Distillery and Whisky News Jun '19
Welcome to our June edition of Distillery and Whisky News - things ramp up a little for many distilleries at this time of year, with all us whisky lovers making the most of distillery tours on our holidays.
There's still time to get tickets for the Arran Malt & Music Festival too, which ties in nicely with the exciting opening of a brand new distillery - the Lagg Distillery - on the Isle of Arran.
DISTILLERY OF THE MONTH: ARDNAHOE
The newest distillery on the Isle of Islay, Ardnahoe is set in a truly extraordinary and inspirational location
Ardnahoe - the realisation of a dream and the beginning of an exciting journey
When Stewart Laing and his sons Andrew and Scott formed Hunter Laing & Co. Ltd in 2013, they knew it was finally time to also realise their ambition of making their own whisky.
With a strong affinity for Islay and a reverence for its distinctive, peated malt whiskies, there was no doubt that the fabled Whisky Isle had to be the site for their own distillery. In 2015 they located the perfect four-acre site by Loch Ardnahoe on the north-east of the island, with access to the deep loch waters, and first runs of distillation began in October 2018 with Cask number 001 filled on the 9th November that year.
Find out more about the Ardnahoe Distillery and the other tours available on DistilleryTours.scot or visit the Ardnahoe website to book.
Pop over to Arran for their Malt & Music Festival!
If you've not made any plans for this weekend yet, then head to the Isle of Arran for the Arran Malt & Music Festival!
Entrance to the Festival is free of charge and will open at 11am on Saturday to celebrate the very best of Arran Malt and Music. There are short guided tours of the distillery, stalls and their famous whisky bar, as well as local beers and food stalls where you can try some of their delicious local produce. Mini tastings will be held in their Tasting Bar, or take a full masterclass with one of their experts. And of course music plays a major part of the day with a fantastic line-up of talented musicians!
While you're spending time on Arran, why not be one of the early visitors to the newest of Scotland's distilleries - the Lagg Distillery - which opened to the public on the 12th of June. See you there!
PLAN YOUR TRIP TO EDINBURGH AND THE BORDERS
Rosslyn Chapel was propelled to fame after featuring in The Divinci Code
Edinburgh and The Borders offer culture, history and, of course, whisky
Our Edinburgh and The Borders tour includes the distilleries of Annandale, The Borders and Glenkinchie. Find out more about each of these distilleries at DistilleryTours.scot.
In addition to the distilleries, don't miss Caerlaverock Castle, a triangular castle, complete with particularly striking moat; Dawyck Botanic Gardens with one of Scotland’s finest tree collections including some dating back to 1680; and Rosslyn Chapel (pictured) which was propelled to fame after featuring in The Divinci Code, after which visitor uplift increased from 35,000 a year to a whopping 176,000!
In Edinburgh, as well as visiting our recommendations of the Scottish Parliament and the National Museum, make time for the Scotch Whisky Experience - a great way to give you all the information you could cope with on Scotch whisky, with an impressive collection of 3,384 bottles. Don't miss out on a trip to the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, a lovely way to experience “an adventurous and fun journey of discovery of the world's widest collection of single cask whiskies” and, finally, if you can find the legs for it, climb the Scott Monument's 287 steps for what we think is the best view out over Edinburgh.
Check out full details of this and other tours, including accommodation tips, on our Plan Your Trip pages.