Douglas Blyde discovers a malt Disney land north of the border

In the mix...
Douglas Blyde8 March 2018

Scotland’s Malt Whisky Trail (maltwhiskytrail.com) links an eerie distillery museum, a bustling cooperage and seven working distilleries in stunning Speyside. I toured three of the highlights.

At former distillery Dallas Dhu, the signature of head distiller ‘Sneb’ Sutherland remains on the spirit receiving room’s wall. Economic pressures forced closure in 1983; today it is run as a visitor museum. ‘On 16 March 1983 distillers left as any other day,’ recalls monument manager, Richard Green. ‘Cigarettes remained in drawers along with a sexist domestic advisory book…’ Evoking a decommissioned battleship, the silent distillery allows guests close inspection of the whisky process: enter a kiln, stare into a still’s viscera and flick switches, consequence-free. However, speculation abounds about Dhu’s revival. ‘Never say never,’ smiles Green.

Speyside Cooperage’s grounds feature barrel caravans and a cask man totem. ‘Coopers are the most underrated people in the industry,’ goes the cinematic tour video. These are the people who make the barrels in which the whisky is aged. My guide, a former cooper with a mighty handshake, refers to ‘harvesting’ oaks for whisky barrels, ‘acorn to cask’ as 15 coopers aged 16-63 shape, shave and char. I meet one who has already re-sized 11 barrels before lunch. He gestures to ‘Horns’ in quality control. ‘He’ll return imperfect barrels that coopers won’t be paid to fix.’

At Glenfiddich I meet Andy Fairgrieve, dreadlocked custodian of art, including the artists in residence programme.

‘We don’t set parameters on what they produce,’ he says, showing me air time capsules hidden in spirit safes, a delicate statuette of a resting angel representing the evaporating angel’s share and a Donnie Darko-grade take on the brand’s stag logo. We end with a dram of what he calls ‘kiss, kiss’ — Project XX (£47.95, masterofmalt.com) is an experimental, candyfloss-like expression made by 20 malt masters. ‘Our spirit is innovation.’

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