Glenrothes distillery information
The Glenrothes was founded by the burn of Rothes in Speyside by James Stuart, Robert Dick and William Grant from the Caledonian bank, and John Cruikshank in 1878, in the middle of a financial crisis. These gentlemen had had great success while owning The Macallan distillery, so three years after they took over that (1868), they figured the time was right to start something slightly bigger in the form of Glenrothes. The crisis however was not very favorable to them, leading to James Stuart & Co being dissolved following the collapse of the Caledonian bank. Stuart decided to remain at The Macallan, and the others gained control over the then half-built Glenrothes-Glenlivet distillery, operating it under the name William Grant & Co. Their persistence paid off when in May 1879, the distillery opened its doors, with production starting in December on the same night that a bridge collapsed, causing a passenger train to plunge into the icy waters of the Tay River, killing 75 on board . In 1887, the company William Grant & Co. merged with the Islay Distillery Co., who owned Bunnahabhain on the isle of Islay, forming the Highland Distilleries Ltd. In 1896, the capacity of the distillery was expanded to designs of famous distillery architect Charles Doig. Unfortunately, shortly after a fire broke out, destroying a large part of the distillery. After rebuilding finished in 1898, the distillery had four stills, and a second malting kiln had been added. More disaster struck in 1903, when an explosion took place, and again in 1922, when the No. 1 warehouse burnt down, with as much as 2,500 casks destroyed. According to legend, a burning stream of whisky flowed into the burn, with locals attempting to scoop it out for consumption. A fisherman was particularly pleased, claiming that the evening of the fire, he had no issue catching trout intoxicated by the spirit that found its way into the waters. Glenrothes was not safe just yet, though. The distillery was forced to close between 1917 and 1918, while World War I restricted the availability of barley. Another short period of closure was in 1933, when the American prohibition led to an all-time low in demand for whisky. It reopened shortly after the repeal of the prohibition. In 1962, another fire struck the distillery. It gave a perfect excuse to further expand the distillery, adding another pair of stills for a total of six.Yet another pair was added in 1980. In 1987, Highland licensed The Glenrothes brand to Berry Brothers & Rudd, who owned a share in Cutty Shark blends. A 12 year old official bottling is released in the same year.
Glenrothes Whiskies
The great majority of the whisky produced at Glenrothes is used for Blending, particularly Cutty Shark and Famous Grouse. The whisky is bottled into rounded bottles, lovingly nicknamed “La Bomba”. The Vintages range currently consists of the following:- Vintage 1987
- Vintage 1988; matured in a combination of American ex-whisky and Spanish ex-Sherry oak
- Vintage 1991
- Vintage 1994
- Vintage 1995; matured in 30% first fill American Sherry oak, and a mix of first fill Spanish Sherry oak as well as refill casks
- Vintage 1998
- Vintage 2001
- Vintage 1978
- Vintage 1992, Second Edition; matured in a mix of refilled Sherry Butts and American Hogsheads
- Sherry cask Reserve; matured in Spanish Sherry casks from Jerez
- Manse Reserve; mostly matured in American oak, with a limited amount of Spanish Sherry casks tossed in the mix
- Elder’s Reserve; 18 Years Old, matured in 50% American oak and 50% Spanish oak
- Minister’s Reserve; 21 Years Old; mostly matured in Spanish oak
- John Ramsay; matured in second-fill American oak sherry casks
- Select Reserve
- Alba Reserve; matured exclusively in American oak refill Bourbon casks
- Robur reserve; mostly matured in Spanish oak first fill Sherry casks, complimented with American oak
- Oldest Reserve; 30 Years Old
- 1970 Single Cask #10573; matured in an ex-Bourbon hogshead. 179 bottles
- 1977 Single Cask #4859; matured in American oak second fill Sherry butt. Limited to 384 bottles (available in Russia and Taiwan only)
- 1979 Editor’s Cask #3828; ; matured in a Refill Sherry butt
- 1979 Single Cask #13458
- 1979 Single Cask #13459
- 1996 Editor’s Cask #9973; matured in a Spanish oak hoogshead
- 1969 Single Cask #11485; matured in a refill hogshead. 133 bottles
Distillery info:
Detail |
Information |
|---|---|
| Name | Glenrothes |
| Region | Speyside |
| Country | Scotland |
| Logo |  |
| Status | Active |
| Founded | 1878 |
| Water source | Ardcanny and Brauchhill ('The Ladies' Well') springs |
| Malting floor | No |
| Owned by | Edrington Group |
| Address | Glenrothes Distillery Burnside St Aberlour, Rothes Charlestown of Aberlour Banffshire AB38 7AA United Kingdom +44 (0) 1340 872300 |
| Visitor centre | Yes |
| Website | http://www.theglenrothes.com/ |
| https://twitter.com/TheGlenrothes | |
| https://www.facebook.com/TheGlenrothes | |
| Map |
Distillery Setup:
Component |
Capacity |
Quantity |
|---|---|---|
| Mash tun | 4.92 tonnes | 2 (1 Stainless Steel, semi-lauter, 1 Porteus (emergency use)) |
| Washback | 25,500 litres | 20 (12 Oregon Pine, 8 Stainless Steel) |
| Wash still | 12,900 litres | 5 |
| Spirit Still | 15,000 litres | 5 |
| Expected yearly output in LPA (Litres of pure alcohol) | 5,600,000 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Glenrothes was founded on the burn of Rothes in Speyside in 1878 by James Stuart, Robert Dick, William Grant of the Caledonian Bank, and John Cruikshank. Having enjoyed great success after taking over The Macallan in 1868, the group felt the time was right to build something bigger, even as a financial crisis unfolded around them.
The crisis wasn’t kind to the founders: James Stuart & Co. was dissolved following the Caledonian Bank’s collapse, and Stuart chose to remain at The Macallan. The others took control of the then half-built Glenrothes-Glenlivet distillery, operating it under the name William Grant & Co. Their persistence paid off when the distillery opened in May 1879, with production starting that December, the same night the Tay Bridge collapsed under a passenger train, killing 75 people.
In 1887, William Grant & Co. merged with the Islay Distillery Co., owners of Bunnahabhain on Islay, forming Highland Distilleries Ltd.
Several. A fire destroyed much of the distillery shortly after Charles Doig expanded its capacity in 1896. An explosion struck in 1903, and in 1922 the No. 1 warehouse burned down, destroying as much as 2,500 casks. Local legend holds that a burning stream of whisky flowed into the burn that night, with locals trying to scoop it out, and one fisherman claiming he had no trouble catching trout intoxicated by the spirit in the water.
Yes, twice. The distillery closed between 1917 and 1918 when the First World War restricted barley supplies, and again briefly in 1933 during American Prohibition, reopening shortly after Prohibition’s repeal. A further fire in 1962 gave the distillery an opportunity to expand, adding another pair of stills for a total of six, with a further pair added in 1980 and again in 1989, bringing the total to ten.
Highland Distilleries licensed The Glenrothes brand to Berry Brothers & Rudd, owners of a share in the Cutty Shark blend, in 1987, releasing a 12 Year Old official bottling the same year. A visitor centre opened in 1991, making Glenrothes the spiritual home of Cutty Shark. In 1999, William Grant & Sons, owners of The Glenlivet and Balvenie, joined forces with the Edrington Group, owners of The Macallan and Highland Park, to buy Highland Distillers. In 2010, Edrington sold the Glenrothes brand, though not the distillery itself, back to Berry Brothers & Rudd in exchange for the Cutty Shark brand.
Overproduction in 2000 led Glenrothes to work six months on and six months off, in tandem with the Tamdhu distillery, before full production resumed in 2004.
Glenrothes is bottled in a distinctive rounded bottle, affectionately nicknamed “La Bomba” by fans of the whisky.
The great majority of whisky produced at Glenrothes goes into blends, particularly Cutty Shark and Famous Grouse. Beyond that, the distillery has released an extensive Vintages range spanning years from 1978 to 2001, a travel-retail-exclusive Reserves series, and numerous single-cask bottlings drawn from casks distilled as far back as 1969.
Yes, Glenrothes has a visitor centre, which opened in 1991.