Whether you believe he is a Scottish Icon or just an extraordinarily talented scoundrel, Robert Burns, the famous poet, lyricist and whisky drinker, deserves to be toasted on his Birthday on January 25th.  Originally, the plan for this article was to present THE most comprehensive list of Burns Night events worldwide. I was quickly however dissuaded from that task upon reading that there are over 3,000 formal venues in 80 countries.  It seems the estimated 45 million people claiming Scottish descent have their equivalent to St. Patrick's day, though it is clearly not as well advertised.

Having backed off from production of the mother of all Burns Night lists, I will instead share some of the more interesting ways to venerate "The Bard" on his day.  Please note that you can click through on the highlighted words to reach each website mentioned in this article. 

In my opinion, the most authentic way to celebrate, would be to attend a Burns Night Supper at either the Brig O' Doon Hotel in Alloway, Scotland or The Globe Inn located in Dumfries.  The "Brig" hotel is postcard picture perfect and was the site of last year's launch of Scotland's year long "Coming Home" celebration. For a small taste of Alloway's beauty, log on to this delightful You-Tube video by TimeTravellersGirl.  Alternatively, The Globe Inn was Robbie's personal haunt in later years with every inch now packed with memorabilia.  I would like to think that he also left a wee bit of his spirit behind.  It was in Dumfries where he wrote some of his most famous poems and where he died at the young age of 37 on the very day his last child Maxwell was born.

Moving on from morbid to merriment, I was surprised to learn that the glorious Edinburgh and Stirling castles are doing little to celebrate their national treasures.  Sure their cafes will be serving haggis and neeps, but only castle Urquhart has the presence to offer a tipple of scotch to visitors on that day.  Me thinks a better alternative is to head for The Whiski Bar on the Royal Mile or Edinburgh Castle Pub in San Francisco, California.

World wide travelers have some interesting alternatives through Caledonian clubs as far flung as South Africa, Nepal, Azerbaijan, Australia and France. I wonder if they follow the traditional format for Burns night at the China World Hotel in Beijing?  They probably don't at the 12th Gung Haggis Fat Choy Robbie Burns Chinese New Year Dinner at the Floata Seafood Restaurant in Vancouver, B.C. 

The United States weighs in with events in Memphis Tennessee and Moscow Idaho which holds the only known BYOB.  My choice for the real deal in the U.S. of A. would be St. Andrew's bar in Manhattan where I'm sure they follow the rules to the letter of Burns Night law. But then again where else can you go but Mulligan's on the Blue in Wailea, Hawaii to hear Maui's newest celtic band Finn McCoul play at the Burns night Scottish/Hawaiian buffet?

If you are looking for a venue near you, I would suggest that you start with the official Burns Night 2010 Facebook site.  Here over 100 fans are beginning to congregate to communicate events worldwide.  You might also check to see if your city has a local Scottish Heritage or Caledonian Club, as I'm sure they will be partying on the 25th.  There is also a World Wide Robert Burns Club which should be able to help you find the most highbrow events in the hood.  Even Cyberspace fans can contact Austin Tate to celebrate Robbie's night at the Virtual World of Whisky in Second Life. (Let me know how this turns out).   My "Fantasy Burns Night" would include renting a castle in Scotland where Burns look-a-like Christopher Tait would entertain 30 of my closest friends.  Music would be provided by the Royal Scots Dragoon Guard who would be invited to join our revelry.  Nick Nairn would be chef for the event and every single malt at the open bar would be older than our poet.

Since this dream is unlikely to come true, I decided that Sip Smoke Savor should at least do its part in joining the Virtual Toast to the Fabulous Mister Burns on his birthday.  This wonderful idea was the brainchild of Julie Deans and Steve Higson and we encourage you to visit their website World Wide Toast to Robert Burns (friends Geoff & Marion seen here in picture courtesy of their site).  Last year they organized this event to commemorate his 250th anniversary.  An overwhelming success, they logged over 27,000 toasts and decided to make this an annual internet event.  We would like to join them in spirit and will be logging our own party to their tally this year.

As our numbers are small, we invite you to be included in our tally.   Just raise a glass between 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. (your own time zone) on January 25th, 2010.  Address a personal birthday wish to "The Bard" on The Wall of our Event page on SipSmokeSavor Facebook.  We encourage you to upload your photo with glass in hand.  We will include you in our count for this Sip Smoke Savor Virtual Toast when we register it on Julie and Steve's website.  Be sure to tell us what scotch you are drinking.  We also invite you to join us as we Tweet live at our own party on January 25th in Southern California starting at 7:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, because we wouldn't want you to be drinking alone on Burns Night.

Slainte Mhath

Glenmorangie has recently set the bar very high for themselves.  On the heels of public success with Nectar D'Or, Quinta Ruban and Lasanta, they released the wonderfully spicy Astar.  This was followed by the chocolated malt Signet which Dr. Bill Lumsden describes as his "Magnum Opus".  No doubt, this malt is one of the most intriguing spirits to hit the scene in a long time.  I was fortunate to catch up with Glenmorangie's Master of Whisky Creation by telephone on September 9th, to ask a few questions about whisky flavor development and learn more about the Signet expression.

When asked about the first single malt he had ever tasted, Dr. Lumsden chuckled and warned me that his response would sound as if his marketing department "wrote the script".  In his student days while studying Biochemistry, he drank mostly beer, wine and blended whiskies.  In 1984 at a party in Edinburgh, someone thrust a Glenmorangie 10 Year Old in his hand.  "It was so wonderful, so suprisingly soft and easy to drink, at that point I became hooked on malts".

As scotch became the drink of choice, his studies began to shift to non-medical applications of Biochemistry.  He completed his PhD thesis in Yeast Physiology and entered the industry as a research scientist.  Over the years, he became more keen to create something rather than examine it.  This ex-malter and cereal scientist attained his wish in 1995, when he joined Glenmorangie as Distillery Manager.  Today he is responsible for Distilling and Whisky Creation for the Glenmorangie and Ardbeg brands.  He is recognized as a leader in the industry, winning many awards and accolades for his "wood management" and exotic finishes.

I was curious to know what inspires the creation of a new whisky expression.  Dr. Lumsden replied that with frequent travel he has a chance to sample many different cuisines and tries to understand their flavors.  In particular the taste of the orient holds a certain inspiration for him.  While whisky is his passion, wine is his hobby.  As he tours the wine regions of the world, he's always thinking about the wine barrels and imagining how their flavors might work for a particular cask maturation.  Finally, in talking with many consumers he simply tries to find out what people enjoy.

The question was posed concerning how much of a new spirit is designed versus left to nature.  Dr. Lumsden explained that "On the front end, everything is carefully planned so the process can be tightly controlled.  But once the spirit is in the barrel, there is a degree of sitting back and waiting for the flavor to develop."  He also indicated certain limits.  "I probably would never develop an extremely smoky scotch for the Glenmorangie brand."  His philosophical point of view is that every expression remain compatible with the house style.  Ex-bourbon barrels are the foundation and so far every product has a degree of the house base spirit in it.  He went on to comment that "Signet was my biggest departure from the house style".

When asked which whisky was the most complex creation of his career, the subject of Signet surfaced again.  It seems the inspiration for this expression goes way back to those student days.  Confessing to a "fondness for Jamacian Blue Mountain Coffee even though I couldn't afford it", Dr. Lumsden explained how that wonderful toasty taste just stuck in his head.  It made him wonder if barley might be roasted and tumbled like coffee beans.  When he became distillery manager, he began to fashion this roasted barley into an expression, which in the beginning was too intense on its own.  It took years of working with Rachel Barrie to find the perfect formula that somewhat diluted the strong chocolated malt with Glenmorangie base, but ensured that its unique flavor characteristics were still at the heart of the expression.  Signet was released to rave reviews and Dr. Lumsden acknowledges that he continues to discover new flavor notes with each tasting.  He advised to add a bit of water to this dram, then take your time to savor it layer by flavor layer.

Anxious to learn more about the components of whisky flavor development, I asked about the influence of the Tarlogie Springs on house style.  Which characteristics are influenced by the water or is it more marketing hype than flavor reality?  Dr. Lumsden explained that the calcium and magnesium rich water definitely imparts a certain fruitiness that distinguishes Glenmorangie.  The quality of water also has critical impact on the distilling process and ultimately the quality of the finished product.

He believes that yeast has been one of the most neglected components of flavor development and adds that there is definitely room for experimentation in this area.

Asked to comment on the rumors that Glenmorangie owns their own forest land in the Ozarks to control their supply of American Oak, Lumsden was amused.  "We do not own the land, but we do have full control".  He went on to explain the superiority of air matured wood over kiln dried.  "Not only does it remove much of the moisture content but it lets the wood actually mature, therefore it is less green, has less tannin and bitter flavors.  This is important in letting the oak impart its wonderful vanilla, coconut and almond flavors.  A low degree of tannin also allows for the development of that sweet, silky mouth feel that is so appropriate for the house brand."  He further elaborated that charring of the barrels was an extension of that critically controlled process.  Working closely with Blue Grass Cooperage, the barrels are heavily toasted but lightly charred using heat rather than naked flame to preserve the sweetness of the spirit as it matures.  Seasoning with Jack Daniels bourbon further removes any woodiness and adds another wonderful layer of flavor.

When asked if he was willing to talk about any cask experiments that failed, Dr. Lumsden gamely offered two examples.  "Experimenting with Royal Tokay wine casks,  I let the maturation progress far too long without tasting the developing malt.  The Tokay flavor so overwhelmed the delicate whisky that this cask never saw the light of day."  Another experiment with Brazilian cherry wood produced a liquor that tasted of marzipan and furniture polish.

An inquiry into international whisky trends produced this response.  "The United Kingdom and Asia are more relaxed in the way they approach scotch, using it in cocktails and over ice."  When asked which side he takes in the cocktail/ice debate, Lumsden offered that "scotch is not sacred but meant to be enjoyed.  It makes a great base for cocktails and unlike white liquors you can still taste the whisky in your cocktail."  As to other trends, he pondered American consumer's tendency to believe that older malts are better only because of age and hopes that people will be open minded and try more of the industry's fine younger 10 and 12 year old expressions.

At the close I asked what were his most exquisite experiences when it came to pairing food with whisky?  Without hesitation, Dr. Lumsden shared that at the launch of the Signet brand it was offered to guests with a fine chocolate molded Signet logo.  This was one of the great pairings for both taste and sentimental reasons.  As to other food combinations he enjoys, Glenmorangie Original and Foie Gras top his list, along with Oysters and Ardbeg, or Lasanta with sticky toffee pudding.  It is also clear that Dr. Lumsden relishes connecting with famed Chefs in developing pairing menues and recipes.  Some fine examples of a collaboration with Internationally acclaimed Chef Alejandro Sanchez may be found at their site:  www.glenmorangie.com.  Refer to each individual expression for food pairing ideas and recipes.  Quinta Ruban with Venison looks particularly scrumptious.  On that note, I thanked Dr. Lumsden for the courtesy of his time and insight and promptly headed to the kitchen to rustle up a pairing or two of my own.

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