Arran distillery is a
whisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden c ...
distillery
Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heati ...
in
Lochranza
Lochranza ( gd, Loch Raonasa) is a village located on the Isle of Arran in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland. The population, somewhat in decline, is around 200 people.
Geography
Lochranza is the northernmost of Arran's villages and is located in t ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
,
Isle of Arran
The Isle of Arran (; sco, Isle o Arran; gd, Eilean Arainn) or simply Arran is an island off the west coast of Scotland. It is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde and the seventh-largest Scottish island, at . Historically part of Butesh ...
.
In 1994 Arran Distillers was founded by Harold Currie, former director of
Chivas and a D-Day veteran, with the intention of building a distillery on Arran.
During the construction of the distillery, a pair of
golden eagle
The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of p ...
s built their nest on a cliff near the distillery; since golden eagles are a protected species, construction of the distillery was temporarily halted. The distillery, funded by private investors and the sale of
bonds, opened in 1995.
There used to be about fifty distilleries on the island, but most of them were "moonlight" or illegal distilleries. The most recent legally founded distillery on
Arran, called
''Lagg'' closed in 1837.
Until recently a proportion of the casks were stored in the warehouses of
Springbank, due to a lack of room in the distillery, and the legal impossibility of extending the current warehouses at the Arran distillery. However, the distillery now has a storage warehouse, on site, that allows easier access to barrels. The distillery offers a cask purchase scheme which offers private individuals the opportunity to own their own cask of whisky, which can be stored on site at the distillery.
The Arran distillery is a patron of the World
Robert Burns
Robert Burns (25 January 175921 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who hav ...
Federation and as such has created a Robert Burns single malt and Robert Burns blended whisky in honour of Scotland's national poet. They are the only whisky distillery to be able to use the image and signature of Robert Burns on their packaging.
The whisky of Arran is mostly used to produce their single malt whisky, but a small proportion also goes into the production of their range of blended whiskies: Lochranza Blend, Robert Burns Blend and Arran Gold Single Malt Whisky Cream Liqueur.
The Arran distillery traded at a loss for many years until 2010. In 2003 Currie sold his shares and resigned from the board, the remaining shareholders own the business known as Isle of Arran Distillers Ltd., and the managing director is Euan Mitchell.
2010 saw the release of a 15th Anniversary bottling on the occasion of the distillery open day on 3 July. Autumn 2010 also saw the release of the first official 14-year-old to be released by the distillery. The first peated Arran single malt (called Machrie Moor) has been available since 8 December 2010.
The distillery celebrated its 21st anniversary in June 2016.
Lagg
Plans for the company to build a second distillery in
Lagg at the south end of the island were approved in August 2016 and building work began on this project in October 2016. Lagg Distillery began production in April 2019 and opened its visitor's center on 1 July 2019.
As the company has now opened a second distillery on the island the distilleries are referred to as 'Lochranza' and 'Lagg'. In May 2020 a new blended whisky was announced which is made up from whisky from both of the Arran distilleries.
See also
*
Whisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden c ...
*
Scotch whisky
Scotch whisky (; sco, Scots whisky/whiskie, whusk(e)y; often simply called whisky or Scotch) is malt whisky or grain whisky (or a blend of the two), made in Scotland.
All Scotch whisky was originally made from malted barley. Commercial distil ...
*
List of whisky brands
This is a list of whisky brands arranged by country of origin and style. Whisky (or whiskey) is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted ...
*
List of whisky distilleries in Scotland
This is an incomplete list of whisky distilleries in Scotland. According to the Scotch Whisky Association there were 138 distilleries licensed to produce Scotch whisky in the calendar year 2020.
Currently operating distilleries
Malt whisky dis ...
References
External links
www.arranwhisky.comOfficial Webpage
Tasting Notes
Visit Arran
{{Authority control
1995 establishments in Scotland
Companies based in North Ayrshire
Distilleries in Scotland
Food and drink companies established in 1995
Isle of Arran
Scottish malt whisky