Whisky, witches and royalty on a weekend in Edinburgh
A very special hotel was the perfect base for a special family trip
Louisa Walters is Features Editor at the Jewish News and specialises in food and travel writing
When my whisky-loving husband turned 60 earlier this year, it was a no-brainer to take him, en famille, to his spiritual home – the Johnnie Walker Experience on Princes Street.
Six of us were collected from home in north London very early on Saturday morning by the super-efficient and super-smart Blacklane chauffeur service in blissfully quiet luxury electric cars and deposited an hour later at Stansted. A breeze through security and a 45-minute flight meant that we were sauntering through the doors of Prestonfield House before 10.30am.
This opulent and truly gorgeous boutique hotel (18 bedrooms) is set in 20 acres of gardens yet is just a few minutes by car from the city centre. The elegant 17th building has an illustrious history as a destination for artistic, social, business and political life. The Queen was a regular visitor, taking tea in the yellow drawing room, and as one of the only places in the area with a helipad it has long been the hotel of choice for many visiting dignitaries and celebrities.
No room is alike but they all are all super-luxurious and romantic with unique antique furniture, feature beds and the fluffiest towels you ever did see. In-room treats are generous, including champagne, chocolates, homemade cookies and Penhaligons toiletries in the wonderfully old-fashioned (clawtub bath, high flush loo) bathrooms. There’s a pretty standalone bar in the gardens and the Circular Stables provides a quirky function venue. There is a series of events at Prestonfield during the Fringe including talks by Christopher Biggins and Stephanie Beacham.
But first, brunch. With a foodie daughter on board this had been carefully researched and booked at Urban Angel on Hanover Street, right in the heart Edinburgh’s shopping area. After a quick visit to Greyfriars Bobby (statue in tribute to the 19th century terrier who spent 14 years guarding the grave of his owner), we walked there along the famous Royal Mile. Seated in the little courtyard garden we enjoyed elderflower fizz and halloumi frittata, baked eggs in tomato sauce with Scottish goats’ cheese, hummus on sourdough and za’atar-spiced scrambled eggs with spicy hollandaise.
We walked that off through the beautiful Princes Steet Gardens and arrived at Johnnie Walker Princes Street, which combines tours, tastings and a stunning store all under one roof. Only two of the six of us are whisky drinkers but we all loved the 90-minute Journey of Flavour tour. This high-tech Disneyesque interactive activity began with a taste test to discover what type of flavours we like, which would in turn help us choose our whisky type later on. We were taken through the story of the man himself, the founding of the brand, how the whisky is made and finally the chance to try a few cocktails. You need to be over 18 but it suits all ages.
The only thing to do after that was to drink more whisky so we headed back to Prestonfield House, which has an entire room dedicated to the brown stuff (those of us not converted stuck to Prestonfield’s extremely quaffable own-label champagne in the magnificent Tapestry Room) before heading off to The Witchery for dinner.
Located by the castle in buildings dating back to 1595, the restaurant takes its name from the witches burned at the stake on Cattlehill. The restaurant opened in 1979 and 20 years launched a second dining room, The Secret Garden, accessed through a little courtyard. It has been named The Most Civilised Dining Room in Scotland; it’s certainly The Most Enchanting Dining Room I’ve ever been to, with a painted ceiling, flower-filled urns and a beautiful terrace. Sumptuous grilled asparagus, a highly unusual pistachio parfait and Balmoral Estate pigeon with raisin puree started us all off nicely. Lamb Wellington was the winning main dish among us, but the north Atlantic halibut was great and so too the chateaubriand.
It’s at breakfast in the Rhubarb restaurant, so named because this was the first hotel in Scotland to grow the fruit, that Prestonfield shines most of all. This unmissable experience offers a huge range of cold and hot dishes including Omelette Arnold Bennett, which has to be the most sinful, sensational, spectacular breakfast treat of all time… apart from the twice-baked smoked cheddar souffle that is also on offer. I’d like to tell you that I stuck to yoghurt with rhubarb compote… but delicious as that was, that would be sacrilege.
We made our way across town to the Royal Yacht Britannia, moored here since her retirement in 1987. To walk around this magnificent boat, to see the rooms where Her Majesty the Queen slept, worked and entertained was a pinch-me experience. Former royal photographer Reginald Davis, a member of Hendon synagogue, travelled on it on three occasions. “Working with our Queen was wonderful,” he said in 2017. “She creates a tremendous amount of aura and it excites you to do better things.” That aura and excitement could be palpably felt on her much-loved boat, and indeed in her much-loved Edinburgh. This week Charles was presented with the keys to the city. I’ll drink a whisky toast to that.
Prestonfield House from £375 per night prestonfield.com
Journey of Flavour Tour £30pp johnniewalkerprincesstreet.com
blacklane.com; urbanangel.co.uk; thewitchery.com; royalyachtbritannia.co.uk
Exclusively yours
Macleod House is a 10-bedroom exclusive-use mansion on the dramatic North Sea coastline, in a 1500-acre estate that is home to an abundance of wildlife. Built in 1835, the mansion is brimming with character, grand rooms, open fires, secret stairways, opulent furnishings and sumptuous fabrics. Woodland walks, beach runs and clay pigeon shooting form part of the experience, plus there is a Beauty Retreat, the Clavis Whisky Bar stocking 200 whiskies and remarkable fine dining, with a kosher kitchen on site. Perfect for large family celebrations or small weddings! It’s just a short drive to Aberdeen airport.
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