Well, I’ve been immersing myself in all things Irish today - sort of. Firstly, I’ve still got the cough that #1 generously shared with me, and listening to me hacking away this morning, big J tipped me the wink and said he’d got just the thing. Abandoning his tiling, he made a quick trip home in his van and much chinking and clinking in the kitchen later, I was lovingly presented with a glass of hot, clear liquid with a couple of cloves floating in it that nearly blew the top of my head off when I took a sip.
We were fascinated, and although J wouldn’t divulge his secret recipe, we wouldn’t let him back to his tiling until he told us more about this ‘Potcheen’ stuff that we’d heard so many rumours about. Historically, this clear spirit was brewed in secret at home, I think from barley, over local peat fires to produce a strong, clear ‘Moonshine’. Banned in Ireland since the 1600s, it’s now brewed legally at the Bunratty Winery in County Clare, but I think there’s probably a bit of ‘nudge, nudge, wink, wink’ home brewing still going on in some parts. Obviously, J didn’t know anything about that.
Talking of peat, I’ve also been to the peat bog today. J was on his way past so I asked if I could follow him and have a look. It’s a beautiful, slightly eerie place - flat and green until you get to the seam of black where the peat has been dug. The landscape is dotted with clumps of spiky grass, as well as pine trees and piles of neatly stacked ’sods’; also, sadly, with old bathtubs, rubbish bags and the odd burnt out car. I didn’t stay long as it started to really bucket down, but I made a mental note to come back and have a proper explore when the weather is better and J’s evil concoction has cured my cough.
It’s fiery stuff, though, and I sipped it carefully whilst lying in a hot bath. Not only has it done wonders for my cough, it’s improved my singing voice no end. Woohoo!