Mortlach

Founded in 1823 on the former site of an illicit distillery, Mortlach was the only legal distillery in Dufftown until Glenfiddich opened in 1887. William Grant, who founded Glenfiddich and Balvenie, worked at Mortlach for 20 years prior to striking out on his own. In 1923, John Walker and Sons purchased the distillery and from that point until 2014 nearly 100% of the output went into supporting the Johnnie Walker Blends. While most distilleries only distill twice before barreling, Mortlach uses its 3 pairs of stills in a unique way to end up with a 2.81 distillation. This includes sending the fore-shots and the feints (also known as the heads and tails) from wash stills 1 & 2 to Spirit Still #1 (known as Wee Witchy) for two clean passes before capturing the “heart” or middle cut on the third distillation. Ordinarily a third distillation results in in a lighter, more floral new-make spirit but Mortlach’s unique process creates a meaty, viscous spirit that is affectionately known as the “Beast of Dufftown”.