A spirited holiday: explore some of Scotland’s finest distilleries

If you are travelling in Scotland this year, two very special whisky destinations should be on your itinerary.

The family spirits firm, Ian Macleod Distillers, offers two world-class whisky visitor experiences: a chance to see inside the much-acclaimed Glengoyne Distillery; and the opportunity to visit the Rosebank Distillery which also houses The Residency: Tamdhu, new for this season.

Glengoyne Distillery, in the Highlands and just a short distance from Glasgow, is generally acknowledged to be Scotland’s most beautiful distillery. It features some of Scotland’s slowest stills and the tours of this working distillery attract visitors from across the globe.

Open seven days a week, there is an enticing selection of experiences from which to choose, whether you’re enjoying the visit yourself or purchasing a gift voucher.

Options include

The Collection ‘Whisky and Chocolate’ Experience. This involves a distillery tour followed by a tutored tasting of three Glengoyne whiskies, each paired with a hand-made chocolate. Guests discover what happens when you pair an award-winning Highland Single Malt with some of the best chocolates in the world from Ian Burnett, the Highland Chocolatier. Cost £38. Duration: 90 minutes.

Malt Master. A distillery tour is followed by a hands-on experience in the Sample Room of the Distillery Manager’s House. Sample five single cask whiskies which have been handpicked for you from the Glengoyne warehouse, and take on the role of the Malt Master, combining them to create your own ‘one of one’ cask strength, non-chill filtered Glengoyne Highland Single Malt, which will be bottled for you at 20cl to take home. Cost £110. Duration 90 minutes

Glengoyne Tour & Tasting. A distillery tour, followed by a tasting of two Glengoyne single malts, providing the chance to learn from the experts about the unhurried journey taken by the whisky with a tutored tasting of two Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Whiskies. This is the perfect introduction if you only have 75 minutes to spare. This tour is suitable for families, as children are welcome. Cost: just £22.

If you want a premium experience, take the Spirit of Glengoyne Tour lasting 210 minutes and spend half a day immersing yourself in the distillery and the secret art of the whisky maker, tasting six special whiskies including Glengoyne 18YO and 25YO single malts. The icing on the cake is the opportunity to draw a small bottle of whisky from the cask which is then bottled for you to savour at home. Cost: £225.

Rosebank Distillery offers a range of award-winning visitor experiences including the chance to taste the superb Rosebank whiskies. Situated in historic Falkirk, just outside Edinburgh, this is a perfect side-trip if you want to get out of the bustle of the City of Edinburgh for a day. As well as a tour through the new Still House, you can taste two single malts from Tamdhu and from Glengoyne, the brand’s sister distilleries.

Packages start at £25 and rise to £300 for the deluxe ‘Rosebank Revered’ three-hour session where, as well as a tour, you will have an exclusive tasting of a flight of three exceptionally rare, aged Rosebank Whiskies.

At Rosebank, guests can also choose to experience the superb Tamdhu Single Malt whiskies at The Residency: Tamdhu at the same venue for £110. Sample four world-class Tamdhu single casks, that showcase the dedication to this brand’s Spain-to-Speyside renowned and careful sherry maturation story. Now the super- and ultra-premium Tamdhu spirits come south to the Lowlands for a guest appearance.

You’ll be given insights into the hidden art of the Malt Master before creating your own unique, one-of-one Tamdhu Speyside Single Malt Whisky to take away and enjoy in a 20cl bottle. The single malts you will taste have been selected from four single casks by the Tamdhu Distillery Manager, Sandy McIntyre, to demonstrate the impact of Oloroso sherry wood on the maturing whisky, and the extraordinary diversity from one cask to the next.

Sandy McIntyre said: “We’re offering a unique insight into whisky production, and the opportunity to create your own one-of-one whisky sample. The experience at Rosebank is superb and I recommend it.” Book through the Rosebank Distillery site: www.rosebank.com