What Is HAGGIS?

It’s a HOOT – that’s WHAT! Sometimes, it’s the name of a Scottish Rock Band, like Enter The Haggis

Sometimes, it’s the name of an ARIZONA Rock Band, like HAGGIS The title of their second album: “Piper Down!”

There also seems to be some sort of “insider” Scottish JOKE about
the Haggis being a “SMART BIRD!” Here’s some text from THAT site:

A haggis is a small animal native to Scotland. Well, when I say animal, actually it's a bird with vestigial wings – like the ostrich. Because the habitat of the haggis is exclusively mountainous, and because it is always found on the sides of Scottish mountains, it has evolved a rather strange gait.

The poor thing has only three legs, and each leg is a different length – the result of this is that when hunting haggis, you must get them on to a flat plain – then they are very easy to catch – they can only run round in circles.

After catching your haggis, and dispatching it in time honored fashion, it is cooked in boiling water for a period of time, then served with tatties and neeps (and before you ask, that's potatoes and turnips).

The haggis is considered a great delicacy in Scotland, and as many of your compatriots will tell you, it tastes great – many visitors from the US have been known to ask for second helpings of haggis!

The noise the haggis makes during the mating season gave rise to that other great Scottish invention, the BAGPIPES.

Many other countries have tried to establish breeding colonies of haggis, but to no avail. It’s something about the air and water in Scotland – once a haggis is removed from that environment, it just pines away.

And, imagine my SURPRIZE and JOY when I found: HAGGIS RAMPANT! This is a duo who perform Celtic music at Ren Fests!!! These pix are from the 2002 Louisiana Renaissance Festival – their “home” Ren Fest.

As you can imagine,
I did NOT eat a rock band (Scottish or Arizonan) …
nor a Celtic duo … nor did I eat a 3-legged BIRD.
I ate REAL HAGGIS!
Here’s some text from a REAL Haggis Website
(You’ll note that this is still “tongue-in-cheek” kinds of stuff!!!):

Haggis comes to us from Scotland, where it is consumed (by those who will do so) once a year, typically on Robert Burns's birthday. The consumption of haggis is accompanied by the drinking of a great deal of whiskey.... Haggis is a dish consisting of the heart, lungs, and liver of a sheep, calf, etc. (or sometimes of the tripe and chitterlings – “innards”); minced with suet and oatmeal; seasoned with salt, pepper, onions, etc.; and then stuffed inside the maw (“stomach”) of the animal; and boiled like a large sausage.

This may sound like the disgusting outcome of a butcher and chef getting drunk together
and having a little too much fun, but haggis is really a dish.

On top of that it tastes great too! Haggis is normally served with "tatties-an'-neeps and nips." Tatties-an'-neeps are mashed potatoes and mashed turnips. Nips are wee drinks of whiskey (normally scotch whiskey).

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