Dram Good Laddies: the new virtual tour experience showing tourists ‘The Spirit of Scotland’

Representing Scotland in the US with their Spirit of Scotland virtual tour, the Dram Good Laddies are flying the flag for Scottish industry and innovation abroad with their virtual experience celebrating the diversity of modern Scotland.
The Scottish trio, all hailing from in and around Glasgow, are hoping to transport US customers to their native land of Scotland with their exciting, interactive virtual tour of ScotlandThe Scottish trio, all hailing from in and around Glasgow, are hoping to transport US customers to their native land of Scotland with their exciting, interactive virtual tour of Scotland
The Scottish trio, all hailing from in and around Glasgow, are hoping to transport US customers to their native land of Scotland with their exciting, interactive virtual tour of Scotland

Alastair Menzies, the ‘founding laddie’ at Dram Good Laddies, hails from Glasgow but has lived in the US for some 15 years - moving to Corpus Christi, Texas last month.

He and his two colleagues, fellow scots Nicky Pollacchi and Ricky Crawford, all grew up in and around Glasgow - but ended up in the United States working in the Scotch whisky industry.

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When the pandemic hit and the world went into lockdown, the team sought to find an alternative way of showcasing Scotland for the world - as they would usually in offering in-person events and entertainment across the US. “

We started to gradually try and do things virtually, and then the [Spirit of Scotland Tour] just took off from there”, Alastair tells me.

“We found there was a need for escape for people stuck at home all day, doing virtual meetings, so we thought that this might present an opportunity to brighten up peoples’ days in lockdown.”

“Originally we thought that [the Spirit of Scotland Tour] would just be about Scotch whisky,” Alastair continues “but we discovered over the years that while people loved our whisky, people also wanted to know more about Scotland in general.”

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This led Alastair and his colleagues to divine an experience taking tourists on a guided tour of all the best things Scotland has to offer and “create something that could better include people of all interests, ages, backgrounds and lives.”

Of course, this includes our whisky - which is given an honorary spot in the Dram Good Laddies tours. But Alastair notes their intention to go beyond the surface of what Scotland represents on the world stage, and instead delve into why Scotland can be considered ‘the greatest wee country in the world’. When it comes to highlighting Scotland’s global success in the whisky industry, for example, Alastair showcases the innovating ways of reducing waste in the industry.

Having only just launched last month, the Dram Good Laddies are already making a name for themselves - taking the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI), an umbrella group advocating for 280 life insurance companies across the US, on their whirlwind virtual tour of Scotland at its recent annual conference. “It was a fantastic experience and we got great feedback” says Alastair, “we got the chance to offer a bit of a reset for those having just had a tough, busy day and wanting to recharge.” The Spirit of Scotland tour was such a success with the ACLI that, Alastair tells me, some even suggested having next year’s annual conference in Scotland. “I don’t know whether that will be possible due to the pandemic” says Alastair “but even hearing people think that way was so wonderful because we want to support Scotland and give back to our country wherever possible.”

There’s little doubt that the team will achieve great success in the US, offering some relief and entertainment from the stress and strain of isolation and being unable to travel. Find out more on their website and catch a glimpse of the Spirit of Scotland tour.

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