Spirit of Speyside adds Japanese whisky stream

The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival is seeking to broaden its appeal with the addition of a Japanese whisky focus at this year’s event.

This year’s Spirit of Speyside Festival will feature a section on Japanese whisky

During the festival, which is set to take place across the Speyside whisky region in Scotland from 27 April to 1 May, Chichibu global brand ambassador Yumi Yashikawa will host a session called ‘Everything about Chichibu Distillery’.

Set to take place at The Highlander Inn, Craigellachie, the seminar will include the opportunity to taste new bottlings and cask samples of whiskies not yet available in the UK.

The Highlander Inn is owned and managed by Tatsuya Minagawa, who has curated one of the largest collections of Japanese whisky outside of South East Asia at the hotel.

Gin will also feature this year, with the home of Caorunn Gin, the Balmenach Distillery, offering festival goers tours of the brand’s production area followed by tutored, deconstructed nosings and tastings.

The Spirit of Speyside programme comprises more than 500 different events, taking in distilleries, whisky bars, historic landmarks such as castles, village halls, and outside spaces.

“Every year we look to add interesting and unusual choices to the Festival listings so there is an incredibly varied programme to choose from,” said Pery Zakeri, Spirit of Speyside festival manager.

Planning your whisky getaways for the year? Don’t miss our round-up of 2017’s unmissable events.