When was the last time you poured yourself a healthy dram of Braeval? Or had a good swig of Miltonduff? How about a Glenburgie? Or an Allt-a-Bhainne? An Auchroisk? Dufftown perhaps? Have you even heard of these whisky distilleries, let alone seen a bottle of their whisky at your local liquor retailer?
What about Ardbeg? Oban? Bruichladdich? These names are more familiar, yes? And, chances are, you’ve had a dram of their product more than once or twice on your malt journey.
The irony here is that the first group listed above are some of the biggest distilleries in Scotland. And the second group are amongst the smallest. There’s a cliched conclusion here that you might have heard before: Size doesn’t matter, it’s what you do with it that counts!
In terms of distillery capacity (which doesn’t necessarily equate to how much they actually produce), figures available for the 130-odd active malt distilleries in Scotland tell us that their annual capacity in litres of pure alcohol varies from 21,000,000L (both Glenlivet and Glenfiddich) down to 20,000L (Abhainn Dearg). So, returning to some of the distilleries listed above and ranking them in terms of their size, Dufftown is actually the thirteenth largest distillery in Scotland! Auchroisk is 16th, Miltonduff is 17th, and Glenburgie is 32nd. Being the 32nd largest distillery in Scotland doesn’t sound all that impressive, until you realise there’s another 98 distilleries behind you that are smaller! Or the fact that, even when ranked in 32nd place, you’re still capable of making twice as much spirit each year than more well-known whisky distilleries such as Cragganmore, Dalwhinnie, Auchentoshan or Bowmore!
Oban might be one of the so-called “Classic Malts”, and is widely available at most retailers, yet its total capacity is a mere 870,000L, and it ranks 96th by size. Ardbeg is 72nd! Size clearly doesn’t matter!
The point here is that each distillery has its own place and purpose in the industry, and not all of them seek (or even need) the limelight that single malt status can bestow. For the truth is that – and some whisky fans need to be repeatedly reminded of this – the vast majority of malt whisky is produced for blending. Dufftown distillery, for all its size, might, history, and beauty is still relatively unknown (despite it being incorporated into the Singleton range) because the majority of its output goes directly into blends, particularly Bells. Glenburgie may be on 24/7 production and churning out a whopping 4.25M litres each year, but you wouldn’t recognise it as a distillery if you drove past it, and – like its sibling, Miltonduff – its output goes almost entirely into Ballantines and Chivas Regal.
Click on the images above to see at full size.
Perhaps the best illustration here would be to provide some context: Glenfiddich is the largest selling single malt brand in the world, holding roughly a 13% share of the single malt market. Its annual sales are over one million cases! Yet, in contrast, Johnnie Walker is the largest selling blended Scotch in the world, holding roughly a 22% share of the blended whisky market; its annual sales are an incredible 17,400,000 cases! Did you get that? The biggest selling brand of blended Scotch sells 17 times the amount of whisky as the biggest selling single malt brand.
In fact, blended sales in some individual countries can dwarf malt’s global efforts. In single malt terms, Glenfiddich’s achievements are massive. Yet there are two Scotch blends produced and exported chiefly for the French market that sell 2.5M and 3M cases annually respectively. So, two blends you’ve possibly not even heard of (William Peel and Label 5), both sell more bottles in France alone each year than Glenfiddich sells across the entire planet!
So, in terms of sales, market share, and revenue, you can suddenly appreciate where “well-known” whisky distilleries and single malts like Talisker, Highland Park, and Bowmore sit. It also shines some light on the extent of the supply, demand, and “NAS” issues that have struck some of the brands. For example, Laphroaig continues to punch well above its weight: In terms of its world market share, it is impressively ranked in seventh place. Its annual production capacity of 3.3 million litres makes this all the more impressive when you consider that 30% of its production goes off to the blenders, leaving just 2.3 million litres for it to stake its single malt fame. It cannot maintain this growth and market share if every drop is to sit in a cask for 10 years – leading to the proliferation of NAS expressions now being seen. (But that’s another story…read this if you’d like an opinion on NAS whisky).
It is also this dilemma that has led to the increase in profile and availability of independent bottlings. Happily, many of the independent bottlers are increasingly shining a light on the lesser-known distilleries. Of course, everyone jumps at the independent bottlings of high-profile distilleries: Talisker, Lagavulin, Glenfarclas, Macallan, and so on. But, to me, this can be wasted opportunity. For, simply put, those distilleries are already doing a great job putting out great whisky, and they’re widely available. That’s why they’re high-profile brands!
No, in contrast, surprising joy and tasty rewards can be found by seeking out the unknown heroes; those lesser known, “workhorse” whisky distilleries that churn out spirit for the blends. They can produce incredible whisky when filled into good casks. The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, in particular, continues to bottle and release incredibly delicious and complex casks from the likes of Benrinnes, Ardmore, Linkwood, Aultmore, Miltonduff, Balmenach, Mannochmore, Craigellachie, Glen Elgin, and Ledaig (Tobermory)…all distilleries that have a relatively lower profile in the single malt kingdom, and which you may not find at your local liquor outlet. They are the unknown heroes. Seek them out and enjoy.
Cheers,
AD.
PS: Is it also just possible that we, the keen whisky enthusiasts of the world, are simply focusing on the big brands at the expense of others? You might enjoy reading our other feature article, Are whisky enthusiasts out of touch?
Only 17.4 million cases?
Officer’s Choice sells 32 9 million cases.
An unknown or an ignored hero?
Thanks for this insightful article. I was wondering where you have your statistics from? I would be very curious as to the various rankings and output of distilleries.
Hi, thanks for your interest! For this particular article, all statistics were sourced from the Malt Whisky Yearbook.