Mai Gao: There are 300 children in the family

As the Chinese CEO of a famous multinational company, Ken McCall is also a collector. He likes to collect all kinds of peculiar things, including car models, old-fashioned Chinese mailboxes, beautiful engravings Lace Plates...Each item has a unique story.

As a Scot, among his many collections, he is most proud of his whisky. Whiskey is regarded as a godsend by Scotland and is one of McGowan's most beloved collections. So far, he has a total of nearly 300 whisky collections, which are like his children, which he cherishes.

"Children" were born in their hometown

Many people's impression of Scots started from the film "Braveheart". In the film, the ruggedness, bravery and deep patriotic enthusiasm shown by the national hero William Wallace not only inspired the Scottish people, but also deeply captured the hearts of the audience outside the screen.

Mike is such a Scotsman with a strong hometown complex, and his home in Shanghai always displays a few hometown accessories. Knowing that we were coming, he brought these items to the office, introduced them to us, and gestured excitedly on his body: a round fanny pack made of sea lion skin is one of the traditional accessories for men's clothing; a short palm-sized dagger As a self-defense weapon, it should be close to the calf, not on the outside of the riding boots...

After "showing" the accessories, Michael turned around and carefully took out a few pieces of whiskey from the low cabinet. Whiskey is in the blood of Scots, at least for McGowan, that's true. Stroking the gleaming bottle of whisky, Michael told me he grew up in an industrial part of Scotland, where people think whisky has a calming effect. As a child, Michael heard from adults that if a child smeared whisky between his teeth when he was pulling his teeth, he would stop crying and go to sleep obediently. Even when Michael's mother was born, his grandfather would bring whisky to share with others, treating him as his daughter's protector.

Where Michael grew up, hardworking people drank whisky every day, as did his grandfather, as did his parents. Under their influence, the young Michael gradually developed a favorable impression of whisky. Although he couldn't stand the strong taste of whisky at the time, as he grew up, it was natural for Michael to become a loyal fan of whisky.

To this day, whenever Michael holds up a glass of whisky, he still sees the place where he grew up as a child and the smiling faces of his relatives.

"Children" are becoming more and more crowded

There are only a few kinds of whisky in the domestic market, such as Chivas, Bailing Tan, Jim Beam and so on. Here in Maigo, I found a lot of whiskeys that can't be named. The colors are yellow, yellow, green, and they are really beautiful. Michael said that the biggest feature of his collection of whisky is "unique", and only whisky with distinctive characteristics will be included in his collection.

Holding the map of Scotland in his hand, Michael pointed to a bottle of whisky in a green bottle on the table: "This is a relatively special bottle of wine, one special is that it has a very high degree, 103 degrees; the other special is , he is issued by the Whisky Club, the name of the manufacturer is not allowed on the wine, so the only way to know where the wine is produced is through the map."

On the label of this bottle of wine, the red "11.11" logo is a special reference. attention. Michael told me that the first 11 indicates the brewing location, which corresponds to the Spencer area on the map; the second 11 indicates that this wine is the 11th bottle released at the reception.

In order to find a special drink, in addition to visiting the whisky store, Michael also joined the Scotch Malt Whisky Club. Every year, the wine party has 4 opportunities to bottle and sell wine, and sell some specially produced wine to members. At other times, members may also purchase wine from the wine list.

Mike was very proud of his treasures. He admits that he is an opportunist when it comes to collecting, and will buy anything he sees that he thinks is special without hesitation. So far, he has never regretted not getting the bottle he wanted. Among his whiskies, there are both special flavors and special colors, such as black, and a whisky called Blackbowmore, which was bottled in 1964 and produced in limited quantities for the American market, and has been discontinued for many years. According to Michael's estimates, the price of this whisky at auction is about 50,000 to 70,000 yuan per bottle.

While the "children" have their own strengths, Michael has three of his favorites. One is Auchentoshen, which has been brewed for 21 years. Unlike other whiskies that pay attention to "before meals" and "after meals", this wine can be enjoyed at any time and has a very special taste; the second is brewed for 18 years. Highland Park; the third is the Isley wine from the island of the same name in Ireland. He "subdued" Michael's palate with his very strong taste.

"Children" are still my own.

Mike, with whiskey blood, adheres to Scottish traditions. He only has a soft spot for Scotch whisky, with a handful of items from Ireland and New Zealand. He's not interested in whisky from other places, and doesn't even care about whisky in the United States and Canada. In his view, the beauty of whisky comes from the water in which it is brewed, and Scottish water is unique.

"A kind of mud was once made into bricks in the history of Scotland and used as a material for burning fires. This mud is only found in Scotland. The spring water pouring down from the top of the mountain flows through this mud, which has a very special kind of mud. Taste. We use this water to make whisky, and you can't find this kind of taste anywhere else." There was an unquestionable tone in Michael's words.

After coming to China, Michael admits that he has encountered great difficulties with his collection, and that there are not many unique whiskeys on the domestic market. However, this does not stop the enthusiasm of a collector. Since he is a member of the reception, he can often receive magazines from the reception, and he will also browse the information on the reception website. Once there is a wine he likes, he will immediately call the seller.

Although McGowan is picky about his collection, he is very tolerant of other people's drinking habits. In his eyes, whiskey is a very private wine. Everyone has their own standards for him, and their reasons for liking or disliking them. Although he is a collector, he has no reason to tell anyone which whisky he should like. It is only when gathering with friends or colleagues in China that McGowan recommends a few bottles of whisky that he thinks are good.

This is also true to an old Chinese saying, "The child is still his own."