St. Andrew's Day

I actually don't have a short list of favorite whiskies, but if I did, Laphroaig would be on it.

And they seem to be developing quite a sense of humor. Is it new owner Fortune/Jim Beam, or was it always there bubbling just below the surface? Maybe Bruichladdich's quirky sense of humor is coming down island.

Who knows, but they make some damn fine whisky. Heck, there's nothing from Islay that I don't like (nice double negative, huh?), but Laphroaig just holds a special place in my heart.

And being the good Scots that they are, Laphroaig has set up a web site to help celebrate St. Andrew's day, which is observed on November 30th (tomorrow).

The site is educational but also quite witty - the entire site consists of a depiction of St Andrew in a stained-glass window, with a bag of golf clubs and a bottle of Laphroaig.

If you didn't know, (I know not all of you readers are lucky enough to be Scottish ;)), Saint Andrew is the Patron Saint of Scotland, and he's a pretty big deal there - as a matter of fact, the flag of Scotland is the called the "Cross of St. Andrew."

The funny thing is that St. Andrew never set foot on Scottish soil.

St. Andrew is said to have been responsible for spreading the Christian religion though Asia Minor and Greece. It is said that St. Andrew was put to death by the Romans in Greece by being nailed to a diagonally shaped cross - the shape of this cross is said to be the basis for the Cross of St. Andrew.

Legend suggests that a monk called Rule (eventually St. Rule) was warned in a dream that St. Andrew's remains were to be moved by the Emperor Constantine and Rule was directed by an angel to take whatever remains he could to the "ends of the earth" for safe-keeping. Rule removed a tooth, an arm bone, a kneecap and some fingers from St. Andrew's tomb and took them as far away as he could: Scotland. Quite amusing that Scotland was considered the ends of the Earth.

Anyway, you can learn more about Golf, St. Andrew, the Thistle, and more importantly Laphroaig when you visit the site.

The Irish may have St. Patrick's day, But the Scottish have St. Andrew's Day (November 30th), Robert Burns' Night (January 25th), Hogmanay (New Year's), and a few sundry and other holidays. All present a good enough excuse to drink your favorite Scotch.