Seven of the best old school whisky bars in Scotland
Calm before the dram: The Grill in Aberdeen
When you crave simple hospitality and excellent whisky served by people who know their stuff, Scotland’s classic bars are hard to beat. By Gordon Thomson
Whisky bars are where the good things happen. Laughter with pals, schemes plotted, dreams and favourite drams divulged. Problems untangled. New friendships forged. A great whisky bar provides shelter from the storm, both real and emotional. Stories will be told, the kind that tend to get wilder and woollier as the night unfurls. Time is elastic. And there’s whisky, good whisky, to bring joy and to oil the wheels and set pulses flowing.
I’m never quite sure what a whisky bar is supposed to be. For me, it could be a shed or a shining palace. Just as long as it takes its whisky selection seriously, though certainly not at the expense of providing a convivial atmosphere in which to drink it. They’re places where you can find good beer, cosy nooks to hunker down in, an understated ambience (no TVs or fruit machines please) and charming, knowledgable staff who could just as easily be sitting on the other site of the counter. The only music you want to hear is the melodious thrum of happy drinkers.
High-end whisky bars, as opposed to pubs, are everywhere now, and there are plenty good ones. You’ll often find them in hotels. I’m partial to taking my dram in well-appointed rooms or more clubby venues from time to time, when I’m in the mood for a killer Old Fashioned or Whisky Sour, or a cutting-edge cocktail served with a deftly chiseled block of ice, which you tend not to get or want in a pub.
Wherever you end up you’ll naturally want an excellent range of whiskies. A huddle of big brand blends and one or two token single malts won’t cut it (Britain’s chain pubs I’m raising a weary eyebrow at you). I want a place that searches out the good stuff for me, and stocks plenty unusual expressions and ideally lots of exciting independent bottles from around the globe. Rare-ish and old is fine, but I’d often rather drink a younger whisky from a smaller maker who has toiled hard to make the spirit. Good bar staff should be able to recommend drams based on what your favourite flavours are. So ask! Most will enjoy sharing their expertise and giving you the chance to try something you might otherwise not have discovered.
This is a personal list, and far from definitive. If I wrote it next week, I’m sure it would be different.
You can find whisky nirvana in many brilliant places popping up all over Scotland. But I want to be in a pub. And I want to be sat up at the counter eyeing shelves of gold, like an excited child on Christmas Eve. Care to join me?
The Mash Tun, Aberlour
Ship-shape: Aberlour’s wonky gem
Nestled by the banks of the Spey, well away from the main road in this idyllic low-lying village, is a quirky, ship-shape – literally – little pub designed by a marine architect for sea captain James Campbell in 1896. It was originally called the Station Bar but after the Strathspey Railway closed in 1965, the name was changed in honour of the giant vat used to mix malted barley, water and yeast in distilleries.
The floor of the bar, and the cheerful bar itself, are made from old wooden washback vessels, also part of the whisky-making process. It’s a delightful, relaxing room to drink in. Choose from more than 150 single malts and blends, and don’t miss a nose at the glass cabinet on the back wall which houses the exclusive Glenfarclas Family Casks, a collection of 52 single-cask whiskies, one for each consecutive year from 1952 to 2003.
A 35ml dram of the 1952 will set you back hundreds, so maybe for settle for something the bar staff recommends instead. There’s accommodation in a handful of pleasant whisky-themed rooms, a well-stocked humidor and cigar terrace (for staying guests) and hearty meals served throughout the day.
What to drink: Something local. Try the Aberlour 18 Year Old
Ballygrant Inn, Islay
The best selection of Islay whiskies in the world? The Ballygrant is a beauty
Run by father and son team Dave and Ewan, this award-winning bar with an informal dining area might be attached to a small homely hotel, just a few miles up the road from Port Askaig, but it’s a destination in its own right for whisky lovers. As you would expect, Islay’s esteemed single malts, both peated and unpeated, take up a good chunk of the immense shelf space hosting around 900 bottles, and the collection of Bruichladdich expressions is one of the most extensive in the world.
Pop outside for gorgeous views of the Paps of Jura. And then plonk yourself down at the counter and let Ewan guide you to the good stuff. Excellent local beers on tap. Dad Dave runs the kitchen with a fine eye on local seafood and other seasonal produce. His curry night is legendary.
What to order: Bruichladdich Fèis Ile 2024 Rock ‘ndaal 10 Year Old
Bon Accord, Glasgow
Glasgow’s Bon Accord is a real ale and malt whisky paradise
Hallowed ground for Glaswegians and visitors alike. As well as for students in the city, as I was lucky enough to be. With a handsome Victorian facade painted in racing green, the Bon Accord is a big no fuss bar on an end-of-terrace street close to the roar of the M8 underpass. But once ensconced in the bustling interior you’ll quickly forget the heaving metropolis. There’s a whopping rotation of 800 varieties of ale and a glowing gantry displaying over 400 bottles of malt whisky, featuring pretty much anything you’d care to sip from Kilbeggan to Kilchoman. Feeling flush? You’d have to forgo the best part of a month’s rent for a tot of 77 Year Old Glenlivet at £900 a go. The food is great: tackle the famed Bon Accord Steak Pie before attacking the drams.
What to order: You’re in Glasgow, so it has to be a Lowland whisky. Try the Auchentoshan 21 Year Old Single Malt
The Highlander Inn, Craigellachie
Tatsuya Minagawa manning his mighty shelves at the Highlander Inn
Slap bang in the heart of the Malt whisky universe, this gem of a bar and hotel is run with precision by Japanese-born Tatsuya Minagawa. Among the selection of over 300 global whiskies, arranged higgledy-piggledy on the shelves, there’s a tantalising assembly of rare and hard to find Japanese expressions (last time I was there he treated us to some special pours from the acclaimed Chichibu distillery, and these rare drams are well worth your attention).
The bar itself is downstairs from the hotel and has an endearingly chintzy Highland charm about it, the walls festooned with framed pictures, cabinets stuffed full of bottles and other enchanting ephemera. Tatsuya is a genial and forensically intelligent whisky man rightly proud of his prodigious range of independent drams as well as the single casks he has exclusively bottled for The Highlander Inn. There’s decent hot meals to be had, excellent cask and keg beer and a happy buzz. The Quaich Bar at the Craigellachie Hotel across the road is superb too.
What to order: Chichibu Single Malt The First Ten
The Grill, Aberdeen
Golden promise: The Grill’s shimmering selection
One of Aberdeen’s oldest and most famous bars. Originally a restaurant (hence the name) as well as a billiard saloon, this attractive granite-hewn establishment became a pub in 1926 and has been pulling in the crowds ever since. It’s beautifully appointed - recognised by real ale group CAMRA in their directory of Historic Pub Interiors - with a dreamy long bar counter and gantry, mahogany veneer panelled walls, moulded plasterwork ceiling and eye-catching oxidised-bronze frontage. There’s an excellent choice of beer but the whisky is the real star: as befitting a former World Whisky Bar of the Year, you’ll find a sumptuous selection of over 500 bottles, including plenty rare single malts from Scotland (Speyside especially) and further afield. Friendly staff and a great city-centre location, make it the perfect pitstop for thirsty travellers to the north-east.
What to order: Glendronach 15 Year Old Revival
The Pot Still, Glasgow
Old school perfection: The Pot Still
Good conversation and excellent whisky flows at this unassuming but very special and multi-award-winning 150-year-old central Glasgow jewel. With its well-worn seating, dark wood fittings and vintage Victorian adornments, The Pot Still doesn’t put on airs or graces: this is a place for people with a serious hankering for whisky, as well as a terrifically friendly family-run boozer too. There’s an astounding range of over 1000 whiskies from all across the world, with a particularly strong rare Scotch portfolio (all of it laid out on shelves that reach all the way up the ceiling); plus seriously well-kept cask ales, interesting German and Scottish beer, proper pies and an expert team who serve your dram with a smile. Keep an eye out on the website for special tasting evenings and other whisky events.
What to order: Pot Still 2021 40th Anniversary Birthday Bottle – Port Dundas 40yr
The Bow Bar, Edinburgh
Bow Bar is an Edinburgh oasis for whisky lovers
I love the Bow Bar. It’s a picturesque and perfectly formed old school parlour pub up from the Grassmarket in the centre of town, so it tends to be busy much of the time. But elbow your way to the bar - or grab one of the bench seats ranged behind dinky oblong tables - and the tidal wave of tourists clomping up Victoria Street melts away (bartenders actively keep stag parties and bachelorettes out too which helps).
An extensive whisky selection is piled up on vertiginous shelves ranged behind the polished wood bar with gleaming brass taps dating back to the 1920s. You can flick through the extensive Whisky Menu yourself or ask bar staff for a recommendation - they all know their stuff and will be happy to guide you.
The Malt of the Day scrawled on a chalk board is a great and reliable fallback if you get overwhelmed by choice. British real ales and craft breweries, as well as under-the-radar international selections bring in the beer-loving crowd. The window seat on the right as you come in is as fine a spot to sip away an hour or two on a midweek winter’s afternoon as I can think of. Super pies, no music and definitely nae fruit machines complete the idyllic classic saloon bar vibe.
What to order: The Malt of the Day
