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Scotch Whisky Meant To Warm Antarctic Explorers Retrieved After Century Locked In Ice
StarTribune.com ^ | February 5, 2010 | AP

Posted on 02/06/2010 9:26:13 AM PST by DogByte6RER

Scotch whisky meant to warm Antarctic explorers retrieved after century locked in ice

Associated Press

WELLINGTON, New Zealand - This Scotch has been on the rocks for a century.

Five crates of Scotch whisky and two of brandy have been recovered by a team restoring an Antarctic hut used more than 100 years ago by famed polar explorer Ernest Shackleton.

Ice cracked some of the bottles that had been left there in 1909, but the restorers said Friday they are confident the five crates contain intact bottles "given liquid can be heard when the crates are moved."

New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust team leader Al Fastier said the team thought there were two crates and were amazed to find five.

Current distillery owner, drinks group Whyte & Mackay, launched the bid to recover the Scotch whisky for samples to test and decide whether to relaunch the defunct spirit made by distiller McKinlay and Co.

Fastier said restoration workers found the crates under the hut's floorboards in 2006, but they were too deeply embedded in ice to be dislodged.

The New Zealanders agreed to drill the ice to try to retrieve some bottles, although the rest must stay under conservation guidelines agreed to by 12 Antarctic Treaty nations.

"The unexpected find of the brandy crates, one labeled Chas. Mackinlay & Co and the other labeled The Hunter Valley Distillery Limited Allandale (Australia) are a real bonus," said Fastier.

Ice has cracked some of the crates and formed inside them. Fastier said in a statement that would make extracting the contents delicate, but the trust would decide how to do so in coming weeks.

Richard Paterson, master blender at Whyte and Mackay, whose company supplied the Mackinlay's whisky for Shackleton, described the find as "a gift from the heavens for whisky lovers."

(Excerpt) Read more at startribune.com ...


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; History; Miscellaneous; Society; Travel; Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: 1907; antarctic; antarctica; antartica; brandy; cheers; ernestshackleton; expedition; exploration; godsgravesglyphs; newzealand; oenology; ontherocks; scotch; scotchwhisky; shackleton; southpole; treasure; whisky; zymurgy
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This is truly a treasure find...
1 posted on 02/06/2010 9:26:14 AM PST by DogByte6RER
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Photobucket
2 posted on 02/06/2010 9:26:56 AM PST by DogByte6RER ("Loose lips sink ships")
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To: DogByte6RER

Indeed. Maybe the most valuable whiskey in the world!


3 posted on 02/06/2010 9:27:11 AM PST by jpl
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http://www.whyteandmackay.co.uk/


4 posted on 02/06/2010 9:27:33 AM PST by DogByte6RER ("Loose lips sink ships")
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To: DogByte6RER

Great news!


5 posted on 02/06/2010 9:28:10 AM PST by jay1949 (Work is the curse of the blogging class)
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To: DogByte6RER; alarm rider; stump56; bcsco; PJ-Comix; kimmie7; MissDairyGoodnessVT; Paul Heinzman; ...

A “not quite bourbon ping”. It is whiskey..


6 posted on 02/06/2010 9:28:11 AM PST by Cletus.D.Yokel (Freepmail me to get on the Bourbon ping list.)
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To: DogByte6RER

Would any beverage that old be consumable, vodka maybe?


7 posted on 02/06/2010 9:28:29 AM PST by valkyry1
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To: SunkenCiv

ping


8 posted on 02/06/2010 9:28:52 AM PST by DogByte6RER ("Loose lips sink ships")
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To: valkyry1
The liquor only ages while in contact with the wood barrels, once put in glass all aging stops. So even though it is technically old, the whiskey is as old today as it was when bottled.
However, it still is a really great find.
9 posted on 02/06/2010 9:31:26 AM PST by svcw (If you are going to quote the Bible know what you are quoting.)
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To: valkyry1

Absolutely...and it will taste exactly the same as it did 100 years ago. Glass is non-reactive, so the whiskey has not “aged” or “matured” in any way....what would have been fantastic is had it been in a oak cask..not that would be awesome..


10 posted on 02/06/2010 9:33:44 AM PST by ken5050 (Save the Earth..It's the only planet with chocolate!!!)
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Photobucket Five crates of Scotch whisky and two of brandy have been recovered by a team restoring an Antarctic hut used more than 100 years ago by famed polar explorer Ernest Shackleton. (New Zealand Antarctic Heritage)
11 posted on 02/06/2010 9:33:50 AM PST by DogByte6RER ("Loose lips sink ships")
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To: valkyry1
Would any beverage that old be consumable, vodka maybe?

With that much ethanol in it, and entombed in ice the entire time, it should taste just like it did the day it was bottled.

12 posted on 02/06/2010 9:34:09 AM PST by Oberon (Big Brutha Be Watchin'.)
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To: DogByte6RER

Shackleton

the name exudes balls....and willpower


13 posted on 02/06/2010 9:35:07 AM PST by wardaddy (Book of Eli.....awesome.....Denzel Washington was perfect....Mila Kunis is smoking..nothing PC)
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To: DogByte6RER

I look forward to sampling Whyte and Mackay’s attempt at reproducing the taste of Mackinley’s lost recipe.

They apparently found cases of brandy, as well.


14 posted on 02/06/2010 9:36:31 AM PST by worst-case scenario (Striving to reach the light)
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To: ken5050; svcw; Oberon

I suppose this is true with liquor but I would swear shine changes in a jar after some years...course it could be the peach breaking down

Wine of course can get stellar or go bad in glass...is it the cork contact?

this is curious


15 posted on 02/06/2010 9:37:56 AM PST by wardaddy (Book of Eli.....awesome.....Denzel Washington was perfect....Mila Kunis is smoking..nothing PC)
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To: DogByte6RER

· join list or digest · view topics · view or post blog · bookmark · post a topic · subscribe ·

 
Gods
Graves
Glyphs
Thanks DogByte6RER! Just adding to the catalog, not sending a general distribution.

To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list.
GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach
 

·Dogpile · Archaeologica · LiveScience · Archaeology · Biblical Archaeology Society ·
· Discover · Nat Geographic · Texas AM Anthro News · Yahoo Anthro & Archaeo · Google ·
· The Archaeology Channel · Excerpt, or Link only? · cgk's list of ping lists ·


16 posted on 02/06/2010 9:38:04 AM PST by SunkenCiv (Happy New Year! Freedom is Priceless.)
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Another news report at:

http://abcnews.go.com/Travel/ernest-shackletons-100-year-whiskey-recovered-antarctica/story?id=9758898


17 posted on 02/06/2010 9:38:19 AM PST by DogByte6RER ("Loose lips sink ships")
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To: Cletus.D.Yokel

aged in bourbon casks is it not...often?


18 posted on 02/06/2010 9:38:45 AM PST by wardaddy (Book of Eli.....awesome.....Denzel Washington was perfect....Mila Kunis is smoking..nothing PC)
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To: worst-case scenario

The brandy might actually be more interesting at this aged.


19 posted on 02/06/2010 9:40:20 AM PST by wardaddy (Book of Eli.....awesome.....Denzel Washington was perfect....Mila Kunis is smoking..nothing PC)
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To: DogByte6RER
although the rest must stay under conservation guidelines agreed to by 12 Antarctic Treaty nations.

good lord

20 posted on 02/06/2010 9:41:50 AM PST by wardaddy (Book of Eli.....awesome.....Denzel Washington was perfect....Mila Kunis is smoking..nothing PC)
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