Burns Night events around the state celebrate Scotland’s poet laureate.
Robert Burns
Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress
If you’re looking for a wee dram and some friendly company to warm you at the bitter end of January, then Burns Night will light you up. Commemorating the birthday of Robert Burns, Scotland’s poet laureate, Burns Night celebrations are bawdy evenings full of hilarious poetry readings and hearty traditional food.
Robert Burns, known as the “plowman’s poet,” wrote poems about everyday Scottish life, filled with earthy good humor. The first Burns Night was held in 1801, after Burns’ death, when a few of his friends gathered to reminisce (and drink).
The celebration took hold, and has long been a lively annual event in Scotland. During the evening, the “lads” and “lassies” of Burns night taunt each other with toasts and provocative poetry composed for the evening, and the whiskey glasses are refilled frequently.
The star of a traditional Burns Night is the haggis—a mixture of a sheep’s offal blended with oatmeal and cooked in the animal’s stomach. Beloved in Scotland, the Burns Night haggis is proudly borne into the dining room accompanied by a bagpipe serenade. The haggis is celebrated with its own Burns poem, “Address to a Haggis,” which compares it somewhat cheekily to a French ragout or fricassee.
Although Scottish tradition dictates that only documented clan members can wear the tartan, American attendees often celebrate anyway with colorful plaid bow ties, pocket squares, ribbons, or skirts.
The merry evening ends with more toasting, bagpipes, and Auld Lang Syne, Burns’ most well-known work. With spring still a distant hope, a whiskey toast at Burns Night brings welcome warmth to the depth of winter.
A sampling of Burns Night events in Virginia:
Jan. 25, 7 p.m.-11 p.m.
Mad Fox Brewing Company, Falls Church
Free admission
Burns Night at Dover Hall with Reservoir Distillery
Jan. 26, 7 p.m.-10:30 p.m.
Manakin-Sabot
$140-150 per person
Jan. 26, 4 p.m.-7 p.m.
Benedictine College Preparatory, Richmond
$45 per person
Virginia Scots Guards Pipes and Drums/X-Band Burns Night
Feb. 9, 5 p.m.-10 p.m.
Doswell Ruritan Club
$30 per person
