Scottish duo unveils elderberry whisky ‘elixir’

The team behind Scottish pop-up dining experience The Buck and Birch has introduced Aelder, a new Scotch whisky “elixir” made from wild foraged elderberries.

Scottish pop-up dining experience The Buck and Birch introduce Aelder

To create the expression – which is being marketed as an ‘elixir’ – wild elderberries are married with a blended Scotch whisky and a secret recipe of “wild Scottish botanicals”.

The resulting liquid is said to have a “smooth, rich and complex” taste with a “warming” finish.

The recipe was created by Rupert Waites, head chef and chief forager at The Buck and Birch, and refined over the seasons with his creative partner Thomas Chisholm.

Based in Edinburgh, the duo host pop-up dining experiences throughout the city and beyond, creating individual tasting menus using local, seasonal and foraged foods.

Waites said: “Elderberries are one of the most neglected native fruits, but they are versatile and delicious. We found they complemented our style of cooking beautifully and were particularly well suited to our game dishes. We had a period of experimentation and decided to take the berries off the plate and into a glass and Aelder was born.”

The Buck and Birch recommend serving Aelder neat, paired with cheese, drizzled on vanilla ice cream or topped up with prosecco.

Aelder is bottled at 17% abv, and is available at a price of £24.99 for 500ml from www.royalmilewhiskies.com