Whiskey Tour - Advise needed

Sommi

Sommi

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For those who appreciate and are in the know about all things Single Malt, please help if you can.

I have an upcoming Scottish tour with the main underlying theme of touring the distilleries of fame, rarity and any uniqueness.

Generally, there is a lot of good info on the Scottish tourist websites. But I am preparing for a gathering of middle aged men(my college mates) from different continents flying in just specifically for this.
No London bus tours. No Buckingham Palace. No Legoland.

I would really like to know
a) what are the good experiences you may have had on such excursions
b) any not universally known little gem
c) best places, city to stay ( we plan to stay at least in 2 places for a one week tour)
d) any nightlife pointers
e) Any distillery not to be missed
f) anything to completely avoid

Info on any of the above will be much, much appreciated.

I am also in half a mind to take my QP as it has never been there before.

Thanks in advance.
 
Needamaser

Needamaser

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I am not a whisky (note no "e". Scottish not Irish) expert but location will largely be determined by which distilleries you plan to visit.
My thoughts to put you in striking distance of a selection of distilleries would in a given area would be Perth in the South, Elgin in the North East for the Moray region and perhaps Inverness in the North. If you wanted a town rather than a city then Grantown on Spey is a nice location.
Nightlife is not going to be in abundance depending what you are looking for of course. Cities where you would get nightlife such as Glasgow, Edinburgh or Aberdeen are a fair distance from the distilleries.
North of Perth you have no motorways and often not even dual carriageway so allow for a lot longer travelling than you might expect further South. Plus side is there can be good driving roads if you avoid the A9 and average speed cameras for 115 miles!
If you firm up on where you want to be based I and others in the North will chip in with suggestions to narrow down the choice.
Time of year will be a factor as well of course. The NC500 is proving too successful for its own good at times.
For informative distillery tour Glenmorangie (Tain) is a very professional visit. Within spitting distance of there is Dalmore (Alness) and Balblair (Edderton) which featured in the Ken Loach film "The Angels Share".
Hope this is of some help in the meantime.
 
Sommi

Sommi

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That is very useful indeed. I have driven around Scotland but do not remember places like Grantown.
The plan is to go second week of July for a week.
The initial suggestion is to be based in Edinburgh but as per above it may not be ideal.
Happy to look in to remote B&B or scenic locations for stay. Nightlife is not going to be high on the list but good pubs and eateries would definitely be preferable.
Thank you.
 
JonW

JonW

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I think it also depends a bit on whether any in the group have particular tastes or preferences for whisky.

I’m a malt whisky fan, and if I were doing a 1 week tour I would try and hit the islands of Islay and Skye, with maybe a night in Glasgow on either way upto Scotland or the way down. However, this is heavily influenced by some of my favourite Scottish whisky.

Alternatively, you could plan a trip around the Speyside region, where Elgin would be a great base, and maybe have a night at the beginning or end in either Aberdeen or Inverness...

Also, if people are flying into London and then travelling North, it would be worth looking at The Lakes distillery in Cumbria as a possible stepping stone...
 
allandwf

allandwf

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I used to work on the distilleries a few years back. If you want a lot in one area the Rothes, Dufftown, and Craigellachie in Aberlour, would be my go to. Lovely scenery, good hotels . Just google them and see how many you can see and fit in. Speyside Cooperage is also worth a visit.
 
Sommi

Sommi

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Great Advice Jon.
I am very much in Islay camp myself. So Laphroaig and similar make me very happy.
As there is almost 10 people in this group, they will have to come up with common favourites.
Is it advisable to take the QP. Especially to remote islands?
 
Sommi

Sommi

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Thanks Allan. Noting it all down. Will put me research gogges on tonight with a glass of Macallan :)
 
allandwf

allandwf

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JonW said:
I think it also depends a bit on whether any in the group have particular tastes or preferences for whisky.

I’m a malt whisky fan, and if I were doing a 1 week tour I would try and hit the islands of Islay and Skye, with maybe a night in Glasgow on either way upto Scotland or the way down. However, this is heavily influenced by some of my favourite Scottish whisky.

Alternatively, you could plan a trip around the Speyside region, where Elgin would be a great base, and maybe have a night at the beginning or end in either Aberdeen or Inverness...

Also, if people are flying into London and then travelling North, it would be worth looking at The Lakes distillery in Cumbria as a possible stepping stone...
Click to expand...
Talisker distillery at Carbost on Skye is ok, but a long way to go, the road wasn't great last time I was there. Unless you very much want to go and see where your favourite tipple is produced I would give it a miss, there are a lot nicer and quaint old world charm ones to see.
 
Needamaser

Needamaser

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allandwf said:
Talisker distillery at Carbost on Skye is ok, but a long way to go, the road wasn't great last time I was there. Unless you very much want to go and see where your favourite tipple is produced I would give it a miss, there are a lot nicer and quaint old world charm ones to see.
Click to expand...
Other thing is Skye was gridlocked last summer. Not a great driving experience in anything never mind a Maserati.
 
Needamaser

Needamaser

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allandwf said:
I used to work on the distilleries a few years back. If you want a lot in one area the Rothes, Dufftown, and Craigellachie in Aberlour, would be my go to. Lovely scenery, good hotels . Just google them and see how many you can see and fit in. Speyside Cooperage is also worth a visit.
Click to expand...
And you could include the A939 Cockbridge-Tomintoul in the tour if you want a good driving road to get you into the Speyside area. Not nearly as busy yet as the NC500.
 
MrPea

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If you're and Islay fan, then you do, of course, have to take a ferry across so spend a couple of days there. Only a few miles down from the ferry to Islay from the Mull of Kintyre mainland is Campbelltown where a visit to the Springbank distillery is excellent. They also make the Longrow and Hazelburn (which is delicious!) and they do the whole process on site and by hand. To get down to the peninsular, you'd also have to drive the Rest and Be Thankful road and that's rather lovely.
 
Sommi

Sommi

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MrPea said:
If you're and Islay fan, then you do, of course, have to take a ferry across so spend a couple of days there. Only a few miles down from the ferry to Islay from the Mull of Kintyre mainland is Campbelltown where a visit to the Springbank distillery is excellent. They also make the Longrow and Hazelburn (which is delicious!) and they do the whole process on site and by hand. To get down to the peninsular, you'd also have to drive the Rest and Be Thankful road and that's rather lovely.
Click to expand...
Now that I would definitely get included.

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Sommi

Sommi

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There are so many options! Thank you all already.
Planning this would be a mind bender. But very excited about it.

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Scaf

Scaf

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Sommi said:
I have been to Pitlochery. But never heard of them. I will put a pin on that.

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Smallest distillery in Scotland- also produces the House of Lords blended - which is very nice too
 
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