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Monday, 28/Jan/2008

Islay Whisk(e)y in Men's Vogue

During my next visit to the newsagent (or the supermarket) I'll have to check if Mens's Vogue is available here in the UK. Looking at the Condé Nast UK site it doesn't look like it and it's not a magazine I'd normally be interested in. But if it mentions Islay I have to make an exception. I believe there might be more in the print edition (more about that later), some of it is available in the online version at Cellar: Islay reveals the secrets of the kings of single-malt Scotch:

Advocates—if we can call them that—of the Scotch whiskeys of Islay will always tell you that the sea runs through them, that gales and seaweed give these amber elixirs their salty, pungent power. After all, the isle of Islay (pronounced "EYE-la") is a peaty speck in the Atlantic six hours and several ferries from Glasgow. It is only 25 miles by 20, with a population of 3,400 and an airport that looks like a garden shed. Does the rain trickle into Islay's whiskey, too? For when does it not rain on beautiful, desolately weird Islay, the so-called Queen of the Hebrides?

Actually, the answer to the last question is, ‘more often than you might think’. Water does run low on Islay occasionally and distilleries need a lot (that's probably an understatement) of water.

But back to the article in general. Apart from the dodgy spelling of whisky (As far as I'm concerned the correct spelling is whisky. Whiskey is that weird stuff they make in the US and the quite nice stuff they make over in Ireland) and that they must have huge garden sheds in the US I quite like what Lawrence Osborne has written about Islay and the whisky making process on Islay. It should provide a good overview to what I assume to be the typical American Men's Vogue reader (young male professional, not yet a single malt drinker but potentially interested). Hopefully an entry point for them to discover Islay Single Malts, at some point followed by a visit to Islay to see the source of the best whisky in the world.

Others seem to disagree with me: In their forums reader PaulS is much more critical and harsh than me. Opinions differ.

I have reasons to believe that there might be more in the print edition (in particular in regards to pictures). I'll try to get my hands on a copy here in the UK, but if anyone from the US is reading this who can shed a light on it I would appreciate a note in the comments or via e-mail.

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