You may have heard me mention on the whisky podcast (or if you’ve bumped into me recently) that there’s two crates of whisky belonging to Whyte and Mackay down at the South Pole from Sir Ernest Shackleton’s trip in the early 1900′s that I might be getting a sample of soon.
In January a team from Antarctic Heritage Trust are going back to Shackleton’s abandoned base at Cape Royds (97 miles from the pole) that he used before abandoning his quest for the pole in 1909.
However two feet under the ice, just outside the hut, are two crates of whisky (which cost a pricely 56 shillings!). An old brand from McKinlay and Co called ‘Rare Old’ that was part of a consignment of 25 crates given to Shackleton for his expedition.
Now it’s hoped that if the bottles can be recovered, perhaps one or two can come back home, which seems right. It’s been laying there lonely and neglected. It should come back to Scotland where it was born.
The problem is there are international treaties preventing us taking it. However we may get one or two. Failing that, we may get a sample back (by putting a needle in through the cork). We might even get enough to be able to take a stab at recreating it.
But, judging by the questions I get sent to Ask Richard, what you all want to know is: how will it taste? To which the answer is: cold.
Seriously, whiskies back then – a harder age – were all quite heavy and peaty as that was the style. And depending on the storage conditions it may still have that heaviness. For example, it may taste the same as it did back then if the cork has stayed in the bottle and kept it airtight.
But if the whisky is on its side, the cork may have been eroded by the whisky or air may have got in some other way – especially if the corks have been contracting and expanding with the temperature changes over the years and seasons.
As I show to a lot of people, I’ve got the original letter from Shackleton about the whisky so it would be great to have a dram of the actual drink to put next to it.
And you can bet, I’ll be talking a lot about this in January.
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Tags: shackleton, south pole
Just a quick correction: while Shackleton turned around 97 miles from the pole, his hut at Cape Royds is near the coast, about 860 miles from the pole.
How exciting that you might be bringing Ernest Shackleton’s Scotch back to the market – please put me on the list to purchase some as soon as you do!!!
Cheers,
Mark
(I spent two seasons in Antarctica in 1994-1995 and 1995-1996)
Wonderful, wonderful stuff.
Is a copy of the original letter from Shackleton about the whisky online anywhere, flickr perhaps?
I’ve worked at McMurdo Station in Antarctica for 15 years now, and was lucky enough to spend a few hours at Cape Royds back in 1998; even got to have a look around the inside of Shakleton’s hut, which is a rare privilege, to say the least. It definitely seems only right that you get at least one bottle out of the stash when they recover it, and if you’re able to duplicate this blend, many of us will want to purchase a bottle, or at least sample some. Maybe we can organise a group excursion to Scotland (and visit Whyte & Mackay while we’re there) after a season on the ice. There’s a fair amount of scotch lovers here, some of who go to great lengths to bring a few bottles of the “good stuff” to share with the community at monthly scotch tastings during the winters. Cheers and Best Wishes!
[...] Old’ that was part of a consignment of 25 crates given to Shackleton for his expedition,” Paterson writes. No pictures yet of the whiskey bottles or crates, but this above-surface collection of salt looks [...]
[...] may have read the original blog post that sparked global interest or listened to the podcasts about whisky at the South Pole. Well, it’s been a long and [...]
[...] when the plan to dig up the whisky was first announced last year, he addressed the question of what it might taste like: [W]hiskies back then — a harder age — were all quite heavy and peaty as that was the [...]
[...] Patterson wrote about what the whisky might taste like on his blog, when it was first announced. [W]hiskies back then — a harder age — were all quite heavy and [...]
[...] Pole (press release and pics, press release as pdf, some video of me, my blog on the excavation, a blog post on what the whisky may taste like, a second post on some questions) here’s some new video straight from the shed – great [...]
[...] the answer is ‘cold’ – which is probably how that gag leaves most of us. On his blog he explains that “whiskies back then – a harder age – were all quite heavy and peaty as that was the [...]
Alright let’s be honest here, when you get your 100-year old bottle, are you going to have it all or share with us?
I’d like blend my own McKinlay and Co ‘Rare Old’
Starting with these several “scientific” blends will be tasted and tested, it could go on for months!
Lagavulin Classic of Islay 21yr (Lagavulin)
Bruichladdich Peat Islay
Connemara Peated Single Malt Irish Whiskey
BenRiach 21 YO “Authenticus” Heavily Peated Single Malt Whisky
Splash of Glenrothes 1978 Vintage