Tag: Dalmunach

The most beautiful distilleries in Scotland

It’s a question often asked:  Which is the most beautiful distillery in Scotland?  But if beauty is in the eye of the beholder, how does one assemble a definitive list of Scotland’s most beautiful distilleries that adequately captures all the subjectivity from amongst the whisky community?  And when it comes to distilleries – which are nothing more than factories to produce alcohol – what metrics do we use to define beauty?  Is it architectural flair?  Aesthetic lines and symmetry?  And how do we compare architectural and construction fashions across timelines?  Many would suggest that the classic, quaint, stone-built distilleries of the Victorian era have a romantic advantage, but purists are correct to assert there is beauty in the functional architecture of modern behemoths such as Roseisle or Dalmunach.

There are further complexities:  How much does the surrounding environment impact our assessment of a distillery’s beauty?  For example, Lagavulin is, in reality, just a clump of relatively plain, white-washed buildings nestled together.  However, put them in a coastal location on the water, add some colour from the local vegetation, and throw in the ruins of a medieval castle nearby for good measure, and you have one extremely beautiful distillery.

A further difficulty arises when you look at the many distilleries that have been bastardised over the years with unsympathetic expansions, often resulting in clashing, jarring visuals.  There are many such examples that mix their original old-world Victorian charm with 1960’s modernism or 1970’s brutalism.   

Following a poll that Whisky & Wisdom ran on Twitter a few weeks ago to gauge public opinion, we offer you – in no particular order – the following list of Scotland’s most beautiful distilleries:

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Dalmunach distillery

Dalmunach is one of Scotland’s newest, largest, and more innovative distilleries.  But before we delve in too deeply, let’s set the scene and appreciate the contrast…

If you’ve been fortunate enough to visit one of Scotland’s older distilleries – say the likes of Strathisla, Glenkinchie, Ardbeg, Cragganmore, or Cardhu – then you’ve caught a classic glimpse of the Scotch whisky industry’s traditional distillery.   With their old, romantic 19th century buildings and quaint (but dormant) kilns and pagodas, these are the distilleries that are typically captured and displayed in whisky’s current literature and promoted by the brand ambassadors.   

The common thread that weaves through these distilleries is that they have been renovated, refurbished, and re-worked over the years to accommodate production capacity expansions, and also to keep up with modern distillation techniques and – in many cases – to be brought into line with current work, health, and safety standards!  As such, they can be a hotch-potch of disjointed buildings and re-purposed structures.  Strathisla and Dalmore are both two good examples.

In stark comparison then, what of the all-new, purpose built, modern and state-of-the-art super distillery?  Diageo started the ball rolling with Roseisle in 2009, and Pernod Ricard have followed suit with their own jewel in the crown:  Dalmunach.

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The Scotch whisky distillery building boom

If you’ve been somewhat overwhelmed by all the new whisky distilleries to appear in recent years, you’re not alone! The Scottish whisky distillery construction business is in a true boom cycle at present, with the building pursuit effectively splitting itself into four vastly different endeavours.

The first is the raft of new, relatively small distilleries being built.  Of course, this got its start a little over 10 years ago or so with the likes of Daftmill and Abhainn Dearg, but has exploded more recently with the likes of Kingsbarns, Ballindalloch, Ardnamurchan, Wolfburn, Glasgow…and well, the list goes on, right down to the tiny operations of, say, Strathearn and Dornoch.  If you haven’t kept up, it’s almost alarming to discover that over 30 new distilleries have recently started up or are currently under construction from the Lowlands to the Islands and everywhere in between.

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