The Niche Whisky Fringe Festival at Edinburgh

Edinburgh Whisky Fringe is in its sixteenth year now. Over time it has gained the reputation of being one of the most remarkable attractions in the list of global whisky events. The tickets for the three day festival are limited to four hundred and fifty each day. This allows only a significantly small number of lucky people, to experience the beauty and grandeur of Mansfield Traquair, and sample two hundred and fifty whiskies spread over twenty eight stands.

The exhibitors almost always know what people want and bring to the table some exceptional ‘half-time orange’ treat drams. A speciality of the festival, the list features rare whisky like Dalmore Quintessence, Springbank 21-year-old, Ardbeg Dark Cove, and Linkwood 1998 Cote Rotie from Gordon & MacPhail. This practise of making select whisky available for all, sets apart the Ediburgh Whiskey Fringe from other whisky festivals that happen across the globe.

Scotland’s smallest distillery, Strathearn distillery from Perthshire, was conceived one Fringe festival day and six years later, now they are back as exhibitors. Strathearn matures its spirit, both peated and non-peated, in small octave-sized casks, so that each batch of their whisky is unique. The first bottle from this micro-distillery was sold at £4,150 through a whisky auction platform.

Royal Mile Whiskies' annual Whisky Fringe manages to draw people from all over the world to Edinburgh’s historic Old Town. An essential part of their success is the spirit of the people who come to attend it, and the passion they share for all things whisky.

Bakery Hill Distillery, Australia

Having been constantly told over the years that no other place in the world can produce as good single malt whiskies as Scotland, David Baker, a former food scientist, was irked so much, that he began distilling whisky from 1999. He thought if one could understand the process of whisky making at a molecular level, it might be possible to replicate some of the best single malts from Scotland. With that in mind, he followed the traditional procedures which have been practiced for centuries now, and acquired equipment from some of the leading engineering firms from UK. Since he believes that the most important part of the distillery is the still, and that every dimension in the still influences the flavor, aroma, and the character of the whisky, he took great effort in designing the stills. That is how Bakery Hill distillery was born in Victoria, Australia.

Kasauli Distillery: A Stroll through Nostalgia

Located in a picturesque cantonment town in the Solan District of Himachal Pradesh, Kasauli Distillery is one of the highest distilleries in the world. It lies at an elevation of over 6000 feet. It was set up in the late 1820s by Edward Abraham Dyer who brought along with him the distilling and brewing equipment from Scotland and England. He chose this location for the distillery, for the availability of fine spring water and climate. The first image which Kasauli brings to our minds is a small town which boasts of cleanliness and peace.

Iceland’s Finest Eimverk Distillery

With its chilly and dark winter months, Iceland has the perfect reason to pour yourself a dram of whisky. And it’s not just whisky (the locally distilled spirit), you wouldn’t want to miss exploring the stunning beauty of the place. Located in the outskirts of Reykjavik, the distillery was initiated by three brothers who started operating out of a garage. The first few years were spent solely on experimenting with 165 odd recipes, before the very first Floki was left in casks, to mature. Today, the distillery’s undisputed fame owes primarily to its Flóki whisky range apart from the local alcohol, Brennivín.