Whisky Guide > Distillery Profiles > Glentauchers Distillery

Glentauchers Distillery - over 100 years of history

The distillery lies three miles west along the A95 road, which takes you to Craigellachie. The road winds past open countryside, rolling hills and large forests. On approaching the distillery, which lies on the edge of the Craigellachie Forest you see at first hand the signs of development the distillery has had over the years.

The Glentauchers Distillery Company started with the joint venture of James Buchanan, the creator of the world-famous Black & White Scotch Whisky and the Buchanan Blend, and WP Lowrie of Glasgow, a key stockholder who supplied Buchanan from the beginning.

The first foundation stone was laid on the 29th May 1897, over 100 years ago in one of the fields at Tauchers Farm. In considering the place to build the new distillery a key factor was the accessible road and rail network already in existence. The road sits directly at the front of the distillery and the construction of a siding from the railway line at the back of the site enabled transportation of goods and supplies to flow freely, but the siding is no longer in use.

The distillery was designed by a local Keith architect called John Alcock and the work carried out under the supervision of the expert Charles Doig & Son of Elgin, renowned for development work in the construction of distilleries. It took twelve months to complete and fully install Glentauchers and in May of 1898 malting began with the first mashing in June of the same year.