Edinburgh Cape Society

Thu 23 Mar 2023: Whisky Curry Beer: The Holy Trinity; The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) in The Vaults in Leith is hosting 'Holy Trinity' in association with Alechemy. Look forward to enjoying five beers, five drams and a curry in the glorious and traditionally decored main room at The Vaults.; Meet at the SMWS at 19.00. This is an all-ticket event hosted by the SMWS so please ensure you buy one if you plan to attend (£40).
Guests welcome.

Report

Martin, Colin, Phil and Steve all put their £40 hats in the ring for a night of Holy Trinity, hosted by the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) and Alechemy. Although advertised as '5 beers, 5 drams and curry', the Trade Descriptions Act had to be invoked when the phrase 'tasting evening' was introduced on the night, a Thai curry was dished (c'mon; that's not really a curry is it?) and less than two 330ml bottles per person were rolled out: each of the five bottles was shared between three people!

The jury remained out on the main theme through the evening: the complementary taste of the five chosen beer and whisky pairings dreamt up by the SMWS's whisky connoisseur, Dean, and David, primarily of Spey Valley Brewery but representing a merged partner brewery (Alechemy). For example, it's difficult to complement any food or drink with low-alcohol, lightweight L.A. Spey lager or tarry 10.5% ABV stout. The word 'subjective' and phrase, 'personal taste' were frequently spoken and heard throughout the night.

1. Kissing a Kiwi (71.96): L.A. Spey
2. Praline Dream (12.75): Ritual (pale ale)
3. Drunken Raspberries and Prunes (55.80): Bad Day at the Office (pale ale)
4. Grist Tea (82.46): Ten Storey Malt Bomb (modern 80/-)
5. Battle of the Bonfires (53.437): Bring Out the Imp

Still, the core focus of the evening: the whisky, was excellent and overflowed to an extent as Knights took advantage of the 'whisky snobbery' of some and 'mineswept' a fair number of untouched drams which obviously upset the noses of a few punters. This made the event excellent value-for-money for Cape Knights. All-in-all, it was well worth the expense and effort and could've resulted in two new Cape members but we need a report from Martin who sat next to two 'well-to-do' gentlemen sharing the table Cape Knights were seated at.

A few late night beers were added after the main Holy Trinity event, courtesy of the Malt 'n' Hops and, on the way home, at least one Knight stopped to top up his belly's meagre portion of Thai curry with pizza and chips.

Thanks to SMWS member Martin who spotted the advert for the Holy Trinity evening and brought it to the attention of Knights; and thanks to those who acted on it and came along. The whisky/beer pairings are given above for anyone who would like a small taste of the evening; cask numbers included. Tasting notes on the whiskies are on the SMWS web site: the URL for 'Kissing a Kiwi' is above.