#fmn gin

S's rather fruitful past collaborations with Chefs Tom Kitchin and Tony Singh are already well known by this fandom. As is C's lackadaisical Grilled! by The Staff Canteen podcast (April 2023), mentioning gin and food, as far as I remember.

By the way - we are one day shy of the first anniversary of this Instagram post:

[Source: C and FMN Gin's IG accounts - posted on July 11, 2024]

We were invited - oh, well ... 'we' meaning the happy few of the selected and worthy European, Asian and Australasian countries - to preorder our bottles and 'secure' our nectar. Whatever happened? Genuinely curious, here: has anyone managed to order? was it delivered? and what about the US clientele, that was under the spell of an imminent announcement ' pre-launches soon' - could that be that it never happened, after all? Oh.

So yes, all of this is well known.

But perhaps not this tidbit:

This is Gary Maclean's The Scottish Kitchen cookbook, with a foreword by S. It has been published in 2022, by Black and White Publishing (based in EDI) and Penguin Random House (in North America) and I don't remember it ever being discussed or even mentioned anywhere. If I am wrong, let it be my sin and kindly excuse me - but for the life of me, if I am right, I cannot understand why.

After all, Maclean has been officially appointed the first ever National Chef of Scotland, in 2017, by the Scottish Government, in a very official attempt to further promote healthy and gourmet local cuisine:

[Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-42170886 - posted on November 30, 2017]

Here is the Foreword S (or perhaps one of the Clanlands series ghostwriters) wrote for this cookbook. From my own ebook (did I tell you I have an obvious soft spot for this kind of literature?):

For our Spanish Mafia girls, here is a transcript that would make for an easier instant translation:

'When I think of home, it’s the food that springs to mind and always transports me back there. Of course, across the world people associate Scotland with haggis—our most well-known dish—but there’s so much more to Scotland than that. There’s the comfort of holding a warm Scotch pie in your hand on a blustery afternoon while watching a football match; the nostalgia of a hot plate of stovies or a homemade shepherd’s pie; a spicy, soul-warming dram of whisky in front of the fire (perhaps my own Sassenach!); or the simple pleasure of haggis, neeps and tatties, our unofficial national dish. On every page of this book, I was transported back to Scotland.

For many years now, I’ve been passionate about bringing Scotland’s heritage to the world stage through my own work, and this is also precisely what Gary does in The Scottish Kitchen. It’s wonderful to see traditional Scottish food like venison, grouse, lobster and langoustines being enjoyed across the world now. Gary has worked tirelessly educating people all over the globe about our incredible produce and time-honoured traditions, and reinvigorating Scottish cuisine with his own inventions. Nobody knows Scottish food like Gary Maclean: as if winning MasterChef: The Professionals and collecting countless culinary awards wasn’t enough, he was also named Scotland’s first National Chef—and all of his knowledge and passion is now distilled in these pages.

Some of the recipes and traditions shared in this book go back hundreds of years, adapted and treasured by families who passed down their knowledge to their children, and their children’s children—and now these recipes are in your hands. I hope you enjoy learning more about Scotland’s history and culture through our food, and I’m thankful to Gary for sharing this with us. I can’t wait for you to discover more of Scotland with him.'

Of course, you can read into this short tidbit what the hell ever you want. Some will interpret the Sassenach mention as 'shilling' (the same crowd that does not want to understand that the Royal Shakespeare Company is not exactly some sort of Barnardo's for failed, untalented one trick ponies). Some might perhaps connect the insertion to the broader context the phrase evokes, which is a quiet family moment. More so, when we read this very surprising : 'Some of the recipes and traditions shared in this book go back hundreds of years, adapted and treasured by families who passed down their knowledge to their children, and their children’s children—and now these recipes are in your hands.'

Now why would a confirmed bachelor and apparently happy to remain so (and do #silly pap walks with foreign harlots, in the process), feel moved enough to mention such things as family, or children, in an otherwise perfectly forgettable text for what is probably a friend's book?

They do not follow him on Instagram. But Gary Maclean follows both of them:

[Source: Gary Maclean's IG account]

As he does also follow, for example, Graham McTavish - why am I not surprised? That being said, this fine Glaswegian chef has never been otherwise connected to anything OL-related.

There are many things we do not know. And perhaps for the better.

I'm sorry for not responding sooner... I'm a little absent, I know... Spending more time with my family and at work, and taking care of my 18-year-old cat, who is very old and has several health issues 😿

It's an interesting theory, my friend... But I don't think that's it... I think that like other celebrities, Sam and Caitríona wanted to enter the 🥃🍹🍸 business... Taking the opportunity to earn 💰💰💰💰💰 while there is this fandom.

I preferred not to comment too much on this because it is clear that the similarity between the FMN promo video and Sassenach's was intentional... In the same way as Sam unfollowing the FMN Gin account was on purpose. I'll give the benefit of the doubt to the "Don't forget..." link, the Sassenach team has already used it on other occasions for SS whisky 😜

That's it... Nothing new, and more of the same old 💩...

I still wonder about when that gin will come back around. Duncan sure is enjoying himself 😂

Contemporary art is not really my cup of tea. I must lack the speculative courage, or something.

However, I find C's latest protégée quite interesting and endearing. Now this is an organically intelligent young woman, with genuine emotions and zero agenda. For example, I just loved her thank you post (November 2023) for the opportunity to use SWG3's studio for free:

Naturally, she is followed by C, who made it all possible, using part of the FMN gin first batch's profits:

And common sense dictates The Artist to also follow and endorse The Benefactor:

...and who else?

I don't know, it must be a glitch, d'you think? You mean she follows that person the Disgruntled Tumblrettes are half an inch away from calling 'The Prick Who Deserves To Die'?

😱

But... but... this is absurd, right? RIIIIGHT?

Only to those foolish enough not to see the deep symmetry between those two projects, I suppose:

versus

[more, here: https://www.tumblr.com/sgiandubh/731447583491473408/pass-it-on?source=share].

The Artist does not follow anyone else remotely related to OL, by the way. Another one who clearly did not get the memo.

All of this carefully considered, the fact that she is now exhibiting her works in a new, contemporary art gallery in Ibiza is, probably, of no importance:

Unless....

PS: I bet the farm she was honestly telling you ' we're very proud of the work you've done, Amanda', in that reel.

This, just in, in my inbox:

'This launch will be available for the UK, Ireland, Germany, Netherlands , Denmark, Austria, Switzerland, Australia, Singapore and Japan only.'

I am not sure if I understood well... spare the US, that will have its own dedicated launch (and it is normal), we're not to buy her gin? Our money is no good?

Listen up, France, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, the Eastern Bloc, listen up India, South Korea, Brazil and Hong Kong and basically all the other laissés pour compte:

Perhaps I am wrong, albeit I think I am not, hence the 'selected countries' disclaimer.

I am suddenly not interested at all to taste it. My support for The Arts is apparently not welcome. My passport does not make me good enough for her ambrosia.

Dear Sham Anon,

Oh, come on...did you see her playing barmaid?

I loved the clean, botanical concept and the wink to CEBRF's character. And she looked relaxed and almost Our Good Old C, in here. So refreshing to see Her playing around, not that Constipated Matron avatar always taking possession of her, when Tracula is out and about.

In the comments threads, The Casuals have many thoughts and questions:

No shit, Sherlock. Because two of them are a couple and the third one is a shameless copycat. Also, many people are pissed off with the gin being unavailable in various locations around the world - but even more so, I suspect, with the poor way to announce it.

Always remember (ROFLMAO, bitches) this bookshelf of yore:

And nope, pumpkin. You'll never make me bitch about C. When I did criticize her, I did it because I was honestly and genuinely feeling like criticizing her, in a rather constructive way. Not because Anon made me do it - try me, see what happens.

https://www.tumblr.com/luhafraser/765716225674330112/im-sorry-anons-but-theres-nothing-i-can-say

Dear Real Project Anon,

I am sorry, I have this blog blocked, but I think the topic was not taken anywhere further by the blogger, in what looks (and probably is) a bulk answer to several different Anons.

To cut the story short, my money would be on a whimsical, (charity -focused?) business pet project of sorts, shrouded in appalling lack of transparency, a rather puzzling Irish parallel/mirror business entity (with an elaborate, Russian doll-like architecture, but empty coffers - why?) and a very discreet (let's be elegant, here) concrete impact.

I have been planning to write more on it since forever and was always cut short by current drama. I might get back to it, if I find some spare time during this week-end. Thank you for your patience, Anon.