An Gleann News
An Gleann News - January 2010
Date added: January 2010
Happy New Year to all our friends, family and customers old and new! We hope 2010 will see everyone happy, healthy and prosperous. As you will notice I have failed miserably in keeping our news page updated. My new New Years resolution is not to make promises I can't keep!
This has been an excellent year for business where our customer base has expanded and our outlet here at An Gleann has become established. From April through to Christmas we are now working to full capacity. In order to grow, we need more space to develop and to employ help at the busiest times of year. We are presently submitting plans to extend An Gleann and develop a derelict dwelling to the rear of the house. Although this will take a few years to complete, it is an exciting expansion to look forward to!
For the many customers who drop in when passing you will know that I sell the glut of hen and guinea fowl eggs that our birds produce between now and September. I hope to supplement that with the addition of comb honey in the not too distant future. This is something I have intended doing for a few years now; the quiet Jan/ Feb spell is the perfect time to study up on bees and order hives and equipment. I have joined the SBA and local beekeeping association but advice and tips from any experienced keepers out there is very welcome!
Our Peacock numbers grew (unintentionally!) during the summer. Anne and Bluebell disappeared into the forestry behind us and returned a month later with chicks, 7 between them although one didn't survive. It has been fascinating to watch them grow and witness the great care given to them by the females. Anne's chicks were both white, quite unusual, although their feathers are changing as they grow and we're not sure what they will be like as adults. Our adult boys trains (tail feathers) are now growing daily in preparation for their fantastic displays during the breeding season. Once we have ringed the chicks they will be ready for new homes next summer - if anyone has space for a pair please get in touch!
The lovely sunny, frozen spell that we enjoyed here over Christmas and New Year has been replaced by heavy skies and cold drizzle. Perfect for planning for spring while sitting in front of the fire!
Best wishes from all at An Gleann.
Happy New Year
Date added: January 2009
Our news page has fallen slightly by the wayside since Summer - one resolution is to correct that this year and make it at least bi-monthly. We hope everyone has had a lovely Christmas and we wish you all a happy and prosperous 2009!
Since we last wrote time has run away with us and Autumn passed in a flash. September and October saw us taking part in a promotion of Islay food and whisky arranged by the Whisky Coast in conjunction with Calmac. This involved holding weekly tastings on one of the ferry journeys to and from the island. It was very useful in promoting our products with the added bonus that MV Isle of Arran now stocks our tablet. Severe storms in October meant that some of the sailings had to be cancelled, par for the course here at times!
I decided after the Summer to give up the craft fairs on Islay at Christmas and beyond. Much as I enjoy them and will miss the company of my fellow stallholders, the pressure of work means I can no longer afford the time they require. I will still take part in the Islay show and various distillery open days in the summer so will catch up with friends there.
November saw us emptying out and redecorating our sunroom at the front of the house. We opened it as a small outlet at the end of November in time for Christmas. Half of the room is used for the storage and display of my stock while the other half serves as somewhere comfortable to sit and have a coffee from our Gaggia (my husband has spent many hours playing with this new toy and can now make a mean cappuccino!) The outlet has been a great success all round so far;- I am able to display my full range of stock, I can store a lot of my packaging materials closer to hand and customers coming in to make or discuss orders can do so in comfort! Business in the run up to Christmas, although perhaps slower than last year, has been brisk. This was the first year of trading with our online shop and we weren?t sure what to expect. It did very well and we had fun (with an edge of panic!) keeping up with orders and trying to post them out quickly.
December was a lovely month with clear, sharp weather and snow for the girls to enjoy! We had it here one Saturday when we woke up and it lasted all weekend although at Octofad and in Portnahaven it was nowhere to be seen. Christmas and New Year have been lovely and peaceful, with days spent having fun with the girls and enjoying the company of family and friends.
The start of this year will see us being quiet and having the chance to catch up on the things that have been neglected! Stocktaking and ordering for next season, sorting out labelling and getting paperwork in order, arranging next seasons advertising etc, etc. A never ending list! Our outlet is closed until the Easter weekend. If you are planning on visiting Islay this year, please drop in to see us and have a cappuccino!
Best wishes from all at An Gleann.
Summer at An Gleann
Date added: August 2008
Hello everyone, Summer has flown past in a blink and I haven’t managed to do a monthly news letter as we have been so busy. Not something I will complain about!
Now most of the festivals, galas and open days are over the Island will quieten down. The schools are back now and the visitor numbers will decrease into Autumn although we still keep busy supplying the distilleries and shops. A couple of new outlets which we are delighted to supply are Laphroaig distillery which, of course, uses their own whisky in the bars they order and the Port Mor centre in Port Charlotte. A great place to have a coffee and sit and watch the world go by!
Having had a lot of queries about where to go to buy our tablet, we have compiled a list of stockists for customers visiting Islay. The list can fluctuate according to the season and not every outlet stocks a complete range of our products, so if you are after something in particular please phone us at An Gleann and we will do our best to get you what you need before you leave Islay! We hope to have our own outlet open for Spring next year, watch this space!
Our girls have had a great Summer and returned to school, reluctantly, yesterday. Our bird numbers increased a month ago with the addition of four peacocks, two boys and two girls. They were let out of their pen last week and are now getting used to the pecking order in the garden. They appear when you whistle for them and are being spoilt on a diet supplemented with bananas and grapes! They will be mature next Summer which is when the males develop their tail feathers during the breeding season and they will start their haunting calling, a sound you either love or hate!
Our excitement this month has been the Stormcats tope fishing festival which was held over the weekend of the 9th/10th August. Our eldest daughter (aged 10) came in first with a 46lb tope which she caught and reeled in herself. The fish was tagged and set free. In a field of 90 anglers and 28 boats Millie wiped the board of prizes although she would have been happy with the junior prize of a sea angling rod! We are very proud of her determination and perseverance!
We are enjoying the last of the summer weather while noticing the evenings getting dark earlier, it will soon be time for the geese to return. I hope Summer turns slowly to Autumn for all of us this year!
Best wishes from all at An Gleann,
May at An Gleann
Date added: 27 May 2008
Hello everyone, it’s testimony to a busy Easter that I haven’t had time to update our news! While having to work hard we still managed to enjoy some good weather and take the girls to revisit beaches that we last visited in the autumn.
April saw us sending 500 bars of Islay malt whisky tablet down South to be distributed to the bursars of independent schools. We were also happy to be asked to provide Bowmore Distillery with welcome packs for their holiday cottages for the season. Now we are gearing up for the Feis Ile, which takes place at the end of May. We take a stall at Bruichladdich and Bunnahabhain Distillery open days as well as at the craft fairs, which restart then for the summer season. The first one is on Thursday, May 22nd in the Columba Hall in Port Ellen. The second is on Tuesday 3rd June in Bruichladdich Hall, both from 11am to 4pm. There after every Thursday and Tuesday at those venues over the Summer months. If you are one of the many visitors planning on being here for the festival of music and malt please drop in, we would be delighted to see you!
On the home front, no more Golden eagle visits. The one we saw was possibly, as Jeremy thought, chased away by its parents who were starting to nest again in this vicinity. Sadly, our female goose died two weeks ago, a few days after our resident broody hen, Ginger, hatched out more chicks for us. The girls are consoled with the thought that perhaps her spirit lives on in them a wee bit. We have 3 new light Sussex chicks with another broody sitting on 12 more eggs – lots of fun!
Summer seems to be coming early after a wet spring. Last week saw the return of the Swallows, which nest in our byre and on Sunday we heard the first Cuckoo in the forestry behind us, good luck apparently. I hope it brushes off and we can all look forward to a sunny, warm, May!
Best wishes from An Gleann
March at An Gleann
Date added: 13 March 2008
Hello to all our friends, family and customers old and new! That is February over with and leap year has ended with a bang. We supplied the favours for our nieces wedding, she got married on the 29th on what was arguably one of the worse days weather-wise of the month. As you can see it didn’t dampen her spirit and even in green wellies she looked gorgeous!
March hasn’t started much better with, unusual for us, heavy snow on the 3rd. It was lovely and picturesque though the birds didn’t know quite what to make of it!
The bad weather has given us no excuses for not getting on with work in the house. We’ve been busy with online orders, planning and stocking up with supplies for the season ahead. For any visitors arriving on Islay for Easter, the first ‘Made on Islay’ art and craft market of the year takes place in the Columba Hall, Port Ellen on Saturday 22nd March. As well as my tablet you can also find some stunning jewellery, original paintings and beautiful cards among many other things. There is a cafe in the hall, which sells homemade soups, filled rolls and delicious home baking - so you can have your lunch in between browsing!
For anyone interested in our Golden Eagle sightings we experienced a direct hit (almost!) last Tuesday. Needless to say we didn’t have a camera handy but we’ll be better prepared in future! My husband gave Jeremy from Islay Birding a good account of it so I’ll leave you with an excerpt from his email. Best wishes for a sunny March from all at An Gleann!
…thought I'd let you know of a scary sight today. Whilst sitting looking at a gardening book pondering what expensive plant next to buy to supply the geese with some fibre, I caught with my peripheral vision out the front window a direct attack straight towards me by what could be described as a low flying plane. I could only make an incoherent sound towards Jane who was looking out the side window towards the bird feeders. As I made the sound the plane climbed over the roof, which was when Jane noticed a huge shadow followed by a Golden Eagle heading towards a crowd of screeching guinea fowl and geese. Fortunately for the guinea fowl, raised by a chicken, they knew what to do when the odds were stacked against them and dived for cover under various hen houses. This is the closest we have ever been to an Eagle and the sight of such a huge thing flying is truly wondrous. Only problem is we may well be targets for regular visits until the food has all gone! Hope you are all well and will let you know if the flying machine continues its quest for our birds…
February at An Gleann
Date added: 29 January 2008
Hello and a happy New Year to all family, friends and customers old and new!
With January over we are hoping it is also the end of the dreich, wet weather and the storms, which have seen us stranded on the mainland once already this year. The days are lengthening slightly and snowdrops are out in the garden and in abundance in Bridgend woods.
We are using this quieter time of year to stock take and plan ahead for the coming season. Look out for pretty, Spring themed gift bags and boxes available from mid February. Take the work out of Mother’s day and Easter by forwarding them complete with a special message to friends and family!
On the home front, our girls have just completed the RSPB big garden bird watch. Plenty of Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Siskin, and Collared Dove, Blackbird, Robin and Wren. No sign of the Golden Eagle, which we have been lucky enough to watch hunting down in the glen.
Our Guinea fowl chicks are coping well with the stormy weather. As they are now roosting in the trees the high winds have been a bit of a worry! At four months old they are mixing well with the hens and geese but still flock around mum, Ginger, the Silkie hen who raised them. Funny to watch, as they are now larger than her!
Our female goose has been suffering from an inflamed leg joint over the Winter. The penicillin we have been treating her with seems not to have much effect so we might need to think of some sort of padded splint to allow her to get around. We’ve been putting her in the burn as physiotherapy, which she loves! We had to rescue her recently as the burn in spate managed to send her down almost to the sea before we noticed! I am hoping that better weather might improve her leg.
Best wishes for February from all of us at An Gleann!
Copyright © 2008 An Gleann Cottage Produce, Port Charlotte, Isle of Islay, PA48 7UE, phone: 01496 860220