Postal Strikes and Lemon Whisky

Today is the start of basically a week long postal strike in the UK. They go on strike at noon today. Go back to work at noon on Saturday. Go back on strike at midnight on Monday. Come off strike at midnight Wednesday. Yesterday, I had neatly packaged up all my Rita and RNA Romance prize submissions from the books I currently have, but ran out of packing tape. Being overtaken by events, I didn't go out and buy more. They will now have to stay in my study for another week. ARGH!!!! And I am waiting for a cheque...
Postal strikes affect large numbers of businesses and individuals. They can have the consequence of driving them to the wall. There should be a way of making the workers' feelings known without actually harming unrelated people. Whatever happened to neither sleet, nor snow nor dead of night will keep the postman from his appointed round?
People depend on the post.
There has to be another way to solve this dispute and address the various issues in good faith.
To find when postal strikes are on in the UK, the Royal Mail site is the best place to check as it has the most up to date info.

One of the things I have been doing is dealing with damsons and sloes. Basically, this means making sloe and damson gin. A very simple process of washing the 8 0z of sloes or damson, pricking all over with a silver fork, putting in a glass large jar, adding 2-3 tablespoons of sugar and about a pint of gin. Then storing in a cool dark place and shaking every so often. After several months, decant and allow to mature (or alternatively drink). Sloe gin is light pink and tastes of almonds. It is also very sweet.
I also made damson cheese. Another 19th century favourite and it goes well with strong cheese such as stilton. I believe it is called butter in the US. It is a very thick paste, made from puree and sugar. It has to mature several months before accompanying stilton.
Ratafia in the 18th century was the name for a liqueur based on peach or apricot kernels and brandy. By the Regency, it had come to mean any brandy based liqueur. here are two simple recipes that I recently rediscovered that will enable you to recreate the taste.
The first is Lemon Brandy or Whisky. Feel free to use house whisky or brandy in these recipes as the sugar and flavourings do change the taste and it would a shame to waste the really good stuff.
Lemon Brandy was the original secret ingredient in Bakewell tart, and it is absolutely delicious in custards or cakes. It is also quite nice as a cold remedy or after dinner liquor.
Take 2 lemons -- wash and using a vegetable peeler, peel rind thinly. In a bowl, place peel and 1 pint of whisky or brandy, cover and allow to sit for 24 hours. Discard peel. In a saucepan bring 1/2 cup/ 1/4 pint/250ml of waters and 2 0z/1/4 cup/50 g sugar to boil. Boil for about 5 minutes. Then allow syrup to cool. When syrup is cold, add to brandy and re-bottle mixture. This can be used right away.
Orange brandy may be made in a similar fashion. Or you can peel the rind off the oranges, cut into small pieces. Add the peel and 4 oz of sugar to one pint of brandy or whisky. Seal jar and store in a cool place for 1-2 months, shaking periodically. Strain before using.
Enjoy.

Whisky and the Regency

I have been reading a number of American written Regencies lately which mention the hero drinking whisky in England. Sometimes, it is even called scotch. It is very fingernails on a blackboard for me.

As far as I understand, whisky was not really acceptable until 1822 when George IV lifted the ban on wearing tartan and declared in Edinburgh that Glenlivet was his favourite whisky and directed that the drink be used as a toast at all Scottish ceremonial occasions. He was attending a dinner organised by Sir Walter Scott. Until that point Glenlivet was contraband as were all other Highland whiskies. The Lowlands were able to produce whisky for export to Scottish cities and England but not the Highlands. Also in 1822, is the the first reference to whisky being laid down in casks and matured ( Elizabeth Grant Diary of a Highland Lady). Prior to this time, whisky was drunk straight from the still and I suspect was pretty vile stuff. There are receipts for mixing the drink with honey or spices.

There were some lowland distilleries that were legal prior to 1822 but the Highland ones weren't. For example Tobermory was called Ledaig until it was licensed in 1823. The Tobermory label says since 1798, but the Tobermory name was not used until 1823 (see David Wishart Whisky Classified) Even today, Ledaig is far more heavily peated than the Tobermory and as such is probably more similar to the early whiskies.

I know when I tried the Macellan's range of whiskies based on the sorts of whisky available in the different decades of the 20th century, I was surprised at the range. During the 1930s/early 40s, the Macallan also went towards a heavy peat because the ingredients were difficult to obtain.

Personally, I do like heavily peated single malts like Talisker and so I think it interesting that this is more like the original.

The earliest lowlands distillery still in operation that I could discover was Bladnoch which was started in 1817.

And if you want to see what whisky distillation was truly like in the 19th century, you need to visit Edradour (established 1825 or at least legally established). It is a lovely whisky and the stills are the smallest allowed by the Excise regulations.

Most whisky is matured in sherry or port casks. Sherry did not become a popular drink in Britain until after the Peninsula War. Then its popularity boomed. But I won't bore with the differences between the Bristol sherries (which were the ones first popularised in Britain) and sherries produced in Spain.

In any case, the real growth in the popularity of whisky in England was during Queen Victoria's reign as everything Scottish became highly fashionable.

So what, could other alcoholic beverages were popular -- brandy, port, Madeira, rum, gin (there are more Regency slang words for gin than just about anything) and Tokay as well as wine.

I know it is a simple thing. I know it shouldn't bother me but it does.