GalleryLyndsey Gray
Lyndsey Gray: Manager, The Quaich Bar, Craigellachie Hotel
Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival 2014
The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival: 1-5 May.
A visit to Strathisla
With its twirling water mill, sharp-peaked pagoda roofs and cobbled courtyard, the distillery at Strathisla looks ever so misplaced beside a busy roadway in Keith, Scotland. It should, one feels, appear by a drifting river in a forest in the hills.
It has been around since 1786 and is most famous now for producing whisky for the Chivas Regal brand – some of the best known blends in the world.
I arrived during the recent Spirit of Speyside whisky festival by way of the Keith & Dufftown railway – an historic train that rumbles shakily along a thin track through forested valleys for 11 miles. It’s a beautiful journey, made ever-more enjoyable by the friendly, Dungaree wearing conductor and a wee dram given out during the trip I was on (though not, I’m told, available at all times of the year).
Chivas Brothers has owned the distillery since 1950. But some traditions go back far further. Whisky is made using water from the nearby Brew Hill spring, which has been supplying it since operations began.
The distillery is medium-sized, with eight wooden washbacks made from Oregon pine. Fermentation takes 54 hours, before being distilled on two sets of stocky, globular copper stills. The new make comes off at 68% and the short stack makes for a heavier flavour.
Many of the casks are kept off-site in Elgin, while full blending is done in Paisley. Around 1,000 casks of various whiskies are stored in the stone warehouses on-site, but I was unable to take any photos as it is against policy.
After the tour, I headed to the tasting room to sip a few drams. As I was driving, I mostly nosed the whiskies.
I much preferred the Chivas Regal 18 year [...]
Burns Night 2012
Burns Night. That phenomenal night on the whisky calendar when people from all corners of the globe get together to eat sheep’s intestines, listen to strange Scottish warblings and dance the night away!
This year I attended my very first (aww) PROPER Burns Night. But, due to being rather swamped off my whisky-loving feet of late, I’ve had hardly any time to send out the massive thank-yous that should be given to those who made sure I was no-longer a Burns Night virgin.
So, before it gets far too belated, I must thank the chaps at The Whisky Exchange for putting on a darn good show over at Vinopolis – 200 people filled the cavernous stone hall and reveled in the fantastic musical accompaniment from License to Ceilidh, chatty banter of Simon & Franchi from Simply Whisky and whisky sponsored by the fabulous folks over at Chivas Brothers. Thanks also goes to photographer Simon Hanna for capturing it all!
The evening began with a bit of particularly good piping and a feisty cocktail of apple, cinnamon and Chivas Regal 12 to get us warmed up. Once settled in the opulent halls, we sat back and listened to (or tried to – I’m still not British enough to fully comprehend thick Scottish accents) Simon & Franchi’s energetic poem reading and speech making in honour of Mr Robbie Burns.
Then came the food and whisky! We started with a lovely Cock-a-Leekie soup, partnered with the delicious Scapa 16. I had not tried either and was delighted with the whisky. Its saltiness and citrussy hints married well with the creamy soup and was a perfect way to begin.
During more incomprehensible (though I’m sure very funny) toasts from the hosts, we moved [...]