Hello everybody! Sorry we’re a little late this week… We’ve been off enjoying ourselves over the Easter (or BEASTer) break! Still, the upside is that I had a camera handy for most of it – care to see some holiday snaps?
Our first full day away was last Saturday, and we spent it in style… Touring the Echlinville Distillery!
This boutique distillery is proud of its small size, and the owners are eager to keep as much of their production in-house as possible. That means using locally-grown grain as the base for their gin, whiskey, vodka and poitín, distilling and bottling everything in that cool-looking building in the photo above… And even designing their own specialised equipment to help the process along!
Unfortunately, we weren’t allowed to take photos inside the buildings… You’ll just have to take the tour yourselves! But I did capture Explorer Beastie admiring the orchard…
Those apple trees are pretty special – they’re descendants of a variety created for the original owners of the land where the distillery stands! They’ve a bit of growing to do yet, but I’m sure the Echlinville folks are already dreaming up fun things to make from those apples.
Also in the grounds… This!
That’s an original Soviet T34 tank from the Second World War. What’s it doing in the grounds of the distillery? Well, it turns out that the owner is also quite into his military history… And he’s hoping to eventually open a museum here. Our guide told us that there will be more tanks joining this one, plus some exhibits about more local historical events too.
Unfortunately they didn’t leave the keys in the tank, so we weren’t able to take it for a test drive. But with the tour complete, it was time for SAMPLES!
And look, an old Beastie friend is joining us!
Hey there, Garcia Beastie! Loyal BeastieBlog readers may remember this fuzzy little guy as one of my very early commissions. The post where I introduce him is still knocking about here if you want to see all his accessories.
Now lads… That’s a human-sized serving you’re working with there! Maybe go easy on it?
Too late. I suppose it’s for the best that Garcia Beastie left his skis at home today!
Luckily, Explorer Beastie’s antics on Saturday didn’t stop him enjoying his Easter egg on Sunday.
Then the sun kept on shining all day… And Easter Monday too! Time to catch some rays.
Of course, you can’t count on the sun to stick around in these parts. So when we went to the beach on Tuesday…
“Hey, where did the good weather go?”
Attempts were made to sunbathe anyway…
… But we had more fun looking for curious things on the tideline. And where could that mysterious gate lead?
Next, a little break to sit and watch the world (and some of the local bird life) go by. A perfect end to a relaxing holiday!
So, did any of you get away for a spring break? Be sure to tell us all about your adventures in the comments!
And join us again next week, when I’ll be revealing the secrets of Explorer Beastie’s beauty regime!
No, really.
See you then!
