North of Scotland
Translation: North of Scotland
Region: Lowlands
The whiskey that was forgotten.
How can a whiskey distilled in 1972 and bottled in 2015 be 32 years old? Actually not at all. But in the case of the North of Scotland distillery, it did happen. It all came true: a barrel of a single grain whiskey distilled in 1972 was originally bottled in early 2005, at the age of 32 - and then you forgot the bottles. In 2015 they were rediscovered and sold to the independent bottler Rest & Be Thankful. These filled the Single Grain on 06.03.2015 then on their own bottles. The whiskey in the bottle, of course, remained 32 years old, since only the maturity in the barrel determines the age. An extremely rare bottling of a long-time closed distillery, which does not deserve to be forgotten.
A little history
The North of Scotland distillery was originally founded as Strathmore Distillery in 1957 by George Christies and his North of Scotland Distilling Company. The same George Christie also built the Speyside Distillery a few years later. The Strathmore / North of Scotland distillery grew out of 'Robert Knox's Forth Brewery', a brewery.
Initially, they experimented with malted barley distilled in Coffey stills (as is customary for Grain Whiskey from unmalted grain). But after a short period of time, Grain Whiskey production was completely converted and the distillery took over the name of the owner company, North of Scotland. Which is a bit irritating because it was in the south of Scotland ...
Whether North or South: Overall, the distillery was granted only a very short life. Already in 1980, it was closed again and 1993 largely demolished. Only the warehouses were still used for a while by the nearby Cambus distillery. However, they are no longer available.
What do I actually have in the glass?
As with some of the already closed Grain distilleries, there are no original bottlings and so the "house style" is difficult to describe. Vanilla and spiced biscuits may be the best common denominator. The body is usually a bit more delicate than the Malt colleagues and smoke is in vain.
3 reasons to love North of Scotland
1) Because short glowing shooting stars have something fascinating.
2) Because the single grain is an experience.
3) Because distillery and whiskey did not deserve to sink into the mists of oblivion.
The one drama for the lonely island
Our recommendation, of course: the above-described, as curious as furious 32-year-old from Rest & Be Thankful. Fresh vanilla and blossom honey, harmoniously married with oak and sweet herbs. In the body soft and mouth-filling, very creamy with a slightly spicy note and harmonious sweetness.
numbers and facts
Address: Tullybody, Alloa, Clackmannanshire FK10 1DN
Founded in 1957 by George Christie
Status: demolished
Owner: (last) Diageo
Capacity:?
Water: (formerly) River Devon
Visitor Center: -
Telephone: -
Website: -
