Tag Archives: St. Andrews

Whiskey, Woolens, and Woods, Oh My!

St. Andrews Golf Course

St. Andrews Golf Course

The rest of our stay in Scotland was spent with the three “Ws” – whiskey, woolens, and woods. Much of Scotch Whiskey is made along the Speyside Trail in the highlands of Scotland. You could spend days exploring the distilleries but not being Scotch drinkers we limited ourselves to two – Craigamore and Glenfiddich. Craigamore is a small company but more hands on so that is the one we chose for a personally guided tour of the whisky making process. At Glenfiddich we spent our time in the shop buying their product and exploring the grounds. My only taste of Scotch resembled something like liquid barbecue pit so I was pleased to find out that Scotch, like wine, can have many different tastes.

North of the distilleries lies the town of Elgin, home to Johnston Woolens. We enjoyed an afternoon cup of tea and a scone and then spent the rest of the time carefully looking at the cashmere scarfs, sweaters, and socks. The prices of homegrown cashmere seemed to be cost prohibited so we felt the soft woolens rather than purchasing very much.

The next morning, our car headed south for two hours, to the home of golfing, St. Andrews. This renown golf course lies beside the sea and is quite beautiful even to non golfers. You can run out on a part of the 18th hole for a photo-op at a little bridge on the course. And of course we did.

While it rained part of each day we were in Scotland it did not take away from our enjoyment of this beautiful country. The people are quite friendly and helpful, the scenery wondrous, and the food delicious. We left much unexplored so will be back in the future.

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