Glendullan distillery information
The Glendullan distillery was founded and built in 1897 by William Williams & Sons Ltd., a company of blenders from Aberdeen. It started production in 1898, and was the latest distillery to be built in the town Dufftown, in the middle of the Speyside whisky region, bringing the total of distilleries in the town to 7. This led to the famous expression “Rome was built on seven hills, Dufftown stands on seven stills” (The seven stills represent the different distilleries: Mortlach, Glenfiddich, Balvenie, Convalmore (now closed), Parkmore (closed), Dufftown and Glendullan. Since the rhyme, 3 additional distilleries were built in Dufftown: Pittyvaich (now closed / demolished), Alt-A-Bhainne, and Kininvie (silent)). The distillery sits right next to the river Fiddich, and initially a water wheel was used to power most of the distillery (as opposed to steam engines which were more common (but more expensive to run) in the time. It also had access to the private railway that ran to neighboring Mortlach, so the location could not have been more ideal. In 1919, Williams merged with Greenlees Brothers Ltd. to form Macdonald, Greenlees & Williams Distillers Ltd. That company joined Distillers Company Ltd. (DCL) in 1925, and Glendullan (as well as any other distillery owned by DCL) was transferred to Scottish Malt Disitllers (SMD) in 1930. The distillery shut down between 1940 and 1947, while availability of barley was limited due to the Second World War. In 1962, the distillery was rebuilt, and the two stills were converted to use steam heating. Between 1970 and 1972, a new distillery with six stills was built next to the existing one, using the efficient United Distillers (the successor of SMD) “Waterloo street” system, where the production process is set up in a neat line (Caol Ila, Glen Ord and several other distilleries have the same setup). The two distilleries both produced in parallel until 1985, when the original distillery was closed and dismantled. The buildings are now used as workshops by Diageo, which is a result of a merger between United Distillers and International Distillers & Vintners in 1997. The company was initially known as United Distillers & Vintners, then renamed to Guiness United Distillers & Vintners is 2001, and eventually to Diageo Scotland in 2002.Glendullan Whiskies
Most whisky produced at Glendullan found its way into blends (particularly Old Parr). However, there have been some official bottlings released. Since 2007, the whisky has been branded as Singleton, primarily intended for the American market. The Singleton name is also used for “The Singleton of Dufftown” (European market) and “The Singleton of Glen Ord” (for Asia). The Singleton name was used earlier to indicate whisky from Auchroisk, but that ceased in 2001.- Flora & Fauna; 12 Years Old (released in 1992)
- Rare Malts; 22 Years Old (released in 1995)
- Rare Malts; 23 Years Old (released in 1996)
- Rare Malts; 23 Years Old (released in 1997)
- Centenary Bottling;l 16 Years Old (released in 1998)
- Rare Malts; 23 Years Old (released in 1999)
- Rare Malts; 26 Years Old (released in 2005)
- The Singleton of Glendullan; 12 Years Old (Released in 2007)
Distillery info:
Detail |
Information |
|---|---|
| Name | Glendullan |
| Region | Speyside |
| Country | Scotland |
| Logo |  |
| Status | Active |
| Founded | 1897 |
| Water source | Springs in Conval Hills |
| Malting floor | No |
| Owned by | Diageo |
| Address | Diageo Dufftown Keith, Banffshire AB55 4DJ United Kingdom +44 (0) 1340 822311 |
| Visitor centre | No |
| Website | http://www.malts.com/index.php/Our-Whiskies/The-Singleton-of-Glendullan/Introduction |
| Community | Friends of the Classic Malts |
| Map |
Distillery Setup:
Component |
Capacity |
Quantity |
|---|---|---|
| Mash tun | 12 tonnes | 1 |
| Washback | 65,000 litres | 10 (8 Larch, 2 Stainless Steel) |
| Wash still | 3 litres | 3 |
| Spirit Still | 15,500 litres | 3 |
| Expected yearly output in LPA (Litres of pure alcohol) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Glendullan was founded and built in 1897 by William Williams & Sons Ltd, a company of blenders from Aberdeen, starting production in 1898. It was the latest distillery built in Dufftown at the time, in the heart of the Speyside region, bringing the town’s total to seven distilleries and inspiring the saying “Rome was built on seven hills, Dufftown stands on seven stills”. Those seven were Mortlach, Glenfiddich, Balvenie, the now-closed Convalmore and Parkmore, Dufftown, and Glendullan itself. Since then, three more distilleries have been built in the town: the now-closed and demolished Pittyvaich, Allt-a-Bhainne, and the currently silent Kininvie.
The distillery sits right next to the River Fiddich, and initially used a water wheel to power most of its operations, cheaper to run than the steam engines more common at the time. It also had access to the private railway running to neighbouring Mortlach, making the site about as convenient as it could be.
In 1919, Williams merged with Greenlees Brothers Ltd to form Macdonald, Greenlees & Williams Distillers Ltd, which joined Distillers Company Ltd (DCL) in 1925. Glendullan transferred to Scottish Malt Distillers (SMD) in 1930, closed between 1940 and 1947 due to wartime barley shortages, and was rebuilt in 1962 with its two stills converted to steam heating. Between 1970 and 1972, a new six-still distillery was built alongside the original, using the efficient “Waterloo street” layout also used at Caol Ila, Glen Ord and others. Both distilleries ran in parallel until 1985, when the original was closed and dismantled; its buildings are now used as Diageo workshops, following the 1997 merger of United Distillers and International Distillers & Vintners that eventually became Diageo Scotland in 2002.
Most whisky produced at Glendullan has gone into blends, particularly Old Parr. Since 2007, its single malt has been branded as Singleton, aimed primarily at the American market. The same Singleton name is also used for The Singleton of Dufftown in Europe and The Singleton of Glen Ord in Asia, and was previously used for whisky from Auchroisk until that use ended in 2001.
Official releases have included a 12 Year Old Flora & Fauna in 1992, Rare Malts bottlings at various ages between 1995 and 2005, a 16 Year Old Centenary Bottling in 1998, and The Singleton of Glendullan 12 Year Old in 2007.
No, Glendullan does not have a visitor centre.