Wimbledon is well under way and our Scottish hope is storming on - Andy Murray is our man and the whole country is right behind him.

Synonymous with Wimbledon is Strawberries & Cream while here at the Loch Ness Clansman Hotel we add a little bit extra with our own meringue cases and Scottish strawberries with fresh cream - delicious.

Watching Wimbledon with the roof pulled over and artificial lighting then seeing London, dark at 10.30pm - while here in the Highlands it was still bright at that time - so a holiday at Loch Ness gives you extra daylight to continue your outdoor activities or bright enough to try something new.
How about a bit of fly fishing off Rory's boat 'Time Bandit' and may be lucky enough to catch a nice brown trout for supper. Grilled brown trout with caper butter followed by strawberry and wild berry pavlova - the perfect way to end a day here at the Loch Ness Clansman.

Recently I was talking about cocktails - well our O'Donnell wedding party had a novel toast at the Castle last Saturday. Instead of Champagne, Prosecco or Cava they had a wonderful cocktail of sloe-gin and bitter lemon, a really refreshing drink for these hot summer days.

So this Blog has almost completed your summers day menu - all that's left is a starter and a good wine. Our most popular starter here ate the Clansman is the warm goats cheese salad with balsamic dressing.

To wash this meal down try our Elementos Torrontes - an incredible floral scented dry white wine from the San Juan region of Argentina in the foothills of the Andes.

So - I hope our Andy keeps going and beats all to take the Wimbledon crown.

Exams over, school holidays on the horizon - What will we do for the next six weeks asks every parent. Well if you are not going abroad this year, like many people to holiday at home that is in the UK is top of the priority list. Here in Scotland is a great place to holiday - wonderful scenery, great outdoor activities, good camping - hotels - guest houses - restaurants and plenty visitor attractions.
Castles, museums, battlefields, cruises for Nessie, dolphin watching...it's all here.
All you have to do is create your wish list and Google what you want to do in Scotland and particularly here in the Highlands.

As I said before The Loch Ness Clansman is an ideal base - just look at the website www.lochnessview.com and www.visitlochness.com to see what activities you can do around Loch Ness.

So have a chat with the family and get on that world wide web - do a bit of research about the Highlands of Scotland.
Our colourful history, our national dress, our music, the bagpipes, Highland games, Braveheart country, Local Hero country and Water Horse country. Then book up a couple of nights here at Loch Ness and we can advise you where to go next.

With the school holidays you might be planning a wedding or a honeymoon - What more romantic setting than Loch Ness.
Great value for money - so for a good deal all round give Rory Cameron a ring on 01456 450326.
So my advice is 'beat the credit crunch - holiday at home where your pound goes further than the Euro.

On the subject of weddings - Rory and team had two weddings this past week-end. Both involving the Castle, the hotel and the boats.
The wedding at the hotel of Daniel and Kim O'Donnell (not the singer) was a unique affair. As Daniel is a chef the wedding here was a culinary one, with the magnificent floral arrangements set in cooking pots with the glass lid placed strategically and diagonally in the pot so the reflection was displayed when hit by sunshine or artificial light.
The table plan was straight from the kitchen - Pastry, Larder, Veg and The Pass. Place names were set in two forks back to back - most unusual.
The piece de'resistance was the wedding cake which was a tower of different cheeses topped by a truckle. So creative - so many different ideas.
Our congratulations to Kim and Daniel and all the success for the future.

Apart from the marvelous performances from the headlining acts like the 'Flaming Lips', 'The Prodigy' and 'Basement Jaxx' the drink success of Rockness 2009 was 'Cobb's Whisky Bar' - Rory and his team projected the SCOTCH WHISKY INDUSTRY to the forefront of the modern music market and covered all angles no matter what the weather was like.
While it was hot and sunny, long, iced cocktails like the 'Monster Mule' with Clayva, ginger beer and lime and the 'Highland Mohito' with Atholl Brose, sugar syrup, mint, lime and soda water - nice long cool drinks with that wonderful whisky flavour, great socialising and talking point drinks.
When the heavens opened on Saturday night and the weather was inclement to say the least, Rory's 'Hot Toddies' with whisky, lemon and honey was just the order of the day to heat you up and get you in the mood for the long night ahead.

The whisky cocktail is not a new thing but presenting it to such an audience is the way forward to sustain and nurture interest in our national drink - bringing it to a wider audience and presenting it as a drink that is both versatile and creative and also encourages the sensible consumption of alcohol.

These cocktails will all soon be available at the Loch Ness Clansman Hotel served by our engaging staff - I hope you will come along and try one.
Our thanks to Gordon and Mcphail, Elgin - Whyte and Mackay - Glenmorangie - all our hard working staff and crew and to the organisers of Rockness 2009 to have the foresight to have a 'whisky based only' bar on site.

Well it is Loch Ness! It is Scotland! and it is our National Drink!!

Rory hopes to roll out this concept for parties, corporate functions, weddings or just a 'bit of a doo'.
The future is bright, the future is the golden amber necter with a twist.
To contact Rory visit our website www.lochnessview.com or telephone the Loch Ness Clansman Hotel on 01456 450326 and you too could be sitting, sipping the Highland Mohito at your next event.

It's hard to believe here we are in June and the Christmas panto at Eden Court is being launched this week - The panto 'Jack and the Beanstalk' as always will be a great success and will attract people from all over the Highlands. What a great opportunity to have your staff night out at the panto with a stay at the Loch Ness Clansman Hotel. Look at the website for all the Christmas and HOGMANAY deals and PARTY NIGHTS available. We are only 8 miles from the new Eden Court Theatre and we are also on the West side of the city - so you don't have to negotiate the Inverness city traffic, so all in all it will be a great base for the holiday break.

It's not just Christmas we have parties - we cater for weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, Christenings...just about any excuse and we can tailor make a party night for you sometimes incorporating a cruise on the Jacobite boats.

Last Saturday we had a great night for a local couples Diamond Wedding (60 years married!). Our congratulations go to Jackie and Cath Wilson on reaching such a momentous milestone.
It was a night full of fun with some great Scottish music from Malcolm Munro and his band - a local lad with a lot of talent.
So it's up to you whenever the occasion arises, give us a ring and Jane Fraser our marketing and events organiser will be able to put together your Shindig - supply sample menus, advise on wine and drinks and organise a great accommodation deal for your guests - just send us your shopping list. Party time is any time.

The big party this weekend is 'Rockness' - we hope the weather will be good for all the revellers and we wish Rory and his team all the best with 'Cobbs Whisky Bar' - if you're there, pay them a visit - Slainte!!

It's that time of year again - festival time with T in the Park, Glastonbury - there all about to happen.
Here at Loch Ness, we have the world famous Rock-Ness just across the Loch from the Loch Ness Clansman Hotel. If you decide to go why not visit the WHISKY BAR run by Rory and crew from the hotel. Nothing better than 'The Prodigy' accompanied by one of Rory's whisky cocktails - the WMC (Whyte & Mackay and Coke) - eat your heart out Jack. WMC are also my initials - so it is a house special (Willie Mackie Cameron).

Talking about house specials, David West our head chef has put together a stunning new menu for festival time, summer time, anytime! Something for everybody's taste and mostly sourced locally - West Coast Mussels; Seafood Salad; Cullen Skink and for the Continental in you, try our fresh grilled sardines with local garlic and lemon & lime olive oil. That with a chilled glass of Pinot Grigio - summer's here - bring on DIZEE RASCAL! Main courses include slow roast Scottish Lamb, strips of beef and a favorite with our Asian customers - Sticky Pork Belly infused with honey, sesame and Soya sauce. Some Malaysian guest last week said it was the best they had ever tasted - Good Morning Vietnam!

Vegetarians are always well catered for with Penne al'arrabiata; half aubergines with Mediterranean vegetables; roast tomato tartlet with olives and peppers...and so much more.
So all you veggies - take in a festival, stay at Loch Ness and eat till your hearts content - talking about hearts - how about the Tartan Heart at Belladrum in August - it's just over the hill from where we are - headlining act The Editors, Ocean Colour Scene and The Saw Doctors.

So book a bed ahead where you'll eat well, drink well and sleep well at the Loch Ness Clansman Hotel.

We are closer than you think - we are not at the end of the world.