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Perhaps lowering the tone for single malt enthusiasts but I've just treated myself to JW blue and platinum labels. Both a decent chunk cheaper than you'd normally find them otherwise I don't think I'd have justified buying them for anything short of a special occasion.

I was on single malts almost exclusively until trying a couple of Johnnie Walker blends a year or so ago and now I drink hem just as readily. Only tried black, gold and green up until now with the green being the best by miles so far. The gold was a bit disappointing for the price.

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Any decent distillery tours accessible from Inverness by public transport? Preferably with a decent lunch spot nearby. Up there next week (without my car), will have some free time.

Been to Glenfiddich and Balvenie.



The Ord distillery in Muir of Ord is okay, few free samples before heading over to the Ord Arms for a pub lunch.
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Dalmore's decent, but the quality of lunch-spots is debatable. A good 40+ mins by train from Inverness too.

I'm not sure what the winter-time tour & shop availability are with any of the distilleries up here though so mind to phone ahead.

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Dalmore's decent, but the quality of lunch-spots is debatable. A good 40+ mins by train from Inverness too.

I'm not sure what the winter-time tour & shop availability are with any of the distilleries up here though so mind to phone ahead.


I had no idea where Dalmore was until now. That's handy for somewhere else we will be visiting so I'll look into that one.

Strathisla in Keith seems to do tours. Would anybody recommend a trip there?
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Distillery tours are much of a muchness, unless you pay extra for the premium one which usually gets you access to other areas, more detail and a larger selection of samples at the end

The Jura distillery let me sit at tables / tasting area inside the gift shop and let my have as much as I liked for about an hour.

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Distillery tours are much of a muchness, unless you pay extra for the premium one which usually gets you access to other areas, more detail and a larger selection of samples at the end

The Jura distillery let me sit at tables / tasting area inside the gift shop and let my have as much as I liked for about an hour.


I've done a premium tour at all of the Islay distilleries bar Bunnahabhain. I've been taken up to hills above Laphroaig to see the source and cut some peat, I've drank 45 year old whiskies inside Lagavulin warehouse, I've done a flight of expressions of Bowmore outside on their terrace in a gale etc.

Each tour is different from the next, and it at the very worst leads to a morning of sampling whisky which you otherwise wouldn't buy in such variety. Almost always a superb trip in my experience.

But having said that if there's a bog standard £5 tour to be had then it's still worth doing. I definitely enjoy a whisky more once I've visited the place where it was made, it's just that mental association of taste to place to people which helps make it.

Also out of season in small groups of enthusiasts/chancers can lead to erm more "genrous" tastings than when there's a coach party getting dragged around in summer in between their piss and scone stops at woolen mills!!
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I've mainly do the standard tour as Iike doing tours of as many distilleries as possible.

I've done three or four premium tours and they've all been excellent. I do enjoy the detail and the access all areas nature. I definitely agree about feeling more of a connection to the whisky. For example, I always thought Jura Origin was fine, but having been there and sampling the whole range of off the shelf and limited addition varieties, I'll often opt for Jura in a pub over the other common ones


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I've mainly do the standard tour as Iike doing tours of as many distilleries as possible.

I've done three or four premium tours and they've all been excellent. I do enjoy the detail and the access all areas nature. I definitely agree about feeling more of a connection to the whisky. For example, I always thought Jura Origin was fine, but having been there and sampling the whole range of off the shelf and limited addition varieties, I'll often opt for Jura in a pub over the other common ones



You may have enjoyed Great Canal Journeys on C4 a week or so past, if you missed it will still be on 4OD. They visited Jura Distillery and Timothy West seemed to be settling in for an extensive tasting!

I've not made it to Jura distillery yet. Only got as far into Jura as the slipway off the wee ferry from Port Askaig and then jumped back on the return crossing!
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1 minute ago, Spain said:

Not that one specifically, but Balblair do some nice drams.

I'm assuming it's their standard 10 year old but labelled for Skibo? Then again it's 43% proof.

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4 minutes ago, jagfox99 said:

I'm assuming it's their standard 10 year old but labelled for Skibo? Then again it's 43% proof.

I don't think it's just the 10, I think it's one of their similarly aged variety styles.

Edited by Spain
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