Edinburgh tourist attraction, The Real Mary King's Close, to offer Edinburgh Gin tasting tours

The Real Mary King’s Close has teamed up with Edinburgh Gin to launch a new gin tasting tour.

On selected Fridays and Saturdays during July, gin lovers and history enthusiasts can experience the the new gin storytelling and tasting experience underneath the cobbled streets of Edinburgh’s Old Town.

As well as learning about the dark history of The Real Mary King’s Close with a dedicated guide, visitors will also get the chance to sample four unique gins from the Edinburgh Gin range, each having a historical link to the Capital’s medieval Old Town, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh Castle’s one o’clock gun and gin trade at the port of Leith.

Visitors will be served the classic Edinburgh Gin and tonic, featuring botanicals such as lavender, which was commonly used by the city’s plague doctors. They will also get to try Edinburgh Gin’s 1670, which emerged from a treasure trove of over 14,000 plants that are grown in the Royal Botanic Gardens.

The peppery, yet smooth, Navy Strength Cannonball Gin will be served neat. Visitors will find out about its homage to Edinburgh’s wonderous seafaring past, links with Edinburgh Castle’s one o’clock gun and the history of gin imports at Edinburgh’s Port of Leith.

To complete the ‘Stories and Wonders’ gin tasting tours, visitors will sample a measure of Edinburgh Gin’s Pomegranate and Rose Liqueur.

Paul Nixon, General Manager, from The Real Mary King’s Close said: “We’re really excited to be teaming up with Edinburgh Gin to launch our new ‘Stories and Wonders’ gin tasting tours this July, as part of Scotland’s Year of Stories. Authentic storytelling is at the heart of everything we do at The Real Mary King’s Close.

The Real Mary King's Close and Edinburgh Gin are teaming up to offer a new ‘Stories and Wonders’ gin tasting tour.

“On selected Fridays and Saturdays during the month, history enthusiasts and gin lovers will not only get the chance to enjoy one of our award-winning underground tours with a dedicated guide, but they’ll also get the opportunity to sample four truly unique gins carefully selected from the Edinburgh Gin range. Each one is linked or associated with Edinburgh’s medieval Old Town, Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh Castle’s one o’clock gun or the gin trade at the port of Leith.”

Jennifer Houston, Distillery Supervisor for The Edinburgh Gin Distillery, said: “This is a really exciting opportunity for us to share and compare our love for history and storytelling with the team and guests of The Real Mary King’s Close, along-side being able to share our passion for showcasing our range of creative gins and gin liqueurs.

“This partnership has allowed us to create a tailor-made tasting offering, allowing our passionate team to deliver this history led tasting session, diving into Edinburgh’s historical gin ties, and creating the inspiration for these hand selected gins, which we hope will complement the tour offering from The Real Mary King’s Close team.”

The one and a half hour guided ‘Stories and Wonders’ tour, which is part of Scotland’s official Year of Stories 2022, will start at The Real Mary King’s Close, Warriston's Close, at 5pm, 5.30pm, 6pm and 6.30pm on eight separate dates during July, including Friday 8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th, and Saturday 9th, 16th, 23rd and 30th.