Scott’s Scribblings

Last Friday, Deb and I went to Hyatt Regency downtown to attend the 7th annual Chicago WhiskyFest. This was our first time and we didn’t really know what to expect. In short, it’s a 4-hour whisky convention (5 hours if you buy the VIP tickets). We were given a tasting glass to carry with us through the exhibition hall. The hall contained 200 scotches, bourbons and rye (and one tequila?!). Some booths were manned by representatives from the distillery. These ranged from master distillers to PR reps. Other booths had local recruits who knew nothing more than how much to pour. Most of the booths had someone who could answer questions. And all the booths had literature to hand out.

You can’t buy whisky at the festival, but the representatives will tell you at which local stores you can find their wares. When they’re available in this country, that is. There were several whiskies we sampled that aren’t available here.

I splurged for the VIP tickets which got us in an hour early. I’d estimate that 20% of the tickets are VIP tickets so for the first hour it’s a much smaller crowd, making booth access much easier. This is the time to sample the whiskies you want to sample the most. It is also the time to pace yourself the most. It’s very easy to get into a “kid in a (free) candy store” mentality.

The exhibition hall also had four heavily loaded buffet tables. The food was excellent and included appetizers, beef, chicken, pasta, and garlic mashed potatoes that were divine. Whisky wasn’t the thing we were in danger of overdoing.

Like any good convention, WhiskyFest had panels. We only attended one, Scotch vs. Bourbon which featured Fred Noe, Jim Beam’s Great Grandson, and Richard Paterson, Master Blender from The Dalmore. We expected a debate with friendly jabs between the two men. The line to get in was surprisingly long. As the line moved forward several people cut ahead and a man insinuated himself between Deb and myself. An usher was counting people as they went in and held the line up after Deb entered the room. I leaned around the man who’d cut in front of me and tapped the usher on the arm. “Excuse me,” I said. “My wife just went in.” Fortunately, the usher let me in.

What we hadn’t realized is that this was also a tasting event. I don’t know how many of the other seminars were tasting events. The room held several rows of tables with place settings. Each setting had four glasses of whisk(e)y. Suddenly, the long line and impatient people made sense. Deb and I got the last two seats at the tables. Other people were allowed to watch, but no whisk(e)y for them.

Both speakers were entertaining and had the audience in stitches with the friendly barbs they flung at each other. They described the history of and the methods used to create their whiskies. At the end of the seminar, Richard Paterson asked who in the audience was really passionate about whisky. I don’t think anyone in the audience would claim to be as passionate about whisky as Mr. Paterson, so there was a pause before anyone raised their hand. I saw the man sitting in front of me tentatively start to raise his hand so I tentatively raised mine. Mr. Paterson called the man in front of me up to the front of the room. He had a special whisky for him to try, a 62-year-old Dalmore. He claimed it was the most expensive whisky in the world at $68,000 a bottle. Had I not been shy, it could’ve been me tasting it.

In the end the debate of scotch vs. bourbon was declared a draw.

Another highlight of the evening was telling the representative from Auchentoshan that at our wedding reception we toasted with Auchentishan rather than champagne. He joked about setting up a press release.

Not too long after the debate the importance of pacing oneself became evident. I was definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol, but more in a weary manner thn a drunk manner. I knew it was time to stop tasting when I couldn’t really taste any more. We ended up returning to our room an hour and a half before the fest ended.

So what did I drink? In no particular order:

Tomintoul 16yo & 27yo
Suntory “Yamazaki” 12yo, 18yo, 21yo Sherry Wood
Old Pulteney 12yo, 17yo & 21yo
Wild Scotsman 15yo
Dalmore 21yo, 28yo, & “cigar malt”
Laphroiag 15yo
Jack Daniels Single Barrel
Willett Reserve Rye
Glenmorangie Port Wood Finish
(At least 2 other Glenmorangie offerings)
Bowmore 25yo
Tullamore Dew 12yo
Ardbeg Uigeadail & 1990 Airidh Nam Beist
Auchentoshan 18yo
Talisker 18yo, 175th Anniversary, Distiller’s Edition (12yo)
Penderyn (Welsh single malt)
Famous Grouse w/ ginger beer
Glenlivet 18yo
Bavenie 21yo Port Wood
Macallan 18yo & 21yo
Caol Ila 28yo

I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few. I wasn’t very diligent in taking notes and I’m mostly relying on Deb’s notes. I remember being impressed by the Japanese offerings (Suntory). They get their wheat from Scotland. I also recall really enjoying the Old Pulteney. The master distiller from Old Pulteney is friendly and answered many questions for us. Next time we’re in Scotland we’ll probably stop by (it’s at the very northern tip). And of course tasting a new Auchentoshan was a treat.

We’ll definitely go again next year. I suspect we’ll taster fewer whiskies and attend more panels.

It was about 12:30 this afternoon while watching the White Sox game that I realized that Boo! hadn’t gone out or eaten breakfast. He was sitting near the television rather than his usual place next to me and Deb on the couch. That Boo! hadn’t alerted us to these facts was very unusual. I asked him if he was hungry and immediately his head perked up. So I went to the kitchen and put his breakfast in his bowl. Boo! struggled to stand as if his foot was asleep. He took a few awkward steps before sitting down again. I carried him to his bowl so he could eat, figuring he’d be fine in a couple minutes. But several minutes later, he continued to have trouble walking. Deb mentioned that he hadn’t jumped into bed with us the night before which is also unusual.

I jumped in the shower thinking we might have to take him to the hospital. There was some concern that he had eaten some of the recalled food that’s been scaring pet owners recently. The food we had was not in the original recall and he’d already eaten several pouches without ill effects before the recall happened. (He only gets the wet food as a treat once or twice a week.) By the time I finished showering, Deb had checked the internet and found that the recall had been expanded and now included the wet food we had.

In record time the three of us were in the car and tearing down I-88 to the animal hospital. On the way, Boo! seemed to have some difficulty breathing. After checking in at the hospital and while waiting for a technician to look at Boo!, all sorts of nightmare scenarios entered my mind. What if they say it’ll cost $5,000 to treat him? What if he ends up having medical needs for the rest of his life? He only shaking like that because he’s nervous, right?

The technician brought us into an examination room and took Boo!’s vitals. Shortly after, the vet came in. I told him Boo! had eaten some of the recalled food and described his walking difficulties in a manner that suggested that clearly the two facts were related. The vet looked at me with what I’m sure is the same quizzical look I give people who make computer statements that are non-sequiturs. He didn’t seem very concerned about the food Boo! ate. Instead he wanted to see Boo! walk. Boo! had only taken a step or two when the vet noted that Boo!’s left, hind leg was lame. The vet asked if Boo! had been overly active yesterday. In fact, Boo! had. We went to my grandparents and Boo! loves to visit people. Boo! ran around their house as well as their fenced yard.

The vet felt Boo!’s spine, pushing down on it with the front of his fist. He started at the tail and worked his way forward. Around the middle of Boo!’s back, Boo! turned his head sharply to glare at the vet. Then the vet examined Boo!’s hind quarters. The verdict was that Boo! was sore from too much exercise and muscle stiffness made it hard for him to move after lying down for an extended period. Like the rest of us, Boo! isn’t as young as he used to be.

Then the vet took Boo! to the lab to draw blood to test that the food Boo! ate didn’t contain the chemical that has been making the other animals sick. He wanted to give Boo! an anti-inflammatory, but that wouldn’t be good if Boo!’s kidneys were being affected. I was going to tell him to do the blood test regardless, just for my own peace of mind. When the results came back, everything was normal. Boo! was prescribed the anti-inflammatory and 7 to 10 days of rest.

I swear, this dog gets better care than I do. Tonight, Boo! is fine. If you look closely, you can tell Boo! isn’t walking quite normally. To Boo!’s chagrin, the rest of the wet food has been thrown out.

Things not done this weekend include: Attending a White Sox game in sub-freezing temperature and processing Escape Pod submissions.

Things done this week include: Viewing White Sox games in comfort of own apartment and reviewing for .NET certification for about 10 hours.

She doesn’t mind when you call her “the ol’ battle axe”.

…On opening day.

Is there any more optimistic day than the first day of baseball?

Let’s go you White Sox!

[Update]

Well so much for that. Sox lost 12-5 with Conteras giving up 8 runs (7 earned) in 1+ inning.