rain and whiskey

Well, we had a great plan for the day- Dunluce Castle, then a quick pop into Coleraine for some groceries (and replacement tea kettles), then down to Ballintoy- which apparently has an amazing beach (for walking, not swimming) and a sweet little village. But then it started to rain. And I don't mean the kind of rain we've had since we arrived, which we essentially just ignore, since we're in Ireland and it's going to rain. I mean a cold, raw, driving rain that makes the thought of wandering about a roofless castle fairly unpleasant.

So we punted- to the whiskey distillery it was!

Bushmills Distillery is the oldest licensed distillery in the world, beginning official operations in 1608. But there are historical references to it dating back to the 1200's. So they know their whiskey! And the distillery is a short walk up the street from us. Here it is:

Oh, wait, that's just a picture of it on the 10 pound note. oops.

hahahahahahahaahahahahahahaaahahaaaaaahahahahah

No, I haven't been into the whiskey. That is just rude.

Here it is for real:

Not much to say about it, as we arrived soon before closing and they don't allow children under 8 on the tours anyway.

Essentially we spent 10 minutes in the gift shop. Which was, as far as these things go, impressive if you are a whiskey drinker.

Bushmills offers any number of different quality whiskeys- everything from cheap "coffee whiskey," as our friend calls it, to very expensive single malt triple distilled 16 year old whiskey. We had some of the good stuff last night- Black Bush. But today we got the reserve, available only here at the distillery itself. Now is it any better or is it just a ploy to get tourists to feel special and drop some cash? Hard to say. It's single malt, triple distilled, and aged 12 years. I wanted to do a taste comparison with the Black Bush tonight, but Michael won't let me open it. We got it for the Island where we go with our friends every summer and he's afraid if we open it now it won't be as good by then. John Gunn, time to step up and share your expertise, here. I've given in for tonight, but you know that conversation isn't over!

Afterwards, we wandered into a little local hotel/pub and sat by a peat fire sipping a pint, while the girls drank hot chocolate.

We'll try again for the castle tomorrow.