This week I became the proud owner of a commemorative Game of Thrones whisky bottle. I bought it by mistake, trying to help out my friend Rick by bumping up the price on the Whisky Auction site, where he was attempting to dispense with an entire set of these GoT-inspired single malt peculiarities. Apparently, it’s illegal to sell your own alcohol over the internet unless you do it via an authorised rip-off merchant that charges tax, fees, and £12 postage to deliver your winning lot. By going through the auction house, I managed to pay significantly more, while Rick received significantly less.

Worse still, it’s the House Tully commemorative bottle, and I’m pretty sure House Tully is one of the lesser houses (i.e. a shit house). It’s unclear whether this means it’ll be shit whisky. Technically I ought to preserve the item, unopened and untouched, in case it gains in value over the years ahead. Fat chance of that happening. Rick kept these possessions in pristine condition for several years without succumbing to temptation. I’ll probably last until the weekend.

I’m reminded of a trip Rick and I made to the Bundaberg Rum Distillery, just off the coast of Queensland, Australia, back in January 2008. We were towards the final stretch of a 10-day road trip, a little weary but otherwise in good spirits and enjoying the journey back down to Surfer’s Paradise all the more thanks to the company of a pleasant Canadian hitchhiker who would remain with us for the rest of my Australian odyssey. The decision to stop off and visit the Distillery was taken on the basis that we had consumed a lot of Bundaberg rum over the past week and would doubtless benefit greatly from the opportunity to consume some more. It was a fun little excursion, the highlight being a tasting session at which we were invited to partake of a rare and delicious luxury chocolate liquor, so rare, in fact, that it was only available for purchase at the Distillery itself, so delicious, in fact, that we felt compelled – nay obliged – to purchase a few bottles.

In 2008 the world was undoubtedly getting smaller, and at quite a pace. But we were still pre-smartphone and a year or two away from social media ubiquity. The eCommerce revolution did not yet extend to international chocolate liquor distribution. Hence, it felt like a real privilege to return home to the UK carrying with me a bottle of this unique liquid treasure. It was the ultimate non-commodity, rarefied bounty from the other side of the world, from a place most Brits had never even heard of, let alone visited. The Chocolate liquor was not to be consumed; it was to remain in its packaging, proudly displayed on my shelves as a permanent reminder of the most memorable and adventurous trip I’d ever undertaken.

There it remained for 12 months until, one fateful evening, back at the flat with a few friends after a lengthy boozeathon in Kentish Town, I made the mistake of showing off the treasured liquor to my guests. Drunk with pride (and with actual alcohol), I consented to give each one a cheeky taster. The reaction was underwhelming, however, there was little else to drink in the flat, so we ended up polishing off the entire bottle in about 20 minutes before deciding to call it a night and retire to bed.

It took me a few moments, upon bleary-eyed awakening, to recall exactly what had transpired and taste the hubris. Nowadays you can order Bundaberg Chocolate Liquor from the company’s website – a steal at just AUD 49.99. Tempting. But it won’t recover what was lost.