Reykjavík Grapevine - sep. 2019, Blaðsíða 6

A sunny day of
camping turned
ugly this summer
thanks to a flavour
that still lingers
in my darkest
nightmares. I took
a swig of what I
understood to
be an innocent,
liquorice fla-
voured schnapps.
Needless to say,
I was bewildered
by the only
logical conclusion
responsible for
the concoction:
Someone had
mixed their booze
and their mouth-
wash in a bid to
optimise space in
their backpack.
As an enthusiast
of multitasking
and efficiency,
I could have let
this go. How-
ever, my so-called
friend went on
to inform me
that in fact, this
spirit—Tópas—is
a purposeful com-
bination of herbs
and the beloved
strong Icelandic
liquorice.
Liquorice is a
versatile root, I’ll
give it that. Who
can truly deny
the star-quality of
a plant that can
both flavour ciga-
rettes and serve
as a laxative?
Icelanders have
been cultivating
liquorice since
settlement times,
and due to import
restrictions fol-
lowing the Great
Depression, it was
actually the only
candy flavour until
the 1990s. That is,
unless you rolled
the dice with an
American soldier
to smuggle you a
bag of M&M’s and
inject some colour
into your life.
As an American
myself, my taste-
buds recognise a
milder liquorice
flavour that
actually derives
from star anise
rather than true
liquorice root.
Perhaps I’m just
recovering from
the lie I’ve been
living, or maybe
it’s just a prefer-
ence to spit out
my mouthwash.
Nonetheless, if
you’re looking to
freshen up while
up on a night out,
look no further
than a shot of
Tópas. LS
Tó
pa
s
Over 1,900 liters of beer was stolen
from a youth vocational programme
on the night of July 2nd, according
to Akureyri police. As we all know
too well, there comes a time in every
seasoned criminal’s career when taking
candy from babies eventually loses it’s
kick. Then before you know it, you find
yourself ripping off the educational
programmes of your local teenagers.
Investigation Underway
The Northern Police Department are
still working to find the mastermind
whose stolen goods were near totally
reclaimed the night immediately
following incident. One person has
been questioned in the investigation
so far, but the boozy bandit is still very
much at large.
The volume of the stolen beer
amounted to nearly a tonne, and was
being packaged for Viking gift boxes.
The gift boxes at Vínbúðin are priced
at 2,417 kr. a pack and include five
different 500ml beers, or 2500 ml in
the total set. So, the amount stolen was
approximately 760 gift boxes, that's one
beer for you and 3,799 of your closest
friends, coming to the colossal total
value of 1,836,920 ISK. And while it
should be duly noted that the Reykjavík
Grapevine does not condone theft or
any other crime, if you ever find your-
self at the end of your rope, wall-to-wall
with liquor, don’t hesitate to reach out
to our team for a timely drink review.
Vocational Programme
To Continue
The gift boxes were being packaged at
the Fjölsmiðjan centre, which prepares
young people ages 16-24 years old for
the general labour market or further
education. The centre works with the
youth to develop learning abilities
and social skills; damage control skills
being one of the programme’s newest
features.
Jokes aside, Fjölsmiðjan operates
in cooperation with social services,
municipalities, and the business
community to provide opportunities
to young people who are facing chal-
lenges. Those in the programme are
described by the agency to be at a cross-
roads in life, so it is fortunate that,
despite this heist, they will not miss out
on the experience, as the programme is
expected to continue.
Erlingur Kristjánsson, director of
the centre, said the programme had
been doing well, with this particular
initiative with Coca Cola European
Partners (the distributors of Viking
beers) ongoing since last winter. For
three hours a day, young people within
the programme would prepare gift-
boxes, which would then be housed by
the manufacturer across the street.
In response to the theft, Erlingur
told Fréttablaðið, “We have decided to
set up surveillance cameras” noting
that whoever committed the crime was
familiar with Fjölsmiðjan, which previ-
ously had no surveillance system.
But be warned, not all the stolen
goods have been recovered. So if, coin-
cidentally, Christmas came early for
you this year, perhaps now is the time
to kindly ask that buddy of yours for a
gift receipt.
The 1.8-Million
Króna Beer Run
Northern Police Department investigates nearly a ton of
beer stolen from a youth vocational program
Words:
Logan Sigurðsson

Photo:
Art Bicnick
First
In the wake of the recent beachings
of pods of pilot whales in Snæfells-
nes and Reykjanes, we reached out
to marine biologist Edda Elísabet
Magnúsdóttir, to ask: why do whales
strand?
Pilot whales come into shallow
waters for many reasons. Sometimes
they are avoiding or escaping some-
thing, such as sound pollution from
sonar or seismic activity. But there is
also another reason, which is prob-
ably the most likely one: They are fol-
lowing prey.
Pilot whales primarily feed on
squid. But, in some cases, when that
prey is scarce or that prey moves, the
whales swim to other types of prey.
We think they are currently hunting
mackerel. Mackerel fishermen see
them around their boats, they are
seen where there is a lot of mack-
erel, and we know that the whales
sometimes feed on them.
The whales also go into shallow
waters because there are forces
they are not specifically adapted to,
such as strong tidal currents. Strand-
ings have been happening during
spring tide—which actually occurs
in mid-late summer—when there is
a large difference between low and
high tide. The tide will go out rather
quickly and they're suddenly strand-
ed.
What could also be happening is
the leading animal, usually a matri-
arch, might somehow be disoriented,
lost, sick, or hurt, so she might not
be able to navigate properly, and
the group follows. Pilot whales have
strong familial bonds, and they don't
leave each other, particularly not the
matriarch. So if she gets into trouble,
the whole pod gets into trouble.
ASK A
Biologist
Q: Why Do Whales
Strand?
6 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 14— 2019
FOOD OF ICELAND
NEWS
Crack open a cold one. Pay for it first.
Words: Sam O’Donnell
Photo: Provided by the subject
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