Swapping Islay distillery for Irish whiskey

Recently I had the pleasure of meeting Mark Reynier, currently the CEO of the Waterford Distillery in Ireland. Most of us recall him as the previous owner of Bruichladdich on Islay and how he and his team made that Distillery a household name within whisky circles. Mark bought the old Waterford Brewery from Diageo back…

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Scottish Opera prepares for a Russian first

The first ever performance of Rachmaninov on the Scottish Opera stage, and the Scottish premiere of Francesca da Rimini, are taking place soon. The 2017/18 Sunday Series: Opera in Concert concludes on 6 May at 3pm at Theatre Royal Glasgow with a Rachmaninov double bill of Aleko and Francesca da Rimini. Scottish Opera’s music director…

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Matilda musical will cast its spell in Edinburgh

The musical version of Roald Dahl’s much-loved Matilda is coming to Edinburgh – and tickets go on sale next week. The Royal Shakespeare Company has announced that the UK and Ireland tour of Matilda The Musical will extend into 2019, including Edinburgh, accompanied by a specially devised education programme, Change My Story, for schools. Winner…

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The curtain is rising across the Scottish capital

Adaptations of 80s musical movies, hits from the 50s and 60s and classical music are just some of the events happening in Edinburgh this week. The Play that Goes Wrong, until March 17, Festival Theatre. The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society are putting on a 1920s murder mystery, but as the title suggests, everything that can…

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New whisky fusion set to be big down under

The team behind a series of innovative whisky blends have unveiled their latest creation – a pioneering fusion of Scotch and Australian whisky. And they say that the unique whisky will be the first whisky to use new Blockchain technology to demonstrate its provenance and authenticity. Called The Brisbane, in honour of the Scot who…

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Inside the northernmost distillery

Aurora Spirit is the northernmost distillery in the world at 69.39°N. Set deep within the arctic circle the distillery and visitors centre is at Årøybukt in Lyngen, northern Norway, which during the Cold War was a NATO coastal fort. The distillery was built in 2015 and opened as a visitor attraction in summer 2016. The…

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Prime Ministers and their relationship with a dram

Tales of late-night whisky-drinking are very much part of the mythology of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (PM: 1979-1990), but what is perhaps less well-known is that many of her political forebears long had a significant relationship with the amber fluid. In fact, whisky has played a crucial part in the economic life of Britain…

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There was whisky galore on distillery tours

The promise of a few drams and a visit to the real-life setting of Whisky Galore! was more than enough to tempt me away from my desk and up north. At the crack of dawn one Wednesday morning, I found myself high tailing it by train towards the granite city. From Aberdeen train station, myself…

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Scotch Whisky gets protected legal recognition from New Zealand

Scotland’s national drink has secured enhanced legal protection form down under, to protect its brand name. The Scotch Whisky Association’s application to register ‘Scotch Whisky’ as a Geographical Indication (GI) has been successful in New Zealand. This recognition means the term ‘Scotch Whisky’ can only be used on whisky produced in Scotland in accordance with…

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