A wee dram

I've just spent a week in Scotland, firstly staying deep in the glen beside Loch Voil and then in Helensburgh, close by Loch Lomond and its fabulous golf course. Unlike most of the country it seems, we were blessed with good weather - the air was clear and soft and when it did occasionally rain, the showers moved quickly away. It's a long time since I visited the glorious Scottish countryside and this year I was happy to byepass the Edinburgh Festival for an equally dramatic experience. The surrounding lush, deep greeness was in stark contrast to the baked yellowing parks and gardens I'd left behind in London.
As part of my visitor experience, both my hosts introduced me to their local whisky, for which all that lovely Scottish water is an important constituent. Firstly, Deanston Single Malt from the distillery near Callander. Their water comes from the nearby River Teith and whilst the distillery uses unpeated malted barley, the water contains enough peaty traces in itself to create what was described to me, happily sipping away, as a 'slight smokey note' in the finished whisky. Uniquely at Deanston they are producing organic whisky and in a few months will be releasing their first ten-year old malts for which even the casks had to be de-charred, re-fired and re-assembled.
Not far from Helensburgh is the Auchentoshan Distillery, situated at the foot of the Kilpatrick Hills. Their water comes from Loch Katrine, used uniquely in a triple distilling process which creates a particularly smooth and delicate malt whisky. Having personally examined the stills, I reckoned I was fully prepared for my tasting session and learned how just the merest splash of water magically releases all those amazing flavours.