Balblair distillery
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| Region: Highland | |
|---|---|
| Location | Edderton |
| Owner | Inver House Distillers |
| Founded | 1790 |
| Status | Operational |
| Water source | The Allt Dearg |
| No. of stills | 1 wash still (20,000l) 1 spirit still (8,500l)[1] |
| Capacity | 1,800,000 litres of alcohol |
Balblair distillery is a Highland single malt Scotch whisky located in Edderton, Ross-shire, Scotland.
Founded in 1790, the distillery was rebuilt in 1895 by the designer Charles C Doig to be closer to the Edderton Railway Station on the Inverness and Ross-shire Railway line. However, so good was the original water source that the rebuilt distillery chose to ignore a nearby burn in favour of the original Ault Dearg burn. To this day, the Balblair Distillery continues to use this original water source.[2]
History
[edit]The Balblair Distillery was established in 1790 by John Ross. He ran Balblair as a thriving business and in 1824 he was joined by his son, Andrew. The distillery stayed in the Ross family until 1894, when the tenancy was taken over by Alexander Cowan.[2] The distillery was rebuilt in 1895 by the designer Charles C Doig to be closer to the Edderton Railway Station on the Inverness and Ross-shire Railway line. However, so good was the original water source that the rebuilt distillery chose to ignore a nearby burn in favour of the original Ault Dearg burn. To this day, the Balblair Distillery continues to use this original water source.[3]
In 1948 the freehold was bought by Robert Cumming, who promptly expanded the distillery and increased production.[3] Cumming ran the distillery until he retired in 1970 when he sold it to Hiram Walker.[3]
In 1996 Balblair Distillery was purchased by Inver House Distillers Limited, whose other distilleries include the Speyburn-Glenlivet Distillery, Knockdhu Distillery, Old Pulteney Distillery and Balmenach Distillery.[4]
Balblair has one of the oldest archives in distilling, with the first ledger entry dated 25 January 1800. John Ross himself penned that entry, which read: “Sale to David Kirkcaldy at Ardmore, one gallon of whisky at £1.8.0d”.[5]
Balblair used to release their whisky by vintage, but in April 2019 they started to release a core range of age statement whiskies. This includes but is not limited to a 12, 15, 18, 21 and 25 year old.[6]
Following its appearance in several scenes in the Ken Loach 2012 film The Angels' Share, Balblair opened a visitor centre in its former malting building. As well as containing a shop, the visitor centre is the starting point for regular tours of the distillery.[7]
Whisky
[edit]Balblair current range:[8]
- Balblair 12 Year Old
- Balblair 15 Year Old
- Balblair 18 Year Old
- Balblair 21 Year Old
- Balblair 25 Year Old
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Balblair". 13 April 2015. Archived from the original on 13 April 2015.
- ^ a b "Balblair Distillery". The List. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
- ^ a b c MacLean, Charles (2017). Spirit of Place - Whisky Distilleries of Scotland. Frances Lincoln.
- ^ Littler, Mark (27 April 2020). "The History Of Inver House | Value Advise Sell | Mark Littler Ltd". Mark Littler. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
- ^ "The Sale of Whisky". The Lancet. 163 (4203): 816–817. ISSN 0140-6736.
- ^ Ireland, Kapila (7 November 2019). "Landmark listing for Balblair with Le Clos in Dubai". DFNI. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
- ^ Reporter (2 August 2018). "Visitors to Balblair distillery up by more than 35% in first half of the year". Press and Journal. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
- ^ "Home | Balblair Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky". www.balblair.com. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
