When it comes to travel, I am a planner. The first I thing I do is research all the food and drink options, peruse websites, and scan menus and cocktail lists. I add all the spots I want to go to a virtual map, and try to visit as many as I can. Thus it was when my husband and I joined my friend Molly and her husband on a trip to Scotland in April. Due to a misunderstanding about the date Dave and I were to leave Scotland, we ended up spending far less time in Edinburgh than I would have liked. This, coupled with a bad cold I developed our first day there, meant that we went to very few of the places I had painstakingly researched months before. One of them was this place: 56 North, Scotland’s original gin bar, according to their website, and by all appearances, a veritable gin-lovers paradise.

I had never associated gin with Scotland; one usually thinks of, well, Scotch as the national tipple. But one of my favorite gins, Hendricks, hails from Scotland, and all this time I had no idea. Perusing the 56 North website, I discovered Scottish gins by the dozens. And gins from across the world. All of these broken down into categories: Scottish botanicals, Juniper Led, Classic Dry, Citrus, the list goes on. Tantalizingly close to our Airbnb, yet it was not to be. I’ll have to return to Edinburgh and try this place – I could easily spend hours there. Despite missing out on 56 North, I did get to try some tasty Scottish gins.

The night of the terrible cold, I allowed myself to be dragged out to dinner at a vegetarian restaurant in Edinburgh. I forget the name of it, but our server was very eloquent about the variety of gins and tonics on hand. Despite not feeling great, I knew I had to try a few – I mean, I can’t be the Peregrine Foodie and not try the local offerings. After determining what types of gin we liked, he made recommendations for each of us. For me, he recommended Brockman’s, which he described as fruity. I was skeptical, as fruity usually corresponds to sweet, and I’m not a fan of hugely sweet things. I’ll usually try anything once, though, and besides, how bad could it be? It’s gin, after all. Then he asked about tonic.

This is when I learned something new. In Scotland (and perhaps other places, I don’t know), gin and tonic is served separately. The gin is served over ice, and the tonic is served in its own little bottle. You can add as much or as little as you like. And as an added bonus you can save some tonic for the next G&T, and save on tonic! Win-win. Or, gin-gin? Too much? Anyway. He suggested a tonic I’d never heard of called 1724, where the quinine is plucked at precisely 1724 meters above sea level at a special location in Peru. It was good stuff, and I should have bought some to take home, because it’s hard to find in the US. And the places I did find wouldn’t ship it to New York, for some reason. And the ones that would charged a ton for shipping. But I’ll keep on it and get my hands on some somehow.

The Brockman’s did indeed have a delicate fruity note, but not overwhelming, and not sweet, as I feared. Another gin of Scotland that I found quite tasty is Edinburgh gin. Citrusy, floral, and lightly junipery, it made a delicious G&T. 

The tail end of our trip landed us in Fort Augustus for an evening, and the group ended up at Bothy Restaurant and Bar. The bar had a healthy collection of gin, of course, and I made it a goal to try as many as I could. A dangerous endeavor, to be sure, but I am always up for a challenge. The downside to trying a bunch of gins and tonics without writing anything down is that you forget which ones you liked and why. So unfortunately I can’t give any details on the ones I tried. I do know I had a good time trying them, though. And I met some nice people at the bar. I will strive to do better next time. And there will be a next time!