Best of Scotland and the world
As consumers become increasingly aware of the environmental impact of their food choices, the hospitality industry is also taking steps to reduce its carbon footprint.
For us, it is easy to make the decision to use locally sourced produce as Scotland (and specifically Speyside) has some of the best, fresh, produce in the world. Not only do we have the best beef, we also have the best seafood (from a coast that is never that far away from where you are in Scotland!), lamb, pork, game, fruit and vegetables. In utilising these products from our nearest suppliers, we cut down on transportation emissions and also ensure that only the freshest food is put onto the table for our guests.
Seasonally, we gain access to some outstanding produce which will always be at its very best when used at that time. As with our ancestors of old, we will sometimes choose to take some of the produce that we benefit from in the summer, for example, and preserve it for later use but, by and large, we taste and promote the use of on our menus of the juiciest strawberries in summer, the most tender lamb in spring, the gamiest of wild duck in October and the best roasting root vegetables in late November.
Not only does using the freshest of produce make the most sense for us on our menus but it also benefits our local suppliers and feeds investment back into the area of Speyside which is something that we strongly feel keeps our local area strong.
Wine List
Although there are not many positives, Covid lockdowns allowed us to push through some changes to our business that we had been hoping to achieve for a while. One of those was a change to our wine list towards one that fully utilises wines from vineyards who have sustainability practices at their heart. This was not an easy job but as we had very little stock going into lockdown, the switch over to these wines was a relatively quick one. For us, sustainability could mean a few things such as organic farming practices, biodynamic certification, community investment, female led production, vegan and vegetarian wines – all of these, for us, are elements that have allowed these vineyards to be propelled into the modern world and which align with our ethos for a more sustainable future. It also helps that they’re all delicious wines!