New Fife-based whisky tasting venture aiming to top up offering

A trio of whisky experts has launched a firm offering online tastings, and is aiming to broaden its offering, even hoping to host in-person and corporate tastings when Covid restrictions are lifted.

Mattie McGuire, Scott Souness and Thomas Cuthbert were on furlough when they had the brainwave of launching Dunfermline-based House Drams, in a bid to make the spirit more accessible, while offering something different from the usual online quizzes.

The business has just officially launched, and comes after they tested the concept by distributing five or six whisky samples to friends and family and chatting about them over Zoom.

They say it was the perfect time to turn their passion for whisky into a business, with all three having worked in hospitality throughout university, with Mr Cuthbert and Mr Souness working in the Scotch Bar at the Balmoral Hotel for a combined seven years.

The firm says the sets suit whisky drinkers of all levels. Picture: contributed.

They have started House Drams to “bring something different” to the whisky industry, saying: “We realise how complex and, at times, intimidating it can be, so we want to break it down in a way that is approachable and down-to-earth."

They are selling the tasting sets, each comprising five 30ml whisky samples, with themes including Scottish Peat and Orthodox Regions – with supporting tasting cards and more information online – and aimed at whisky drinkers of all levels.

"We are three passionate whisky drinkers, eager to share our own, independent descriptions of each dram,” they said. “Each tasting set feels like a journey, with each dram leading into the next to create a wee DIY tasting experience for our customers.

The firm wants to break down whisky in a way that is 'approachable and down-to-earth'. Picture: contributed.

“We want to go further by providing tasting notes for each dram by providing a bit of background on each distillery and include interesting facts we have picked up from years in the industry. We also want to shine the spotlight on some of our favourite whiskies, which tend not to be stocked in supermarkets.

“On the whole, we feel the business has so much potential, but we’re just taking it one step at a time at the moment and staying true to our ultimate goal; making whisky more accessible and promoting great Scottish drams.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.