Pulp Fiction won the Palme d'Or

New: never miss an update by liking our Facebook Page here!

Your targets this week:

1+ out of 9: Well done, you beat us!
3+ out of 9: We'd have won with you on our team!

The attendees
1) The statistician
2) The doctor
3) The oceanographer

The ones that got away
1) The Battle of Quebec was also known as what?
2) What are the two defining characteristics of a single malt Scotch whisky? (There was some amount of clarification on this, including that "made in Scotland" is not one of the things being asked for. Essentially, what do the words 'single' and 'malt' indicate?)
3) What is the oldest distillery in the world?
4) ...and in what year was it founded?
5) On a Scotch label, what does the term cask strength (or barrel strength) mean?
6) What are the two differences between a Manhattan cocktail and an Old Fashioned cocktail? (Each cocktail has two components/ingredients that the other doesn't, you need all four for the point.)
7) What song do Uma Therman and John Travolta dance to in the diner scene in Pulp Fiction?
8) Name the two main high school girl characters in the movie Clueless. Hint: they share their names with singers "from the 70s, I guess?". First names suffice.
9) What is the name of the seaside town that features at the end of the movie The Shawshank Redemption?

The answers

1) The Battle of the Plains of Abraham
2) Made from malted barley and from a single distillery
3) Bushmills
4) 1608
5) That it has not been diluted with water
6) An Old Fashioned contains sugar and is garnished with orange while a Manhattan contains vermouth and is garnished with a cherry (you needed all of that for the point and this is somewhat debatable anyway; see excuses below)
7) C'est la Vie (although its actual title is You Never Can Tell - if you knew that I think it's fair to give yourself the point)
8) Cher (Horowitz) and Dionne (Davenport)
9) Zihuatanejo

Our excuses

1) While we (deliberately) avoid quizzes here that have much of a Canadian bias, a bit of country-specific history is bound to crop up from time to time (although to be entirely fair this is technically British history). More to my surprise than frustration I suggested the correct answer in our discussions (having tried to read up a little on our current home) but thought the plains in question were way out west somewhere. Instead The War of 1812 stepped in as our default 'Canadian history' answer.
2) Yep, there was an entire round on whisk(e)y. No, we don't really care for the stuff. That said, we got the first half of this, just not the 'single distillery' bit.
3) "Think of a Scottish whiskey maker." "Er, Glenfiddich?" "That'll do."
4) "I reckon early 1600s?" "Oh, I was thinking the 1100s" "Ok, let's split the difference and go for 1337 to commemorate the Hundred Years' War."
5) The doctor was thinking along the right lines with this, suggesting it was "something like being as strong as vodka?". I stuck down '40% ABV' as I've seen it on a lot of booze bottles so figured there might be some significance to it, but 40% is in fact what whisky is often diluted down to (from 60%-80% at cask strength), partly to bring it in line with some countries' rules on minimum/maximum alcohol content for the drink.
6) This was a tough one to swallow (ho-ho) as, having been forewarned that one of the night's rounds would feature whiskey, we did a bit of revision before the quiz on the topic - including these two particular cocktails. According to the International Bartenders Association both cocktails feature a cherry garnish, while the Old Fashioned also has an orange slice. In terms of ingredients proper the Vermouth/sugar difference is correct, but the Old Fashioned has a "few dashes" of water added to it as well. We didn't bother challenging; it's a complicated enough question as it is and one can't know what source is being cited anyway.
7) The oceanographer sang a different song from Pulp Fiction (Misirlou), which the doctor managed to remember the name of, so at least we were internally consistent.
8) Despite the hint we were rather taken by the names Brittany and Tiffany. Both the oceanographer and the doctor had seen this movie - clearly it's one that sticks in the memory.
9) The doctor knew how to say the answer, but had no idea how to spell it, with his attempt of 'Jawataneo' understandably not deemed close enough by the quizmaster.

How did you do? Would you have beaten us (1 or more correct)? Would you have helped us win (3 or more correct)? Let the world know with the poll below, then read on for my alternative questions (loosely) inspired by this week's Ones That Got Away!


My alternative questions
1) While the Seven Years' War ended with dramatic territorial exchanges across the globe, little changed in Europe. What four word Latin phrase, meaning "the state existing before the war", is used to describe such outcomes?
2) This milk flavouring product's original (Swiss) name was based on what were its two main ingredients: eggs and malt. Originating as a misspelling of this name, what is it known as in English-speaking markets?
3) The Old Bushmills Distillery is a mere 2.5 miles away from which UNESCO World Heritage Site? Its visitors' centre was shortlisted for the 2013 Stirling Prize, but lost out to Nuneaton's Astley Castle.
4) What are the (distinct) prime factors of 1608? (That is, the set of prime numbers which divide 1608 exactly.)
5) The term 'proof' in the context of alcohol is, like the more common alcohol by volume (ABV), a measure of how much alcohol is in a liquid. It originated in the 16th century when gunpowder would be doused in what drink and then ignited to 'prove' it had not been watered down?
6) New York (both the state and the city) was named in honour of the Duke of York who would become which English King?
7) The C'est la Vie featured in Pulp Fiction was, alas, not the C'est la Vie that shot Irish pop group B*Witched to double-denim stardom back in 1998. Incredibly, they had a further three consecutive UK Number 1 singles - name any one of them.
8) Clueless was (loosely) based on the Jane Austen novel Emma. Name one year in which Jane Austen was alive.
9) Some essential trivia to finish: The Shawshank Redemption was adapted from the novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by which renowned author?

The answers

1) Status quo ante bellum
2) Ovaltine - the Swiss name is Ovomaltine (from the Latin 'ovum' for egg and the word 'malt')
3) The Giant's Causeway
4) 2, 3 and 67 (1608 = 2³ x 3 x 67)
5) Rum (typically part of payment to British sailors)
6) James II
7) Rollercoaster, To You I Belong, Blame it on the Weatherman
8) Any year in the range 1775-1817 gets you the point
9) Stephen King

How did you do on my alternative questions? Have another poll!

Tweet