Wednesday, January 11, 2012

It's nae joke

Didn't there used to be a joke about a Scotman drowning in a vat of whisky, but having to get out twice to relieve himself?

Life, it seems, sadly imitates art:

A manager at the Glenfiddich distillery has drowned in a giant vat of whisky.

Brian Ettles, 46, allegedly threw himself into a 16ft wooden tank filled with water and yeast on Saturday night.

Firemen and paramedics tried to rescue him from the 50,000-litre container, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The father of two had worked at the site in Dufftown, in the heart of the Scottish Highlands, for 22 years.

The tragedy came a day after his wife, Irene, had celebrated her 54th birthday.

The Glenfiddich Distillery, which is a popular tourist attraction, was closed on Monday as a mark of respect to Mr Ettles.

Grampian Police said they were not treating the death as suspicious.


We'll drink a toast tae Mr Ettles when next the Glenfiddich bottle comes out of the grog cabinet.

13 comments:

robertguyton said...

Did he drown in a vat of whiskey?
Or was it a vat of water and yeast?
Us literal types notice these things.

Keeping Stock said...

Oi; there's no "e" in whisky as is produced in the Highlands. The "e" is another of those awful Americanisms.

robertguyton said...

I'm guilty of an unforgivable spelling crime, and me, a lad who fought the battle of Bannockburn (the Central Otago version that is - rolled paper swords and flour bombs amongst the blue men and rosy crosses!)! I'll force a dram or two of finest Grouse down my throat as punishment for my foolishness.

robertguyton said...

I ought to be banned!

PM of NZ said...

One lives in hope RG.

James Stephenson said...

Ahem. Check out a bottle of Bushmills or Jameson's and take back your accusation of "Americanism".

I'll leave my pedant's hat on to observe that he likely fell into a vat of wort, which is more than water and yeast but a long way short of Whisky.

Keeping Stock said...

It's definitely "Highland Malt Whisky" on the Glenmorangie bottle at home from which I sup.

pdm said...

That Glenmorangie is a nice drop Inv. I hve had a dram or two of that in the Highlands.

It is well rated by members of my family over there.

Keeping Stock said...

It's the nectar of the gods pdm

James Stephenson said...

Yep, the crucial point being that Bushmills and Jameson's are Irish...

robertguyton said...

Och aye the noo - seems there's a brouhaha a-brewin' here on Keeping Stock! Just remember lads, we're a' Jock Tamson's bairns!

Ciaron said...

Whisky is from Scotland.
Whiskey is from Ireland.

Or so I am led to believe :)

Tinman said...

I hope they didn't waste the wort, might make Glenfiddich drinkable.

Glenmorangie has also been knoen to grace castle-Tinman, a tasty drop indeed.

Once hosted two workers from the distillery who, believe it or not, had a piece of ice in their scotch - I'm still in shock.