Scotch Whisky

The past year has seen two of Scotland’s most celebrated ‘ghost’ distilleries reopen to the public after many years of closure. The Lowland classic Rosebank and the Islay icon that is Port Ellen have both begun receiving visitors, offering a most impressive range of tour options and experiences. Meanwhile, Edinburgh’s whisky offering has been notably augmented by the opening of Port of Leith distillery, and in widely varying parts of the country, Moffat in Dumfriesshire and Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides have also commenced making whisky. A distillery with wood-burning stills and another that looks like a lighthouse. What’s not to like? The past year has seen Whisky Magazine visit ‘new’ distilleries and relative newcomers such as Ardnahoe, Dornoch, Holyrood, and North Point as well as covering old favourites like…

8 DOORS DISTILLERY  874 Club John O' Groats, Caithness-shire, KW1 4YR www.8doorsdistillery.com  AD RATTRAY  Casks of Scotland  Stronachie Kirkoswald, Ayrshire, KA19 8HY www.adrattray.com ABERARGIE DISTILLERY Aberargie, Perthshire, PH2 9LX www.morrisondistillers.com ABERKO  Black Top  Deerstalker Milngavie, Dunbartonshire, G62 8AJ www.aberko.com ABERLOUR DISTILLERY  Aberlour Aberlour, Moray, AB38 9PJ www.aberlour.com ABHAINN DEARG DISTILLERY  Abhainn Dearg Carnish, Isle of Lewis, HS2 9EX www.abhainndeargdistillery.co.uk ADELPHI DISTILLERY  Adelphi Selection Charlestown, Fife, KY11 3DR AILSA BAY DISTILLERY  Ailsa Bay Girvan, Ayrshire, KA26 9PT ALLT-A-BHAINNE DISTILLERY  Allt-A-Bhainne Glenrinnes, Moray, AB55 4DI www.allt-a-bhainne.com ANNANDALE DISTILLERY  Man O'Sword  Man O'Words Annan, Dumfriesshire, DG12 5LL www.annandaledistillery.com ARBIKIE HIGHLAND ESTATE DISTILLERY  Arbikie Lunan, Montrose, Angus, DD10 9TR www.arbikie.com ARDBEG DISTILLERY  Ardbeg Port Ellen, Isle of Islay, PA42 7EA www.ardbeg.com ARDMORE DISTILLERY  Ardmore  Teacher’s Kennethmont, Huntly, Aberdeenshire, AB54 4NH www.ardmorewhisky.com ARDNAMURCHAN DISTILLERY  Ardnamurchan…

Situated on the edge of Hyde Park, in London’s monied and historic Belgravia neighbourhood, the Peninsula Hotel cuts an imposing figure. The opulent nine-storey structure was completed in 2023, and boasts 190 rooms, a ballroom, private cinema, a two-Michelin-starred restaurant, and a rooftop terrace with panoramic city views. The design scheme is inspired by the ‘craftmanship’ in classic British aviation and motorsport. It is a fitting place to talk about something grand — in this case, the newest addition to Glenfiddich’s Grand Series. Malt master Brian Kinsman is a little late for our meeting in the hotel’s Brooklands bar; he has been conducting tastings with staff (Glenfiddich expressions on offer include the 40 Years Old Cumulative Time, from 2022’s Time Re:Imagined series, and the Archive Collection 49 Years Old 1973,…

Nose: Strawberries and clotted cream. Vanilla pod, cinder toffee, shortbread, and very rich, oily orange peel notes. Raspberry coulis and meringue. Walnut shells, scone dough, and a little hibiscus. With time, fragrant apple and pear. Palate: Deeper strawberry notes, like cordial. Elderflower, red apple, pear drop, and lemon and lime peels. Buttery digestive biscuits and fig jam. Black pepper, clove, and a hint of allspice. High-cocoa dark chocolate. Hints of polished wood and leather. Delicious fruit and spice from the wine cask. Later come strawberry jam and clotted cream. Finish: Red fruits and pastry dough return with hints of frangipane and fresh mint. Comments: An exquisitely aged single malt that has maintained its fruity vivacity and been further enlivened through its long secondary maturation.…

Walk around Bladnoch near Wigtown on Scotland’s southern coast and there are subtle echoes of Australia dotted around the distillery: a southern cross flying alongside the saltire and the union flag; a video showing conservation work on the Great Barrier Reef; a bottle of blended Pure Scot finished in Australian tawny casks. Perhaps the most striking Aussie motif is a surfboard hanging on a wall in the visitor centre, built from Bladnoch’s casks. David Prior, the Australian serial entrepreneur who bought the distillery in 2015, took the surfboard’s twin back to Melbourne. “It’s hanging on the wall in my office,” Prior confesses. “I was going to use it — I had it shaped to match the dimensions of boards I ride in Australia — but then the guy-who-shaped-its workshop burnt…

The first mould-breaking ‘Scotch rye’ of modern times was produced by Arbikie Distillery in Angus, and launched in 2018. Since its arrival, whisky fans have waited impatiently for another Scotch rye whisky to come along. Now, five years later, two have come along at once courtesy of Bruichladdich and InchDairnie. Not that they are allowed to be called ‘Scotch rye whisky’. To comply with current industry regulations, they belong to the category of ‘single grain Scotch whisky’ and must primarily be labelled accordingly. ‘Scotch rye’ was produced until the early 20th century. In his seminal text The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom (1887), Alfred Barnard singles out the Distillers Company Ltd (DCL)-owned Port Dundas distillery in Glasgow for its use of large quantities of rye during the 1880s, some…