Dry January what??? #Heelslayer January for this Lassie

So many of my whisky friends have pledged to have a dry January. Today is only the 5th day of the new year and already some of them seem to be awfully grumpy. I suppose it's not helping that I as well as others are posting all the lovely whiskies we are drinking and in my case I'm quite the opposite in thinking as every year my challenge is to get rid of as many whisky heels (bottles 2/3 empty) by the end of January. It helps that I have many friends and a mid month party to help me accomplish that. I assure you we don't spend the entire month of January in a whisky induced haze. If anything, our consumption is done on a much more moderate basis as we seem to limit ourselves to 1 to 2 drams and not even every evening. As a matter of fact, I haven't had a whisky since January 2nd. So, it's not like we are obsessed with getting rid of the whisky by any means.

Dry January? Now I know some people do it as a fundraiser, that's fine but for those who are not I was a bit perplexed so I did a bit of research and found that many health professionals are in agreement when they say that for the heavy to moderate drinker this "dry January thing" is total bull feces and if anything will only cause some people to drink more for the rest of the year. Overindulgence during the holidays leads to an overtired liver and bloated tummy and so I get it, some people are on a perpetual food/alcohol hangover so they think by crying out: That's it, I'm going to detox and drink not a drop of alcohol for the entire month of January!" they are doing their body good. But the reality is, they are not. 

They spend a month of abstinence staring obsessively at the date they can pour their first of many whiskies and statistics show February 1st is now one of the busiest days for pubs and bars. 

Wouldn't it simply make more sense to take the time to consciously make it a point to drink in moderation let's say 360 days a year or better yet, maybe designate one day a week as alcohol free? That would be 52 days of sober/year and a weekly detox for your liver all in the name of good health and moderation without giving up on something you enjoy doing. It really shouldn't have to be feast or famine, should it? Just sayin people, just sayin...

Good luck to all the lot of you who have decided to try this but with that said today I'm starting my month of #heelslaying. Out with the old, time to clean out the bar and finish off some of those whiskies I've been desperately clutching to for whatever reason. Last year's total was 26. How far will I get this year, with a little help from all my friends of course :) 

FAIR WARNING - Many photos of my heelslaying will appear on facebook and twitter so beware you poor dried out souls, it's going to be a tough month. For the rest of you I issue a challenge! Holding on to that last sip of Yamazaki 18 for a special occasion or the 124 samples sitting in a cardboard box full of dust? YEAH THOSE, it's time to get rid of them and get your #heelslayer on. Have fun, be safe and post those photos. Share your empties as well as your memories with me please! 

Friendly competitions always welcomed. Might even consider sending a rare sample out to anyone who beats me :) Cheers all and have a great January no matter where or how you choose to live it.

Let the #heelslaying begin!

Johanne

#C2CC twitter tastings are truly a Canadian experience

From the moment I opened my twitter account and started adding whisky people, I noticed there was something happening, mostly in the UK, called Twitter Tastings. I immediately started applying to be included, but alas I had the wrong postal code :(

So, in my usual well if I can't join them I'll do them myself style, that's exactly what I did.  I started contacting people across Canada (we drink lots of whisky too) and created a network of whisky imbibers from coast to coast. I dare say (with a bit of panache) that "we" cover 7,723km geographically so I'll start a rumor that we are the "largest" of the twitter tastings, hehehe....  Hence was born the hashtag #C2CC - Coast 2 Coast Canada.

I try to make our twitter tastings somewhat unique, something that will set us apart from the others and again, I'd like to think that we do that. We don't take ourselves too seriously most of the time and end up having quite a few good laughs, not to mention get to try some interesting drams.  So for our latest twitter tasting I put out a call for a competition and the goal was to crown "national" champions.  

Rules:

1. Teams of 2 or more to be submitted
2. Blind sample sent to each team member
3. Based on 10 questions (worth 100 points) guess what the whisky is.
4. Submit 1 team answer
5. Take part in the twitter conversation & reveal

Prize:  The pride of being called the Canadian National #C2CC Competition Champions for 2014, a couple of cheesy little trophies & a whisky bottle to share with the winning team.

I had 16 teams, a total of 42 people submit their information from the Yukon all the way to Nova Scotia. 

It was a huge undertaking but in the end as always, so very gratifying because people got to interact, imbibe, discuss & decide collaboratively what they thought they were nosing/tasting.  

The winners were a team of two from our country's capital of Ottawa:  Dan Davies & Emmett Hossack - Team Dram-atic Irony.  They were crowned national champions for 2014 and the province of Ontario gets to gloat for the next year that they have two of the best whisky noses/palates in Canada. WELL DONE!

Then in true Canadian style (we are all sooooooo wonderful over here, well except for Rob Ford - we apologize for that), I was contacted by the team and they did something great. They donated their "prize". The bottle I had chosen to test everyone was the Glenfiddich Distillery Edition 15 year old. So, to honour the fact that they almost scored 100% (they guessed the Solera) they requested that I ensure the prize (valued up to $100) would be donated to the Wounded Warriors Canada chapter. 

The organisations's motto is "Honour the fallen, help the living". One of the reasons we Canadians are so proud of being who we are is because of our kindness to each other. We are "good" people. :)

Unfortunately, many Canadian soldiers come back from their tour of duty alive but "broken" and in many cases are discharged from the military because they can no longer do their "job". I cannot imagine what some of these very brave people & their families must go through during and after the effects of war, military exercises or whatever else their tour of duty involves. I am thankful for organisations such as Wounded Warriors, they make a difference in many people's lives. I am also thankful that Glenfiddich is in partnership with this group and donates $2.00 for every bottle of Solera sold across Canada to Wounded Warriors. As of November of 2013, they had raised almost $150,000. 

Canadians... we are known for being unique & so kind, however I am always in awe & so thankful when I discover just how kind we can be.

I want to personally thank Dan & Emmett for donating their prize to this wonderful cause. I hope it reminds us all yet again how lovely each and every fiber of our #whiskyfabric can be. If you want to donate to the cause, please click here:

https://www.canadahelps.org/dn/15855

My hat is tipped to two fine gentlemen.  Thank you for making our #C2CC inaugural national competition even more memorable.  

Deepest respect and #whiskyfabric love, all the way from Saint John, New Brunswick

Johanne