Martlet House (1430 Peel)
This elegant stone replica of a 16th-century Scottish baronial castle, in the heart of downtown, was the long-time Canadian headquarters of the Seagram Company. Built in 1928, it was donated to McGill by Vivendi Universal and the Bronfman family in 2002. Why the nod to poet Robbie Burns? Perhaps it has something with the Scottish poet’s love of whiskey, as espoused in his 1785 poem, Scotch Drink. Here is an excerpt:
Let other poets raise a fracas
‘Bout vines, an’ wines, an’ drucken Bacchus,
An’ crabbit names an’stories wrack us,
An’ grate our lug:
I sing the juice Scotch bear can mak us,
In glass or jug.
O thou, my muse! guid auld Scotch drink!
Whether thro’ wimplin worms thou jink,
Or, richly brown, ream owre the brink,
In glorious faem,
Inspire me, till I lisp an’ wink,
To sing thy name!