Whiskey Wanderings

In our monthly Whiskey Wanderings, The Furian Post pays a visit to a whiskey distillery which people should get to know better. This time we find out exactly why birch wood is used for the barrels. We also go to the bottom of the scandal which almost tore apart the Magnum family. Follow us in our whiskey journey to ‘Magnum’s Delights’.

In a remote area far from the capital Utrana lies the village Tuesday. It sports an odd name because its inhabitants could not come up with a proper name for the village, which is why they chose the day they had to give up a name for the town. Oddly enough the fashion in which they chose the name refers back to the typical citizen’s character: laid back and ever awaiting every deadline.

We enter the family estate through magnificent gates, the driveway is surrounded by blossoming magnolia trees. The beautiful scenery immediately makes us feel warm and welcome. When we finally reach the distillery, we are being greeted by a large but friendly dog called Eddy. Eddy’s barking made sure everyone knew we had arrived.

Magnum whisky

Amelia Magnum, the extravagant granddaughter and heiress to the family fortune welcomes us and is very keen on starting the tour. She takes us to the humid cellars filled with what appears to be a hundred barrels. Strangely enough, the barrels all have the same pale exterior. “ We use birch wood to make the barrels. It gives the whiskey a slight taste of honey and it keeps the liquor from turning dark by age”, says Amelia. “We are the only ones to use this type of wood and it definitely makes our whiskey stand out from others”. She explains in great detail the way ‘Magnum Delights‘ is made; but they also add an ingredient which she doesn’t want to talk about. “A family secret”, she proudly states.

When the tour is over, we are invited to taste three whiskeys. Each one is slightly different from the other, but they all sport a similar honey flavour. The colour ranges from light beige to a sand colour. While we enjoy the whiskey, we start talking about the family business once more. It turns out Amelia’s mother, Naomi, had cheated on her husband, John Jacob Magnum. Already a nasty situation, but apparantly she cheated on him with his own brother, Patrick. There was quite a row and the two brothers were not on speaking terms. It almost destroyed the family and the distillery, because the brothers tried to take advantage of each other. Fortunately, Naomi left the country and eventually it all went back to normal.

Today, the brothers are working alongside each other to make ‘Magnum’s Delights’ an important player in the industry. And they do succeed, ‘Magnum Delights’ is steadily climbing to become a famous yet family-owned distillery. We wish them the best of luck in their endavours.

A well-deserved rest for Eddy

Please stay tuned for our next Whiskey Wandering!