooked.

The Birria de Chivo was slightly gamy; nice smokey flavors, a bit of spice.

The meat was on the chewier side. Definitely not like Birriería Las 9 Esquinas, but miles ahead of what we have here in San Diego.

Fonda Chivo y Vaca
Jesús Rodríguez de Hijar 17
Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico

On this day, we actually managed a nice siesta........

And then we woke and took a nice stroll. On an interesting note, we saw the really nice young man who did our chocolate pairing at La Rojena in the lobby of the hotel talking to the staff. Apparently, Jose Cuervo owns Hotel Solar de las Animas!

As the evening rolled around we took a nice stroll. This was a Thursday and the hotel was getting busier. As we strolled around Plaza Principal we could see the families doing there "evening thing".

We looked for a spot to have a seat and just take in the evening, but it was busy. It was then we saw a couple waving to us, they moved over on a bench and beckoned us over so we could enjoy the sights and sounds. These are the moments that make travel so special!

When dinner time came around; we just decided to head back to the hotel. On our first evening in the town, we enjoyed having a drink at the Sky Bar at our hotel. We also noticed that they had an abbreviated menu of  La Antigua Casona, the very popular restaurant in the hotel. So, we just decided to have our last dinner there. 

With a nice view of the town.

The Aguachile Negro and Jicama was just as good as what we'd had in the restaurant.

The Ceviche less so; but overall this was a nice, light meal.

Sky Bar (in Hotel Solar de las Animas)
Calle Albino Rojas #14
46400 Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico

And of course, our room with the amazing view was just a minute away.

The next morning, we woke a bit earlier than usual and took a stroll around town before our ride to the airport.

We were indeed taken be the art, the colors.....the Tequila.....but there was more that made our stay wonderful.

It was the warm people....and the pooches.....

That had us contemplating as I got that Birote yet again.....

That we'd return once again, in the middle of the week to enjoy Tequila...both the town and the drink!

Tequila Part 2 - Casa Sauza Tour Tres Generacions and Restaurante La Cueva de Don Cenobio

**** Here's part 2 of my mostly photo posts on our stay in Tequila

We'd had a wonderful first afternoon and evening in Tequila and slept well. We slept in and just enjoyed the cool A/C and of course the view from our patio.

It was a clear morning and you can see Volcán de Tequila towering over the town. We had gotten some light breakfast bars at Oxxo the previous afternoon, so we had that for breakfast. The hotel was so peaceful and we quickly noticed something. We had a room in one of the towers on the top floor. Apparently, we were the only folks staying in the tower. The evening before our elevator was at the bottom floor when we finished dinner, in the morning, the elevator was on the same floor as our room...it seemed like it hadn't moved all night. We saw folks entering their rooms in other wings of the hotel, but no lights in any rooms in our tower. I guess Tuesdays and Wednesdays are pretty quiet here in the summer?

We had a tour starting at 1pm, so we had the entire morning free. We decided to just chill.

At around 930, I started getting a bit hungry. I had noticed a pedestrian street, Augustina Ramirez, right behind the Municipal Market seemed to have a bunch of shops and stands. So we headed over.

It seemed like a lot of locals were getting breakfast and brunch here and the stand making Tortas looked really good. I got one with chorizo......man, the Birote Salados, the sourdough bread smelled fabulous. The bread traces its history back to the second French intervention. You can read more about it in this post in Breadtopia.

Anyway, this was super good.

I would get one every morning in Tequila.

And half a block away; the Missus found Her Agua Frescas heaven! She loved the Coconut Agua Fresca from here.

She would have a liter in the morning and another in the afternoon. By the following morning, the gentleman manning the stand would just start pouring it as soon as he saw us!

We made the decision to do a bit more exploring. This time, we headed down to where we had entered the town via our driver the previous afternoon, on Sixto Gorjon.

This commercial strip was full of various businesses.....

And well behaved pooches....

We decided to take a short break before heading to our tour....but first, the Missus needed another liter of Her agua fresca!

Soon it was getting close to the time of our tour at Casa Sauza. I know, you figured we'd be doing Jose Cuervo, right? Well, we were doing that the following day. Most folks know Sauza Tequila for making the not-so-good Hornitos Brand. Casa Sauza however, has several product lines, as well as several tours. I went ahead and booked the Tour Tres Generacions, which can only be done via email. This is an upgrade of the high level Causa Sauza tour that also features a private tasting and a "gourmet" (it's usually a BBQ meal for the regular tour) meal in Restaurante La Cueva de Don Cenobio, located in Quinto Sauza.

The group met in the family's estates Gift Shop.

Where one could learn a bit more of the history of Sauza Tequila.

We were taken on a quick tour of La Quinta and also briefed on the history of Sauza Tequila. It's quite beautiful here.

There's even a chapel to Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Having been to the location in CDMX where Juan Diego saw the apparition of the Virgin Mary in 1531, this really stuck with us.

After a tour of the casa were boarded a trolley and headed out to the agave field.

Where we were briefed on the life cycle of Blue Weber Agave. Unlike Mezcal, only one type of agave is used to make tequila.

And then we witnessed the Jimador showing off his skill.

Don't be fooled; this is hard work. That agave ain't small and you've got to trim it perfectly. And we all had a chance to check out the Coa de Jima which is super sharp. You could easily chop your foot off if you aren't careful.

After our time in the fields we were transported to the actual distillery.

Where the Missus and I were directed to a different spot from the rest of the tour. They would be heading off to do some tastings of Sauza and Hornitos. We met a different guide who took us to see the actual distillery which is not included in the regular tour.

Which was quite impressive.

We were then given a private tasting of Sauza's top of the line Tres Generacion, led by one of the master tasters....I think they call them "Maestros"?

We got tastes of the Blanco (aged less than 2 months in steel), Reposado (aged from 2-12 months in Oak), Anejo (aged 1-3 years in Oak), and something that was new to us at the time, Cristalino which is a Anejo that is filtered in charcoal so that it loses it's smoky personality and also becomes clear...like a Blanco (more on this in my next post). At the end the Maestro asked us what we enjoyed. Strangely enough, both the Missus and I actually liked the Blanco, the unaged in steel vats, cheapest version. She asked us why and we both said that you could really make out the agave - citrusy-grassy-slighlty fruity. She smiled and nodded saying "yes, most like smoky and rich, but I am glad you like the pureness...." I guess we scored some points?

We were then transported back to Casa Sauza and the restaurant onsite, La Cueva de Don Cenobio. We were met and seated at a nice little table. We saw the group that we were with earlier, they were just finishing their meal.

Because we had our own special tour, we had a special three course meal with two choices for an soup, main, and dessert. So, we got one of each.

In keeping with the brevity of these posts; I will say, this was our favorite meal of our stay in Tequila. That blanco tortilla soup was amazing, as was the pork belly. The fish looked totally burnt; but that charring was done on purpose, it was actually smoky, crisp, with a hint of spice and sweetness.

This was a fine meal and a nice way to end the tour. The service was very professional and while the portions weren't very large, this was more than enough food for us.

La Cueva de Don Cenobio (In Casa Sauza)
Calle Luis Navarro 70
Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico

It was past 5pm when we left Casa Sauza. It had been a full afternoon for us.

We spent some time strolling around Plaza Principal. It was the end of the day and folks seemed to be out and about.

We were enjoying Tequila!

Taiwan - Dongshan River Forest Park, National Center for Traditional Arts (Wujie), Bajia Fish Farm 八甲休閒魚場 (Yuanshan), and Kavalan Distillery

**** This is a pretty long post so I'm not going to spend too much time on food (and whiskey), so if you'd like to return tomorrow I wouldn't hold it against you. But, if you'd like to see more of Taiwan, read on....

Time was flying. It seemed like we had just arrived yesterday and here we were leaving in two days! Wanting to make the most of our remaining time in Taiwan, I went ahead and booked two private tours/drivers. On this day, I wanted to visit one of my favorite whiskey makers while exploring a part of the island we hadn't been to yet.

Our driver was right on time and while she spoke no English, the Missus's Mandarin came in handy. Our driver had an end destination and we left it up to her to make stops along the way.

The first stop was in Yilan. A rather newish "Ecopark", the Dongshan River Forest Park. Opened in 2016, it was a wonderful green space, with art installations along the way. And the railroad still passes thru the park as well.

We enjoyed wandering around and just taking in the art and the beautiful sunny day.

We had some coffee and then headed off to our next stop. Apparently, our driver just got a sort of "vibe" from the Missus for our next stop.

We stopped in Wujie Township at the National Center for Traditional Arts. This 60 acre "town" is devoted to preserving and accenting the heritage of Taiwan, be it crafts, arts, music, and so on.

The various structures represent various architectural styles of Taiwan as well.

There are even temples onsite.

And performance areas as well.

And of course art abounds.

While one could take in the art.....

Or perhaps take a boat ride in the lake.....

There was some serious shopping to be done here.

There ere workshops with artisans in residence actually doing their "thing"!

And you were free to watch.

The one shop were I wish the Missus actually bought something was the one dealing in Black Jade.

Some of the item were just plain stunning.

In the end, after being tempted so many times......

We found something we both liked.

This was fun. We actually spent almost 3 hours here!

And when we left; it was time for lunch. Our driver headed into Yuanshan. We parked and then were led past pools of fishes and other creatures being raised.

This was the restaurant of Bajia Fish Farm. As a whole, a tourist type restaurant.

The interesting thing being that the main product of this "fish farm" is Ayu, also know as "sweetfish". I was quite interested to see how it would taste.

I had read about the fish smelling like watermelon, being sweet and fruity and so on. Basically, this tasted like a milder version of sanma to me.

I was glad to have tried it here, but it wasn't anything special to me. Perhaps being farm raised changed things a bit?

Bajia Fish Farm 八甲休閒魚場 (Yuanshan)
No. 1之10號, Bajia Rd
Yuanshan Township, Yilan County, Taiwan 26444

After lunch we headed down the road a bit, soon arriving at the Kavalan Distillery.

When planning our trip to Taiwan, I had really wanted to visit Kavalan. I first had Kavalan in, of all places Paris at Arnaud Nicolas. The Missus and I really enjoyed it, when having it again at Seven Grand and found that Old Town Liquor carried Kavalan, though I really didn't get the expensive stuff. Over time, I found that I really enjoyed the Solist Amontillado Sherry Cask, but heck, I ain't spending $500 a bottle for it. Anyway, our driver dropped us at the front of the distillery. And we headed in.

Because of the amount of time we'd spent at the National Center for Traditional Arts, it was getting later in the day, and we decided not to do a tour. Instead, we went to the "main" tasting room.

And the Missus and I shared the "World Championship Series" tasting.

And with a touch of water to "open things up", the Amontillado Sherry Cask, with the rich, slightly smoky-nutty-stone fruity flavor was again our favorite.

We really enjoyed this stop!

Kavalan Distillery
No. 326, Section 2, Yuanshan Rd
Yuanshan Township, Yilan County, Taiwan 264

Soon after, it was time to head back to Taipei. It had been a fun day, but now the question was; "what's for dinner?"

Stay Tuned!

Oaxaca - Private Mezcal Experience at Palenque El Cornejo

Over the last couple of years I've become a proponent of small group or private tours. I do a bunch of research ahead of time and really want to learn and experience things. Understanding your preferences is important and reading reviews imperative. Over the last few years we've become interested in Mezcal and we were finally in the Capital of Mezcal; Oaxaca, so why not try to find a guide to learn more about Mezcal. I found a company; Where Sidewalks End that featured a private Mezcal tour they call, the "Sacred Mezcal Experience". We would actually visit a Palenque and visit the agave fields, with not only a guide, but with the Mezcalero!

Our guide, Victor picked us up at our hotel and soon we were off. During the drive we were provided so much information; the difference between Artisan and Ancestral Mezcal. Ancestral Mezcal does not allow for the use of stainless steel, the agave must be hand or stone milled, and the distillation must be done in clay pots! Also, the saying "All tequila is mezcal, but not all mezcal is tequila." That is Tequila is made from agave; but only one type of agave is used.

Soon enough we arrived at Palenque el Cornejo in Santa Catarina Minas. The very rustic palenque and tasting room greeted us.

 And while there were some folks in the tasting room; that's not where we were headed. Maestro Antonio Carlos Mendez, known as "Cornejo" greeted us. He is a third generation Mezcalero and his production, other than help from his young sons is a one man show.

Soon enough we were loaded into the back of a pick-up with Victor and two of the young boys to head out into the fields.

And after passing thru a gate the truck was parked and we headed up into the hills.

   Along the way we were introduced to the various species of agave that were growing. There are almost 50 difference species of agave used to make Mezcal; though Espadin is the most common because it can be cultivated.

What makes other species of agave difficult is that the plant can propagate in two different ways; by seeds, which you can see in the photo to the right, Antonio waits until the right time to harvest the seeds and then they can be planted nearby; or pups, little "runners" from the mother plant which can left to grow around "mom" or carefully moved. According to Antonio, some species can take over 20 years to mature. So just think, if Antonio planted seeds from certain plants today, it might be his sons who harvest the plant!

As for the species, it was quite humorous, the various plants were named and we were tested on them. I actually got 5 of the 6 correct! Not that I can name them now. Though I distinctly remember that's a Tobala below; it's very distinctive.

Some of the agave were quite impressive....

And we loved that his sons were actively involved. In fact, Victor told us that the three boys rather work in the agave fields than go to school! 

The oldest son was not able to attend on this day because of a school activity, we met him later and he was so clean cut and an amazing young man.

After our tour of the hills we headed back to the work shed. Going downhill we got a chance to appreciate the view.

Back at the work shed we were fed lunch; a nice hearty meal of tamales.

And before leaving, there was one more thing to be done. There was another reason I booked this tour. We would each get one "baby" agave to plant! So, you now what our "pups" were named, right? Also, notice the stones next to the shoots? During our walk, I noticed that the boys were placing stones next to plants and asked Victor about this. He told me this was the way to "mark" that the plants are accounted for. So, of course I got our "boys" some stones, right?

I'm hoping we can return someday to see how our "pups" are doing.

After which things were closed up and we headed back to the palenque.

We arrived back at the palenque for the next part of the tour......the production and distillation of mezcal. The heart of the agave plant is called the piña. Once harvested, these are roasted in a stone lined pit.

This is what the agave looks like when it's done. We were even given tastes of the piña.

The agave is then milled, then water is added to the fiber and juice to begin fermentation.

Then the fermented agave juice is distilled twice. 

And Antonio even described the process for Mezcal Pechuga to us.

After this, we got a private tasting.

And even though we basically only do carry-on sized luggage, even bought a couple of bottles.

This was an amazing day; we learned so much, met some wonderful, warm and hard working folks, got a taste of history and culture, which was even more than we could ask for. It was such a wonderful, humbling experience that exceeded our expectations.

This is why we travel!

Scotland (2022) - Breakfast at Port Charlotte Hotel, Bunnahabhain and Bowmore Distilleries, and Lunch at The Lochside Hotel & Restaurant (Islay)

On our first full day in Islay, we got up early, and decided to take a short stroll around Port Charlotte.

It was a charming town.

We headed back to the hotel for breakfast.

I saw something that I've always wanted to try on the menu.

It's hard to go wrong with any smoked fish in Scotland and the Missus ordered the Loch Fyne Smoked Salmon with Poached Eggs.

There was a bread, dairy, and cereal station available. The salmon was quite good and the eggs perfect.

I had always wanted to try Kippers and here I finally had a chance. I ordered the Loch Fyne Smoked Kippers.

Man, with the fried potato scone, this was so good. Deeply savory, wonderful smoked fish flavors, perfect salt. A squeeze of lemon to help cut the richness and we were good to go. The Missus had a taste and was sold. In fact, She would order this the next morning for breakfast!

Port Charlotte Hotel
Main St.
Port Charlotte PA48 7TU, Scotland

As usual Sean was on time for our pick-up. One of the benefits of having a private driver/tour is the flexibility. We found that doing three tastings in a day was a bit much for us and asked Sean if he could cut it down to two for this day. Which was no problem.

The first stop was just a quick one. Ardnahoe Distillery was fairly new, opening in 2019. Sean had never been there so he asked us if we'd like to take a look.

It was very modern and sleek looking. It was a nice stop to stretch our legs a bit and the Missus enjoyed all of the portraits of Her favorite animal; the Highland Cow....which they call "Heilan' Coo".

The next stop was Bunnahabhain Distillery. It was quite a drive to the distillery.

   Our visits on this day revolved around tastings, though we were given an short walking tour of the distillery.

Bunnahabhain Distillery is known as the most remote distillery on Islay. We were told that the village of Bunnahbhain was created to actually house the distilleries employees! Their Scotch is also unique as they are known for their unpeated Scotch Whiskey.

When it was time for our tasting were were each given an impressive "tasting kit"!

There was no way the Missus and I would finish one each; so we split one and brought the other home, which I gave to "FOY" JeffP. 

The Missus thought this a bit on the overly "sweet" side; while I really liked the 18yo and the Amontillado Cask versions.

We had quite the drive to our next destination; Bowmore and Sean made a stop at a wonderful ceramic shop named Persabus Pottery which the Missus loved.

She ended up buying a beautiful looking cup

And it looks like cats are loved and most welcomed here!

It was about a half hour drive to the town of Bowmore. Which, after staying in Port Charlotte, and visiting the distilleries and villages seemed like a big city (it's the Administrative Captial)....with a population of.....700!

We made a quick stop at the pharmacy, before heading off to Bowmore Distillery.

The Visitor Center seemed a bit more fancy than the other tasting rooms. And instead of a tour there was a video presentation. Bowmore was the first "legal" distillery on Islay, founded in 1779.

Which came with 2 free tasters of our choice.

It's nicely balanced, with nice fruity tones.

After this tasting we stopped for lunch at the The Lochside Hotel & Restaurant. We'd eaten quite a bit for breakfast, so the Missus and I went with some smaller, starter items.

The Missus enjoyed Her Stornoway Black Pudding.

Which was fairly crumbly, but pleasant to eat, quite moist, not overly "iodiney", and nicely seasoned, perhaps a  bit on the salty side, which made it go good with the poached egg.

If you noticed; I've been looking for dishes I'd read or heard about during my meals on Islay. And here I got the Cullen Skink.

Basically a smoked haddock cream soup....think of it as a less thick smoky chowder if you will. Actually, I enjoyed the rustic bread the most! This was nice and filling.

The Lochside Hotel & Restaurant
20 Shore St.
Bowmore, Isle of Islay PA43 7LB, Scotland

Sean had noticed that we took a bit on interest in the rather unique looking church in the town. So after lunch we drove on up to Kilarrow Church.

It's quite an eye catcher to be sure. Built in 1767, Kilarrow Church is still used to this day, making it the oldest church still in use on Islay.

There's a cemetery right next to the church that caught my eye.

This is a Commonwealth War Graves site.

I was rather shocked to see many "Unknown" tombstones. According to this website there are:

"36 unknown seamen of the Merchant Navy" 

Buried here. Very sad.

We started heading back to Port Charlotte, taking in the views....

Because it was still rather early in the day; Sean had one more stop in mind before dropping us at the hotel! 

Stay Tuned!

Scotland (2022) - Ardbeg, Lagavulin, and Laphroaig Distilleries. Dinner at Port Charlotte Hotel (Islay)

After a nice day in Oban, we headed off early the next morning to catch the ferry to Port Ellen on Islay. It was a bit of a drive and I was quite fascinated with the whole thing as I hadn't ever been on a ferry this large before. I mean the ferry could hold buses and semi's, heavy construction equipment. It let cars in first, then had the cars lifted to the ceiling. I'd ridden the Washington State Ferry several times; but this was much larger.

We were entertained by this pup while waiting to get our van onto the ferry.

It was drizzling a bit and the pooch just wasn't into going to do his business or even a walk. He refused to move until finally; his "Dad" let him back into the car! It was pretty funny. We knew who ran things in this family!

The ferry was quite spacious and well equipped and had several designated areas.

Sean our driver told me to meet him back at the van a few minutes before docking; so we headed out to relax.

We saw the pooch sitting with Dad and eventually napping away in the pet friendly area. It must have been a pretty tough morning! The seats and sofas there were quite comfortable.

After a while, we headed off to the coffee kiosk for a caffeine fix.

There was some pretty comfortable seating here as well.

And the coffee decent as well.

Soon enough we had arrived at Port Askaig.....

Sean had arranged for three distillery visits and we'd be hitting them right in a row.

But first, we stopped here.....

What in god's name is this you might ask? Well, this is what gives Islay Scotch Whiskey its unique character. It's peat, basically an accumulation of decayed organic matter.

The peat is dried, then slowly burnt to give Islay Scotch it's smoky flavor.

And then it was time for our stops. Like many of the tours we do these days...most private or small group, there's just so much information.....I'll just do quick recaps of our visits.

First stop Ardbeg Distillery.

Most of the distilleries we visited had a similar look; the white washed buildings and some had wonderful views as well.

We loved Ardbeg's "mascot"!

We did a tour of the grounds and got a nice history; Ardbeg was established in 1815! We then got a tasting.

Quite peaty; though a good amount of sweetness came thru.

Lagavulin was next. The setting was amazing as there are ruins of a castle right in the bay in back of the distillery. This is Dunyvaig Castle.

We got a nice rundown of the machinery here; some of it unique and almost one of a kind.

The tasting here was quite diverse; everything from really strong with a "bite" to quite peaty. We were told that the pot stills are filled to the maximum at Lagavulin; thus the contact with copper is lower than most other brands creating a unique flavor profile.

The Missus's favorite Scotch is from Laphroaig, so She was looking forward to our visit. And overall, the Laphroaig tour was the most comprehensive as well.

We actually got to go into a malting room.

Saw peat being "burned".....

And was basically walked thru much of the process.

As for the tastings....well, the Missus still likes Her Laphroaig 10! And perhaps the Quarter Cask. I'm more of a Sherry Oak kind of guy and I had a taste of the 16...oh my!

Looks like some other folk like Laphroaig too!

Perhaps our favorite part of the tour were the "opinion tiles" which detail the love-hate polarizing opinions of the Laphroaig. These are at the entrance of the distillery.

It details at the bottom of the tile details what the person tasted.

My favorite one was.....

There were a group of Frenchmen....wearing kilts and all the gear on a Scotch pilgrimage! Sean went and took photos of them.

You gotta love this place!

Islay was indeed beautiful; the folks warm and welcoming. And the scenery......

But man, we were bushed. Sean dropped us off at out accommodation, the very comfortable Port Charlotte Hotel.

And after doing a bit of research before our trip; I figured that the most suitable meals for us would be in the hotel.

And it would turn out to be a good choice.

We started with 6 Loch Gruinart (local) Oysters.

My goodness; these were so good! Not overly briny; with a sweet-cucumbery aftertaste. We ended up ordering another half-dozen.

The Wild Mushroom Salad was also quite good.

Good earthy flavors; loved the addition of pine nuts added that unique, almost sweet flavor. The truffle oil dressing didn't hurt things at all either.

The Seafood Chowder was interesting; tomato based.

Really couldn't taste much other than the broth.

The Chips were ok.

A bit too dense for my liking.

The Islay Scallops were good, but not seared enough.

Really enjoyed the beets though! Very sweet and perfectly cooked.

And of course, an encore of oysters.

Port Charlotte Hotel
Main St.
Port Charlotte PA48 7TU, Scotland

After dinner we took a stroll.

Port Charlotte was like something from a postcard. 

Something that I only thought existed in movies. It was peaceful, relaxed, and we were enjoying things.

Thanks for stopping by!

Scotland (2022) - Oban Distillery and Coast Restaurant (Oban)

After starting in Edinburgh and making our way past Loch Lomond and Luss, we arrived at our destination for the evening, Oban. While I had read that Oban was quite touristy, we really enjoyed the laid back atmosphere of the town.

Of course, since we were on a private whiskey tour, the first stop was Oban Distillery.

Just to let you know how relaxed Oban was; check out the pooch sleeping belly up in the window across the busy parking lot of the distillery.

Sean guided us in and got us on our tour.

Our guide was a hoot.....with a great sense of humor. He went over the five major Scottish Regions that make Scotch Whiskey and then the Flavour Map.

And then we were off into how Oban makes their whiskey. I won't go into that detail, but you can find a good outline here. Scotch Whiskey uses copper stills. We were told that the copper binds with the sulphurs released during the fermentation process. Thus the liquid produced has a cleaner taste. We were also told during our tours that each distillery has its own design for pot stills.

As for Oban....you gotta love our guide, who photobombed me when I wanted to take a photo of the stills.

At the end we had a sampling. The Missus prefers a more peaty-smoky Scotch; the versions here had a nice bit of almost citrusy-fruitiness to it.

This was a fun first stop for us!

Oban Distillery
Stafford St
Oban PA34 5NH, Scotland, United Kingdom

After freshening up at our hotel we set out to explore a bit and then find some dinner.

Oban was a charming town and we enjoyed the views.

We saw an interesting church from the harbor and decided to walk on over to the Northern side of town past the main road to check out Saint Columba's Cathedral.

If you're interested, here's some good info on the Cathedral.

We then headed back into the city. We went thru a more residential neighborhood before getting to Dunollie Road.

Which turned into George Street where I had a place on my list named Coast Restaurant, which seemed to have the type of menu we enjoyed so we headed on over. It was exactly at opening time; 530pm so we easily got a table.

The service was warm and welcoming; typical of all the service we had in Scotland.

The Missus started with some wine. I got a Isle of Jura 10 Year Single Malt.

The menu itself was divided into two parts; the Light Bite menu, where you could even have some of the starters as mains, and the A La Carte menu. We chose items from both to make out dinner.

The Missus wanted to try the mussels, so we ordered that off the Light Bites menu as a main (£15).

I believe mentioning how amazing the seafood was in Scotland and this was no exception. Sweet, tender, not a gritty bite found anywhere. This was so good.

We also got the Crab Pot (£9.5).

Wonderfully sweet and briny crab claw meat, with a refreshing, if a bit too sweet creme fresh, we enjoyed the baby chard and arugula which helped develop a textural contrast and add earthiness to the dish.

And also the starter of "Hand Dived Scallops" - £10.95. 

So sweet, tender, perfectly rare in the center. The smoked bacon added another layer of flavor and smokiness. The tempura samphire tasted like asparagus. This was quite good...and look Black Radish, more than one scallop for almost half the price!

This was a nice dinner. We'd gladly eat here again.

Coast Restaurant
104 George St.
Oban PA34 5NT, Scotland, United Kingdom

After dinner we went for our usual stroll. 

 There's something about the pace of life here that really made one relax.

Though many places seemed to close early. Folks would pass us on the street and greet us.

We returned to our room and settled in. Tomorrow would be quite a day as we'd be taking the ferry to Islay and visit not one, but three distilleries.

Thanks for stopping by!