Author Archives: Gus the Estate Head Gardener

Making chicken pies starts with slaughtering enough chickens to feed twenty-five or so hungry folk. A chicken dressed out yields two pounds of meat which is enough for four to six people depending on what else gets added in. All of … Continue reading →

Coffee should be as black as hell, as strong as death, and as sweet as love. — Old Turkish saying We’ve been playing backgammon to escape the unusually warm weather, gathered round small tables at the Green Man Pub, or … Continue reading →

One part of the greensward is set aside for a cricket field. We just refurbished this area last year as it was showing its age after nearly a decade since the last spruce up. Yes, I know that Scots aren’t … Continue reading →

Dear Anna, I overheard an interesting conversation in the Library this evening. Mackenzie was lecturing the Several Annies on the history of private libraries such as ours down the centuries in the British Isles. (He claimed that ours is the … Continue reading →

Good Evening Ekaterina, Ingrid sends her love and hopes your trip to Canada is going well. Mrs. Ware cooked the traditional Scottish dessert that you love earlier tonight — Cranachan, which you know is made with oats, cream, whisky and … Continue reading →

Let’s discuss fireplaces. Or more precisely why there’re only scattered open fireplaces left in all of Kinrowan Hall these days: one in the Library, one in the Pub and in the senior staff residences (RHIP).  Why this is so is what … Continue reading →

I figured one time that there are some fifteen miles (yes miles, I never took to the metric system, nor has anyone else here) of trails and walking paths that need continuous work. Some are essentially raised pathways, like the … Continue reading →

I had an exemplary kedgeree for my breakfast this morning along with a lovely lapsang souchong tea. Now if you’re reading this in the States, you might be puzzled as to what I ate. And when you hear what it … Continue reading →