10 Best Breweries and Beer Places in Ochil Hills

"What: Edinburgh Castle is one the city’s most recognisable sites and Cold Town House’s rooftop terrace offers some of the finest views you could wish for of the landmark. The après ski-themed outdoor area comes complete with gondola seats and vintage Nissan van-cum-bar, with food options at Cold Town House ranging from Neapolitan-style pizzas to hanging grills. Make sure to try one of beer’s brewed in-house with your food too.Where: 4 Grassmarket, EH1 2JU"

"CTH opened in 2019 and has already proven popular with the stag weekend crowd. Set over three stories and with a rooftop terrace overlooking Edinburgh Castle, the former church has the added advantage of having its own brewery on hand. As well as its own-brand beers, it has a range of cocktails, prosecco, whisky (obvs), and a locally-sourced menu."

"This craft beer haven has a great atmosphere, offering a wide selection of both their own famous BrewDog beers in addition to a few guest names. The stainless steel and exposed brickwork of their Cowgate location gives the bar a funky industrial feel, which offers a nice alternative in an otherwise heavily influenced rock bar area in the heart of the Old Town. BrewDog's Lothian Road bar sits in what used to be a Clydesdale Bank - it's now home to 20 taps of craft beer and a killer take-away selection kept in chilled fridges."

"Brewdog is a popular anti-mainstream Scottish brewery, established in 2007. Its Edinburgh HQ is a former karaoke bar, renovated with stainless steel fixtures, reclaimed furniture and lots of exposed brickwork. Basically, it’s one of the coolest stag party bars in the Old Town."

"Perhaps a controversial choice as an essential Edinburgh craft beer, given that Paolozzi, the Edinburgh Beer Factory's flagship brew, only launched on October 18 - but in that short time, the crisp, sparkling lager has gained enviable comparisons (in our local bottle shop, anyway) to Munich's much-revered Augustiner Hell. Perhaps such a success straight off the mark is due to the wealth of experience behind it - the EBF is headed up by John Dunsmore, former boss of both Tennent’s owner C&C Group and macro brewing plc Scottish & Newcastle. Of course, the beautifully-labelled bottle (sporting designs by Leith-born Pop Art figurehead Eduardo Paolozzi) makes it a lovely drink to be seen holding as well."

"Combining old and new ideas and techniques, Edinburgh Beer Factory create beer inspired by the Edinburgh-born ‘Godfather of Pop Art’, Eduardo Paolozzi. Their brewery tours include a walkthrough of their lager-making process, from blank canvas to final product. You’ll even get the chance to taste the raw ingredients and the unfiltered brew!"

"Founded and operated by veteran brewer Andrew Barnett in the Summerhall former vet school, and on the site of the historic Summerhall Brewery (demolished circa 1913), Barney’s is a micro-brewery literally rooted in tradition. There’s no pasteurisation or filtration in the process, which is 100% natural. All of Barney's beers – including the humbly-named Good Ordinary Pale Ale plus a lager, a red beer and a dark porter – are cask-conditioned or bottle-conditioned."

"Barney’s Beer is a craft brewery located at the southeast corner of Edinburgh’s Meadows in Summerhall. Ranked as one of the best Edinburgh breweries, Barney’s Beer is housed in the stables of the city’s old vet school. Barney (Andrew Barnett) started working in his hometown brewery in Wolverhampton back in 1983 at 16 and has been in the industry ever since."

"Barney’s Beer offers public and private tours|Courtesy of Barney’s Beer. Housed at Summerhall in a former vet school’s stables, Barney’s has been brewing for the people of Edinburgh since 2010. The use of the Summerhall site as a brewery actually predates its use as veterinary college."

"In a glass cabinet in Surgeons' Hall Museums is a small hide-bound pocketbook the colour of strong tea. The wallet is made from the skin of William Burke, one half of Edinburgh's infamous body-snatchers and killers, Burke and Hare, whose victims were sold to the city's school of anatomy to be dissected. It is artefacts like this – and glass jars filled with gangrenous fingers, cancerous lungs, dried and varnished hearts – that have made the museum, tucked behind the Royal College of Surgeons, a favourite of crime writers."

"Royal College of Surgeons on Nicholson Street, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK.|© Duncan Hale-Sutton / Alamy Stock Photo. One for visitors with strong stomachs, the collections of the Surgeons’ Hall were started way back in 1699 and include all sorts of tortuous looking surgical and dental implements – the most perused exhibits are those relating to infamous Edinburgh grave robbers Burke and Hare. But it’s not all sensationalism – the museum also explores the city’s crucial role in the evolution of surgery and medicine."

"The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh was founded in 1505 and the city has been an important location for medical research ever since. The museum here was originally designed as a teaching museum for students, but it first opened to the public in 1832. There's a history of surgery, a dental collection, and a fascinating collection of pathological anatomy."

"The Physicians' Gallery is a free public exhibition space which is part of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. Our exhibitions are based on the wealth of historical medical material which the College has collected over the last 300 years. ‘Moonstruck: 500 years of mental health’ is our new free exhibition– opening on 14 June 2019 and running until Spring 2020"

"Established and run by Leith Community Croft, Market on the Croft is a new farmer's market on Leith Links. Selling a wide range of local produce including seasonal fruit and vegetables, this new market is well worth a visit."

"On our way back to the centre, we found ourselves walking along the interminably long Leith Walk – which is a straight road several miles long. It was a hot day, our bag was heavy, we hadn’t slept well thanks to our horror show of an Airbnb… we needed perking up. A quick scan of Google Maps and my general research into good coffee points led us to OQO."