By Ian McConnell
A £6 million investment in Glen Garioch’s distillery at Oldmeldrum in Aberdeenshire has been unveiled by spirits giant Beam Suntory.
The renovation will “see the distillery return to more traditional production processes, while also introducing new cutting-edge technology for direct-fired distillation”.
The planned changes are expected by Beam Suntory to reduce the distillery’s carbon footprint by around 15%. Work started in 2020, with various stages due to be completed over the course of this year.
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Beam Suntory said: “The cornerstone of this transformation will be the reintroduction of floor maltings as well as the installation of direct-fired heating to the wash still – traditional methods still used by only a handful of whisky distilleries. The return to these traditional processes is a sign of Glen Garioch’s deep respect for its rich heritage, as well as the complexity and quality of its small batch, hand-crafted Highland single malt.”
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It added that the first new-make spirit would “come off the stills” later this year.
Distillery manager Kwanele Mdluli said: “We are proud to make this investment...and we’re excited about the future.”
Kwanele Mdluli, distillery manager, said: “We are proud to make this investment in Glen Garioch’s historic distillery, and we’re excited about the future. Although these traditional distilling and malting methods are rare in today’s industry, our teams have deep expertise and passion for these methods, and we’re all looking forward to bringing them back to our distillery. We are honoured to be a part of Glen Garioch’s long tradition of innovation and quality craftsmanship.”
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