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by Re Carroll
Abbotsford, British Columbia
November 9, 2003
Free guided tours are offered throughout the day, so we took advantage of one to learn about the distillery. Edradour is a free spirit compared to many of its competitors, and even the tour process was a reversal of ones we'd been on at the larger distilleries. Tasting is done first here and the tour comes later.
Our kilt-clad guide led us to the Malt Barn, where we were given a generous sample of their 10-year single malt. As we enjoyed the pleasantly smooth, peaty whisky, we watched a short video explaining how whisky is made, and then we were given a tour of the premises. The guide explained that there are only three workers involved in the production of Edradour, and there has been little change to their whisky-making process in over 150 years.
We visited another building to the see the mash tun where the malted and peat-fire-dried barley is soaked with water to make wort. The wort is initially very hot, but is slowly cooled in their Morton refrigerator, built in 1934 and the only one still operating in Scotland. The cooled liquid is then sent to giant pine washback tubs to ferment. From here it, goes to copper stills, which are some of the smallest allowed for commercial distilling. Once the whisky is made, it is stored in wooden casks for 10 years before it is shipped to Glasgow for bottling.
Edradour produces only 12-15 casks of whisky per week, but that still adds up to £3 million paid in taxes per year. Estimating the amount that giant distilleries like Glenfiddich pay was mind-numbing.
After the tour, we stopped at the gift shop. As well as their signature 10-year, they sell Edradour cream liqueur and their newest product - unchilled whisky which has a cloudy look to it but I'm told is quite smooth. Edradour isn't as widely available as some of the other brands, but you can check their website: www.edradour.co.uk for the distributor nearest you.
From journal Exploring Aviemore
by Amanda63
Bobcaygeon, Ontario
January 15, 2003
From journal Long Weekend on Loch Rannoch