|
|
|
HistoryThe UISGEBEATHA WHISKY CLUB was founded on the 23 July 1998 when five people met at the home of Joe Barry in East London, South Africa to hold the inaugural meeting of what was then an unnamed whisky club. Wine clubs were well known but nobody had heard of a whisky club and we felt this would provide an opportunity for friends who enjoy whisky to meet once a month at each others homes, taste various whiskies, discuss and rate them, ending the evening with a meal with all members contributing towards the cost, thereby enabling us to taste and enjoy whiskies we might not have experienced under ordinary circumstances. The club meets on the last Thursday of every month except for December and of interest our January meeting is always a celebration of Burn's Night complete with Haggis and Piper. At the meeting on 30 September 1999 it was decided the club emblem would be the word UISGEBEATHA in silver under a Green and Purple Thistle. The word Uisgebeatha (pronounced oes-gee-bar) is Gaelic for water of life and legend has it the word whisky evolved from UISGE. The current members of the club are:
We also have Honorary Members (ex members who have left town) and they are always welcome to join us at any meeting when they are visiting.
As RAPHAEL HOLINSHED in his chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland (1578) wrote of uisgebeatha: Beying moderatelie taken, it sloweth age; it strengtheneth youthe; it helpeth digestion; it cutteth fleume; it abandoneth melancholie; it relisheth the harte; it lighteneth the mynde; it quickeneth the spirites.... This surely, is enough reason to partake of Scotland's "water of life". |