The allure of seeing Scotland when it wasn’t freezing, when the spring sunshine enticed the fields of flowers to bloom, was enough to inspire me to return. Then there were all the things I hadn’t done yet, all the places I hadn’t seen. Oh, and also that guy who inspired my second trip back. The answer was easy. So I went to Scotland for a third time, for a week of daffodils and drinking in Edinburgh.

I’ll cut right to the point: Spring in Scotland in gorgeous. It’s still chilly and rained more days than I wanted, but Edinburgh explodes with fields of daffodils and trees bursting with pink blooms. It’s breathtaking.

A Week of Daffodils and Drinking in Edinburgh

Edinburgh Castle in the spring. — Edinburgh Castle among blooming trees.

Edinburgh in Bloom

For my third time in a relatively small city, you’d think I’d be familiar with Edinburgh. And I am. Sort of. But seeing it in the sunshine made everything seem somehow new. I’ve always been amazed how green everything in Scotland is, even in December, but colors in the spring are even more intense.

My first day was so gorgeously warm (62 degrees!) that we threw our plans to visit Alnwick Castle out the window and spent the day enjoying the sunshine instead. We walked along the Edinburgh Castle hillside covered in daffodils and through parks of trees bursting with blooms until we reached George Street. The shopping street is more locals-focused than touristy, but still has plenty of people-watching, so we snagged a table in the sun and ordered a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc.

When the sun crept behind the nearest building, shading the table we’d camped at for hours, we migrated to a pub on the other side of town to catch another few minutes in the sun (and a gin and tonic or two).

It appeared I still adored Edinburgh.

Hills of daffodils near Edinburgh Castle.

Ebb & Flow: Whisky and Gin

The next few days were followed by an ebb and flow of eating delicious brunches, day drinking gin and tonics at pubs around the city, having lovely dinners, then finishing with whisky. It was, for once, several days of relaxation, doing exactly what I love to do. I found several outstanding restaurants (here’s where to eat in Edinburgh) and drank plenty of scotch (heavy on the Springbank, Benromach, and Talisker).

I hate to admit I drank a surprising amount of gin. But Scotland produces 70% of all United Kingdom gin so if there’s any place to drink gin, Scotland is it. There are 50 gin producers making over 100 different gins in Scotland alone. Many of the whisky distilleries produce their own gin (like Bruichladdich, who makes The Botanist) and there’s even a gin distillery right in Edinburgh.

The current trend is pairing specific tonics to specific gins. The winning favorite was the Fever-Tree Mediterranean tonic with Edinburgh Seaside Gin, a local gin with a bit of salinity and sweet flavors.

Venison and tuna tartare at Aurora in Edinburgh with Elephant Gin. — Venison and tuna tartare at Aurora.

Elephant Gin Pairing Dinner

One night we went all out with a gin pairing dinner at Aurora featuring Elephant Gin. It isn’t available in the U.S. yet, but keep an eye out for it when it comes. The German spirit is made with African botanicals that have never been used to make gin. Each gin is named after an elephant and a percentage of proceeds are donated to African elephant conservation.

Many pairing dinners focus on the food with the drinks only complementing it. But this time, the dishes and drinks were created in conjunction with each other, allowing a complete pairing that rounded each other out. The intimate setting of Aurora, that seats only a handful of people, made the evening all the more special.

Exploring Edinburgh & Beyond

Tullibardine Distillery

One day, determined to find another whisky distillery near Edinburgh like last time, we ventured to Tullibardine Distillery in Blackford. The former beer brewery-turned-whisky-distillery sits on the edge between Lowland and Highland, but is technically categorized as a Highland scotch. I discovered it at the WhiskyFest in Chicago and loved their Burgundy-finished expression.

We jumped on the train to Stirling, where we spent a day last time exploring the castle, then took a cab to Tullibardine. We toured the distillery, then tasted through their line of scotches, debating our favorites between the Burgundy, Sherry, and Bourbon finishes. (Read all about the tour of Tullibardine here.)

Rosslyn Chapel

Another day we visited the Rosslyn Chapel, a small chapel full of intricate carvings and colorful stone in a village outside of Edinburgh. It was made famous by the Da Vinci Code movie, but the chapel has been around since the 15th Century. Once the rain began to pour down, we found a tiny restaurant, The Original Rosslyn Inn, for traditional steak pie and lamb chops.

Abraham Lincoln at the American Civil War Memorial in Edinburgh. — Abraham Lincoln… in Scotland.

Old Calton Burying Ground

Back in Edinburgh, we found our way to the Old Calton Burying Ground, near the bottom of the Royal Mile. The cemetery dates to the 1700s and is full of creepily beautiful headstones covered in moss and turning turquoise with patina. I was surprised to recognize a familiar face looming over the headstones… Is that Abraham Lincoln?! Yes, it’s Scotland’s American Civil War Memorial, the only Civil War monument outside of the U.S., dedicated to Scots who fought in the war. (Who knew?!)

When the rain dumped down on us yet again, we took cover in the bar at the Inn on the Mile for yet another gin cocktail to sip while observing the rain through the windows. We stopped at a whisky shop to pick up a souvenir (the Glendronach Peated Port Wood that’s not available in the U.S.) and finished the day with a quick whisky cocktail at Treacle.

The Bees Knees cocktail at The Inn on the Mile in Edinburgh. — The Bees Knees cocktail at The Inn on the Mile.

Ebb & Flow: Travel and Reality

As we alternated between whisky and gin, brunch and dinner, drinking in the sun and drinking in the rain, I realized how wonderful it is to return to a place again and again. The excitement of exploration wears off, yes, but below the surface is where the real beauty resides. And I love that I’ve gotten to see that side of Edinburgh, even if only a glimpse.

And not just that. So many of my trips have been alone — and I truly love to travel by myself — but there’s something inexplicably comforting about getting off an 8-hour flight in a foreign country and seeing a familiar face standing with a ridiculously big smile and a single red rose. And not to mention to wander the streets of a not-quite-familiar place with someone, the still-new-excitement of holding hands enough to intoxicate me as much as the whisky.

Beautiful details of Castle Rock in Edinburgh in spring. — Beautiful details of Castle Rock in spring.

But life ebbs and flows, too. All trips must end eventually. And wonderful nights often cause hearty hangovers. Not those that are alcohol induced, but the lingering feelings of longing after a memorable time. Leaving an amazing city is tough but saying goodbye at the airport to someone you can’t see for months is heartbreaking. And the hangover of returning to reality after a trip to Scotland is hard to beat.

Unfortunately I don’t have any trips back to Scotland in the works just yet, but don’t worry. Until I’m there again, Edinburgh will always be on my mind.