This article appears as part of the Food Matters newsletter.
It’s a sticky summer’s afternoon, and as our group is led towards a man who stands dressed all in white at the head of an altar-esque table, the flashbacks to Ari Aster’s Midsommar are coming thick and fast.
Maybe it’s the sleek glass dome we’ve been ushered into which has been mysteriously referred to as ‘the temple’, or the dainty glasses of clear liquid which await us at our seats, but parallels to the 2019 horror film are so far verging on unsettling.
Thankfully, we are not here to meet our makers at the hand of a menacing Swedish cult, but instead to discover the story of X MUSE, a vodka inspired by the surreal surroundings of the Jupiter Artland sculpture park, just 25 minutes from Edinburgh.
The man in white is none other than Michael Milloy, head of experiences at X MUSE and former 20-year veteran of Diageo, who warmly invites us to join him as he talks us through the tasting notes of the blended barley spirit, crafted to blur the lines between distillery and art.
In the interest of full disclosure, at this point, I feel compelled to admit that I have never been an ‘arty’ person. Much to my own disappointment.
While a talented flatmate spent her student years developing a passion for producing feminist-inspired collage work in our kitchen, I instead dedicated my spare time to devouring the Sopranos box set on our scabby sofa.
And while these days I’ll gladly tag along with her to the latest exhibition opening, nodding my head at what I hope are the appropriate times, the truth is most of it goes over my head, making me feel all the more uncultured by the minute.
A formidable duo who are well at home in the world of art however are X MUSE co-founders Vadim Grigoryan and Robert Wilson who join us post-tasting session for a tour of the sculpture park grounds and tell of a shared vision for the future of their luxury spirit.
Passing through woodlands filled with work from the likes of Tracey Emin, Antony Gormley and Cornelia Parker, suddenly even my untrained eye can appreciate the immense beauty of this other-worldly place which is overseen by Robert and his wife, Nicky.
Our guided walk culminates with a selection of bespoke cocktails designed to showcase the subtle flavours of X MUSE, pronounced ‘tenth muse’, which is distilled using waters from the ancient aquifer at Jupiter Artland.
Admittedly, much more my area of expertise.
As we learn of more easter eggs from around the site which have been woven into the origins of X MUSE, it soon becomes clear that their credo of ‘more is hidden than uttered’ is far from a marketing gimmick.
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My education in fine art may still need some fine-tuning, but it’s reassuring to know that a vodka cocktail in hand helps to speed the process along.
Lookout for the full story of a trip to discover the secrets of X MUSE’s latest special edition release on the Herald Website this weekend.
The X MUSE Temple tasting workshop is open until October and bookable through the Jupiter Artland website.
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