Cragganmore distillery is a

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 All Scotch whisky was originally made from malted barley.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 ...

distillery situated in the village of Ballindalloch in

Banffshire Banffshire ; sco, Coontie o Banffshire; gd, Siorrachd Bhanbh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. The county town is Banff, although the largest settlement is Buckie to the west. It borders the Moray ...

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 ...

. The distillery was founded in 1869 by John Smith on land leased from

Sir George Macpherson-Grant Sir George Macpherson-Grant, 3rd Baronet DL (12 August 1839 – 5 December 1907) was a Scottish landowner, cattle breeder and Liberal politician. Macpherson-Grant was the son of Sir John Macpherson-Grant, 2nd Baronet of Ballindalloch and his wife ...

. The site was chosen by Smith both for its proximity to the waters of the Craggan burn and because it was close to the Strathspey Railway. Smith was an experienced distiller, having already been manager of the

Macallan The Macallan distillery is a single malt Scotch whisky distillery in Craigellachie, Moray, Scotland. The Macallan Distillers Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Edrington, which purchased the brand from Highland Distillers in 1999.English, Shi ...

Glenlivet Glenlivet (Scottish Gaelic: Gleann Lìobhait) is the glen in the Scottish Highlands through which the River Livet flows. The river rises high in the Ladder Hills, flows through the village of Tomnavoulin and onto the Bridgend of Glenlivet, p ...

Glenfarclas Glenfarclas distillery is a Speyside whisky distillery in Ballindalloch, Scotland. ''Glenfarclas'' translates as meaning ''valley of the green grass''. The distillery is owned and run by the Grant family. The distillery has six stills which are ...

and

Wishaw Wishaw ( sco, Wishae or Wisha ; gd, Camas Neachdain) is a large town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, on the edge of the Clyde Valley, south-east of Glasgow city centre. The Burgh of Wishaw was formed in 1855 within Lanarkshire. it formed ...

distilleries. The Strathspey Railway is now disused and forms the Speyside Way long-distance walking route. Cragganmore was marketed by

United Distillers United Distillers was a Scottish company formed in 1987 from combining the businesses of Distillers Company and Arthur Bell & Sons, both owned by Guinness. The company owned six single malt Scotch brands, which were relaunched as the ''Classi ...

under their ''Classic Malts'' brand. United Distillers has since become a part of Diageo.

The Whisky

The stills used in the second distillation (the spirit still) of Cragganmore whisky are unique in having a flat top and being relatively short. The stills' shape has a definite effect on the taste and aroma (nose) of the whisky. Laura Vernon is the current master distiller.

Reactions to Cragganmore Whiskies

The San Francisco World Spirits competition has reacted favorably to the Cragganmore 10-year (Sherry Cask) and 12-year expressions, awarding the former with a double gold medal in 2005 and the latter with two double gold, one gold and three silver medals between 2005 and 2012.Proof66.com Ratings Summary for Cragganmore 12-Year
/ref> Wine Enthusiast, another spirit ratings organization, rated the 12-year in its 90-95 point interval and the 10-year Sherry Cask in its 96-100 point interval.

References

{{Scottish Distilleries Scottish malt whisky Diageo brands 1869 establishments in Scotland Distilleries in Scotland

The Whisky

Reactions to Cragganmore Whiskies

See also

References