Review: Whisky Tasting at The Scotch Malt Whisky Society

Burns Night is on January 25th, celebrating the famous Scottish poet Robert Burns. People around Scotland tend to make an extra effort to do something traditional, like a haggis dinner or opening an especially old bottle of whisky.

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Girdy ventured off Edinburgh’s Queen Street and into the Kaleidoscope Bar. You don’t need to be a member to get inside… but what does the building hold?

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This year, at Edinburgh Zoo, we even have a baby pygmy hippo (an endangered species) called Haggis.

Last year, I was able to review the Kaleidoscope Bar on Queen Street. The bar, which is open to the public, is part of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, which is not. However, even if you’re not a member, you can book into a whisky tasting. I got treated to one such whisky tasting in 2024. Thanks to TSMWS for arranging it.

Tip: While I think Edinburgh is the best, the Whisky Society also runs whisky tasting events in Glasgow and London.

What to expect with a whisky-tasting experience

Don’t be intimidated by either the notion of expert-level whiskies or the grand history of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society. You start in the bar, and it’s as easy as that. Someone will greet you at the door, and then it’s just a matter of sitting and chilling until everyone arrives. It won’t be a big group.

Perhaps, if you allow me a personal opinion, don’t hit the whisky too hard in Kaleidoscope while you wait because that might mess up the carefully curated taste experience about to come. Double-check to see whether or not your whiskytasting experience is combined with food. That certainly caught one couple out on my trip, but they were happy enough to tuck in for a second meal!

When everyone has gathered, you’ll go to one of the private rooms in the lovely building, with a central table, a few places but plenty of glasses and some whisky paraphilia on the table. Your expert host will be used to talking to people with beginner and advanced questions. The host will then take you through six different drinks and talk about their history, geography and techniques.

Not a whisky fan? If you don’t hate the drink, then I think there’s enough general knowledge and interest to appeal to a range of people. If your other half is a whisky buff and you’re just ‘meh’ on the liquid, I’m still confident you’ll get something from the experience.

Things to do in the city centre

A great strength of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society is that it’s in the city centre. They have a members-only building in Leith, too, but this review applies to Queen Street.

There’s no shortage of things to do, but the question is, what order should be used to do them, as there’s alcohol involved? If your whisky tasting does not have food, I wouldn’t do it on an empty stomach and would eat first. I would not want to bring lots of shopping into Queen Street with me but there is a John Lewis and St James Quarter close by, and Princes Street with Uniqlo just two streets over.

Overall

I try not to drink too much these days, so I’m more interested in quality over quantity. The Scotch Malt Whisky Society’s whisky tasting does is not mean with the whiskies, but I think it’s remarkable for the quality offered. The hospitality is top-notch.

I enjoyed my experience and got to sample whiskies I’m very unlikely ever to be wealthy enough to buy a bottle of.