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Water
The crystal-clear spring water that cascades
down the mist-covered slopes of Ben Rinnes, and makes its way
from there along the Lour valley to the distillery, is the lifeblood
of Aberlour Single Malt. In 1879, some 1,300 years after the Christian
missionary St Drostan baptised local inhabitants at a spring near
the River Lour, James Fleming built his distillery there –
on the very site of St Drostan's Well, as it became known.
James Fleming had acquired a priceless asset, an
endless supply of pure spring water with which to make his whisky.
The water is one of the principal reasons why Aberlour Single
Malt is so exceptional, and beyond imitation. The plentiful rain
and snow that falls on Ben Rinnes is filtered through layers of
peat. The mountain itself is made of granite, which being very
hard gives only trace elements to the water rather than minerals.
As a result, the water that emerges from the ground is very soft.
Not a drop of this precious water is wasted. Only
the required amount for each batch of whisky production is drawn
off from the springs. Apart from being heated prior to joining
the grist (ground malt) in the mash tun, the water is untreated
in any way. Nothing is added and nothing needs taking away. It
is a gift from Nature, pure and simple.
Wilson, Reverend Alexander
Aberlour has had its fair share of memorable
clergymen. One, the Rev George Lindsay, was confronted by an angry
mob at his induction ceremony and chased out of the village along
with the officiating bishop, pistol shots whistling about their
ears. Others, in the spirit of the times, threatened their flock
from the pulpit with hellfire and damnation, and then cheerfully
shared a dram or two with them after the service.
But the most eccentric was probably the Rev Alexander
Wilson, who presided over the church and its tiny congregation
in the first half of the 18th century. The Rev Wilson was a bachelor,
looked after by his equally eccentric housekeeper, Annie Dey.
It was an abstemious and self-sufficient household; the couple
living largely on the produce from their "tattie and kale"
(potato and cabbage) patch, their hens and their solitary cow.
Nothing was wasted, even the soot from underneath the stew pot
was used – to blacken the minister's shoes!
The Rev Wilson's dress sense (or lack of it) never
failed to attract attention. He always wore a low-crowned, broad-brimmed
hat, with a shabby, long-tailed black coat and velveteen knee
breeches. White worsted stockings, often spattered by mud or worse,
completed the ensemble. He had only two sermons, both of which
his parishioners knew by heart. One Sunday he announced that mice
had eaten a sizeable portion of one of them, adding that he would
just begin where the mice left off.
Witchcraft
Witchcraft was widely practised in parts of
the Scottish Highlands and Islands, though not all of it was of
evil intent. Druid priests claimed to be able to communicate with
the supernatural world; and some, it was believed, could cast
spells, change shape and even control the elements. It is not
surprising therefore that the cult of magic lingered on long after
the Druidic religion had been largely replaced by Christianity.
Much of the so-called witchcraft, however, involved nothing more
than using traditional rituals and remedies for curing conditions
such as infertility or insanity. Linked to witchcraft was the
phenomenon of second sight: the ability to see otherwise invisible
objects, including visions of the future typically involving death,
destruction or disaster.
In the Middle Ages, anyone found practising witchcraft
in or around Aberlour suffered a very particular fate at the hands
of the Lairds of Elchies and their henchmen. In the middle of
the River Spey was a special "Trial Stane", a large
stone standing proud of the water, on which the accused witch
would be placed. If she succeeded in swimming from the stone to
the riverbank through the generally icy waters, she was deemed
innocent. Since few women were able to swim in those far-off days,
the odds were severely stacked against her – unless, of course,
she could count on witchcraft to get her to dry land.
Worm
The "worm" is the water-cooled copper
coil that condenses the vapour emerging from the pot still during
the distilling process. See Distilling
During the 18th and early 19th centuries, when hundreds
of illicit distillers operated from hideaways in remote areas
like Ben Rinnes, the worm was the most expensive item in their
illegal kit. The government, desperate to reduce the number of
illicit stills, offered a £5 reward for each one discovered.
When their "worm" became worn out, the more astute distillers
would take it to the local excise officer and claim the reward
for having uncovered a still. Then they would use the money to
purchase a brand new copper coil, and start all over again.
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