Strathmill distillery information
The Strathmill distillery was established in 1891, under the name of the Glenisla-Glenlivet distillery. It was built on the site of an existing corn mill, established by A. G. Johnstone as Strathisla Mills in 1823 (though evidence has been found that there had been illicit distilling going on at the location as early as 1825). This explains the name, with “Strath” being Gaelic for a long valley, and the distillery being housed in a mill. It changed names to Strathmill in 1895, when it was bought by W. & A. Gilbey (aka Gilbey’s), a gin producing company that at the time also owned the Knockdhu distillery and would also end up owning Glen Spey.
In 1962, The Gilbey Brothers merged with Justin & Brooks (J&B) and United Wine Traders, and took on the name of International Distillers & Vintners (which would evolve into Diageo eventually). The amount of stills was doubled from 2 to 4 in 1968. In 1972, International Distllers & Vintners were snagged up by Watney Mann; which merged with Grand Metropolitan Hotels in the same year. In 1997, Grand Metropolitan merged with Guinness to form, Diageo, who are the current owners of the distillery.
An interesting note is that Strathmill was the first distillery to ship its whisky by tanker. The name of the first tanker to do so was Whisky Galore.
Strathmill Whiskies
The lions share of Strathmill has always been used for blends, particularly J&B and Dunhill. Most whisky distilled will be transferred to Auchroisk for filling. Very little bottling actually takes place on-site. However, there have been two official Single Malt releases:
- Strathmill 25 Year Old. Centenary celebration, released in 1992.
- Strathmill 12 year old Flora & Fauna, released in 2001.
It is possible to find some independent bottlings, though you might have to spend some time looking for them.
Distillery info:
Detail |
Information |
|---|---|
| Name | Strathmill |
| Region | Speyside |
| Country | Scotland |
| Logo |  |
| Status | Active |
| Founded | 1891 |
| Water source | Local Spring |
| Malting floor | No |
| Owned by | Diageo |
| Address |
Strathmill Distillery +44 (0) 1542 882295 |
| Visitor centre | No |
| Website | http://www.malts.com |
| Map |
Distillery Setup:
Component |
Capacity |
Quantity |
|---|---|---|
| Mash tun | 9 tonnes | 1 (Stainless Steel) |
| Washback | 46,500 litres | 6 (Stainless Steel) |
| Wash still | 11,000 litres | 2 |
| Spirit Still | 6,700 litres | 2 |
| Expected yearly output in LPA (Litres of pure alcohol) | 2,300,000 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Strathmill was established in 1891 under the name Glenisla-Glenlivet, built on the site of an existing corn mill called Strathisla Mills, established by A.G. Johnstone in 1823, though evidence suggests illicit distilling was already happening there as early as 1825. The name reflects this: “Strath” is Gaelic for a long valley, and the distillery was housed in a mill. It changed its name to Strathmill in 1895, when it was bought by W. & A. Gilbey, a gin producer that at the time also owned the Knockdhu distillery and would later acquire Glen Spey too.
The Gilbey Brothers merged with Justerini & Brooks (J&B) and United Wine Traders in 1962 to form International Distillers & Vintners, which would eventually evolve into Diageo. International Distillers & Vintners was acquired by Watney Mann in 1972, the same year Watney Mann merged with Grand Metropolitan Hotels. Grand Metropolitan merged with Guinness in 1997 to form Diageo, the current owner.
Yes. Strathmill was the first distillery to ship its whisky by tanker, and the first tanker to do so was named Whisky Galore.
The number of stills at Strathmill doubled from two to four in 1968.
The lion’s share of Strathmill’s whisky has always gone into blends, particularly J&B and Dunhill. Most of the whisky distilled is transferred to Auchroisk for filling, so very little bottling actually takes place at Strathmill itself.
Yes, twice: a 25 Year Old released in 1992 to mark the distillery’s centenary, and a 12 Year Old Flora & Fauna released in 2001. Independent bottlings do exist too, though they can take some searching to track down.
No, Strathmill does not have a visitor centre.