Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
fusely hummocked and multifariously cragged - facing south-east towards the Mull of
Kintyre.
The three southern coastal whiskies of Islay - with Laphroaig in particular providing
the most radical example - constitute what is almost a different drink from whisky. The
distinction is that sharp; I know several people who like their drink, love their whisky -
be it the stuff you'd serve to somebody who's severely overstayed their welcome or the
special reserve you'd only bring out for the most special of special occasions - who hate
Ardbeg, Lagavulin and Laphroaig with a vengeance. Of the three, they usually especially
hate Lagavulin and Laphroaig, and, out of that pair, reserve their most intense aversion
for Laphroaig.
* * *
Pronunciation: a word
.
In the paragraph above there are, in order of appearance - and coincidentally alphabetical
order - one that's fairly self-evident (Ardbeg), one that's not as tricky as it might look to
the untutored eye at first sight (Lagavulin), and one definitely iffy example (Laphroaig).
Here's the trick: there's a pronunciation guide at the back of this topic, after the biblio-
graphy.
I've even underlined the relevant bit to emphasise in each name because that might
just make all the difference between success and failure when you're trying to order a
specific dram from a hard-of-hearing or just plain awkward bar person, especially late on
when you might be drunk and slurring your words. Don't say I'm not good to you.
And can we please deal with the difference between 'lock'-which is either a thing
found on a door or a way of raising or lowering a boat on a canal - and 'loch', which
is generally the name given to a body of water in Scotland which in England would be
termed a lake? The 'ch' sound (as in loch, broch, and indeed och) is a soft, sibilant noise
made at the back of the mouth with the tongue drawn back and upwards. It sounds a bit
like distant surf, if you want to get romantic about it. What it does not sound like is 'ck'.
Well, unless we're talking about either of the occurrences in Bruichladdich. Or Glen
Garioch in Aberdeenshire.
And let's not even mention the Lake of Menteith.
One last thing; back when I lived in London, in the early eighties, an ad agency was
running a campaign for the Duty-Free shops at Heathrow and one of the posters I'd see in
the tube stations showed a bottle of (if I recall correctly) Laphroaig, with the byline 'Islay
for less outlay'. This implies the two relevant words rhyme, and is wrong. The first bit of
the island's name sounds like 'Isle' and the end is just 'la'. That simple. So let's not have
any more of these gratuitous cross-border mispronunciations.
