Speyside distillery near Kingussie has closed its doors for good, becoming a lost distillery. The firm co-hosted this year’s Spirit of Speyside opening dinner in Aviemore, the same day as they handed the keys to the distillery over.
The announcement of Speyside as a lost distillery was made by John McDonough, chief executive of Speyside Distillers. He explained that this shutdown and move has been driven by a need to expand.
Mr McDonough also announced that the business was moving operations to a Highland estate at Strathmashie by Laggan, meaning the whiskies they produce there will be Highland and not Speyside. It will also operate under a different name.
Speyside Distillers produced the award-winning SPEY whisky range as well as Beinn Dubh The Black. But as production has ceased entirely these whiskies will not be made anymore and will be classed as coming from a lost distillery making them rarer as time goes on.
Currently, existing whisky stocks will be placed into storage for further maturation, with future releases available on allocation only.
In 2019 Speyside Distillers ramped up production of its single malt whisky after a major new distribution deal with a Chinese firm, which was set to increase production by about two-thirds from 600,000 litres to one million litres a year.
Speyside Distillery was originally a barley mill and croft that dated back to the 1700s, and closed in 1965. It was converted into a single malt distillery by stonemason Alex Fairlie and started producing spirit in 1990.
Being out of the way for the Speyside whisky trail, Speyside distillery was a bit of a hidden gem and was open, by appointment only, for a small number of visitors to enjoy an exclusive tour and tasting.
Fans of BBC’s Monarch of the Glen may recognise Speyside distillery from the hist TV show, where it was known as Lagganmore.
