Blair Athol distillery

Blair Athol distillery
Region: Highland
LocationPitlochry
OwnerDiageo
Founded1798
StatusOperational
Water sourceAllt Dour Burn
No. of stills2 wash stills (13,000 liters)
2 spirit stills (12,000 liters)[1]
Capacity2,500,000 litres
MothballedSoon after 1798 to 1825
1932 to 1949
Blair Athol 12
TypeSingle malt
Age(s)12 Years
ABV43%

Blair Athol distillery is a Highland single malt Scotch whisky distillery located on the south edge of Pitlochry in Perthshire, near the River Tummel in Scotland.

It is used in Bell's whisky, and is also normally available in a 12-year-old bottling.[2]

History

The distillery was founded in 1798 by John Steward and Robert Robertson,[3] originally named 'Aldour', after the Allt Dour burn the distillery draws it water from, but closed soon after opening.[4] The distillery opened again and changed ownership to John Robertson in 1825.[3][2]

It was sold several times in the period after, going from John Robertson to Alexander Conacher & Co., then to John Conacher & Co, which was inherited by Elizabeth Conacher in 1860. It was sold again to Peter Fraser & Co, and again to Peter Mackenzie of P. McKenzie & Co Distillers Limited in 1882.[3][4]

The distillery closed down in 1932. The mothballed distillery was bought by Arthur Bell and Sons, but didn't open again until it was rebuilt in 1949.[3] In 1973 the distillery expanded, adding two further stills to the previous two.[3]

In 1987, Guinness.combined the businesses of Arthur Bell & Sons and Distillers Company.[5] In 1997, Guinness merged with Grand Metropolitan to create Diageo, the current owner of Blair Athol distillery.[6]

References

  1. ^ Blair Athol on Whisky.com
  2. ^ a b Jackson, Michael (May 2004). Malt Whisky Companion (5th ed.). London: Dorling Kindersley. ISBN 978-1-4053-0234-0. OCLC 60383343.
  3. ^ a b c d e Helen Arthur (2002) [1997]. The single malt companion (in Dutch). Lisbeth Machielsen (trans.). Libero. p. 77. ISBN 978-90-5764-236-4.
  4. ^ a b Johannes van den Heuvel. "Blair Athol distillery profile". Malt madness. Archived from the original on 9 April 2012. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  5. ^ "The Guinness / Distillers Saga: The Aftermath". Scottish Whisky Magazine. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  6. ^ "DIAGEO SCOTLAND LIMITED overview – Find and update company information – GOV.UK".

Media related to Blair Athol distillery at Wikimedia Commons

56°41′54.5″N 3°43′15.0″W / 56.698472°N 3.720833°W / 56.698472; -3.720833 (Blair Athol Distillery)