Iceland: Entertainment – Well, Okay… Whiskey
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Extra entertainment in Iceland? Well, we didn’t need much.
As usual we were planning to take an audio book on my phone and then share the headphones. But then we found we could leave some kit at the guest house (of which, more in the next and final Iceland post) so we took real books and saved the phone trick for another trip.
There was one thing we felt we’d miss and that was a glass of red wine with dinner that we like to have in the mountain huts in the Alps. We’re not claiming to be climbing K2 here.
Carrying enough wine for even a very small glass per night would be very heavy so we decided to take Whiskey.
So at Stansted airport, we cleared security and bowled up to a specialist Whiskey shop and asked to try a few that I’d been recommended (thanks Gray!).
They obliged with samples for the whole party and we eventually settled on the Macallan Elegancia finish. The Elegancia is only available from duty free or a couple or very specialist shops online for some odd reason – and generally far, far more expensive than the £31 we paid.
But how to carry it?
Well I originally had decided to go for a Snow Peak Titanium Flask.
There are two flavours, but they are listed as being exactly the same weight. The only difference seems to be that one is flat (the 014) and one is round (the 015) and holds quite a lot more.
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So I went for the 015 which I bought from a US based ebay shop: Camp Buddy along with the Snow Peak stove |
But when it arrived I was disappointed to find that instead of 0.8 ounces as per the manufacturer’s site (and all the shops) it was actually 2.3 ounces (65 grams).
It’s not a huge deal I know, but then I realised that for an actual 0.8 ounces (22 grams) you can get a 500ml Platybottle. Which is about twice the size for a third the actual weight of the flask. And since this was supposed to last us both for the whole trip it was the only way to go. Besides – what we’d have done with all the rest of the whiskey left in the bottle on just one night doesn’t bear thinking about…
So for us, crossing rivers without a tiny celebratory nip just wouldn’t be the same.
I don’t take the Snow Peak flask on long walks but for over-nights and tour skating it’s great.
Oddly, I now find that drinking excellent Whiskey from a Platybottle valve is my preferred way to partake… (sorry Gray!)
March 4th, 2009 at 11:41
Ach, your priorities are all wrong, man – if you don’t get your nose into it, you’re missing out on at least half the adventure. Maybe snorting from the platypus is the way to go, but I’d be tempted to start carrying a few glasses (nosing, sipping, downing) for all moods, and probably a decanter, seeing as you might as well.
Personally, I prefer to carry a small amount in my cheekpouches at all times, in case of emergency. It does mean it’s harder to laugh, but no longer do I suffer from the fear that whisky supplies may not be immediately sourceable.
Anyway, it’s a far greater sin to spell Scotch Whisky with an extra E – unless you’re adding your own E to it and not telling us about it…
March 4th, 2009 at 19:36
Oh! I’d not realised I was using the American/Irish spelling…
As penance I will look in to acquiring some titanium glasses (or simply, but rather less indicatively, “titaniums”) and a titanium decanter as you advise.
March 6th, 2009 at 16:31
That Snow Peak flask knocks the Sigg oval bottle I was so pleased with into a cocked hat!
March 7th, 2009 at 10:28
Well the Snow Peak Flask is certainly stylish but for a longer trip, or more mouths, the Sigg Oval Bottle would win hands-down with that capacity :)
Always assuming that the Platybottle was just too much for a whisky drinker to bear.
It was relatively cheap when I bought it since the dollar/pound exchange rate was healthier…