The Whisky Shop

If you are a tourist looking to get a few free tastes of whisky, you may have some luck here but don’t push it. They can recognise serious whisky drinkers within the first few verbal exchanges if not in the first and will offer you (if you ask) some of the less expensive cask tastings and will not pay you any more attention unless you are polite and show some interest in learning and they have the time. They are not being rude to you, it is just a small shop, so if there are a couple serious whisky drinkers in there spending, they will attend to them first. Don’t be insulted, this just makes sense, don’t you think? If you show interest and are polite, they are definitely interested in educating and chatting about whisky.
As for those of you who love whisky– this is a lovely shop where you can talk to VERY knowledgeable whisky drinkers and attendants and you won’t be disappointed in your conversations with them. There are some bottles for which they can offer a taste, but obviously, some bottles they just can not open because they are too limited to have for tasting. There are some mainstream good bottles here and also some more unusual choices including some bottles that are distilled and made for them. I have bought several Christmas presents and birthday presents here and I have never been disappointed. Lovely shop and kind people.

The staff is welcoming and knowledgeable at this decent-​sized whisky shop north of the main drag from the Castle. As you’d expect, they have a large selection of whiskies in bottles of various sizes. The reason I’m only giving this two stars is that I discovered they are also the most expensive whisky shop in the area by far — at least of the five I wandered into, including four that are actually on the Royal Mile (where I expected prices to be highest). A full-​size bottle averaged 7 – 10 pounds higher here than elsewhere; it was just disappointing to discover.

A wise man once said «whisky is liquid sunshine» (George Bernard Shaw to be precise). And in the midst of this long, cold, snowy winter I have certainly found some sunshine in a bottle, from this fantastic store.
I have never been a whisky (or ‘Scotch’) drinker. Bourbon at best. Perhaps it’s the rousing sound of bagpipes on every street corner in this fair Capital city, and flashes of tartan, but recently I succumbed to my roots and thought I would really give whisky a go.
There are many, many whisky stores in this area of town, particularly on the Royal Mile. And I’m sure the whisky they supply does the job. However, I had passed The Whisky Shop on Victoria Street before and thought it had a certain je né sais quois, so purposely went here to ask for their advice on where to start my personal whisky trail.
The shop assistant was friendly, polite and certainly knows about whisky. He gave me a box of 5 minatures each from the distinct different areas of whisky to introduce me to the world of whisky. Taste them all, decide which region you like, then come back.
I did just that. Turns out I’m an Island girl (and don’t even try me with the Highlands). So dutifully, back I went and told him what my scientific findings were.
At this point the experience and knowledge of the shop assistants here really showed. The same guy helped me, and he *knows* whisky. He explained to me the different filtering processes, barrels, areas, and when I explained to him exactly the tastes I like he recommended a non-​branded but very good whisky. Going through several different branded whiskys quite quickly, he explained the different levels of peatiness, seaweed, salt etc. etc.
I now have my very own (well half-​shared with my whisky drinking companion) of unique Orkney single malt to try. The real test will be in whether I do indeed like it as much as my ‘Island’ minature, but I feel confident in the shop assistants advice. Update to follow with results…
(The things I put myself through for a good Unilocaly review!)

I’ve been ripped off buying crap whisky too many times. I always get sucked in at food festivals to the whisky stand and get convinced to buy a bottle for £40 that comes from a special medieval barrel, distilled by one-​eyed leprechauns in a bothy in Orkney. And they only made 50 bottles! And it tastes s**t. Damnit.
Now I like whiskies that you can tastes three days after you’ve drunk them. Peaty ones that burn your eyes when you lift them to your mouth. A Laphroaig, for example. So it’s so nice to be able to come to a whisky shop like this where they have a massive selection, but more importantly very knowledge staff. You tell them what you want and they’ll recommend a few. Or if you don’t know what you want, they will help you decide.
It is more expensive than buying it in the supermarket, but you’re paying extra for the knowledge and service. Well worth a visit.

On the search for authentic Scottish whisky? Step this way then…
Run by passionate and well informed whisky lovers, The Whisky Shop sells a strong selection of single malt, grain and blended whiskies. There’s high street brands like Johnnie Walker but the majority of the shelves are packed with bottles from Scottish and Irish distilleries like Dalmore, An Cnoc, Auchentoshan, Glenfarclas and Ben Riach.
There’s standard bottles, gift sets and books and to guarantee you like what you buy, you can usually sample particular brands and editions. Be warned however, the limited edition whisky can run upto £200 a bottle.

I’m not a huge fan of whisky, I have to be honest. Maybe it’s the childhood memories of being dragged around what seemed like every known distillery on the West Coast and Western Isles as a kid; maybe it’s the more recent memories of ‘over-​indulging’ on whisky my friends and I ‘borrowed’ from our parents’ drinks cabinets as a teenager. But either way, I am not a whisky lover.
Nonetheless, this shop I do like. When my parents were last up in Edinburgh for my graduation, we were dragged in here by my dad (some things never change) and whilst he was looking at the single malts I found what might actually be the best invention on earth: hangover pills. Ok, so they’re just sugar and ginseng, and it’s probably just the Placebo Effect, but since I graduated I have made it my mission to test them. And after a lengthy investigation, I am pleased to announce that they do.
Nice work, Whisky Shop.

The Whiskey Shop is a great little store for the tourists. Situated in the Grassmarket area of Edinburgh, the Whiskey Shop is just a short walk from the city centre and the Royal Mile so it is a convenient place for tourists to reach. For a true Scottish experience, I always bring my non-​Scottish friends to this store to get a real taste of Scotland.
This store stocks every single type of Scottish whiskey there is, and best of all, you get wee tasters of the different whiskeys. The selection available is quite mind boggling and it is the best place to buy a bottle of whiskey as a gift for someone. The staff are really friendly and highly knowledgeable about all the different whiskeys.
The Whiskey Shop all sells the tiny miniature whiskey bottles which is ideal if you don’t want to fork out for a big bottle which can be pretty pricey. This store is always guaranteed to impress the tourists, and even if whiskey isn’t your tipple of choice, it is still worth a visit.

I get a little tired of whisky shops in the centre of Edinburgh. I am surprised they manage to stay open, there seem to be so many vying with each other and with supermarkets too. I get the impression from all these whisky shops, whisky distillery tours, whisky heritage centres, whisky experiences, that there is a real push to convince people that whisky is a cornerstone of Scottish culture. Why is it then, that there are all these whisky shops in central Edinburgh, tourist centre extraordinaire, and yet hardly anywhere else? In any case there must be something good about a whisky shop that manages to stay open for so long and seemingly attract so many customers.
I’m not a huge whisky fan, but the Whisky Shop did its job of holding my attention. The staff were nice and gave me friendly, non patronising advise. In the end I went away reasonably satisfied with the present I had gone I gone in for. My only quarrel was the slightly high pricing.

So there’s a knitting store, a funky clothes store, some cool eateries, a Christmas store, a «liquid bistro», a cheese shop and now what’s this a whiskey shop? Is this street heaven or what?
If you are a connoisseur of the scotch (Scottish whisky) but don’t really have the time to travel to the countless of distilleries located all over the country then this is the place for you. Even though whisky is not really my drink, I was very impressed with the selection of whiskies at this shop and the friendliness of the shop owners to my lack of knowledge. There are also some cool little gifts, including whisky flavoured fudge and cool little bottles of your favourite alcohol (including gins and vodkas).
Prices are a bit high-​like in most of these places and for the fact it’s at a popular tourist street. I still like it though and my scotch-​loving friends can spend hours in here.

The Victoria Street branch of the Whisky Shop chain is pretty much what you’d expect from these guys — the reason that they’ve been able to branch out into a chain business is because they are really good suppliers of top-​quality whisky.
Although specialising in Scottish Whisky, you can also find gems from Irish and international distilleries. The staff here really know their stuff, and are always willing to help.
If you are not sure exactly what you are looking for, then I would recommend this shop over their Princes Street branch, as this one is smaller, less busy, and so the staff are more available to assist.
Oh, and you can try before you buy. Bonus!