Edible Scotland 2025

On May 19, 11 intrepid travelers made their way to Edinburgh via train or plane for the kickoff of Edible Scotland 2025. Uncharacteristically, the clouds departed, the sun shone, and, even if a bit chilly at times, we were treated to five glorious days of beautiful weather.  

Seven Dames (Barbara Cook, Austin/Houston; Kirsten Robinett, Austin/Seattle; Tricia Gelles, Seattle; Nancy Scanlon, South Florida; Linda Sieffert, B.C.; Becky Minchew, Atlanta; and Julie Chernoff, (Chicago) and their four guests met up with London Dame Fiona Richmond at the Apex Hotel. We walked to the 90-year-old delicatessen/restaurant/gourmet shop Valvona & Crolla where we were greeted by renowned owner and food writer Mary Contini and her daughter, Francesca Contini. Scots-Italian Anne Pia, a food writer and poet, was also on hand.  We enjoyed Mary’s vivid description of her family’s journey, along with a wine tasting and scrumptious Italian dinner. 

Day Two, we piled into our comfortable tour bus and headed to Errington Cheese in Lanarkshire where Selina Cairns runs the family dairy farm with husband Archie. We frolicked in the pastures with the sheep and goats before sitting down to a cheese tasting of their artisan wares. Then off to Glasgow for a gorgeous Italian lunch and a talk with Giovanna Eusebi at her eponymous Eusebi Deli. We were joined by past Legacy Winner Helen Vass, a pastry chef and educator. There was a fair bit of bus-napping on the way back to Edinburgh. Our evening reception was at Bonnie & Wild, a marketplace of Scottish food and drink, with Jemma Reid, our tour host in the Scottish Highlands.    

An action-packed Day Three found us checking out of the hotel after a lovely European breakfast buffet and driving off in our tour van along with Jemma and Scottish journalist Cat Thomson. After crossing over the Firth of Forth bridge, we stopped at Loch Leven’s Larder for a wee shopportunity before heading to The Hide at Lindores, an agritourism business in the Highlands. After visiting with adorable Highland cows, we took 4x4s up to a picturesque cabin where we were greeted with a cocktail and bagpipes as we gazed out over the valley. After a whisky tasting and hearty lunch featuring gorgeous, local produce, we headed to Megginch Castle where owner Catherine Drummond-Hermond gave us a tour of her vaunted gardens, followed by a tasting of green tea from her Tea Gardens Scotland consortium. From there, we drove through the magnificent Scottish countryside on our way to The Gin Bothy for a tour and tasting with owner Kim Cameron. Finally, we checked in to the Old Manse of Blair hotel and had a six-course tasting dinner with owner Anne MacDonald.  

Day Four began with a delicious breakfast in the sunny dining room of the Manse, and then off to a day of adventuring in the heart of the Cairngorms National Park, not far from the famed Glenlivet distillery. Our “Spirit & Spice” experience involved a soul-restoring stop at the hillside home of cookbook author and broadcaster Ghillie Basan, where we gathered in her 300-year-old stone barn for a “wee dram” and a Scottish “flapjack” before a roaring fire. Fortified, we headed out into the Highlands with Ghillie’s son Zeki of Highland Survival Skills to forage plants and gather reeds to cover the fire pit. Ghillie put out an incredible, Ottolenghi-style spread for us to enjoy, and there was still more whisky to be had. On the way back to the Manse, we stopped at Ballintaggart Farm for a tasting with chocolatier Charlotte Flower and a family-style, vegetable-forward supper. Doubly sated, we returned back to the hotel for a debrief and cocktail before the fire. 

The morning of Day 5, we grabbed a last Manse breakfast before heading back to Edinburgh to catch our planes and trains back to London and then home. We were all in agreement that Scotland was filled with incredibly talented women artisans who should consider forming their own Dames chapter. Our endless thanks to organizer Fiona Richmond and the London Chapter, and to all the wonderful women business owners who were included in Edible Scotland 2025.  

Author, Dame Julie Chernoff (Chicago Chapter) 

Scotland Photo Credit by Dame Julie Chernoff