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Movember money is making a difference!
As a Movember group it’s always good see what & where some of the funds we raised go to.
The YouTube Video below shows some of the research that is being done with donations by everyone globally. It’s easy to get involved, as you don’t have to grow a Mo, there are plenty of other ways to take part.
Start your own team and join the W4M Group, or join the 2011 Whisky 4 Movember team and help make a difference!
Billy’s 2010 Movember progress
See BIlly’s full blog post at http://bbblog.org.uk/2010/12/movember-round-up/
Whisky Picnic 2010
After an early start yesterday to run 5km at Battersea Park for “Running the Mo”, with Joe McGirr (Manager of SMWS London), I jumped on a train to
Gatwick. Heading north to Edinburgh for an evening of making cocktails and raising some money for the Movember cause!
Arriving at Gatwick I was met by Ben and Mike from Master of Malt.
Joining us on our journey was the UK Movember crew, who had already made it to the departure lounge and were awaiting for the arrival of Charlie Boorman. If you’re unaware Charlie has himself had testicular cancer, and is one of a number of celebraties championing the Movember Charity.
In true Boorman fashion Charlie’s motorbike had broken down on the way to the airport, and consequently he was running a little late, but just made it in time for the flight. Arriving in Edinburgh we split up, heading to our respective hotels before going to The Caves where the Picnic is held. This was my 3rd year making cocktails at the Picnic and was excited about this year as the event featured a Whisky 4 Movember bar, which was named by Ben and Mike.
If you don’t know about the Picnic it’s themed around Tweeds & Moustaches. There
Starting to look like Freddie Mercury!
This is Freddie not Darren
OK, it’s near the end of Momber 2010 and we have to confess that Darren is looking more and more like Freddie Mercury.
The likeness is a little uncanny, but the team was wondering what his missus thinks of it? Well we found out she just laughs at him in a loving way. This could be the start of the theme for Darren, copying celebrity moustache fashions.
Guess we’ll find out next year?!
In the meantime here are some bits for inspiration:
Top five – Celebrity Moustaches
Day 15: A quick Whisky Squad photo roundup
Whichever way you look at it, today marks an important milestone – it’s both the halfway point of Movember, and the Whisky4Movember team sailed past the £1000 mark! An absolutely top class effort.
From the lads at Whisky Squad, here’s a photo update of where our lip-shrubs are currently at:
Awesome, isn’t it?
In other news, as well as inspiring all around then, getting free Byron burgers, and being the catalyst for the EXCELLENT value Master of Malt limited edition whisky bottlings, now Movember participants can get free frozen yoghurt at Frae in the last week of the month!
Keep those Mo’s growin’ and the cash flowin’!
Big Thanks to Glasgow Whisky Festival
Over the weekend Darren pack up some of the “Whisky 4 Movember” whisky and headed to Glasgow for the aptly named, Glasgow Whisky Festival. By all accounts it was a great success, with the stand we’ll attended and we hope to return again in 2011.
You can find them on twitter @GlasWhiskyFest or at the festival website.
The event aim is to put Glasgow back on the whisky map with an emphasis on Glasgow’s closest distilleries and the independent bottlers that belong to the city. But it’s not just about Glasgow, and featured whisky from all of Scotland and the rest of the world.
The event is co-organised by Mark Connelly (who had an impressive Mo for Movember), founder of WhiskyWhiskyWhisky and Bill Mackintosh, Chairman of Glasgow’s Whisky Club.
Both became frustrated at what Scotland’s largest city has to offer the whisky enthusiast and feel that Scotland national drink deserves to be given a bigger stage.
The dates for 2011 have been announced already as this year event sold out quickly. If your interested in going here’s more info:
Date: Saturday 19th November, 2011
Times: 1pm – 5pm
Price: £20, plus booking fee. Available online, or from The Arches box office (by phone +44 (0)141 565 1000)
Brav-Mo
Brav-mo presents: Picking your Style
Whisky Squad Aftermath
Once again at Whisky Squad we had a brilliant session of tasting Scotland’s finest produce and sharing enlightening and informationsome discussery! Among last night’s whiskies were the limited Whisky4Movember Bottlings (Mo’land and Smo’key), as well as a rare chance to try last year’s Mo’rkney bottle. My notes – barely legible as they turned out to be were “Mo’land – smells like expensive New Zealand health honey!” and “Smo’key – oily orangey forest fire”. Doubtless someone else will have something more sensible to say about them shortly.
The fundraising seems to be ticking over nicely so far, and our mo’s are starting to take shape. I could only find pictures of 2 of the Whisky Squad Movember contingent – the other 3 don’t appear to have mastered camera technology.
Billy and Jason - moustachery in progress
As of 12:15 on Movember 5th, the Movember effort in the UK has raised £1,449,614 – an incredible achievement which will make a great difference to a lot of mens’ lives, and if we can have a bit of fun whilst simultaneously aiding that goal then that’s a highly excellent thing too.
Mo : No Mo
Also, last night amid the twittering we learned that Whyte and Mackay’s Master Blender Richard Paterson (aka @the_nose to the Twitterati) – who has already generously lent his support to Whisky4Movember in the form of appearing on one of the labels – has shed his famous 25-year mo to raise awareness for the cause! Top effort, that man!
Relevantly, an interview with Master Mr Paterson appeared in Swedish lifestyle magazine site LivetsGoda.se (English translation here) talking about Master Of Malt’s bottlings, and his personal relationship with the cause as a survivor of prostate cancer. And, as Google Translate suggests he probably said in English at some point: If they do not, and participating in the campaign, they are just a bunch of “Pussi”.
I don’t think any of us could argue with that.
Day 4 – Mo news
Well thats us at day four and it seems we’ve raised £781 already as a team (excluding whisky sales). Thanks to the chaps at the Whisky Squad for your donation and time, plus to Darren for coming down and doing the tasting session.
For those who might not be growing a Moustache due to work commitments then signed up for the 5km Battersea Park running the Mo on the 21st Nov.
A bunch of us will be down there relaying with some of this years Whisky4Movember bottlings from Master of Malt (see the bottle page link above).
W4M team
Whisky legend Richard Paterson takes part in Movember
So, Richard has kindly taken part in the Whisky 4 Movember team campaign this year!
As you’ll see he’s featured in the label set along with Dave Broom, Marcin Miller, Charlie and Serge. Richard had his own battle with prostate cancer,so we’re glad he could chip in and help out. Thanks to all the guys involved and hopefully we’ll have a great Movember!
Update: Here’s a link to an Article about Richard Movember activity in the Scottish SUN.
Movember iPhone App
Check out the new iPhone app for tracking your Movember progress.
http://uk.movember.com/news/view/id/1164/category/national/
or
Growing the Mo 2010 – day 2
A new year and new whiskies.
The next month is a busy one as we travel around doing tastings and supporting some of the Movember events.
Back on the 13th October we were at the Movember Press launch with Darren & guys from Master of Malt pouring this preview samples of this yeyears limited edition Whisky 4 Movember bottling, plus we had fantastic support from Smokehead.
Last week was the shave down event at Murdocks Barbers in London, but for those not already sporting a morning shadow tache it’s not to later to trim in your Mo.
This Thursday evening the Gents & Ladies at the Whisky Squad are hosting a Movember tasting featuring one each of the MoM bottles. Then Saturday 13th Nov 2010 we’ll be in Glasgow at the Glasgow Whisky Festival.
The following weekend on the Sunday 21st November 2010 Nick and Duncan of the Whisky Picnic will be hosting a bash in Edinburgh where you’ll find our team leader Darren Rook behind the cocktail bar and also working with other colleagues from Master of Malt on the dram bar raising funds for Movember.
If your interested in attending the Picnic see www.whiskypicnic.org
We’ll keep you updated as the month goes on but thanks in advance for your support.
Billys Booze blog on Whisky 4 Movember
hers a link to a great post from Billy:
The 2010 Label Range
So last week I finished designing the bottle labels and here is a sneak preview of the designs.
Murdoch Lauch Movember Support
Official barber for the month of Movember they were shaving like crazy at the Press Launch last Wednesday at No. 1 Mayfair on North Audley Street.
Also, Mr Wax was on hand to mix some music and stiffen the old tache should it be needed.
Whisky 4 Movember 2010
Only 4 months and counting!
It’s nearing that time of year again where we shave down in October and start to grow a Mo in November in support of raising funds for the fight against prostate cancer.
Last year we did things a little last minute, but managed with the help of the team at Master of Malt to roll out the M’orkey blended scotch whisky. This was a spooned malt from Orkney and featured 5 unique labels identifying different Mo types.
This also included stunt Mo’s from:
- Dave Broom,
- Serve Valantine; and
- Neil Ridley.
For those not familiar with spooned malts the idea is that if you take a single malt whisky and add a teaspoon of a different whisky from another distillery leaving you with a blend. However, it holds the character of the original whisky as the teaspoons worth has none- extremely minimal affect on the flavour. 
So, what coming this year…
This year I decided to get things moving a little earlier and we’ve already started to source whiskies. Rather than doing one whisky and five labels, we’ll have five great whiskies and five special label designs.
We’ll also be working closer this year with the UK Movember crew to get the whiskies out to all the Mo Bro’s and Sista’s for the launch events in the UK and Ireland. If your outside you UK you’ll be able to buy the whisky from Master of Malts website as they do International shipping and all the profits will be going to the Movmeber cause.
Myself or one of the team will hopefully be coming to the USA during Movember and to the wrap party in December, bring a little bit of the whisky with us. We’ll also be hosting masterclasses during October and November in London, Brighton, Glasgow and Edinburgh, but more information is to follow.
We’ll be posting regularly over then couple of months and a calendar of events will pop up as we go, so keep checking back with us.
Thanks for your support in advance and keep doing Mo in Movember.
Darren
Merry Christmas
A big thank you to all the people who helped us out this year at such short notice – you know who you are!
The final figure raised as of today was £875.68, a not too shabby start, but please note that the Movember bottle is still available from www.masterofmalt.com.
Looking forward…
2009 is just rolling out and with 2010 under two weeks away we are already in the planning stages to do next year bigger and better. With Serge, Dave and Neil all showing great support this year we are going to be knocking on more doors, finding Mo’s to match new whisky/whiskies and putting on tastings, events and generally having some fun with facial hair.
Join the team and do your bit for men’s health in the UK and internationally!
p.s Buy this months 10th anniversary copy of The Chap magazine for the chance to win your own bottle of the M’Orkney whisky with your tache on the label.
Supporting Whisky4Movember
Whisky Pininc 2009
Last week myself, Neil, Ben, Justin, Tom and Jonathan all caught a flight form Gatwick and set about telling the people up North about Whisky4Movember. The guys from Movember came up for the event too!
Ben, Justin and Tom with two other Picnic go’ers
We headed to the Whisky Picnic in Edinburgh. A night where you raid your Grannies cupboard for tweed, get some convivial gents and ladies together and having some whisky fun! Was a great night with the guys from Movember ( JC and Steve are top class chaps).
Movember is getting some great support in Edinburgh. We arrived on the Saturday and made a pit stop to the Queen Street and Leith branches of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society where we found the staff all growing MO’s and raising funds for men’s health. Next year is one to look out for.
See the videos below:
Ben from MoM talking about the 2009 release for Whisky4Movember
History of the Mo – Day 4
Following a conversation last night there was confusion on the definition of what a moustache actually is. For this I turn to trusty old Wikipedia:
“A moustache (or mustache) is facial hair grown on the upper lip. Often the term implies that the wearer grows only upper-lip hair while shaving the hair on his chin and cheeks. Growth of facial hair around the whole face would constitute a beard.”
So, Mr Thompson get that chin and neck shaved!
300 BC. horseman with wonsal style moustache and partially shaved head.
The word moustache stems from a over 2000 years ago. The earliest reference from the Greeks for lip (mullon) in the late BC period. Numerous books on the water of life talk about the historical reference to this period from 300BC – 300AD(C. Anne Smith is very informative). To ke
ep it simple tash wearing chaps and ladies in their religious life would imbibe the beginnings of what we know as whisky.
Fire water shown to them by the wine god filling their spirit and bringing them closer to the Gods themselves. As the christian religion moved across Europe and Asia we see different regions of spirit.
I wonder of it’s possible to plot the expansion of spirit (mainly whisky) with the growth of moustache fashion?
More research required I think!
Darren
A slow start – Day 2
Minimal growth so far, but sure after a week it’ll look better and less pubescent!
Day 1 – The Mo Report
And we’re off … the silent guns were fired and the race is on!
Over the next 30 days myself and possibly some of the team will be recording how well we tackle post pubescent facial growth, whilst drinking some great whiskies and attending the top whisky events of the year.
We’ll be trying to track down some of the top whisky chaps and ladies in the UK for Mo pictures and more.
The Chaps at Caskstrength.net tasted the Master of Malt Movember bottling (shown below) today!
A great bottling and all the profits are going to MovemberUK.
So finally at one days growth there isn’t too much to see, excluding the shaving rash, deep cuts to the chin (I personally don’t shave that often) and little bits of toilet roll on my neck. However, I have realised the big decision is what type of Mo to Grow?
Under strict instructions from the wife that there can be no Hitler/Charlie Chaplin styling, so I’m going to do some research and see where I end up.
Time…
I’m thinking about shaving, Darren shaved early this morning, that means he has almost a whole day head start over me…