Tänase päeva kõige olulisem eesmärk oli Laphroaigi viskitehase külastus. Selle viski kinkisid mulle sünnnipäevaks ka minu kallid külalised (nagu te juba aru saite on täna kirjutajaks Teet).
Huvitav on muidugi juba see asjaolu, et ühel Hiiumaa sarnasel saarel asub kaheksa viskitehast. Veel kummalisem on aga see, et jalutades Selveris oli seal müügil neist umbes viie tehase toodang.
Nüüd aga veidi lähemalt. Mis siis on ühe hea viski olulised koostisosad.
Today’s most important goal was to visit the Laphroaig whisky distillery. This whisky was also given to me for my birthday by my dear guests (as you have already realized, today’s writer is Teet).
It’s interesting, of course, that on one island similar to Hiiumaa there are eight whisky distilleries. Even more peculiar is that walking in Selver, products from about five of these distilleries were on sale there.
But now in a bit more detail. What are the essential ingredients of a good whisky.
Kõigepealt vili. Šoti viskit tehakse odrast. Laphroaigi valmistamisel valmistavad nad 15% toorainest ise traditsioonilisel meetodil ja see annabki viskile tema erilise maitse. Terad lastakse veidi idanema ja siis fermenteeritakse neid nädal spetsiaalses ruumis. Peale seda kuivatatakse terad erilises ruumis, mis näeb välja üsna suure suitsuahju sarnane. (Omal ajal suitsetatigi seal lisaks ka sealiha). Kütteks kasutatakse kohalikku turvast (selle rohkus ongi vist viskitehaste rohkuse põhjuseks). Turvast lõigatakse käsitsi, sest siis jääb turbasse rohkem niiskust ja see tekitab tugevama suitsu.
First, the grain. Scottish whisky is made from barley. In making Laphroaig, they prepare 15% of the raw material themselves using the traditional method, and this gives the whisky its special taste. The grains are allowed to germinate slightly and then are fermented for a week in a special room. After that, the grains are dried in a special room that looks quite like a large smokehouse. (In the past, pork was also smoked there). Local peat is used for heating (its abundance is probably the reason for the abundance of whisky distilleries). The peat is cut by hand, because then more moisture remains in the peat and it produces stronger smoke.
Edasi on asi üsna tavaline. Saadud mass pannakse käärima, destilleeritakse ja pannakse tammevaatidesse laagerduma.
Koos meiega oli tuuril väga rahvusvaheline seltskond. Eesti, Soome, Rootsi, Brasiilia ja Uus-Meremaa olid kõik esindatud kahe inimesega. Ilmselt on põhjamaade tugeva esindatuse põhjuseks ka see, et esimesena õnnestuski seda viskit eksportima hakata põhjamaadesse. Siis tuli USA, kus muuseas oli see ainus viski, mida tohtis keeluseaduse ajal müüa, kuna see kvalifitseerus oma spetsiifilise maitse tõttu ravimiks.
After that, things are fairly standard. The resulting mass is fermented, distilled and placed in oak barrels to mature.
With us on the tour was a very international crowd. Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Brazil and New Zealand were all represented by two people each. Probably the reason for the strong Nordic representation is also that they first succeeded in starting to export this whisky to the Nordic countries. Then came the USA, where, by the way, this was the only whisky that was allowed to be sold during Prohibition, as it qualified as medicine due to its specific taste.
Edasi tulime juba tuttavat teed pidi tagasi Obanisse. Siin on meie koduks Backpackersite hotell. Meeldiva üllatusena tuli välja, et meid oli upgrade’tud ja paigutatud sviiti. Sviit tähendab küll siin seda, et meil on oma toas oma vannituba ja WC. Aga peale seitset ööd telgis magamist on see midagi väga ebatavalist:). Lausa uskumatu tunne on see, et riideid seljast võttes ei hakkagi kohe külm.
We then came back to Oban on the already familiar road. Here our home is the Backpackers hostel. As a pleasant surprise, it turned out that we had been upgraded and placed in a suite. Suite here means that we have our own bathroom and WC in our room. But after seven nights of sleeping in a tent, this is something very unusual :). It’s quite an incredible feeling that when taking off your clothes, you don’t immediately get cold.
Linn on väga ilus ja homme läheme 7-tunnisele merereisile eesmärgiga näha mõnda huvitavat mereelukat.
The town is very beautiful and tomorrow we’re going on a 7-hour sea trip with the goal of seeing some interesting marine life.
