By Bernie Bell

Here’s the tale…..

We live near the Bay of Hinderayre, Gorseness. My husband, Mike, was walking by the bay, when he found this on the rocks at the top of the shore…

What interests us is, that it’s made of wood!

Mike’s favourite tipple is Highland Park, so we are very familiar with their usual stoppers made of cork and plastic, and we’re wondering  – when did Highland Park change from using wood, to plastic?  That could give some idea of how old the stopper is.

I’m also wondering, when and where did it go into the sea?  How long was it in the sea for? And, how did it end up, washing up on the Bay of Hinderayre?  It could make a good story –  The Stopper’s Tale!

So, I emailed Highland Park, to ask for info, and also suggested that, in these times of awareness of single use plastic, and its effect on the environment, Highland Park might consider going back to using wood for their stoppers?

The  helpful folk at Highland Park, answered, saying that the wooden stopper is used on their older expressions (that’s the word they used – must be the correct term – you learn something new every day!), for example 25 year old and 30 year old, such as this one….  https://www.highlandparkwhisky.com/en/product/25-year-old

They told me that the ‘H’ amulet branding on the cork we found is quite recent, so it can’t be too old.

So, it’s not very old after all, but we like it, and it’s possible story, and I’ve  placed it at the corner of the hearth-stone, next to a different kind of amber glow.