Wee Munch

Wee Munch Scottish Food, Drink, Whisky and Restaurants

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13/06/2025

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Black pudding...many people love it, many people can't even bring themselves to try it! (you're missing out!) Granted, a...
20/05/2025

Black pudding...many people love it, many people can't even bring themselves to try it! (you're missing out!) Granted, a blood sausage, essentially made from pigs blood, oatmeal and suet doesn't sound particularly appetising but bear with me here...

It is nearly always featured on a Scottish breakfast, alongside slice sausage, tattie scone and haggis - but there are vast differences in quality when it comes to black pudding, it definitely shouldn't be greasy or rubbery, if your first experience is a bad one, you might never go back for a second try!

Stornoway Black Pudding is another PGI status product, it has to be made on the Isle of Lewis, and is mildly spiced, rich and savoury, most restaurants will make a point of telling you on the menu if they're using it.

If you can't get Stornoway, fear not, any good butcher's in Scotland will stock a quality black pudding, with many making their own to closely guarded family recipes.

The earthy, rich and slightly sweet flavour of Stornoway makes it a perfect pairing with scallops and a pea puree, it's equally delicious with pork loin and maybe a cider cream sauce, or even goats cheese and a fiery chilli jam - if you haven't already given it a try, you might be pleasantly surprised!

Living Souls is an independent whisky bottler, founded in 2024. They specialise in small batch, single cask and limited ...
20/05/2025

Living Souls is an independent whisky bottler, founded in 2024. They specialise in small batch, single cask and limited edition whiskies, I've attended a couple of tastings and they have some really interesting single malts and blends, check them out at https://www.whiskysouls.com/

The one I've featured here is the result of a happy accident, a well known 18 year old heavily peated single malt came to be mixed with a very small amount (1%) of grain whisky, meaning it was no longer classified as a single malt.

Living Souls have bottled it under their label and if you can get your hands on a bottle you're in for a real treat at a bargain price compared to what it would have fetched without the 'happy accident!'

Seafood is one of Scotland's specialties, most people think of salmon, trout or langoustines but anyone who loves fish h...
20/05/2025

Seafood is one of Scotland's specialties, most people think of salmon, trout or langoustines but anyone who loves fish has to try Arbroath Smokies!

So what are they....? Haddock, caught in the North Sea, specifically cured, tied in pairs by the tail and hung over sticks in the smoking pit, where they are hot smoked over oak or beech wood. Its a meticulous process which has to be done using the traditional method, in or within a small radius of Arbroath on the North Sea coast, east of Dundee.

These unassuming little fish have their own PGI status, with fancy friends like Champagne, Parmesan and Parma ham...

You'll find them in fine dining restaurants and pub menu's alike, in risotto, fishcakes and all sorts, but they're a showstopper in their own right. I I think serving them warm with some bread, butter and chives is all that's needed!

The unseasonably stunning weather we've been having has been the perfect excuse to enjoy a gin and tonic in the garden! ...
20/05/2025

The unseasonably stunning weather we've been having has been the perfect excuse to enjoy a gin and tonic in the garden! I've posted mainly whisky content so far, but I think Scotland's gin deserves a share of the spotlight too!

In the past decade hundreds of Scottish gins have appeared on the market. Most whisky distilleries have jumped on the craft gin trend, gin being a much quicker product to turn over than slowly aging whisky!

Many new distilleries have also introduced a gin in their early years while their first whiskies come of age. This one is produced by Port of Leith Distillery, who are well worth keeping an eye on in coming years, having opened a ground breaking new vertical whisky distillery in Leith in 2023.

Lind and Lime is one of my standout favourites... The bottle? Stunning! The gin? Also stunning! It is clean, brightly citrussy, crisp, dry and has the perfect balance of juniper and pink peppercorn, giving it really complex aromatics without being overpowering.

If their gin is anything to go by, I think we can expect great things when their whisky hits the market. In the meantime you can enjoy this beautiful gin and its worth checking out their sherry and port too.

Historically Leith merchants offered their own brands of Port to Edinburgh residents and sold the casks to the whisky trade, so that could be a clue about what's to come whisky wise!

If you're new to Scottish single malt, here's a few suggestions on where to start, I've gone for ones you'll find in mos...
13/05/2025

If you're new to Scottish single malt, here's a few suggestions on where to start, I've gone for ones you'll find in most decent pubs and whisky shops, which won't break the bank.

Now I know people may disagree with my first recommendation but I'm going to suggest 12 year old. Many people say it's boring, mass produced, bland, and to be fair it kind of is....but that is why its a great starting point, a nice smooth, mellow benchmark for comparison once you start exploring different styles and flavour profiles.

Next up I'd try 12 year old, it's light and smooth with a touch of honey sweetness, but will introduce you to a little bit more complexity compared to the Glenmorangie, if you like that then maybe Bourbon cask matured Highland whiskies are your thing...

I'd also suggest trying Doublewood, another crowd pleaser from Speyside this time. It starts off life in ex-Bourbon casks then it's finished for a period in Oloroso sherry casks, adding flavours of dried fruits and spice, if you like that then maybe you're destined to be a fan of sweet sherried Speyside malts...

Next up maybe 10 year old, this is another sherried Speyside dram, but this time its more malty with a herbal note and a touch of dryness, you're also getting your first gentle introduction to a smoky or peated whisky, a wisp of smoke rather than a full on bonfire.

If you're a fan of the Benromach, and want to try a something with a little more peat, Legacy is a good choice, it is another Highland whisky made with 80% peated and 20% unpeated malt, and packs a smoky punch without being overwhelming, with plenty of other flavour notes to balance it. If you think you could handle a more powerful smokiness, it might be worth exploring some Islay malts - a Caol Ila or Kilchoman might be a great introduction to the renowned peaty Islay taste.

Just a side note - adding water to whisky is an entirely personal choice, but especially when you're first starting out, a few drops of water can really calm down the alcohol burn and open up the complex flavours!

Negotiating Scottish whisky can be daunting for beginners, duty free and supermarkets are full of big brand name single ...
03/05/2025

Negotiating Scottish whisky can be daunting for beginners, duty free and supermarkets are full of big brand name single malts and you could be forgiven for not knowing where to start.

Next week I'll highlight some excellent beginners drams but this week I'm gonna go a little bit niche and tell you about some smaller producers you may not find on the supermarket shelves but which are well worth seeking out...

First up we have pretty much anything from Glaschu Spirits Co, I've been lucky enough to try most of their single cask releases and they never disappoint, the one featured is a 12 year old 'teaspooned' Balvenie called Burnside (this means they have added literally one teaspoon of another malt to the barrel, in this case a drop of Glenmorangie, more on this in another post.) It has been matured in an Amarone red wine barrel for the last 18 months of its 12 year journey giving the classic Speyside profile a perfectly decadent spoonful of jammy fruit and spice.

Next up , an indie distillery in Tarbolton, Ayrshire, operating on the land Robert Burns tended when he lived at Lochlea Farm. I've featured their 'Our Barley', part of their core range, a Bourbon, Olorosso and STR matured malt, as its probably the easiest to get a hold of and has swept the board with awards. Check out their quarterly releases if you get a chance, Ploughing, Sowing, Harvest and Fallow for some super interesting cask finishes, which perfectly reflect the seasons during which they are released.

Finally we have The Hearach from The Isle of Harris Distillery, another newcomer, who employ over 50 people on an island with only 2000 inhabitants. Its truly a community enterprise and they are already making waves in the industry due to the pride, care and attention these local people put into the making of it. It is gentle peat smoke, wildflowers like clover and heather and old fashioned sweets - honeycomb, ginger and clotted cream, truly amazing!

Has anyone tried any of these? Love to know what you think!

With Clanfin – I just got recognised as one of their top fans, which I absolutely am, thanks guys! If you’re looking for...
26/04/2025

With Clanfin – I just got recognised as one of their top fans, which I absolutely am, thanks guys!

If you’re looking for sustainably farmed, grass fed, native breed lamb, hogget, beef and pork give them a follow.

Check out my review on https://www.weemunch.co.uk/eat/meat/lamb-mutton

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I got to thinking, if I had one day to showcase Scotland's food and drink to someone who had never been, what would the ...
25/04/2025

I got to thinking, if I had one day to showcase Scotland's food and drink to someone who had never been, what would the menu be?

We have world class produce, would I go down the fancy route...langoustines, scallops, salmon, venison? Or more realistic and humble....tattie scones, Scotch pies, a chippy and a pint? After a bit of thought I think this might be my menu for the day, would love for comments and suggestions, I know I've hardly scraped the surface here but this sounds like a good day's eating to me (trigger warning, stop reading if you're calorie counting!)

Breakfast - A roll and sausage, square sausage...a delightful greasy square puck of beef (we think, we don't ask questions), tomato sauce or brown sauce optional, the only non negotiables are that it has to be sinking into melted butter on a freshly baked morning roll. A can of our other national drink IRN-BRU cuts through the saturated fat!

Lunch - We'll go slightly fancier and give our arteries a break, some stunning Scottish smoked salmon draped over farm fresh eggs on some locally made artisanal sourdough, GRO Coffee are experts at this kind of thing. Maybe a little gin and tonic to wash it down, Scotland has so many amazing gin producers, maybe The Isle of Harris Distillery's, with a touch of salinity and seaweed undertones would complement our classy lunch?

Dinner - We really have to do haggis, neeps and tatties if we're only here for a day, a quality butchers haggis like the award winning Faulds the Butcher's with creamy mash, earthy sweet mashed turnip (neep) and some decadent peppercorn sauce? The sauce maybe isn't traditional but hey ho, we're a nation of innovators!

Pudding (that's dessert to the rest of you) - Its a running joke that the Scots deep fry Mars bars, but we really do, and don't knock it til you've tried it! Tablet (a Scottish fudge/toffee hybrid) ice cream seems like a natural choice with the hot, crispy, battered, melting, chocolate bar, we stopped counting calories around lunchtime! I'm betting Varani's Forum Ices has a great tablet ice cream...

For a nightcap, and if I could only offer my guest one whisky I would definitely opt for a wee 10 year old from Edradour Distillery. Scotland's smallest traditionally run distillery in Pitlochry, a hit with experts and newcomers alike.

Let me know in the comments what you would treat a first time visitor to!

I was lucky enough to attend a small informal tabletop tasting of Turntable Spirits’ core range on the 1st of March Sinf...
24/04/2025

I was lucky enough to attend a small informal tabletop tasting of Turntable Spirits’ core range on the 1st of March Sinforiani Bros. in Kilmarnock, a little hidden gem of a whisky shop

Turntable Spirits is a Glasgow based blending house specialising in creating small-batch blended Scotch whiskies. They focus on pushing boundaries and challenging the traditional image of blended whisky by expertly marrying first rate single malts, finely balanced with a proportion of virgin oak matured North British grain whisky.

I’m a sucker for a sherry cask so loved the Bittersweet symphony with its high proportion of Pedro Ximenez matured Craigellachie.

I was also really pleasantly surprised by the Paradise Funk, a blend of malts from Virgin oak and bourbon and cognac casks, with a nose of old fashioned boiled sweets and a light fruity finish. A perfect springtime dram and probably the most accessible of the 3 if you’re just starting out on your whisky journey.

The Smokin Riff was great too, this one really shows these guys know what they’re doing when it comes to blending, combining red wine and bourbon barrel Caol Ila with some big name Speysides to create a really complex, interesting, definitely peaty but also super mellow dram - maybe one for a summer barbecue or a cosy night in.

Turntable Spirits are definitely one to watch and at a really reasonable RRP of around £50 they won’t break the bank if you fancy trying some exceptional blends.

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