Douglas Laing Intro Tasting | Belfast Whiskey Week 2021

Name: Belfast Whiskey Week 2026
Start: 2026-07-24
End: 2026-08-01
Location: Belfast

Filed: 30 Jul 2021
By: Belfast Whiskey Week
Read: 4 min
Format: Online Tasting
Ref: BWW/21/276

On the evening of 30th July 2021, Belfast Whiskey Week welcomed one of Scotland's most beloved independent bottlers into homes across the globe for Session 75 — an introductory tasting with the irrepressible Douglas Laing. Three drams, three distinct personalities, and a family-run philosophy stretching back to 1948: it was the kind of session that reminded you exactly why the festival exists in the first place.

About This Event

This tasting includes 3 x 50ml Samples & Glass and will take place on the 30th @ 18:00.

This tasting will comprise of:

Timorous Beastie
Scallywag
Big Peat

For those in the USA, Australia, Sweden, Europe, the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland, you will be able to save on delivery costs by having your package to sent to a localised depot for collection. You will be charged a small fee upon collection, but the cost will be much cheaper than having packs delivered to individual addresses. If you would like to avail of this option, please make a note in the Special Instructions box, and we will contact you at a later date to arrange this and refund your delivery charges.

Looking Back

Douglas Laing needs little introduction among those who follow independent Scotch bottling with any seriousness. Family-run since Fred Douglas Laing first set about hunting exceptional casks in 1948, the Glasgow house has spent decades doing what the big blending empires rarely bother with — finding whisky that speaks for itself and getting out of its way. That ethos travelled well, and Session 75 was proof of it. For a ticket of just £15, attendees received three 50ml samples and a glass: a modest outlay for an evening that opened up the full breadth of Douglas Laing's Remarkable Regional Malts range in miniature.

The lineup was shrewdly chosen for an introduction. Timorous Beastie arrived first — a Highland blended malt that takes its name from Burns and delivers on the promise of something layered and a little unpredictable, all orchard fruit and toasted oak doing a ceilidh on the palate. Then came Scallywag, the Speyside charmer of the trio, sweet and approachable, all sherry warmth and vanilla softness — the whisky equivalent of someone who makes friends within five minutes of walking into any room. And rounding it out, the one that needed no warming up to: Big Peat, Douglas Laing's Islay blended malt, unfiltered and unapologetic, carrying that great west-coast reek of sea salt and bonfire smoke that either wins you completely or sends you politely to the other end of the bar. It was a masterclass in how a single producer can hold such different territories of flavour.

What made the format work — and what has always made BWW's introductory sessions land well — was that there was no pressure, no mystique, and no gatekeeping. Whether you were new to Scotch or already knew your Campbeltown from your Caol Ila, the session gave you something to think about. The event ran online, as the 2021 festival largely did, but the depot collection options across the USA, Australia, Sweden, Europe, and across the island of Ireland meant that the practicalities were well handled — the drams arrived, and the craic followed. That spirit of broad welcome has always sat at the heart of what BWW tries to do, and Session 75 embodied it. For those who wanted to go deeper into Douglas Laing's world after the evening was out, the full Douglas Laing collection was ready and waiting.

It's worth noting that Session 75 was the second of two Douglas Laing sessions at BWW 2021, which tells you something about the demand the brand generated. Their presence at the festival that year extended well beyond tastings, with cocktail sessions, Neighbourhood Café Takeovers, and the signature "Meet the BEaSTies" events pairing their whiskies with charcuterie boards — a reminder that good whisky and good food have always been natural companions. If Session 75 was your entry point, there was plenty more to explore. And if you were already a convert, it was a fine excuse to spend a Friday evening in good company, even if that company was a screen and a set of postal samples. The uisce beatha doesn't care about the medium; it only asks to be appreciated.

Fans of the wider festival programme that year were also well served by a rich vein of Irish distilling sessions running alongside — from Bushmills' new cask finish range to the deep archival dive of Session 83's Bushmills history masterclass. Together, these sessions mapped out a remarkable conversation between the Irish and Scottish traditions — two sides of the same ancient sheugh, as any good seanchas will tell you. Sláinte.

The Brand: Douglas Laing

Family-run since 1948, Douglas Laing hunts down exceptional Scotch whisky casks. Their Remarkable Regional Malts range covers Scotland with real depth.