Located in the town of Rothes near Glen Grant, Speyburn started operation in 1897 and was one of a number of distilleries designed by local
architect Charles Doig (the inventor of the distillery pagoda). During construction, the owners also installed the first ‘pneumatic’ (drum) maltings in the Highlands on site, allowing Speyburn’s production not to be tied to the size of its malting floors. These stayed in use at Speyburn until 1968. Speyburn has been marketed as a value-for-money malt in North America. While this has resulted in large volumes in terms of sales, it hasn’t helped the whisky’s reputation. Strangely ... for a top-10 malt brand, it is still unknown to most of the world and probably under-appreciated where it’s a best-seller.