Dufftown - Seven Stills, Ashley Pini

DUFFTOWN

‘THE MALT WHISKY CAPITAL OF THE WORLD’

“Rome was built on seven hills, Dufftown stands on seven stills.”

While Dufftown lays claim to be the ‘Malt Whisky Capital of the World’, distilling was not its original purpose - having once been the home of returning soldiers from the Napoleonic wars way back in the early 19th century. If its castles and historic symbols you’re after, there is no shortage in and around Dufftown itself. Indeed, Mary Queen of Scots was a frequent visitor to this region, inhabited by the Stewarts, the Douglasses and the Comyns noble families. With castles are a plenty, in the town itself resides the Balvenie Castle, keeping a watchful eye over the Glenfiddich distillery.

However, when you’re in the ‘Malt Whisky Capital of the World’ interest hastily turns to the rich distilling heritage that Dufftown prides itself on, and the six remaining distilleries in the town itself (from an original seven). The rhyme of, ‘Rome was built on seven hills, Dufftown stands on seven stills’ captures the spirit (excuse the pun) of the town, which boasts an incredible output of over 40 million litres of whisky per year. That’s over 20,000 litres of whisky per person, with a population of just over 2,000 people.

Dufftown is 80 kilometres up the road from Aberdeen (head north-west on the A96 sign posted to Huntly and Keith), nestled amid the Speyside region and close to the rivers Fiddich and Dullan, from which two of its distilling residents derive their names.

The six distilleries in Dufftown are evenly split between William Grant & Sons and Diageo. The Balvenie, Glenfiddich and Kininvie represent from the WG&S portfolio, while Mortlach, Dufftown and Glendullan complete the impressive array of distilleries. It really is a whisky buff’s Mecca.

The town’s four principal roads come together at the central clock tower built in 1839, and originally the site of the local jail. Dufftown’s first distillery, Mortlach, had a budding master distiller in a chap called William Grant, who struck out on his own and built Glenfiddich in 1886.

And why limit your gaze, when within a wee uber fare there are many of whisky’s greatest names, tucked in glens around almost every corner. Notably, just down the road is The Macallan’s new stunning distillery, a 130 million pound investment and a truly breath-taking visitor experience.

Also highly recommended to visit are the visitors centres at The Glenlivet, Cardhu, Aberlour, Glen Grant, Longmorn and BenRiach – and the list goes on and on. The regional map is an all-star cast of single malts, perhaps only rivalled by the Islay peated malt brigade on the west coast.

Dufftown is also the home of the ‘Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival’, to be held next between the 2nd and 6th of May, 2019. Timing your visit brings more of the good spirit to you.

MEET THE LOCALS

CHARLIE METCALFE – BRAND AMBASSADOR, THE BALVENIE

Charlie grew up in Speyside, where he developed a love for the region steeped in whisky and rich history. The transition into the industry was a natural progression. Charlie takes great pleasure in talking about whisky and its production with fellow enthusiasts, enjoying nothing more than sharing good drams with whisky lovers. He also revels in guiding the ‘uninitiated’ into the malt whisky world.

After leaving school, Charlie spent time playing and coaching cricket in Adelaide, South Australia.

“I loved my time in Oz. I travelled across the country for a year, after which it was time to come home to Bonnie Scotland.”

ADVICE FOR VISITING AUSTRALIANS?

“When walking around the centre of Dufftown, it’s hard to not get captured by the surrounding distilleries. While Rome was built on seven hills, Dufftown was built on seven stills. The best way to hear about the history and stories of the area is to go to a bar and chat to the locals over a glass of malt whisky.” “There are a few reasons why Dufftown is an amazing place for malt whisky production. One of the main reasons is the huge quantities of good quality spring water that we have in this area. Matched with the good farming conditions for barley growing and the cool weather conditions in the north of Scotland, this makes for lovely maturation conditions for single malt whisky.”

“If you are visiting the area and want a wee break from distilleries, hill walking to take in Scotland’s natural beauty is a must!!”

“For your trip to Speyside the place to base yourself would be within Dufftown itself. I think a week in the area would be great, though longer if you can.”

VISIT CHARLIE AT THE BALVENIE

“At The Balvenie we still have the five rare crafts of whisky making; from growing barley on our Balvenie farm and still floor malting at the distillery, to maintaining an on site cooperage for all cask repairs and our own coppersmith. Finally, we have David C Stewart MBE with 55 years of experience in the industry.”

“Things to look out for this year is our limited edition celebratory bottling of DoubleWood 25-Year-Old.”

THE SINGLETON DUFFTOWN

Peter MacKenzie founded the Dufftown Distillery in 1896, at the height of the Scottish whisky boom. Unfortunately, his beginner’s luck quickly ran out. Three years after joining the spirits business, the Scottish whisky market collapsed, forcing distillers to focus on exporting their whisky. MacKenzie and his sons quickly turned their efforts to supplying the then dry American market. Their renown for distilling great quality Scotch whisky allowed them to thrive throughout America’s Prohibition era.

The distillery is, of course, named after the famous town, Dufftown. Dufftown sits at the heart of the Speyside region – the most famous Scotch region in the world. As a credit to the location, characterised by rich soil and rivers, Dufftown is home to many famous distilleries.

In the late 19th century, several distilleries were competing for scarce water sources. Legend has it that the stream from an artesian spring called Jock’s Well, situated high in the Conval Hills, was on multiple occasions diverted by rival distillery managers in the middle of the night to service their productions. Today, Dufftown Distillery still draws water from that same source.

Using the traditional methods, centuries of craft and the ancient water source, Dufftown Distillery continues to produce one of the smoothest, most approachable whiskies in Scotland. This is achieved through a slow distillation process and by maturing the whiskies in a secret blend of European oak ex-sherry casks and American oak ex-bourbon casks. Malts Master Craig Wilson, who has a PhD in brewing and years of blending experience, curates the perfect combination of casks for a smooth, nutty and sweet liquid that has won awards across the world.

In 2006, The Singleton Dufftown 12-Year-Old launched, followed by The Singleton Dufftown 15-Year-Old in 2007 and The Singleton Dufftown 18-Year-Old in 2011.

THE SINGLETON STORY

In 2006, The Singleton of Glen Ord was launched in Taiwan (the world’s second largest single malt market), where it quickly surpassed the competition to become one of the world’s most sought after single malt products. Spurred by this momentum, The Singleton set its sights on Europe and America but, as with all good things, exquisitely made whisky takes time. In order to uphold the tradition of ‘small batch’ craftsmanship and meet growing demands in new markets, the brand brought the famous Speyside distilleries, namely Dufftown and Glendullan, into The Singleton family. The brand’s success has come from a combination of drawing on 420 years of collective distilling experience and over 120 years of Malt Master expertise to produce a perfectly balanced single malt.

Expertly crafted by some of the best talent in the industry, Master of Malts Maureen Robinson and Malt Masters Keith Law and Craig Wilson, The Singleton has today become the fastest growing brand in the category.