Benriach

Until 2004, BenRiach’s fortunes were closely linked to its larger and more famous neighbour, Longmorn.It was built by the owner of the distillery, John Duff, in 1897, and designed by Charles Doig, the leading distillery architect of the day. Duff ran into financial trouble and sold it to Longmorn Distillers Company two years later. The Pattison crash of 1899, coupled with a downturn in the domestic market, saw a huge number of distilleries (many of which had only just opened) close down. Benriach was once of those, only running for two years before languishing in silence for the next 65, during which its large malting facility was used to supply Longmorn’s requirements.

When Pernod Ricard took over Seagram’s whisky division in 2001 Benriach was closed once again, but bought in 2003 by Billy Walker, the former production director of Burn Stewart, and two South African entrepreneurs. In April 2016 it was announced that BenRiach along with its sister distilleries Glendronach and Glenglassaugh has been bought by the large American distillers Brown- Forman for £285 million.