Blair Athol Distillery

Blair Athol Distillery is in striking contrast to Edradour. Neither small, nor quaint, Blair Athol caters very much to the tourist aspect that surrounds all of Pitlochery. Now this is not to say it wasn't an enjoyable tour, au contrare, it was, and quite. Unlike our previous guide, however, this particular young man seemed to be doing it from rote rather than love; it very obviously was just a summer job for him. However, despite our guide's obvious diffidence, he did impart some knowledge to each of us on the tour. One fact that escaped me as I was back taking photos (you weren't supposed to photograph the interious, thus my hanging back) was that you should not stick your head inside a vat during the fermentation process. Therefore when I did exactly that upon catching up, I damn near fell over & I'm absolutely positive I burned my sinus passages. Shite that hurt! After the tour, we retired to the tasting room where each of us had a finger or two of several diffrent whiskeys. Until the last one, I didn't care for them. The last one (I don't recall the name, but I'm sure George or Missie would) was actually exceptional, but didn't come from that distillery. It was from a sister distillery that is part of the Arthur Bell & Sons Scotch conglomerate. The distillery itself, as you can see is beautiful. Well-cared for, it sits just outside the picturesque town of Pitlochrie at the gateway to the Higlands of Scotland. Should you find yourself in the area, it's well worth the stop! Wastrel On! (Listening to: Hark the Herald Angels Sing by Johnny Cash)