Bottle 17: Redbreast PX Edition

Redbreast PX Edition

Distillery: Midleton Distillery
Region/Country: Midleton, Ireland
Age: NAS
ABV: 46%
Cask type(s): ex-bourbon and ex-Oloroso sherry casks, finished in Pedro Ximénez casks
Grain Bill: a mix of malted and unmalted barley

Tasting Notes

• Nose: Hints of fruit, spices and toasted nuts combine with the subtly sweet aroma of Pedro Ximénez sherry seasoned casks.
  
• Palate: A zesty, syrupy mouthful with the perfect balance of fruit, spice and toasted notes.
  
• Finish: Satisfyingly rich and long, sweet flavours linger on the palate.

Pedro Ximénez Sherry European Robins

I was going to talk about Pedro Ximénez Sherry, but I got distracted by European Robins. Here’s the Wingspan card for the European expansion set depicting the European Robin that our “Redbreast” whiskey has as its namesake. It’s a powerful ally early in the game. Listen to its call here.

How birds collectively navigate is an outstanding problem. Some suggest that the birds must have iron-sensitive receptors. Recent biophysicists have proposed a mechanism for explaining how birds use the earth’s magnetic field to navigate. Proteins called cryptochromes present in the eyes of birds form quantum-mechanically entangled pairs when struck by blue light. These are very sensitive to magnetic fields, and research suggests that the oscillation of these unpaired electron states is sensitive enough to pick up the very weak magnetic field of the Earth.

So far, a set of orienting experiments have been done with European Robins, shielding groups of them from electromagnetic radiation and observing their behavior. The results are interesting, and support the quantum-mechanical navigation theory so far.

If none of that is interesting to you, take a listen to this Radiolab podcast instead. It’s a good one.

Advent Reflection

Magi

by Richard Beck

We seek in sand beneath the stars,
plotting fixed coordinates
upon the sifting, mutable, and inconstant.
Sweaty cartographers imposing maps
upon the mysterious and inscrutable.
Our navigation anxious, provisional, uncertain.

Then here, an offered beacon,
precise and definite.
A sign unknown to us.
Direction so gracious
this steady, gifted light.