About this tour
When Mia from our BugBitten team rolled up to Aberdeen Gin School, she was greeted by the Head Distiller and handed a double G&T straight away—a good sign. Over two and a half hours, you're guided through creating your own 70cl bottle of Scottish gin from scratch. You start with a traditional recipe using premium organic alcohol and botanicals like Macedonian juniper, then get to design something uniquely yours by picking from over 100 different botanicals. The whole thing happens in the heart of Aberdeen, where you'll taste small-batch gins, choose your gin's strength, bottle it yourself, name your creation, and finish with a celebratory cocktail. It's hands-on, a bit boozy, and you walk out with an actual bottle you've made.
Highlights
- Guided by the Head Distiller throughout the entire experience
- Choose from over 100 botanicals to design your own unique gin
- Taste authentic small-batch London Dry and Fruit Gin samples
- Bottle and label your own 70cl gin to take home
- Double G&T on arrival and cocktails included throughout
- Surprise celebratory cocktail at the end marks your distiller debut
- Fully wheelchair accessible distillery in central Aberdeen
- Non-alcoholic options available if you're not drinking
What to expect
Mia arrived at Aberdeen Gin School to a warm welcome and an immediate double G&T—no messing about. The Head Distiller walks you through the fundamentals of traditional gin-making with a base recipe using premium organic alcohol and quality botanicals. You'll learn what makes gin actually gin (hello, juniper), then the fun part kicks in: you get to raid a botanical menu of over 100 options and blend your own. The distillery floor is intimate, and you're doing real work here—measuring, mixing, tasting as you go. Throughout, you're sampling proper small-batch gins, both the classic London Dry style and fruit variants, so you get a sense of the range. The session builds to bottling your gin, choosing its strength, and then the creative bit: naming your bottle. It wraps with a surprise cocktail made from your very own gin, which feels a bit ceremonial and celebratory.
The pace is relaxed but structured—there's enough talking to understand what you're doing, but it never feels lecture-y. The distillery itself is set in the city heart, so it's easy to get to on public transport, and the space is bright and functional rather than trying too hard to be Instagram-y.
What travellers say
- Hands-on from start to finish—you're actually distilling, not observing
- 100+ botanicals means genuinely unique gins, not assembly-line production
- Small-batch tastings show real range and craft in the category
- Takes you through the whole process: blend, bottle, name, celebrate
- Fully accessible and well-catered for mixed-ability groups
- Genuine souvenir bottle to take home with your story attached
- Two and a half hours is a solid chunk—not a quick activity
- Appeal is niche; gin indifference means you'll be less engaged
- Naming your gin can slow things down—creative paralysis is real
Themes summarised by our team from public information about this tour. Verify specifics on the operator's page before booking.
Good to know
This is genuinely worth doing if you like gin or want a hands-on souvenir from Aberdeen. You're actually making something, not just watching someone else do it, and you walk away with 70cl of gin you've blended yourself. It's clever for a rainy-day activity or a treat with mates or a partner. Non-drinkers are catered for with soft drinks and water, so no one's left out. The distillery is fully wheelchair accessible, and buggies are fine if you're bringing small kids.
At two and a half hours, it's not a quick pop-in. If you're not into gin or spirits, the appeal drops—it's not a general food-and-drink tour. The experience is social and involves alcohol throughout (even if alternatives are offered), so timing and company matter. It can be busy during peak season. You'll want to bring comfortable shoes and patience for the naming part; people often overthink it. Fair warning: you're getting a cocktail at the end, so plan your next move accordingly if you're driving.
Tour sold and operated by Viator via Viator. Descriptions on this page are original BugBitten summaries written by our team — not copied from the operator. Prices and availability are confirmed at checkout.