Food and drink attractions
Whisky distillery tours, food and whisky festivals, you don’t just eat food in Scotland you can spend an afternoon, a weekend or a fortnight enjoying Scotland’s food and drink.
Whisky distillery tours
Whisky Tours can last anything from an afternoon to anything up to a week. Many companies offer tours around specialist whisky producing areas like Islay, Speyside or the Highlands that take in the many whisky distilleries in that particular area.
Many of Scotland’s whisky distilleries are near to cities and very easy to reach, should you decide to go on your own. Auchentoshen is a short trip by car from Glasgow. Glenkinchie Distillery is 20 minutes by car from Edinburgh city centre. The lowland malt is typical of the flavour of whisky from that area and is light, floral and fragrant.
Some of Scotland’s distillery tours are free and others, like Aberlour whisky distillery in Moray, have a small admission charge. With most whisky tours there’s the opportunity to have a drink or two at the end.
Whisky festivals
The annual Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival takes places over a long weekend at the beginning of May. There are distillery tours and tastings, you can take part in food and whisky matching workshops, speak to local whisky experts and talk part in a whisky master class. A number of live music events also take place throughout Speyside during the whisky festival.
Islay also has a malt and music festival each year, usually in May. Ceilidhs, whisky tastings, folk evenings and Gaelic musical events, offer something for the whole family and helping more people appreciate whisky.
Food festivals
Scotland’s food festivals not only offer opportunities to try fresh locally grown produce but they’re also a great way to get involved in the local community.
The eatBute food festival is one of Scotlands most successful food festival. eatBute puts the emphasis on ‘Slow Food’, fresh, seasonal produce from around Bute and the surrounding areas of Argyll. The festival runs a number of school and community programmes where school children can go out and see where their food comes from. Live cookery demonstrations in the local community help to encourage healthy eating.
Entry to the main eatBute is free and tickets can be booked in advance through the festival website.
Dundee Flower and Food Festival
Held in Dundee’s Camberdown Park, this festival offers a mixture of events around flower craft, baking and preserves, wine appreciation and has lecturers from top guest chefs. It’s usually held the first weekend in September.
More on Scotland’s whisky distilleries
More on eatBute
More in Dundee Flower and Food Festival
More on the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival