Spirits high for whisky celebration
Moray packs annual festival full of events to highlight region's world-famous food and drink
Moray is gearing up for an annual festival which aims to celebrate the region's world-famous whisky and produce.
The 12th Spirit of Speyside event begins on Thursday and runs until next Tuesday.
The busy programme offers something for all lovers of the amber nectar, as well as those who prefer indulging in food rather than drams.
Six shortlisted malt whiskies will battle it out in the festival's annual awards on Thursday, and new food and drinks tours are being piloted for this year's event, to try to encourage a wider interest.
The tours will look at the links between Speyside's signature drams and other regional produce.
The Spirit of Speyside Whisky School will also return to this year's festival.
The three-day course will feature tutorials led by malt whisky experts and technical site visits with distillery managers.
Festival chairman Jim Royan said the main purpose of the event was to "celebrate all that's good in Moray and what whisky does for the heritage of the area".
It is estimated that last year's festival generated almost £750,000 for the local economy, attracting 26,000 visitors to the area. Meanwhile, businesses in Elgin town centre are being encouraged to get involved in the Scottish Theme Day, which is being held on Saturday to coincide with the whisky festival.
The day has been organised by the Elgin Business Improvement District (Bid) team, and will run from 10am to 4pm.
It will feature musical entertainment and at least 30 stalls with a variety of local produce and crafts. Elgin Bid manager Jacqui Taylor said that there had been a lot of interest in the event so far.
She added: "I would encourage other businesses to get into the theme of the day by dressing their windows and shop frontages in a Scottish Theme.
"It's great to see all the businesses coming together in support of Elgin."
To find out more about individual events, go to www.spiritofspeyside.com or www.elginbid.co.uk
Article Courtesy of Press & Journal
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