It’s 2017, belated happy new year to all our fellow sconeys, we hope it will be a good one. Predictions for the year, however do not look too promising! The UK government continues with its headless chicken act over Brexit. Problem is, it’s not an act! It seems that the Labour party’s new year resolution, particularly in Scotland, is to be even more irrelevant than last year. That’s a tough one but, under its current leadership, probably achievable. At least the Scottish government is giving all newborn babies a ‘baby box’ full of nice things so that they all have the same start in life. And all for no more than the cost of one banker’s bonus. Laudable as this is, rumour has it that the Tory government is investigating the ‘box’ to see if it qualifies as extra accommodation under the bedroom tax?
Before we all get too cynical maybe we should get on to the good news. It’s a brand new scone year and where better to kick it off than back in Rob Roy country in the splendid isolation of Monachyle Mhor. We’re here with a couple of young Dutch friends who, having been here a couple of years ago, wanted to return. Also, I used to spend my childhood holidays in Balquidder, where my uncle was head forester. So for me it was a great chance to revisit old and fond memories. Two birds with one stone so to speak!
This working hill farm has 2000 acres of fabulous scenery overlooking Loch Voil and Loch Doine enabling it to provide walking, hunting and shooting holidays. Since the old days, when it was just a farm and I used to come here to get the milk, Monachyle Mhor has become a ‘destination’ for foodies. Watch this video to see how they do it. You can even come for lunch by seaplane if that’s what floats your boat. Otherwise it’s a somewhat tortuous drive along an ever diminishing road which eventually peters out completely at Inverlochlarig, just a few hundred meters further on from Monachyle Mhor. 
We were welcomed into a lounge where the log burning stove was promptly set ablaze for our comfort and the twenty minutes we had to wait for our scones to be freshly baked was taken up with playing Billie Holiday tracks on a record deck. There is definitely something special about vinyl!
Before long our scones arrived beautifully presented on silver cake stands. There was plenty jam, butter and cream and the scones themselves were wonderfully warm and fresh. We couldn’t wait to get started! If there was a criticism it was that they were too big. And there were two each!! Pat also felt that, even with them being freshly baked, they were slightly doughy in the center and our friends from Amsterdam agreed. I was outnumbered. As we have already said, the scones were too big and too many. And, though we didn’t have to eat them all, you know how it is. None of us needed much to eat that evening.
No topscone award unfortunately. But overall we thoroughly enjoyed our visit and it was great to be back in this neck of the woods. As the Mhor empire continues to expand with a chip shop, a bakery and a motel, we wish it well. It is great to see such entrepreneurial flair in this part of the world. Many thanks to our readers for unstinting support throughout 2016 … here’s to more scones in 2017 … cheers!
FK19 8PQ tel: 01877 384622 Monachyle Mhor