Ardmore Distillery
Kennethmont
Aberdeenshire
History: The distillery was built in 1898 during the 'whisky boom' of the late 19th century , where a number of different factors saw Scotch Whisky becoming a global success. It was established blender William Teacher's son, Adam, to secure fillings for their blend, Teacher's Highland Cream (of which it remains the heart of the Teachers blend). The distillery is found deep in the farmland of "the Garioch", near the River Bogie and the village Kennethmont, Huntly, Aberdeenshire. At the time It was seen as a modern and forward thinking distillery. The entire distillery was powered by a single steam engine while a railway line ran alongside the Ardmore distillery buildings. This was convenient when it came to the transport of supplies like barley and coal. The distillery itself is one of the largest in Scotland producing over 5 million litres of spirit per year.
The Whisky: Ardmore has always been pretty much a single malt produced for the blended whisky market. Over the years you could find some independent bottling from companies such as Gordon McPhail based out of Elgin. In 2005 global drinks company Beam Suntory bought the distillery and later launched the brand as a stand alone Single Malt as well as being used in blends. The range isn't huge but is still full of some great Whiskies from the Ardmore Legacy bottling to the Ardmore traditional cask.
Favourite Dram: Seek out the Ardmore 12 Year Old Port Wood Finish which was a 2015 addition to the range. It is first aged in American white oak ex-bourbon barrels, then finished in port pipes, which gives the whisky notes of apple, honey and a smokey finish. Its delicious and priced around £45. If you are feeling flush then you may want to invest in the 1991 independent cask strength bottling by Gordon & Macphail which comes in at a powerful 57.9% abv. With a splash of water it is a belter of a single malt with bags of flavour.
Geek Alert: Ardmore is one of the few Speyside distilleries that have used peated barley from the start. Nowadays many distilleries are releasing peated versions of their Whisky but Ardmore has always done this. It isn't a powerful smoky Whisky it is only slightly peated with a phenolic level (smoky flavour and aroma) of the whisky is between 12 and 14 PPM.
Why Visit?: This is a working distillery producing a lot of Single Malt. Once upon a time in the 1970’s there was a visitors centre here but sadly not one today although i have heard pf plans of one as they try to establish Ardmore across the world. It is a shame as it’s location is fantastic and would be a great distillery to visit. I have managed to visit through my contact and found it a fascinating place.
Interesting fact: On every bottle of their Whisky you will find a picture of a Golden eagle. According to the brand the magnificent Scottish Golden eagle is still found riding the warm thermals above the distillery, which they say is in honour to the traditional ways the make their Whisky.
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