We almost had to talk ourselves into trying it the first time given the bad press it seems to receive outside of Scotland and also due to the hangovers we were still nursing from the night before. But we bit the bullet and shared some in its more traditional form which came as a gigantic stack of tatties and neeps (root veggies) with haggis on top and covered in a whisky sauce (which was strategically selected in case it was as bad as we'd been lead to believe).
Let the obsession begin.
From that point onwards we tried haggis burritos, a haggis pie, haggis on a hotdog and haggis wontons. Each an interesting interpretation on the same base ingredient. The burrito was the standout and is something we'll genuinely attempt to recreate at home, along with chucking haggis into everything else that we possibly can.
Eating adventurously isn't bravado, it gives you an opportunity to experience different countries' food cultures and cultures in general. The real people of a city, town, village aren't stuck in the museums, art galleries or other dime a dozen sights. They're eating their food and their drink in their restaurants, at their street stalls and in their bars.
Yes, we spend a lot of time eating and drinking and blogging about it but that's what we do at home and how we like to travel. I could tell you about the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, the Scottish National Gallery or the Museum of Edinburgh (all three of which we did go to) but what fun would that be? You can go to Edinburgh yourself and see them and you'll quickly understand why we didn't write about them and will want to know the name of the place that does that good haggis burrito...
Another Culinary Delight
You can't come to Edinburgh and not try a deep fried Mars Bar. Essentially a heart attack in your hands. Gooey, creamy and way better than you'd ever expect it to be. Give me a good kebab and one of these after a night out - drunken heaven.
You certainly can't come to Edinburgh and not consume a s load of whisky. The Black Cat was a great starting point so we lined up a couple of tasting trays of some really great stuff and dived in. Most interesting was probably the unfiltered Ancnoc 1998. V good.
The Hanging Bat
The best bar that we have been to outside of Belgium. Welcoming staff, heaps of sour barrel aged beers from UK brewers (at this point we didn't realise that Buxton did such good sour brews) and awesome fast food styled noms (like beer mac and cheese).
We managed to semi-fluke hitting Edinburgh the weekend that the Wallabies were to play Scotland and weren't going to miss out on that.
Murrayfield was at capacity and the Scottish national anthem sent chills up both of our spines. It did the trick for the Scots too, they scored a try within in a couple of minutes and had us a bit worried. However, the Wallabies controlled most of the game from that point on and even though it was a bit scrappy at times, it was great to be amongst it.
Nix also managed to meet Milkman (aka Milko/the Honey Badger/Nick Cummins), her rugby idol, and get within spitting distance of her rugby fancy, Quade.
This was a particularly good weekend to be an Aussie in the UK. We won this game, made it through to the Union World Cup and knocked off the Poms in the cricket. Happy days.
Arthur's Seat
As you've read above, we had a few calories to burn after our time in Edinburgh so climbed Arthur's Seat and a few of the peaks around it. The panoramic views provided by hills that are just outside of the city centre are breathtaking.
Four nights in Edinburgh disappeared extremely quickly.
The Beers
Buxton Wolfscote Black Sour, DIPA, Brown Indian Raspberry Sour
Wild Beer Co Madness IPA
Wild Beer Co/Good George/Burning Skies Schnoodlepip
Alpha Project Vengeance Imperial Stout, Intrepid Traveller
Arbor You Ain't Seen Me
Alchemy Panacea, Almighty Mo' Fo
Cromarty Ghost Town
Windswept APA
Tigertops Black Hop
Magic Rock Barrel Aged Dark Arts Sour Stout
Swe/Bat Staff Appleton of Smoke Creek
Brewdog 5am Saint, Hardcore IPA, Watt Dickie
Brewdog/Evil Twin Hello My Name Is Sonja
Dieu du Ciel Isseki Nicho
The Whisky
Ardmore 1993
Craggenmore 12 Year
Glenkinchie
Dalwhinie 15 Year
Aberlour 10 Year
Glengoyne 12 Year
Ancnoc 1998
Glendronach 14 Year
Caol Ila Moch
Laddies 10
Springbank 15 Year, Calvados
Auchentoshan 3 Wood
Tobermory 15 Year
