I've been to several whisky tours/tastings in the USA, Canada, and Scotland. This was by far the…read morebest tour. Really fun. Very informative and interesting and their whisky is great. And they don't add color. Love that they would give you little bottles to take home your whisky if you didn't want to finish it during the tasting. It was a pretty generous tasting too. Loved how many we got to try. Amazing that such a big distillery is still family owned. The staff felt a bit like a family too (in a good way). Loved the stories and history and the world's smallest whisky storage warehouse. I know there are a lot of distilleries to choose from when you are touring Scotland and each has its own unique thing to offer, this is one you want to keep on your list though!

Third stop on my whiskey tour…read more  Only  one on the tour that is still family owned. We sampled a 10 year old and 15 year old  single malt. We visited one of the original warehouses and spent some time in their corporate space.  You can see the rails used to move the barrels to the warehouse.  Just outside the corporate hall is a cabinet of bottles dating back to 1950's. That was cool to see.  Posted with the bottles is a sheet displaying how much the each bottle cost now. One interesting fact the guide mentioned  was that they still use gas heating.  Only two other distillaries still use gas heating,  others use a steam coil.

Great tour of my favorite Scotch distillery. We got to learn…read moreabout the history of the distillery and the process of making their amazing Scotch. In the restaurant I got to try a 25 year old Scotch and was in heaven!

Probably one of the biggest tours of a distillery in the area. The team have been doing it for…read moreyears and they have a great story and a couple of tour experiences. If you visit during the summer months, it gets busy. In the off season, you can get a tour almost to yourself and it's well with the £10 for the tour and whisky tasting. This is generally my go to distillery tour when I'm in the area. Good tour, tasting and schedules.

Run, don't walk over to Benriach. This is a beautiful facility and the staff is so friendly! I came…read morehere on a private whisky tour and had a lovely tasting. Benriach truly makes some amazing expressions of whisky. The whisky was smooth and balanced. The tastings were priced reasonably and the staff gave wonderful notes on the available whiskys. I had tea while I was here as well which was lovely. The visitor center had a small gift shop and I was able to purchase small bottles that would fit in my suitcase. My Favorite whisky I tried was the one from 1993. These are Speyside whiskys and are not peated so they have deep fruity notes. I highly recommend stopping here if you are on a Speyside tour.

We highly enjoyed our time at The GlenAllachie!…read more The GlenAllachie isn't one of those fancy, sprawling corporate distillers. It's smaller, more personal, and a welcome breath of fresh air after a few of the big names down the way. We found our way to the tasting room, which is apparently quite new, and delightful. My only suggestion for improvement is some sound absorption materials around. One loud guy can really take over the whole room in a place like this, and from what I've seen, there are often loud guys at places such as this. We each selected a flight for tasting, and they were expertly poured. We were given detailed info about our selections and were happy to head over to the small but well-appointed gift shop to make some purchases. Definitely make The GlenAllachie a part of your Whisky adventure in Speyside! Their Whisky is delicious and the folks there are kind and fun.

Our tour guide, Kaleigh was very friendly and informative. The tour was comprehensive and…read moreinteresting. The tasting at the end was great and it was to meet others.

My husband and I did a tasting here and really enjoyed ourselves. Ben walked us through each whisky…read moreand was very kind and friendly. Thank you for taking the time to explain and share!

Glen Moray is underrated. First, they have a lovely visitor center with many different types of…read moredifferent whiskys. The gal that served us was very knowledgeable on their different whiskys and they have many different tastings you can choose from. Glen Moray is a Speyside whisky so the tasting notes were sweet with notes of vanilla, caramel, dried fruits. All the whiskys were smooth and enjoyable. This was a great place to come for a tasting and learn about their different whiskys.

Strathisla's distinction is that it's the oldest licensed distillery in Scotland, as well as the…read moreprettiest. Not surprising for a distillery this old, it has gone through good and bad times and changed hands. The Chivas Brothers purchased the distellery in 1950, and uses the whiskey it produced prominently in its blends. Hence today, it's marketed as "the spiritual home of Chivas" rather than its old brand. Across the street in a park, there's a well with the sign stating that it as the spring head for the water used by the distillery. The distillery is indeed photogenic, and we also did a blending class there. We learned of the major flavor compounds of a whiskey and then given our free rein to blend our own personal blends, which was kind of fun.

Had the opportunity to stop at the oldest working distillery in the Highlands for a couple hours…read morebetween rides on The Dram Tram. Strathisla, makers of Chivas, is within walking distance of the Keith Station. Makes for a great storefront photo. Upon arrival it was obvious that their staff has no issue taking care of their guests. Without a tour or tasting appointment we were lead to their barrel-shaped bar, just beyond the welcoming desk. We were able to do a small flight and taste a couple other whiskeys all while relaxed on a squashy couch. We even tried some of the bar snacks. My only lament was that, not being much of a Whisky aficionado, I didn't really care for their Scotch. However, if you're a fan of the brand you will not regret making a stop at this distillery.

Tours can be very variable depending on your guide, but lucked out with a good one. And it helps…read morethat the distillery itself has lots of amenities, props, signage, and equipment prepared for tours - including components into the barrels, which was not something commonly seen on most tours. Access to the aging warehouses is fairly common but again they did an unusually good job, complete with some partially clear barrels to help demonstrate losses due to evaporation (Angel's share). The history, both the rise and fall and subsequent years remaining the brand, were also very interesting, and a unique perspective vs many other distilleries. The tasting itself was also well done, with proper appreciation of scotch, and a decent sampling. Paid for some extra tastings that were also solid - the Cu Bocan expressions were a particularly nice addition to the lineup.

Overall, I think we would have preferred the glitz and glam of a larger operation. We felt slightly…read moreunderwhelmed at Tomatin. Upon booking, I was debating between Tomatin and a larger well known 'D' distillery a little further down the road. We passed that distillery after our Tomatin tour and there was a large brown tourist sign on the road for it, making me think it was a much larger operation and I kind of wished we'd gone there. I guess we'll never know. Anyway, read on for more details about our Tomatin experience... BOOK AHEAD We booked a tour at Tomatin at least a month in advance, which was easy to do online. It's recommended you do this to avoid disappointment. There were people from around the world on our tour, about 16 in all. CHECK-IN After parking in the free lot, we entered the building where there is a check-in/cash register counter, small bar, small gift shop and toilets. In order to check in, we simply provided our name. I felt the staff were a little lackluster. SMALL GIFT SHOP While we waited for the tour to start, we browsed the gift shop where we later purchased a small pack of 3 whiskies as a gift. (Around £26). Unfortunately, they didn't offer any bubble wrap or anything for those of us having to fly with said gift. That would have been helpful. THE TOUR Our guide Lois spoke very clearly and slowly on our in-depth, roughly hour long tour. While the tour was interesting about the whisky making process, there was something lacking for me, which I can't put my finger on. It kind of lacked some zest, zeal and atmosphere. It wasn't a bad tour, it just felt a little flat. THE TASTING ROOM EXPERIENCE This was the same for the tasting experience at the end of the tour, which takes place in a very bland room -- almost like an office board room. Everyone is on a long [boardroom type] table with the host at one end. You're given 3 pours each. The driver in your party is given a 'driving pack', which is standard in Scotland as there is 'zero tolerance'. We had imagined the driving pack to be 3 'mini bottles' like those you buy at a liquor/beverage store, where they are labeled and look like mini versions of a full size bottle. What we were given (and I'm sure this is standard, not just at Tomatin) were three 'urine sample bottles' (that's what we called them!) in which you poured your given sample into. DRIVING PACK My husband later drank the driving pack tastings in different hotel rooms on our trip out of water or wine glasses. While I completely understand and agree with the zero tolerance driving pack idea, it obviously isn't as enjoyable. (Although more enjoyable than getting in an accident or getting a ticket). THE WHISKY Having tasted the whiskies, we both thought they were 'OK'. Some of them are available in our local liquor superstore in the U.S., but I don't think we will be rushing to buy. Helpful?

Came to Scotland for some whisky, and GOT SOME WHISKY! haha…read more First distillery tour was scheduled at GlenDronach distillery as I very much enjoy the juice and was curious about their process as I heard it was very much hands on and smaller. Yep, just as I was told. This is a great tour if you are looking for a small place that still does things the old fashioned way and puts out good juice! Our tour guide did a great job at explaining their process and enjoyed the tastings afterwards. If visiting, keep in mind this is a bit far off the main road on a single lane road so mind others driving. In addition, keep in mind that dirver's are not allowed a tasting and will be given some take-away samples. Lastly, no much photos are allowed during the tour which kind of sucks but still very much enjoyed my visit.