New whisky and food tours showcase Speyside's finest

With a higher concentration of whisky distilleries than any other region on earth, a host of iconic family-owned food producers and some of the finest raw ingredients anywhere, the rich, fertile area of Speyside and the Moray coast is one of the star turns in Scotland’s bountiful larder.

Each year this fact is celebrated at the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, a five-day festival running from 28th April to 2nd May, that showcases the very best of this historic and beautiful area of north-east Scotland nestling to the west of Aberdeen and the east of Inverness. With well over 200 individual events throughout the area, the festival has grown in importance over the past 12 years to become one of the leading whisky events in the world.

Although Speyside and the Moray coast is the epicentre of the whisky universe, the area has much more to offer than just the “water of life”. This is reflected in the growing number of food events centred around traditional, family-owned companies such as Walkers, the shortbread manufacturers who are now Scotland’s biggest food exporters.

To provide a sense of what Speyside has to offer, organisers of the Festival are running two day-long weekend tours that encapsulate all that is good about the area’s food and drink, by combining an unforgettable whisky experience with an insight into the rich culinary and agricultural heritage of this area.

Visitors can see around Benromach Distillery, the smallest distillery in the Highlands, or enjoy a behind-the-scenes visit to The Glenfiddich Distillery uniquely designed for the whisky festival (The Glenfiddich Distillery Visitor Centre was recently named ‘Scottish Visitor Attraction of the Year’), and the Sunday tour incorporates a visit to the ancient community of Benedictine monks at the 800 year old Pluscarden Abbey to sample their Gregorian chants and their home-made elixir of apple juice and honey - the alternative ‘spirit of Speyside’.

The unique tours also include a visit to meet some of the local Speyside farmers who make some of the finest malting barley in the world, and whose beef and vegetables end up on the tables of some of Europe’s finest restaurants. There’s even time on the Saturday to pop in to Walker’s Shortbread’s Highland headquarters for afternoon tea and a sample of the Queen’s favourite shortbread, and the chance to eat some of the best food in Scotland at award-winning Knockomie Hotel in Forres or at The Glenfiddich Distillery’s Malt Barn Restaurant.

There’s always more than just whisky on offer at the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival – the blend of whisky, music, food and fun guarantees that visitors will be immersed in the culture of Malt Whisky Country and experience the true taste of the Speyside spirit of hospitality.

To find out more and book tickets go to spiritofspeyside.com, and keep up to date with the Festival programme on facebook.com/WhiskyFestival or twitter.com/spirit_speyside.