Benromach

Benromach is a Speyside distillery founded by Duncan McCallum and F.W. Brickman in 1898 and currently owned and run by Gordon and Macphail of Elgin. It is situated near Forres in Morayshire and is fed with spring water from the Chapelton Springs in the Romach Hills beside Forres.

History

Duncan MacCallum and F.W. Brickmann founded the Benromach Distillery Company in 1898. Duncan MacCallum had previously been working at the Glen Nevis Distillery in Campbeltown and FW Brickmann was a spirit broker in Leith, Edinburgh. Construction work started at the sight of Benromach Distillery in 1898 however due to the depression in the Scotch Whisky industry in 1898 the distillery did not start producing whisky until 1900 but closed the same year due to a lack of money.

In 1911 Benromach was acquired by the London based Harvey McNair & Co who continued distilling until the onset of the First World War. After the war Benromach was acquired by Benromach Distillery Ltd and was run by this new private company until 1925. In 1938 Benromach was acquired by Associated Scottish Distilleries Ltd which later became a part of Scottish Malt Distillers Ltd. Between 1966 and 1974 the distillery was modernised and continued to run until 1983 when the distillery was officially closed.

In 1993 Gordon and Macphail took over the site and in 1997 they started to restore the distillery to a working order. The design of the distillery was changed slightly to allow it to be operated by one man. Finally in 1998 the distillery was officially reopened by Charles, Prince of Wales and bottling of the new malt started in 2004.

Production Information

*Mash Tuns: 1, Stainless steel mash tun capable of holding 1.5 tonnes of mash
*Wash Backs: 4, 11,000 litre larch wash backs
*Wash Stills: 1, 7500 litre charged steam heated wash still
*Spirit Stills: 1, 5000 litre charged steam heated spirit still

Benromach's Annual output is between 150,000 and 250,000 litres of cask strength whisky.

Current Whisky Bottlings

*Benromach Traditional Single Malt Scotch Whisky (40% )
*Benromach Organic, A certified organic single malt Scotch whisky
*Benromach Tokaji
*Benromach 21 Year Old (43% )
*Benromach Sassicaia Wood Finish (45% )
*Benromach Port Wood Finish 22 Year Old (45% )
*Benromach 25 Year Old (43% )
*Benromach Cask Strength 1980 (58.6% )
*Benromach Vintage 1968 (41.8% )
*Benromach Classic 55 Year Old (42.4% )
*Benromach Peat Smoke (40% )

ee also

* Whisky
* Scotch whisky
* List of whisky brands
* List of distilleries in Scotland

External links

* [http://www.benromach.com/index.html Benromach Distillery Official Website]
* [http://www.gordonandmacphail.com/op_brandsBenromach.html Gordon and Macphail Official Website]
* [http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/forres/benromach/index.html Feature article on Benromach Distillary by Undiscovered Scotland]
* [http://www.scotchwhisky.net/distilleries/benromach.htm Benromach Distillery page on Scotchwhisky.net]
* [http://www.thewhiskyguide.com/Speyside/Benromach.html Benromach Distillery page on Thewhiskyguide.com]
*http://www.whisky-online.net/ (Single Malt Whisky Website: distillery info, nosing/tasting notes, bottle shots,...)