Article Source: Blackburn Communications
Last Updated: 19 March 2020 13:59
The third Fife Whisky Festival proved a sell-out success with more people enjoying the event than ever.
Around 650 whisky-lovers attended the Festival which organisers, Karen Somerville and Justine Hazlehurst, have announced will return for a fourth outing in 2021.
Wendy Chamberlain, Lib-Dem MP for North East Fife, described the event as “impressive” and welcomed the economic boost it brings to the Kingdom.
She said: “The Festival was very busy once again and is an important event for Fife.
“What is really impressive is the representation of distilleries – not only do all the local distillers attend but the big players from all over Scotland come along plus the smaller, bespoke companies.
“The Festival is very important in terms of tourism for North East Fife and it’s great that it brings people into Cupar and to visit Lindores Abbey which is a fantastic setting for the Friday dinner.
“It’s wonderful to see how the Festival is growing in numbers and in the variety of events which are included and I would like to congratulate Karen, Justine and their team of volunteers.”
Fife Whisky Festival once again included a whisky-themed dinner at Lindores Abbey Distillery in Newburgh with author Ian Rankin as this year’s guest of honour.
Co-founder Karen Somerville said: “It was just a fantastic weekend which went really smoothly, and we’re delighted it was a huge success once again.
“We had 80 people for the banquet dinner this time which was double the number we seated last year and Ian Rankin was a great speaker.
“Everyone enjoyed his after-dinner talk about his love for whisky and the way he weaves that into his stories by making his main character, Inspector Rebus, a whisky fan too.
“He also talked about growing up in Fife and his memories of childhood walks near the Kingdom’s Cameronbridge Distillery which this year provided our exclusive Festival bottling.
“We’re now looking forward to returning to Fife for our fourth Festival in March next year.”
The Festival including two tasting sessions at the Corn Exchange in Cupar with an increased number of attendees – 325 at each gathering - compared to last year.
Whisky connoisseurs enjoyed drams from more than 35 distilleries and independent bottlers including Springbank, Tullibardine, Blair Athol, Glen Scotia, Glenfiddich and Eden Mill.
And on the Sunday, there was the chance to attend a special screening of whisky film The Amber Light at Kingsbarns Distillery and Visitor Centre near St Andrews followed by a tour and tasting.
The Festival also raised £650 for Age Concern in Cupar with a raffle.
Fife Whisky Festival was launched in 2017 by Ms Hazlehurst, founder of Kask Whisky, and Mrs Somerville, managing director of Angels’ Share Glass, with the first event held in March 2018.
The Festival, sponsored by Bruce Stevenson Insurance Brokers, legal firm MacRoberts LLP and global construction company ISG, aims to showcase the renaissance of whisky-making in Fife by bringing together the best whisky producers from the region and beyond.
Ms Hazlehurst said: “The Festival really has gone from strength to strength since we started out – getting bigger and better every year.
“We’ve had some great feedback from the distillers and festival-goers about how much they enjoyed the event and how well run it was.
“And we’ve also heard from local business owners who were pleased with just how busy the town was over the weekend and how that boosted their business.
“A lot of people came from outside Fife and stayed over on the Friday and Saturday nights which meant the local B&Bs and restaurants took lots of bookings.”
Dates will be confirmed for the 2021 event shortly with plans including the introduction of a merchandising stall where fans can buy Fife Whisky Festival glasses, aprons and whisky water droppers.
The organisers also intend to launch a new website for 2021.
For more details about the Festival, visit
Historic Environment Scotland (HES) has announced that over twenty sites across the country are set to reopen their doors to visitors this weekend.
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