Prague called and I came running. Peter had raved about the best restaurant in Prague, so I really had to go and see for myself. The whole shebang, menu, beer, wine, whisky and cigar in that order. Not for the faint-hearted. No news there.
In a comfy corner of a small inner city square in Prague we are welcomed cordially at La Dégustation Bohême Bourgeoise and led to our table. And lo, everything from then on is orchestrated in perfect order and pace, so all we have to do is lean back and enjoy the only way one can enjoy an evening like this.

What did we want of Limburg this year? Well, since a small, cross-border group had formed consisting of Peter Schier (Prague), Volker Körner (Dortmund) and myself (Vienna) the task ahead was not that difficult or surprising: fun. Tasting without tasting. Enjoying without whining. Drinking without ambulance. Smoking without becoming an ashtray. And sleeping without having been unconscious before. Not as easy as it sounds. Anyway, we completed the task effortlessly and without headaches, now there’s another surprise.

Experiencing history and enjoying a quiet beer at the same time – is there anything better? In an unimposing side street in the heart of Prague this beer house with a tradition dating back to the year 1499 attracts its thirsty customers.
The house itself is no more than an old one-storey building with a renovated facade. The emblem of the place is a large and old clock which shines from afar like a beacon and guides one’s way.
Already outside in the atrium, just next to the entrance to the bar, one beer after the other is drawn to quench parched throats.

It seems I cannot stop raving about Café Savoy in Prague. Just remember that report on the place in 2007 when we had a long and enjoyable breakfast there – back then with the entire family. So this time round, there was no doubt that a day in Prague had to start at the Savoy. It is not the size of the portions (even though they are quite solid), but the many small things. Tonino Lamborghini is served as a coffee and the milk foam is so unique that I just had to throw my espresso passion overboard for a while. I believe I had three of these coffees, so I was definitely awake after them.

I had taken the sunny weather with me and all the other good things were there already: Prague had once more lured me with great food, relaxation, a break from the daily grind and a different brand of beer for every day of the year. Even my wife and kids condone my trips to this city as long as I bring them a souvenir or two.
It is quite incredible what one can do in only two days if one just knows the right people. So off I went by car – a mere four hours’ drive from Vienna via Znojmo. Peter Schier had invited me once again to have a cultural ball of sorts. After arriving, a solid dinner with beer, whisky and cigar got me in the mood. Where? In that great old typically Czech local called “La Bodeguita del Medio” in the centre of Prague, near the Charles Bridge.

The Big Final Tasting

Sunday evening after the Whiskyfest we were invited to the Lindores club lounge to sample a few rarities. Some people had brought along special bottles for this evening and so the lucky ones gathered were treated to treasures from the secret storage vaults of the noble donors. As chance would have it, Dominiek from LWS had selected a Brora from the Douglas Laing – Platinum Series. So had we. What’s more, both of them had been distilled in the same year and bottled in 2003. Dominiek had chosen the 30-year-old edition that had been filled in 222 bottles; we had the slight older 31-year-old version with 221 bottles. Thus we had a chance to cross taste these two excellent Broras on that final (and therefore sad) evening; a true experience!

Kombuis in Oostende – Seafood at its best

This little restaurant is located in an everyday street behind an unimposing entrance and has become one of our favourite culinary discoveries in Oostende. Right after squeezing through the small door one stands in the middle of the kitchen; a few steps further there are a few tables and old plates on the wall with quaint shells. Every guest gets a large sheet of white paper as plate mat so as not to dirty the tablecloth too much. Should one happen to visit the Kombuis on a foggy and rainy day (now how could that ever happen in Oostende?), one can jot down one’s thoughts on the paper for future generations. But now back to the main motivation for stopping at this place: the food.

Antica Casa Marchesi Spinola Tasting with Dirk Vanhoutteghem

Silas Corp. had already done this particular tasting in January 2007 and so it was a matter of honour to attend this event in Oostende and once more taste these six wonderful malts, which had already put a smile on our faces in Vienna.
Dirk, host of the evening, told us details about the distilleries and the six bottlings, four of which had been lowered to 40% alcohol content – we hope for taste reasons rather than for moolah. The most impressive rarities (Milton Duff and Longmorn) were left at cask strength and that was a good thing.

HOUSE of PEERS Whisky-Breakfast with 'The Don Lucone' - Luc Timmermans

For the second time the (therefore) already traditional Whisky Breakfast was held by Don Lucone in person, beloved godfather of the Lindoristi. It was in his throaty, smoky voice that he declared: “A man, who cannot stomach de whisky in de morning, let him sleep with de fishes.” (That is something you definitely do not want to hear in a place like Oostende.) So all of us friends and goons came along for the big sit-down early in the morning to pay homage to the Don and his treasures. Sadly, our own Don Pepi-in-law overslept a little, however, through no fault of his own. The beloved Lindores President and godfather opened the meeting with a short talk on contents and provenance of the bottles before us. Meanwhile, master chef Geert Bero prepared our special “Full Scottish Breakfast”, so we got something in our bellies and would not sleep with the moules at our first dram – and without using any baseball bat.

WHITE & MACKAY Specially Blended Scotch Whisky

Sometime during the Whiskyfest – it was still morning – I met Bert Bruyneel who surprisingly enough cradled a bottle in his hand. Without a word and smiling he filled up my glass (thanks again) and disappeared again. So I had a seat in the lobby to devote some time to my surprise present. As I learned later, Bert had won that bottle in a competition organised by Richard Paterson, which is why the bottle was signed by him. Now, I have to confess that this was an ideal whisky for starting for the day, also from its alcohol content. Here are the tasting notes for this rare blend:

Jacques Hofman’s Guide to the Belgian Beer Jungle

Schwieger-Pepi (Pepi-in-law) and I did well in working ourselves through that jungle of tastes and flavours of Belgian beers simply by ordering what all the other people around us were having. This of course led us to the question which beers were the best ones. Lindoristi Jacques Hofman did not lose time with lengthy explanations but took us by the hand and dragged us just around the corner into pubs for sampling.
Since he is quite the connoisseur, together with him we were able to create something like a ranking of beers which does not claim to be complete or definitive but corresponds to Jacques’ and our tastes. Jacques: many thanks!!

GLENS EXTRA (Springbank) Masterclass with Dominiek Bouckaert

Among the Lindoristi they call him “The Master of the Word”. We first had the opportunity to witness his powers in February 2006 when he held the legendary Clynelish Masterclass on Mr. Edoardo “Baffo” Giaccone, then in his weekly “The Master of the Word Reports” on the Lindores website and now, on October 27th, 2007 at his Glens Extra - Springbank Masterclass in Oostende.
Presumably for marketing reasons, these bottlings were not supposed to be sold on the Italian market as Springbanks. A few insiders aside, in those days most Italians only knew about the big names such as Glenfiddich or The Glenlivet, so the name “Glens Extra” was born. Today, only three of these bottlings are known as examples for that early marketing concept that went pear-shaped.

Lochside Masterclass with Bert Bruyneel

Oostende did not just make us happy campers because of the Whiskyfest that went down there but also for of all the high quality tastings the lads offered.
The first such event was held on October 27th 2007 at 15:00 hrs by Lindoristi and Malt Maniac Bert Bruyneel and focussed on six Lochside malts. The sequence of tasting was well selected and the water supply ample; an important detail which would remain at this professional level during the rest of the weekend. I can only strongly advise people or clubs doing tasting events to always provide sufficient fresh and cool water. Further providing small baskets of fresh neutral bread could help fully win the hearts of one’s guests.

After minor nightly incursions into Bruges and Oostende, the next day saw the opening of our raison d’être (là). At the breakfast table we met some old friends and acquaintances from all over the world. Among them were Serge Valentin (Whiskyfun & Malt Maniac), Michel van Meersbergen (Malt Maniac), Olivier Humbrecht (Malt Maniac), Konstantin Grigoriadis (WCoA & Malt Maniac), Josef ‚Schwieger-Pepi’ Hitner (WCoA), Heinz Johannik & Walter Felsinger (WCoA), Giovanni Giuliani, Marc Segers (Whiskycorner), Michiel Wigman & Bert Vuik (The Dutch Connection), Carsten Ehrlich (MARA), Mario Grotklaes & James Pithie (Drankenshop), Astrid Kathrine Ohl (Whisky Witch), Hubert Corman (Taste Still), sowie Alexandre Vingtier (LMDW France), not to forget the entire Lindores Society: Luc Timmermans, Bruno Van de Pol, Johan Baert, Dirk Vanhoutteghem, Geert Bero, Jacques Hofman, Jan Broekmans, Fred Muller, Dominiek Bouckaert, Bert Bruyneel and James Pithie.

For quite some time now, we have longed for the day of departure to this event. The countdown was made considerably easier by the Lindores Whisky Society’s website which displayed days, hours, minutes and seconds until the opening of Whiskyfest 2007. On October 26th, 2007 we started out from Vienna and after a quiet flight to Brussels we headed up North in a rented car to the charming town of Bruges, capital of Western Flanders.