European Travel, Travel, UK Travel

Edinburgh Highlights: The Scotch Whisky Experience

by Meaghan @ Tell Tale & Travel

Sitting firmly in TripAdvisor’s top ten things to do in Edinburgh is – you guessed it – The Scotch Whisky Experience. Knowing our love for the beverage, we booked our tickets well in advance for the last day of our trip. We wanted to go out with a bang! In this post we’ll talk you through exactly what happened there, what the best parts were, what the whisky was like, and whether it’s worth going.

The Scotch Whisky Experience

354 Castlehill, Edinburgh EH1 2NE

The Experience is located in close proximity to some other great attractions that I talked you through in my Midlands to Highlands Highlights: namely the Grassmarket, Edinburgh Castle, and even the Royal Mile. Camera Obscura is just opposite, and right next door is a gorgeous upmarket restaurant named The Witchery. We didn’t dine there due to being on a budget but if we went to Edinburgh again we’d certainly make it a priority!

The Silver Tour

We chose the Silver Tour, and it’s important to make this distinction because you do get a few more added bonuses if you choose Gold or Platinum. With the Silver Tour you receive:

  • Whisky barrel ride
  • Introduction to Scottish Whisky aromas
  • Viewing of the World’s largest private collection of Scotch whisky
  • One glass out of your choice of five Scotch whiskys, or Irn Bru for under 18s
  • Crystal whisky tasting glass to take home

This will set you back £15 for students and concessions, or £17 for adults.

The whisky barrel ride

The whisky barrel ride is exactly what it says on the tin. You get strapped into a moving ‘whisky barrel’ and go on a very tame rollercoaster-ride through the history of whisky. Imagine Willy Wonka, but for alcohol. For some reason I thought that there would be a photo opportunity here, especially at the end when you have to wait for an attendant to let you out – but there was none, so I definitely feel like that’s a money-making opportunity lost for them. At the end of the barrel ride you join the queue to the ‘Introduction to Aromas’, and receive a whisky aroma sheet.

Introduction to scotch whisky aromas

The whiskey regions of Scotland

*Infographic modified from original image under Creative Commons licence

The group (of about fifteen members) was then taken into a darkened room for a short presentation from the host. This mainly included identifying the Scottish whisky-making regions, then recognising them from their scent on the aroma sheet we had been passed earlier. Islay whisky stood out for its heavy scent of smoke and spice – not to my tastes, though! Highland whisky was more flowery, with notes of heather. From what I remember, Lowlands whisky was quite subtle, but is said to have notes of toast and cinnamon. But my favourites were Speyside whisky (fruit/vanilla) and Campbeltown (citrus fruit/honey), by a mile.

Tasting the whisky

Next you proceed through into a room with a U-shaped table for the next short presentation. Here, you place your glass onto the colour corresponding to the region of whisky you like the most. Josh and I both chose Campbeltown. They pour you a glass from your selected region (they select one whisky from each region which I believe they said changes every week). I can’t remember the exact bottle, but I remember the brand we received was Glen Scotia. I can’t say that I disliked it, but I don’t usually drink whisky neat so it was strong! You can tell from our faces that we weren’t complaining:

Slàinte mhath! Cheers!

Viewing the collection

Here’s the bit where they encourage you to get your phones out. You can’t quite fathom what 3,384 unopened bottles looks like until you see 3,384 unopened bottles. Inside a glass & marble vault are the most common, but also the rarest and most eccentric whisky bottles in existence. Some of them don’t look full, but our host explained this is because of the way the whisky evaporated in the heat when they were kept in Brazil with their former owner. Claive Vidiz was bought out by Diageo in 2006, and the collection has been in the heart of Scotland ever since.

After the experience

After the experience we exited through the gift shop as we knew we definitely wanted to buy something. We left with two mini-bottles of Loch Lomond 12-year old whiskey and a bottle of Scotch Whisky Syrup. We opened the Loch Lomond back at our hotel in the evening and mixed it with Coca Cola (pictured left.)

It took us a while to find a use for our Whisky Syrup but it became one of our new favourites, drizzled over ice-cream. According to the description, you can also have it with pancakes, porridge or puddings. The same company make a number of sauce/syrup products and I would absolutely buy them all if I could.

Would we recommend the experience?

Short answer – absolutely. The Scotch Whisky Experience was one of our Edinburgh highlights for sure. We were probably the jolliest we’d been on our entire trip! And when we look back, we realise we actually got quite a lot for our money. Of course, we spent more of it in the gift shop but we definitely don’t regret that. So, don’t let me put you off – put the Scotch Whisky Experience on your bucket list and check out this post to unlock my favourite Edinburgh hotels.

READ NEXT: Things to do in Dublin: the Jameson Distillery

*This post is for entertainment purposes only. Please follow the travel restrictions and social distancing measures as set out by your country.

37 thoughts on “Edinburgh Highlights: The Scotch Whisky Experience”

  7. I’ve walked past this attraction a few times and wondered how good it is, looks like a great experience and very good value for money with the samples you get in return! Next time I’m in Edinburgh think I’ll pay a visit, thanks for sharing 😊

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  15. This sounds like a fun experience! I can’t drink just yet (and I am not sure that I am a whiskey fan!) but I know a lot of family members who would love this! I think this would be a wonderful thing to do after lockdown as a get-together thing so thank you for sharing this!

    Em x

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  16. This sounds like such a fun day/ experience. I can’t imagine what that many bottles of unopened whisky look like. That’s crazy! I’m trying to imagine what whisky syrup tastes like on porridge on a morning and I’m not sure how I feel about that but it sounds amazing on ice cream! x
    Sophie

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