From Robin Page's 'Country Diary' in yesterday's 'Daily Telegraph':

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“Bliss - so I was told - is the hot tub, plus a wee dram. But even whisky is over-rated. In the main it looks like the hillside run-off and tastes like the hillside run-off, but this year I have found a way of making whisky drinkable. Buy three bottles of the cheapest whisky possible; add a quarter of a bottle of black rum, 1 lb. blackberries, and 1 lb. sugar. Swill it round the jar every few days. It is ready when all the sugar has dissolved. What a drink.

"Even this has been eclipsed by good old-fashioned English drinks. This year sloes have hung on the blackthorn like grapes and the quality of the sloe gin is wonderful. But there is an even better drink - quince gin. Take 4 pints of diced quince (discard the cores); add 4 lb. sugar, put in a gallon jar and cover with about 2½ pints of gin. Shake every day for three months, then taste the golden ambrosia.

"On Christmas morning, when my Scottish friends are sitting in their bubbling imitation puddles and sipping their alcoholic run-off, I shall be in front of a log fire with a mince pie in one hand and a glass of quince gin in the other”

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P.S. We are drinkers of neither whisky nor gin, but are blessed with a quince tree in the front garden and my wife makes a lovely, tangy, quince jam (had some this morning)


P.P.S. Robin Page was famously arrested last year, and put into an excrement-smeared police cell, by Cambridgeshire Police (the same force that bungled its intial investigation into the Soham murders) for a speech he made in Frampton-on-Severn, Gloucestershire, a year last September, where he was addressing a countryside rally. He was arrested because a member of the public thought that the opening sentence of his speech, demanding the same rights for rural dwellers as homosexuals and asylum-seekers, was 'incitement to racial hatred'(!). He was not charged, but according to his account was given the 'third degree' treatment by the politically correct officers of Cambridgeshire Police


P.P.P.S. I'd like to wish the Forum Owner and all contributors to this board a very happy Christmas and a successful and happy New Year

"I'd like to wish the Forum Owner and all contributors to this board a very happy Christmas and a successful and happy New Year"

And the same to you too!

Thank you, Tony, Merry Christmas.

Thanks Tony. Merry Christmas and a happy new year to everyone who posts on these forums. I must say the debate is most enjoyable!

re (Richard): "I must say the debate is most enjoyable!"

REPLY:

As I don't ever contribute to any other 'imperial v metric' forum, could someone who does visit other 'metric' discussion forums enlighten me as to how this board compares with others, e.g. how many contributors do other boards have, how relevant are the points made, what is the standard of debate, is it more technical on other boards etc.?

This one is more upmarket.

(the board, that is, not some of the people who post here!!!)

A merry Christmas and a happy New Year to you too, Tony !

Steveh: "This one is more upmarket."

Hehe... We could put it this way too: the BWMA discussion boards are highbrow, Metricsucks.com is, er, more lowbrow... ;-)

ANSWERS TO EURIC'S QUIZ QUESTIONS
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Buy three bottles of the cheapest whisky possible;
what size bottles: 750 mL; 1 L; 1.5 L; 3 L, etc.?

ANS: A direct hit! You score a full three points
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Add a quarter of a bottle of black rum, 1 lb. What about 500 g?

ANS: Quite near, but still 10% or so too much. You score just one point
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blackberries, and 1 lb. sugar. If I buy a 1 kg sack of sugar, can I just use half of it?

ANS: Well, half of it is 500g - more than an ounce and a half over and above what you need. Again, only one point, I'm afraid
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Swill it round the jar every few days. It is ready when all the sugar has dissolved. What a drink. "Even this has been eclipsed by good old-fashioned English drinks. This year sloes have hung on the blackthorn like grapes and the quality of the sloe gin is wonderful. But there is an even better drink - quince gin. Take 4 pints of diced quince. Is that 4 pints imperial or 4 pints US?

ANS: Since it was published in the 'Daily Telegraph' which is printed in the United Kingdom, pints imperial of course. Silly question, no points
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Why not just say 2 L, then there is no confusion?

ANS: Er, because the writer is British and most of us drink a pint of milk or beer on a regular basis. Metric caused the confusion to us Brits in the first place anyway. No points - and think yourself lucky, you nearly got a minus point for that question
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(discard the cores); add 4 lb. sugar, If I buy a 2 kg sack, or 2-1 kg sacks, can I just use the whole amount, or do I have to go through the bother of measuring out 1.8 kg and discard the extra 200 g?

ANS: Three strikes and you're out. You've now asked this same basic question three times. You got one point the last two times, none this time though
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put in a gallon jar. UK or US gallon? Will a 5 L jar work?

ANS: See above answers. UK gallon of course. A 5-litre jar probably won't work because there would be too much air at the top - about 10% by volume, as a gallon is only 4.545 litres. 'Nul points' again, I'm afraid
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And cover with about 2½ pints of gin. Can I just use the whole amount that comes in a STANDARD 1.5 L bottle?

ANS: 2.5 pints of gin = 1.42 litres. So you'd be over by 5.6%. Near enough for you to score two points
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Shake every day for three months, then taste the golden ambrosia.

Three months? But Christmas is 3 days away. Why didn't you tell us this September?

"On Christmas morning, when my Scottish friends are sitting in their bubbling imitation puddles and sipping their alcoholic run-off, I shall be in front of a log fire with a mince pie in one hand and a glass of quince gin in the other”

Not if you have to wait 3 months for it to be ready. Maybe on Easter morning, but not Christams.

ANS: A well deserved three points. Robin Page didn't of course recommend you to try this for Christmas, merely suggested you make it yourself some time. He just said he himself would be enjoying it for Christmas because he made it at least three months ago. But, yes, he should have written about it in September, since by March the weather's starting to warm up - and more to the point, the quince apples have fallen off long ago
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HOW DID EURIC SCORE?

Maximum possible points (3 points max. per question): 27

Euric's score: 10

Percentage: 37%

Pass Mark: 40%

RESULT: *FAIL*

Note: the Imperial Standards Institute's decision is Final. There is *No Right of Appeal*

ROTFL!!!!