THE Hired Belly confesses a weakness for the occasional single malt.
So when an invite showed up to attend a tasting of single malts at Fets Bar & Grill there was little hesitation in accepting. The occasion was a West Coast Whisky Society whisky tasting, featuring six single cask, single malt whiskies, presented by Georgie Bell from The Scotch Malt Whisky Society. The society (which arrived in Canada only a couple of years ago) is the largest of its kind in the world, and (perhaps no surprise) is also the largest independent bottler of single cask single malts in the world. The distinction of "single cask, single malts" is important, as each (numbered) release is unique; a single cask selected from one specific (also numbered) distiller among 129 from whom the society buys.
The Canadian effort, kick-started by Calgarians Rob and Kelly Carpenter a couple of years ago, is gathering considerable steam, as evidenced by the full house of enthusiastic sniffers and sippers on hand for this event.
Much of its success, I suspect, is due to the dynamic Bell, who wrangled the nights's events with admirable ease.
"I represent international SMWS branches all over the globe, help carry the society's spirit and ignite single cask culture," she says.
So how do you get a job like that? Bell became interested in single malt when she was bartending her way through university, including a tour at Edinburgh's much-heralded Tigerlilly. With a passion for spirits ("I wanted to like every single spirit on my back bar," she proclaims), she soon found a way to overlap her studies and new-found fascination for malts. "I started to wean myself onto whisky because, let's face it, whisky is not something you're born to like. It takes time, effort, hard work and perseverance."
A geography major, she wrote her dissertation on whisky, its regional identity and creation of place and image, focusing on Islay, and the evolution of the culture and commercial market over generations.
Based on the malts Bell chose for this event, which traversed the stylistic spectrum, if you're interested in truly serious single malts, I wouldn't hesitate to investigate a membership. First stop: a chat with Crystal Coverdale, general manager of Edgemont Fine Spirits (604-984-9463).
But it's not all serious. Indeed, much of the society's appeal lies in the tongue-in-cheek packaging and often hilarious tastings notes, which suggests the last thing these folks do is take themselves too seriously. After all, who wouldn't be intrigued by a bottle emblazoned with the invitation to "Dab it behind your ears," though (sadly, one can assume) not poured at this event. One of our faves turned out to be quite the surprise: 128.3 ("Chestnut purée & new hiking boots") was a pale yellow-gold (not overt), vanilla-toned, surprisingly smooth five-year-old from Penderyn (Welsh! From that country's sole distillery), along with a couple of killer Islays: 3.193 "A baby-faced arsonist" and 53.168 "elastoplast on a roasted tongue," to wrap things up. Too bad they're likely all gone now, but that's precisely what makes it all so appealing, isn't it?
