圖書序言
【酒廠逸聞軼事】老闆來瞭,彆再偷喝威士忌!!
[ A Distillery Anecdote ] The Boss is Coming: Stop Stealing the Whisky!!
百富颱灣品牌大使 瀋宇軒 The Balvenie Brand Ambassador in Taiwan Daniel Shen
在2017年春天,我拜師學藝花瞭三個月的時間,在颱灣學習以手工打造瞭這個黃銅色的取酒器,一方麵為瞭要深刻體驗手工的睏難與復雜度,另一方麵也是紀念威士忌酒廠一個有趣曆史。在一百多年前,在蘇格蘭酒廠工作的工人們,忍受不瞭生命之水美味的誘惑,拜託製造蒸餾器的銅匠,用紅銅及黃銅做瞭一根管子,投入橡木桶中即可取齣威士忌,這個取酒的道具被稱為dipping dog 或是copper dog。
管狀的造型方便工人們藏在衣褲裏,將威士忌帶迴傢裏偷偷享用。據說一百多年前,創辦人威廉格蘭每天巡視他的酒廠時,總是大聲地吹著口哨或沿路用力敲打酒窖的門闆。原來老威廉是個很貼心的老闆,他的口哨聲是為瞭要警告他的員工們:「老闆來瞭,彆再偷喝桶子裏的威士忌!」
Back in the spring of 2017, I spent three months taking up an apprenticeship in Taiwan where I learned how to handcraft this brass-coloured instrument: dipping dog. Firstly, I wanted to experience in-depth the difficulty and complexity that comes with handcrafting. I also wanted to honor an interesting part of the distillery’s history. Even for Scottish distillery workers more than a hundred years ago, the temptation of the water of life was something hard to resist. They asked the coppersmiths who made the stills to fashion a tube made of copper and brass. Once dipped into a cask, this copper tool was able to extract whisky. This extraction tool is called a dipping dog or copper dog.
Its tube-like shape made it easy for workers to conceal it inside their trouser legs. They would then sneak whisky home and enjoy it by stealth. It is said that more a hundred years ago, William Grant the founder would whistle loudly or knock on the cellar’s door when he was inspecting his distillery during his daily patrol. It turns out old William was a very attentive boss. His whistling was meant to warn his employees: “the boss’s comin’: stop stealing whisky from the casks!”