Old Poison is the smallest speakeasy distillery based in Leith, Edinburgh.
We might be small but we work continuously hard to produce a vast array of spirits for your enjoyment. These include Gin, Rum, Aperitifs and innovative spirits using only natural premium botanicals.
With our tour and tasting you will learn more about us, see different distillation techniques and taste our full spirits range.
Up to 7 different samples!!
Better yet, joining us to explore the full range gets you a 10% discount on the whole collection.
The Tales
Vesuvius
The Elder Spirit
Once upon a time, a centaur named Vesuvius met a young mermaid named Parthenope. Eros, the god of love, saw an opportunity and threw his dart making the two fall madly in love with each other. Vesuvius and Parthenope love was euphoric and they fell more and more in love with each other as days went by. Zeus, the powerful god, became jealous as he was also in love with Parthenope. His jealousy drove him to separate the two. Zeus turned Vesuvius into a volcano that sat at the edge of the Gulf. This way Parthenope could still always see him. This broke Parthenope heart, she couldn't live without Vesuvius. Parthenope was love sick and eventually took her own life. She washed up to the island of Megaride and her body took the shape the beautiful city of Naples. To this day, Vesuvius watches over his beloved Parthenope, the city of Naples.
Hina
The Rum
Inspired by Hina the Moon Goddess, represents the feminine power of strength and conviction. With determination and creativity, the wildest dreams are possible.
Hina’s immense power, in Māori legend in which Hine-nui-te-pō crushed Māui to death for attempting to destroy her and gain immortality by entering through her birth canal. This, after helping Māui lasso the sun which a strand of her golden hair and lift the islands from the depths of the ocean with his famous fishhook.
Mythologically, Hina is the lunar goddess while Māui is the solar god. During the day, Māui guides voyagers with the sun, and at night, Hina directs them with the moon. In Tahiti, Hawaii and Tonga, Hina is seen sitting in the moon beating tapa. Like Māui, Hina is intimately connected to navigation. According to Tahitians, Hina is the guardian and protector of travellers at night.
Hina is known around the world and many stories come with the spread. For more about Hina click here
Selkie
The Gin
Hopeless romantics, beware. The selkie (Orcadian dialect for seal) is an alluring shape-shifting creature which resembles a seal in the water but assumes human form on dry land. The graceful selkie may look astonishingly beautiful, but they can leave you lovesick forever.
The typical Scottish and Irish folk tale is that of a man who steals a female selkie's skin, finds her naked on the seashore, and compels her to become his wife. But the wife will spend her time in captivity longing for the sea, her true home, and will often be seen gazing longingly at the ocean. Once she discovers her skin, she will immediately return to the sea.