As Spring makes itself know here at Lindores and we welcome in the sunnier days, things just get busier and busier.

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In the Visitors Centre we have welcomed tours and visitors from across the globe. On one particularly busy day we had visitors from 5 different continents – from Edinburgh to El Paso! Guests have been excited to discover some changes in the Visitors Centre including lots of new Lindores merch which will be available on the website soon – sadly our April 1^st release of “Abbey – pour femme” and “Bear – pour homme” proved too popular and are now all gone!

We have also launched our new menu of cocktails and whisky flights, along with an incredible new menu for our events. Our chef, Andrew Wilkie, is a master when it comes to creating delicious dishes using wonderful produce Scotland has to offer – and this menu absolutely exemplifies this with Lindores Lamb, St Andrews cheddar and Aqua Vitae custard (although thankfully not on the same plate!).

If you are looking for a venue for a private or corporate event – please do get in touch.

Some of our friends from across Europe might have been lucky enough to catch one of the Lindores team on one of the many trips they have taken over the past month. It has been a typically jet-set month for Elliot and Lorena with visits to Belgium and Germany. Lorena had a wonderful time in Limburg sharing the good word of Lindores – a particular highlight for her was a whisky and cheese tasting organised by a local expert cheesemonger. She can now wholeheartedly recommend pairing our STR release with blue cheese and enjoying some Red Leicester, tomatoes and pesto with our Bourbon cask releases.

Closer to home, Murray, John, Scott and Seb have been all over Scotland for tastings and shows. The Clackmannanshire Whisky Festival was a great success with lots of interest being shown in our spirit, and Murray had a similarly good show at The Biscuit Factory in Edinburgh later in the month. John and Murray also held a particularly interesting, and unique, tasting at the reopening of the Rutland Hotel in Edinburgh. The tasting was held in a bedroom to showcase the Hotel’s stylish new refurbishment – hosting 30 people for a whisky tasting with most of them sitting on the bed was not something they thought they’d ever pictured themselves doing!

For those of you interested in cask ownership at Lindores – it has been another interesting month for our Cask Custodian, Matt. He had the chance to fill a fantastic ex-peated cask for a client this month, and he is very excited about our imminent delivery of exotic casks. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for updates on these or contact Matt at casks@lindoresabbeydistillery.com for more information.

Finally, we celebrated the famous distillery cats’ 7^th birthdays! FJC and Vesper were showered in love by their 70+ thousand Instagram followers and indulged with lashings of cream – they celebrated by sleeping for most of the day. Oh, to be a cat!

Helen and Drew McKenzie Smith
Custodians of Lindores Abbey Distillery

We have launched our brand new Hearts & Crafts 5 Pineau des Charentes. This beautifully well-balanced whisky is a must-have for your collection. Prepare to taste the rich notes of summer berries, almond and baking spices in every sip.

Keep your eyes peeled on our social channels this Sunday. We’ll be posting a video to show you some shots behind-the-scenes at the distillery as our team bottled this product ready for you all to enjoy.This limited-edition product is selling fast though so don’t linger… purchase yours from our website below, at our distillery in Stourton or at either of our two shops in Broadway and Bourton-on-the-Water.

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In celebration of Earth Day which took place recently, we are thrilled to share some exciting news with you – we have just installed two bee hives at our distillery. By welcoming these precious pollinators and providing them with a safe haven for them to thrive, we are continuing our efforts and commitment to help care for our beautiful surroundings that make us who we are today.

As the bees get settled into their new home, we can’t wait to see the positive impact they’ll have on the biodiversity of our home and on our Wetlands project. Stay tuned for more updates coming soon!

Cotswolds Distillery Phillip’s Field, Whichford Road Stourton Shipston-on-Stour, Warwickshire CV36 5EX

Our exclusive bottling comes from the Benriach distillery, located in the Speyside region of Scotland. It has been distilled in 2011, matured for 12 years and bottled from Pedro Ximenez Hogshead, without chill-filtration or artificial colouring by Alistair Walker, exclusively for our shop.

NOSE Raisins with dark muscovado sugar, followed by walnut oil and figs.

PALATE Delicate aniseed leads to rich espresso with buttery hot cross buns.

FINISH Longing and moreish.  Only 328 bottles were produced.

£79.99

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Low wines are essentially an intermediate product in the distillation process, emerging after the first distillation run. Vic Cameron, one of our whisky lecturers says: “Low wines is distillate collected from a wash still. So, we charge up a wash still with wash. We run the still and collect all the distillate as low wines. This run takes the liquid from about 8% or 9% alcohol up to about 22% or 25% alcohol.”

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Our whisky is made with little automation, and we prefer to rely on the ‘human touch’ throughout our spirit-making. This emphasis on people throughout the production process also serves to create employment that would otherwise be lost in a more ‘push-button’ operation.

Our commitment to developing career opportunities for young islanders now manifests in our Spirit Hall through one of the youngest distilling teams in Scotland.

With an average age of just 26 years, Rebekah, Thomas, Paddy, and Domhnall are now fully trained and qualified in the art and science of distilling spirits.

Under the mentorship of our Head Distiller Norman Ian, they use their judgement and experience to decide cut-points by nose and sight, manually adjusting the steam valves and making considered decisions as a team at every step.

The difference this makes to the final results may be hard to define but we believe their growing skills at the stills bring something extra to the spirits we finally bottle.

Read on to learn more about these young people who produce our whisky and gin, and if you’d like to enjoy the fruits of their labour then please consider buying a bottle or two from our online shop.

Le gach deagh dhùrachd,

Mike Donald, Chief Storyteller

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MEET REBEKAH MORRISON
22 YEARS OF AGE

Hailing from Bowglass here in the Isle of Harris, Rebekah went through her school years just a short walk from the Isle of Harris Distillery’s doors.

Rebekah began her career working in our distillery cafe at the age of 17. Soon after, a distilling apprenticeship became available and it proved a chance to embrace a whole new challenge.

After undertaking 2 years of training, Rebekah qualified with flying colours and now makes the historic single malt whisky, The Hearach.

Working close to home is something held close to Rebekah’s heart as she says, “The most important thing is the ability to live and work where I grew up…”

Rebekah was also our first woman distiller, something we are proud of, and we hope her success here inspires others to take on other such traditional male-dominated roles.

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MEET THOMAS MACRAE
26 YEARS OF AGE

Originally hailing from the village of Balallan, Thomas now lives close to the distillery here in our home village of Tarbert.

Thomas always had the distillery project on his radar and took a keen interest in our progress from afar.

But, when a distilling job opportunity arose, Thomas took advantage of the on-the-job training that would be provided and decided to “give it a shot”, in his own words.

Having come from a background of fishing, the life of a distiller inevitably came with steep new learning curves but he’s risen to the occasion every time.

Thomas tells, ‘Every day is different as a distiller. It keeps me on my toes but as a strong team here at the Isle of Harris Distillery, we are all working together towards the same goal”.

Learning he’s both proud and privileged to have secured the role of a distiller with us, we’re delighted he can further his skills and learnings whilst staying close to his island friends and family.

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PADDY SINCLAIR
29 YEARS OF AGE

Paddy was brought up in the village of Tong in the Isle of Lewis and his mother’s side of the family is from Huisinis here in Harris.

He moved to Glasgow to complete a BSc at Glasgow University and then undertook an MSc in Brewing and Distilling before the opportunity to return home and become a distiller with us presented a career path that couldn’t be passed up.

Paddy lists many pros to his job but he places his colleagues high up on his list. He adds that the chance to live and work in one of the most beautiful parts of the world, all while developing his love of whisky-making, is also a bonus.

Leaving city life to settle here in Harris, he’s now able to spend time with old school friends, play in the local shinty team and cherish the time he gets to spend with his Hearaich family, including his grandmother in Huisinis.

Paddy says, “I am also able to add to the population number here which is another great plus in my mind, even if it is only a small number…”

MEET DOMHNALL MACRAE
26 YEARS OLD

With both Scalpay and Leverburgh blood running through his veins, Dol proudly tells that his family come from the Isle of Harris.

Growing up in Fort William, visiting Harris was a regular holiday tradition for him, but in April 2022, Donald decided to make the move to the island for himself.

It wasn’t long before fellow distiller and shinty teammate, Paddy informed him of a distiller opportunity on his work team and the rest, as they say, is history.

Despite the cliché of a ‘family feel’ at the distillery, it couldn’t be more true for him as he often feels it’s more like a friend group than a work one having now settled in well and embraced his role as a Harris distiller.

Domhnall tells us, “I feel at home in Harris. There’s the social aspect, sports and playing as part of the shinty team, spending time with family and feeling at ease with my career and future ahead. The scenery still catches me out and I try my best not to take it for granted.”

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Loch Lomond 14 Year Old

A 14-year-old single malt from Loch Lomond that has been matured in refill American oak casks and lightly toasted French Oak from the Limousin region for up to twelve months. This expression has been bottled at 46% abv without chill filtration.

The nose delivers a delightful fruity character, with green apple, coconut, cinnamon and lemon. Sweet toffee and vanilla fudge make for a sweet palate, alongside a burst of citrus, grapefruit and toasted oak. The finish is long with warming oak spice of clove and aniseed.

Note: If you add an engraving to your order, the message will be displayed on the back of this bottle.

Whisky of the Year 2023

£66.00
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Free Next Day Delivery for 12 Months For just £14.95 you can enjoy free next day delivery on all your orders for a whole year! Geographic restrictions apply, see full T&Cs. Find out more ❯

Being The Blender: How Scotch Blenders Master Their Craft 

Unless what you’re drinking is marked “single cask,” a blender has their fingerprints on the liquid inside any given whisky bottle, whether it’s a blend or a single malt. Maintaining the heart of a whisky’s legacy and balancing that with innovation is one of the challenges facing blenders; that said, beyond a distillery’s core offerings are a range of experiments, innovations, and personal influences on blends.

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Whiski Bar

Breakfast Available from 10am Daily!

Start your day the Whiski way! Join us for a hearty Scottish breakfast available from 10am until 11:45am every day at Whiski Bar. Whether you’re craving a classic full Scottish breakfast or smashed avocado & poached eggs, we’ve got you covered.

Fancy a Browse?

Visit us in our shop beside Whiski Rooms or browse our online web shop for a fantastic range of over 500 whiskies, gift hampers and Scottish gifts, all can be delivered.

Browse our Whiski online webstore

Bulleit 12 Year Old Rye Whiskey (750ml)

$44.99 View

Bulleit, the nation’s number one rye whiskey, added a 12 year to their lineup back in 2019 and it sold out instantly. The same 95% rye, 5% malted barley mashbill is used here, and longer aging provides more smoothness, richness, and a longer finish than the standard rye. Now in 2024, the blend includes whiskies up to 17 years old and remarkably, the price is little changed despite the inflation we’ve seen over the last 5 years. There is virutally no American whisky available at 12 years old under the $50 mark. This makes this latest release from Diageo one of the best values in the country.

Email: wine@klwines.com
Phone: (877) KL-WINES (Toll Free 877.559.4637)
K&L Wine Merchants 3005 El Camino Real Redwood City, CA 94061 USA
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA

THERE WERE THREE OF THEM M’LORD.

Here we go again, another great tour with my friend Ingvar Ronde. This is not work, this is a pleasure that happens for me every year.  In April 2024, we hit a region where we had not extensively toured before;  Lochlea, Jackton, Auchentoshan, Loch Lomond, Glengoyne, Fettercairn, Inchdairnie, Daftmill, Falkirk, Tullibardine, Edradour and Deanston. To be honest, we also had many tastings, book signings, extra visits, food and drink – there were three of us; Ingvar, Marcus and myself. We did enlarge the group for a night at my house for a tasting, something completely different – Irish whiskies.

Monday 15           Ingvar landing at 12.35 pick up at airport – Lochlea and Jackton, staying overnight Glasgow. Both distillery tours were brand new for me, both good, lots of potential at both, some exciting news later on. Both distilleries using Scottish grown barley in the fields of their own estates. The hotel shall remain nameless, a let down to be sure. I am now banned apparently. We do seem to get into trouble easily!

Tuesday 16            Full Scottish breakfast then Auchentoshan. Susan was an excellent guide and a mine of information. Loch Lomond Gary Mills could not have done any more for us, many, many drams and the cooperage was a highlight, thanks guys. Glengoyne Robbie Hughes same again, great guy, good humour and good drams. Overnight in Perth, me at home, a wee tasting may have occurred!

Wednesday 17     Leaving 08.15 for Fettercairn Kieran, Stewart and Kelly were great! The water ring was unique, cooling the potstill.  Hi Paul, Thanks for your kind email, and I am glad to hear that you enjoyed your visit to Fettercairn. Have a nice weekend when it comes and feel free to pop in for a visit anytime you are passing the door. Kind regards, Kelly – Brand Home Manager – Fettercairn Distillery.  Inchdairnie good visit here hidden in the town, what a good design, a modern distillery.  Down to meet Frances at Daftmill, spent a while here down on the farm, including dram time (I lived on my grand dad’s farm in Co Kilkenny 2 – 9 year old, so like going to farms).  Back to Perth, we did a good tasting at Malts & Spirits shop, then pizzas at Brewdog. Overnight in Perth.

Thursday 18          Leaving after breakfast we arrived at Falkirk Oh my God, did we have fun here! A quick tour, then to the boardroom and George Stewart, what a character, story after story, did we laugh? Bet your life we did. And drams, loved it. Our tour there was a blend of a naughty boy and teachers pet! Tullibardine – Mike Elliott did a long Q&A then a distillery tour, I did happen to pick up a bottle while there and another next week. We had a group dinner in Perth, excellent, then a tasting at mine, Liz, Marcus, Shona, Ingvar and myself, mostly Irish drams, although a few Scots snuck in. Overnight in Perth.

Friday 19               Away by 08.20 Edradour – Andre Haberecht, that was good, as it has been closed to the public for some time. Drive to Deanston, Murray Kerr, and then Edinburgh to drop Ingvar off.

Overall another excellent tour with my pal Ingvar, I get to see so much because of him, amazing. Thanks again Ingvar and Marcus, good craic and fun on tour, myself and Ingvar like to take the Michael out of eachother, by now he understands my humour and sarcasm. There was a distillery that was not a good visit, but that will remain under the radar. I was going to say Scots are very friendly, but not everyone we met were Scots. So let’s say everyone we met at distilleries were happy smiling, friendly folks. Mind, there was one person who was on the sideline, had a face like a wet weekend. Ingvar enjoyed Perth. I enjoyed the whole tour, as usual. I am lucky as I get to see distilleries closed to the public, because of Ingvar. He is back in November.

PAUL MCLEAN

With friends and contacts all over the whisky industry, you cannot find better than MCLEAN WHISKY TOURS

www.whiskytours.scot