Top Important Tips You Need To Know For Visiting A Scotch Distillery

Posted by Michael Griffin on October 24th, 2019

Many Denver distillery tour, including those offered at Glenmorangie, let visitors get up close and personal with the equipment.
For the casual drinker and collector alike, it’s high time to visit one of Scotland’s many distilleries. More than 70 different Scotch whisky distilleries now offer visitor tours—some even give you a choice of four or five different experiences. So many tours, so little time! Don’t panic: it may seem bewildering at first, but there are key strategies to making the most of your visit.
If it’s your first time touring a scotch distillery, let your favourite dram guide your choice of where to visit. Nothing beats that incredible feeling of standing in the place where the whisky you first fell in love with was made.


Note that most Denver distillery tour follows a similar formula, with a guide leading you through the steps of the whisky-making process (prepare ahead of time by brushing up on the facts and basics of how whisky is being made). You’ll see and notice the mill, washbacks, mashtun, stills, including a warehouse if you’re very lucky—and then round off your trip with a tasting of the whisky.


Plan ahead
Fifty years ago, Glenfiddich was the first distillery in Scotland to open its doors to visitors, but today your choices are much greater—both in a number of distilleries and the types of Denver distillery tour you can experience. Other distilleries provide distillery tours at multiple levels, such as introductory, VIP or expert that offer similarly special and unique experiences.


At about two million people visit a Scotch whisky distillery every year and spaces and chance on in-depth tours can fill up quickly during peak season. If you have your heart set on a specific experience, phone in advance or book online to reserve your place. Some distilleries are open seven days a week, while others are more restricted; opening hours tend to be shorter during the winter months, so check ahead. Tours are conducted in English, but the most popular distillery visitor centres also offer tours in a variety of languages including Spanish, French, German, and Japanese.


Dress appropriately for the time of year: stillrooms can be extremely warm when distillation is taking place, but outside it is Scotland, so be prepared to encounter sun, rain, wind, or snow, sometimes all within the same day! Wear sneakers or walking shoes for comfort: you may need to climb steep stairs and stand on industrial open mesh steel flooring. Production areas of many distilleries are not wheelchair accessible, though access is improving. It’s uncommon for old distillery buildings to have elevators between floors, so contact the visitor center if you require extra assistance.

The end of tour tasting
Just seeing the whisky production process is exciting enough, but there’s one more thing to look forward to the complimentary whisky tasting at the end of your Denver distillery tour. The number and size of drams poured will vary, but be expectant of a third- to a half-ounce pour per whisky. If you’ve opted for a more expensive distillery tour, the whiskies are likely to be rare or limited-edition expressions irrespective of the level of curiosity, be patient and don’t swallow the whisky right away. Listen and learn: your guide will walk you through the different stages of whisky appreciation and will point out the key flavours in each dram.

Tips for the seasoned visitors
If you’ve been visiting distilleries for years and can recite the guide’s spiel in your sleep, it’s okay to skip the tour. Many distilleries will allow you to book just a tasting.  Distilleries are also a great place to grab a bite to eat, especially those located in out-of-the-way areas with few restaurants nearby.


Hit the road early to get on the first tour of the day when group sizes are smaller and you can get more flexibility out of your tour.
Up the quality of the standard experience with an extended connoisseur’s tour: you might find yourself digging peat, trekking to the water source, taking a personal tour with the distillery manager, or drawing whisky by valinch from special casks deep right inside the warehouse.

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Michael Griffin

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Michael Griffin
Joined: May 16th, 2018
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