Drinking with Deputies

The Deputy Minister is the highest ranking official in a government department on the organization chart. The DM as they are known reports directly to the Minister, the elected politician. Unless one works in the DM's office, reports to the DM or drives his car, one rarely sees him/her.

I was at a scotch table yesterday with four of them. Two men, two women... one married couple now there's power - and one couple known as an "item." Unbelievable. To make it more interesting - one of them was the DM in my department. I didn't know him, didn't even know his name. Luckily, I managed to escape that fact being known. whew... dodged that bullet. I was siting with his wife on one side of me, another high ranking government executive across from me and a woman who ran yet another DM's office from another department. As RJ says... "randomness eh?" I ended up getting an invitation to attend a perfume launch on the Hill - Parliament Hill - for a perfume made from Afghan flowers with all proceeds going to help women in Afghanistan. I might just go!

I told them where I worked, and did my pitch for information, research and libraries in government in general Whatta a rush. Then we went on to the whiskeys. Sublime.

Here's what we ate and drank -

Century Reserved 21 yr old Canadian whisky $40 bottle
with smoked salmon on rye points and fig jam

Basil Hayden 8 year old Kentucky Bourbon straight Kentucky whisky $55 bottle
with grilled chicken skewers basted with chipotle barbecue sauce.

Yamazaki 18 yr old single malt whisky Japan $135 bottle
wild boar stew grilled herbed polenta

Isla of Jura 16 yr old single malt scotch whisky $80
date and walnut phyllo roll with Greek yogurt and honey

Glenmorangie "The Astar" Highland Single Malt Scotch whisky $125
Grana Pandano cheese

Connemara Peated Single Malt Irish Whisky $65
extra dark 60% chocolate truffle

The food was mere tastings as well. Favourites? surprisingly the Canadian whisky, the Irish was a treat, and the Jura.

I will treat myself again. I had a lovely time.

Now off I go to Scrap and Spa weekend. With jello shots made and packed! See you Sunday!

Solo whiskey drinking

I am going to a dinner tonight. All. By. Myself. A scotch tasting flight dinner at a very posh place. $85 not counting taxes and tips. It's a bunch of people around a table tasting whiskey and food. It's something I've always wanted to do.

XSU and I both drink scotch.. Though he inhales rather than sips and doesn't seem to have a palate to enjoy the flavours and aromas. He just drinks. And he would *never* spring for an event like this. Not ever.

I, on the other hand, have tasted many different kinds of scotch whiskey and want to learn more. Ergo the scotch tasting sounded like a great idea. The challenge - finding someone to go with me. Most of my friends are winos rather than hard liquor drinkers of any kind.

When a friend at work sent me the link I decided what the heck - just go for it. EEK I am going solo! I chatted with the woman taking reservations who happens to have the same name as Rebel. She too is a nice Ukrainian girl and lo and behold her mom is going to be at this dinner.

A friend from work - a very unhappily married man said he wanted to join me. I told him fine. But I never heard whether or not he made a reservation, and frankly, having dealt with my own bad marriage I am not about to entangle myself in his issues. or either encourage or discourage his attendance. We've discussed his unhappiness many times over lunch but I am not prepared to spend my quality time with this man. If he is at this little event so be it.

So, off I go. I'll tell you how it went in another post.