Scottish Food News – June 2014

Everyone, come quickly, we have an announcement. Summer’s here! Hooray! Even if we spend much of June shuttered in our homes for fear of sideways rain tearing our bodies to bits, the month’s food events offer a chance for a bit of summertime cheer.

Events like the Fireside Collective’s Summer Picnic supper club – it’s a three course meal packed with seasonal fare, and it’s all set in the quirky surroundings of Lovecrumbs’ Edinburgh cafe. It’s an opportunity to get your picnic elbows sharpened early, without having to worry about making any of the food or having your best laid plans swept into the next town over by a gust of wind. 6 Jun, Lovecrumbs, 155 West Port. £35, thefiresidecollective.com for tickets

Summer picnics often involve a spot of drinking, and drinking in the sunshine often leads to skull-shaking, spirit-crushing hangovers, so the Glasgow Science Festival’s Hangover Hypothesis event couldn’t come at a much better time. Combining genuine science with a cooked breakfast and a bloody mary, the event will look at some of the common routines, plans, and ‘foolproof remedies’ we all try to brag about when we manage to dodge a bullet after a night out. The scientists will presumably shake their heads, tell us to drink more responsibly, then ask if we’re going to eat that hash brown. 7 Jun, 2pm. Dram!, 232 Woodlands Rd. £10

For those of you who prefer to get the science in before the night really gets going, may we recommend the West End Festival’s Whisky Bottling night, also at Dram! There will be some background chat on the process and history of the drink, but the real draw is the chance to bottle up your own bespoke blended whisky to take home. If test tubes, funnels, and white lab coats aren’t involved we’ll be disappointed, but the unique whisky will soften the blow. 21 Jun, 7pm. Dram!, 232 Woodlands Rd. £20

But if whisky isn’t your thing as you’re after something more floral and less brown, the Scottish Juniper Festival might be right up your street. The Festival, Scotland’s contribution to World Gin Day, brings together dozens of distillers from around the world, alongside talks on the spirit and tours of the new gin distillery on site at Summerhall. We can’t guarantee the sun will shine on the Summerhall courtyard, but we can say there will be lots of gin, and that should tide you all over until July. 13 & 14 Jun, various times. Summerhall, Summerhall Pl, Edinburgh. £15