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26 August 3, 2014 SCOTLANDonSUND

TRAV

EL

IMAGINE looking up at night and

seeing so many stars in the Milky

Way that it would be easier to nameconstellations after the dark bits.

Up in a mountain valley near Pisco

Elqui in Chile, a good mile or two

from the nearest artificial light, were

shown some of these by our guide.

Appropriately, one of them resembles

a llama and her baby. Upside-down,perhaps, but easy to make out.

The way the terrain rises rapidly

from sea to plains to towering Andean

peaks within about 50km for most of its

4,270km length means that the country

has long been a base for professional

astronomers, especially as the aridinland climate means outstandingly

clear skies. Its also great for amateurs

like us, here in the middle of nowhere

at 1,300 metres high with a campfire

and a couple of pisco sours, the national

drink, to keep us warm essential, as at

night it is very, very cold.Wed arrived on horseback, hired from

locals who assumed we knew what we

were doing. Most of us didnt. Luckily,

the horses did. Seeing the zodiac riseand set across the sky was a stunning

end to a magical week, but there was

more to come back at our hotel. Onthe hill just above Hotel Elqui Domos,

which has a choice of geodesic domes,

with viewing panels in the ceiling, or

apartments with huge skylights, was

a small observatory manned by an

enthusiastic expert who showed us the

life cycle of stars from dust throughstellar nurseries to supernova. It was

quite breathtaking and only a few

metres from my room.

The town of Pisco Elqui is named after

the fact that it has one of the countrys

oldest pisco distilleries, Los Nichos,

founded in 1868. Pisco production is

thought to have begun when Jesuitsbrought muscat grapes from Europe,

but they didnt make good wine, so they

used them for a spirit instead: pisco.

Los Nichos is a small concern, with

the fermentation tanks, steam-heated

kettle still and hand bottling all withina couple of buildings, and anyone with

an interest in whisky distilleries would

find the methods interesting. There is

also the story that the original owner,

one of the Rodriguez family, annoyed

that his staff were stealing the booze,

turned the cellars into a tomb withjokey dedications to friends over each

pisco grave to keep them out. No, I

didnt really get it either.

Just down the road is a much bigger

After climbing the peaks to gaze at the sky, returnto the valleys to sample the pisco and fine winesWORDS CRAIG NAPLES

distillery, which produces Mistral pisco

on an industrial scale. While the smaller

Los Nichos might be more authentic, Ifound its product a little rough (its also

incredibly cheap, about 4 a bottle).

Mistral is more corporate and has an

excellent bar and restaurant attached

(serving huge chunks of goat with roast

potatoes), and does a proper tour with

tastings. Its premium brand, MistralNobel, is reminiscent of a Bowmore

whisky, only sweeter. Its named after

the areas most famous daughter,

Gabriela Mistral, the first woman to

win the Nobel Prize for Literature, and

she is also honoured throughout the

area with statues and a stunning muralat the local school.

Mistrals poetry took much

inspiration from the Elqui Valley, and

much is made of the areas spiritual

energies. So much so that a hippyish

village, Horcon, is colonised by people

who make dreamcatchers and spendtheir days by the banks of the river

taking herbal therapies.

They say there is an energy here,

says our guide Marcelo. There arespas, pools and therapies, and we have

Hindus and Buddhists as well. When

we visit, none is out of bed, as its early,but i ts easy to imagine a buzzing yet

peaceful community here.

Returning down the valley to La

Serena, the capital of the Coquimbo

area, one striking legacy of the Inca

empire follows us for almost the whole

100km: narrow canals dug into themountainside to irrigate the valleys

with water from the high Andes.

Though they arent visible themselves,

their route is obvious as greenery erupts

from the side of bare mountains in a

line that snakes away into the distance.Its an incredible feat of engineering,

made about 600 years ago with verybasic tools, and which still supplies the

valleys agriculture. The rock they are

cut into is also fascinating, formed from

sedimentary rock that means it used to

be quite recently, in geological terms, on

the ocean bed. It was forced up by the

Pacific and Atlantic plates slammingtogether: fossils of sea creatures can be

found at the top of the Andes.

La Serena itself is quite a pretty town,

with neocolonial buildings, and there

is an impressive collection of sculpture

along the main drag, many churches to

admire and an archaeological museuthat houses, among other treasure

a bona fide Easter Island head. Its

popular tourist beach resort, and th

have high hopes for their golf cour

but Im not sure its a great destinati

other than as a staging post to Elqui

Probably better to spend time

Chiles capital, Santiago, and take in tlocal vineyards. Just make sure you

not driving, as Chile has zero toleran

for drink-driving. With our guide Je

Albert Rauld, we crossed from h

sunny Santiago through a short tunn

under the coastal mountain ran

into the chilly mist that makes t

Starstruckin Chile

SUN TRAPClockwise from main: vineyards in the Elqui Valley in spring; the skylights of apartments above Hotel Elqui Domos; a geodesic dome by the pool

8/12/2019 Ballathie House Hotel in Scotland on Sunday

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2SCOTLANDonSUNDAYAugust 3, 2014

S P E C T R U M

L

OVE was in the air when

we headed off to BallathieHouse Hotel for the wedding

of our good friends Donald

and Victoria and what a

splendid event it turned out

to be. After a beautiful service in the

magnificent surroundings of Dunkeld

Cathedral, we repaired down river tothe four-star Ballathie House Hotel for

an unforgettable reception.

BUDGET OR BOUTIQUE?

Grand country house would be a

more accurate description of this

classic hotel. With its stunning

location overlooking the River Tay,Ballathie is splendidly situated with

its turreted traditional Scottish

architecture, which dates back to

the 17th century, peeking out of

the Perthshire countryside. For city

dwellers it offers a taste of luxurious

country living.

ROOM SERVICE

Accommodation varies from thehotel itself with its glorious four-

poster beds with en-suite traditional

bathrooms to the 16 Riverside

rooms, complete with patios with

sensational views of the Tay, a shortwalk through the gardens from the

main building. Guests can also stay

in the hotels Sportsman Lodge, a

three-star facility which provides an

additional 12 bedrooms. We were

lucky enough to be in a lovely room

in the main building with good

views over the policies. Marvellouslycomfortable and quiet, the room had

all the facilities one would expect

from a modern hotel, including TV

and broadband, while retaining the

time-honoured atmosphere.WINING AND DINING

Having toasted the bride and groomwith gallons of champagne, we sat

down to a truly memorable wedding

meal of quite superb quality. Every

guest was superbly catered for by

attentive staff, with the tenderness of

the dishes beautifully complemented

by the excellent wines. After abrilliant meal and erudite and

witty speeches, the dining room

was effortlessly transformed into a

ballroom, where we danced the night

away to the sounds of an excellent

ceilidh band. The following day,

with the excitement of the weddingover, we enjoyed a slightly quieter

meal where again we were able tosavour the superb menu and fine

wines. As one might expect, there

was a great selection of fish on offer,

and the pan-fried plaice fillet was

particularly enjoyed by my wife. Iwent for the Ballathie beef, which

was also delicious. A highlight for

both of us was the superb butternut

squash and sage soup and the

wonderful cheese board.

WORTH GETTING OUT OF BED FOR

We enjoyed walking around theBallathie estate and strolling along

the river bank. For those into their

country sports, the fly-fishing on

the Tay is a huge attraction. As our

free day was a Sunday, this was

not an option for us, unfortunately.But angling aficionados amongst

the guests raved about the nearby

brown trout and salmon fishing. On

days other than Sundays, ghillies

take guests out in boats on the

Ballathie beats. As a keen golfer,

it was disappointing to read inthe hotel literature that Ballathies

nine-hole course once played by

the famous English amateurs Roger

Weatherhead and Cyril Tolley

had not been restored since it was

ploughed up to feed the nation

during the Second World War.However, the famous championship

courses at Blairgowrie, and

numerous others, are within distance

of a few well-struck shots. Alsowithin range are miles of excellent

walking and cycling, Glenshee ski

centre and the world record-breakingbeech hedge at Meikleour. For those

who fancy a bit of Roald Amundsen-

style adventure, Ballathie is home to

the Scottish Sleddog Academy.

LITTLE EXTRAS

Our stay was made all the more

pleasurable by the attentive andefficient staff. Our own enjoyment

of Donald and Victorias lavish

hospitality was greatly enhanced by

tolerant bar staff who were adept at

dealing with well-refreshed wedding

guests (such as ourselves).

GUEST BOOK COMMENTS

As one might expect for anestablishment that has recently been

named the best independent hotel in

Scotland in the Catering in Scotland

(CIS) Excellence Awards, a stay at

Ballathie is a truly memorable and

charming experience.

Tom Peterkin

Ballathie House Hotel, Kinclaven, Stanley,

Perthshire PH1 4QN, 01250 883268,

www.ballathiehousehotel.com. Standard doubleroom in main house, B&B from 100pp per

night, with dinner from 145pp per night.

Master rooms, B&B from 130pp per night,

with dinner from 165pp per night. Sportsman

Lodge, B&B from 60pp per night, with dinner

from 105pp per night.

BALLATHIE HOUSE HOTEL,PERTHSHIRE

DO NOT DISTURB

Casablanca region renowned for whitewine. If you drink a Chilean sauvignon

blanc or chardonnay its probably from

here, and you can taste the mineral

hint of jalapeno from the soil. We

visited Casas del Bosque for a winery

tour and tasting that was extremelyinformative and reasonably priced.

One grape variety to watch out for is

carmenere, which was rediscovered

in Chile among the merlot vines in

the mid-1990s, having being declared

extinct in Europe.

Just up the road, at Vina Indomita,we ran through their wine list too,

accompanied by generous helpings

of dishes created by chef Fernanda

Guerrero. These ran from tuna tartare

with soy jelly, in a reduction of apple,to a huge plate of mushroom-stuffed

beef and mashed potatoes. It was allexcellent, if a bit too much on top of a

huge volume of fine wine. Not that we

were complaining.

Chile is such a narrow, long country

about as tall as North America is

wide it covers several climate zones:

the far north pokes over the Tropic ofCapricorn and is largely desert; the far

south is full of lakes and fjords, more

like Scotland or Scandinavia. It is also

very, very far from Scotland, so it might

be best to combine a visit with other

South American countries, or even use

it as a stop on a round-the-world trip.

HOW TO GET THERE

Return flights to Santiago de Chile from

London Heathrow via Madrid with LAN

(www.lan.com) start from 644 per person

and depart daily. Easyjet flies to Madrid

from Edinburgh, but connecting with BA and

Iberia though London may be easier.PLACES TO STAY

Sheraton Santiago, Ave Santa Maria 1742,

Santiago +56 2 2233 5000, 105 based on

a standard room with breakfast included

(www.sheraton.com)

Hotel Elqui Domos Camino Pblico, Pisco

Elqui (book through www.i-escape.com/

elqui-domos/overview), from 92 per personincluding breakfast.

THINGS TO DOSantiago: wine tours. A private day tour in

Casablanca Valley with guide and driver, a

tour in Casas del Bosque Vineyards and a

tasting of four reserve and grand reserve

wines, a tour of Indomita Vineyards with atasting of four reserve and grand reserve

wines and three-course lunch with wine and

coffee in Indomitas Vineyards Restaurant:

two passengers, from 166 each; four

passengers, from 120 each; six passengers,

from 105 each (www.andestraveler.com)ELQUI VALLEY: TURISMO DELFINES

Horse riding is 83, and with the distillery

tours included, 107. Also includes transport

(www.turismodelfines.com)

FACT FILE