ETIQUETTE · 5 min read
Tasting Room Etiquette Nobody Tells You
Spit buckets, driver’s drams and the one question every guide loves to be asked.
Distillery tasting rooms are theatres with their own unwritten rules. Arrive on time. Ask permission before photographing. Never swirl before you have nosed the glass.
If you are driving, ask for a ‘driver’s dram’: most distilleries will pour your tasting into a small bottle to take home. If you are with a group, split the tasting flight — it’s a fair way to try everything without feeling heavy.
Ask the guide one question beyond the script: ‘What is your favourite thing in this room?’ The answer is almost always better than the tour.
