Whisky, Long

My father liked his whisky. In his day, the refinement of single malts were unknown to the general whisky drinker so he enjoyed blends. One of his favourites was White Horse, which was fortunate as, in his East African days, the African Mercantile, of which he was general manager, was agents for White Horse.

I drink my fancy single malts with a dash of water. Had whisky been drunk like that in the heat of the East African coast, the drinker would have been flat on his/her back in minutes. So whisky was taken 'long', that is, with plenty of water, a habit my father brought 'home' with him when he retired to England. This was my father's whisky glass, made of paper-thin glass with a pattern around the top, and....

....this is the last-remaining of our ebony coasters, on which that whisky glass would often have sat.