Category Archives: whisky
The Happy Farmer has been ‘heuching and cheuching’. We’ve been away for a short break of mainland living. Shops, restaurants, trains, mountains, museums, galleries, Christmas lights, fireworks and rugby. It was lovely to get away and lovely to return home. When you step off the plane the crisp cold air envelopes you. You can breathe [...]
Seasons don’t end at Persabus, they just change. Summer visitors often ask me what an Islay winter is like As the summer months fade to a happy distant memory, Autumn is upon us and our guests can look forward to a very different island experience. Our ‘whisky visitors’ are back staying with us on the [...]
Times are changing. The houses that were once home for the workers at Bunnahabhain Distillery have nearly all been demolished. Building work has begun. Bunnahabhain was a thriving village when the Happy Farmer was a young boy. It had a school, a village hall, post office and shop. It was once home to some twenty [...]
When a young couple are to be married on Islay it is local tradition to have a ‘blackening’ for the couple. The bride and groom are ‘kidnapped’ by friends and relatives and tied to the back of a trailer. They are then towed through the villages, where buckets of anything rotten and smelly is thrown [...]
The heat is on at Persabus. Temperatures have been soaring and the island has been bathed in golden sunshine and boasting the most amazing vibrant sunsets. When the pottery closes, the car is packed with dogs and beach bag, and we head for the sea. An after-work swim in the cool ocean waters is just [...]
Islay is at its picture-perfect best. The sun is splitting the skies. Beach time is calling. We have been away for a few days. We arrived back to paradise. There is something quite cathartic about leaving the heat of the bustling city behind as you step onto a small plane and fly off into the [...]
The front field appears to be growing barley and…. lobster pots. Stacked ever so neatly above the sprouting field of barley in front of the farmhouse, are 200 or so lobster pots. The Happy Farmer has been smiling broadly ever since their arrival on the farm. He was more than happy to help then, in [...]
It has been a busy old week. We have welcomed many new guests to the farm and waved others on their way. So many fascinating people from all corners of the globe, with so many interesting stories to tell. This week we welcomed Koreans, Americans, Germans, Norwegians, and a lovely lady who grew up on [...]
There is a carnival atmosphere on the island as the Islay Festival of Music and Malt gets underway. The sun is splitting the skies as people from all corners of the world have travelled over the seas to Islay’s shores to join in the festivities. The Happy Farmer therefore feels obliged, duty bound in fact, [...]
