GlenAllachie Visitor Centre

The GlenAllachie Distillery launches new visitor centre, shop and special bottling for the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival

The GlenAllachie Distillery is gearing up for the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival by launching its new visitor centre and shop, unveiling some exclusive releases and staging three events.

The new visitor centre includes a shop offering a range of branded merchandise, plus two single cask whiskies exclusive to the shop: a 12 year old and 29 year old, both hand-selected by Billy Walker. The shop also offers visitors the chance to hand-fill their own bottle straight from a cask.

The 12 year old distillery exclusive, which is £95, was matured in a Bourbon barrel and Walker describes it as tasting of “honey, apricots and mocha, with hints of mint”. The 29 year old, which is £350, was matured in a Hogshead and Walker handpicked it for its taste of “toffee apples, mocha, pineapples and dark chocolate”.

Walker said: “The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival is a highlight of the year with whisky fans from all the over the world flocking to the region. For many, this will be the first chance they’ve had to visit our distillery, visitor centre and shop and sample our single malt. I wanted to make the best possible first impression so I’ve personally selected two casks, which I believe provide wonderful examples of the type of single malt whisky we’re producing here.”

Visitors can now choose from two tour options:

‘THE WEE ALLACHIE TOUR’ – £15 – A 1-hour tour around the production area with a sampling of three drams & a £5 redeemable voucher against any whisky purchases over the price of £40.

‘THE CONNOISSEURS TOUR’ – £50 – A 2-hour access-all-areas experience which includes a visit to a warehouse and the tasting room for a 5-dram tutored tasting. Finish your experience in our brand-new visitor centre, with a £10 redeemable voucher against whisky purchases over the price of £90.

The new visitor centre will be managed by Karen McWilliam who has extensive experience, having previously worked with GlenDronach distillery.

McWilliam said: “This is a historic and exciting time for everyone here at GlenAllachie as we start to welcome people to our new visitor centre and to take a tour of the distillery for the first time in over 50 years. For a long time, the distillery has been one of Speyside’s best-kept secrets, but now we’re creating our own history with our single malts and the gates are open to everyone.”

Special Speyside Festival Events and Bottling

The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival takes place across the region from 1-6 May. As a Silver Partner, The GlenAllachie Distillery is staging three special events and releasing a single cask exclusive to the Spirit of Speyside Festival.

The GlenAllachie Spirit of Speyside bottling, which is £95, is a 13 year old malt matured in a Port pipe. Walker describes it as “brimming with heather honey, damsons, nutmeg and cinnamon with hints of mocha and rose hips.”

GlenAllachie Spirit of Speyside – 2006 / cask # 1850 / 13 years [£95]
Port Pipe / 59.2%

Colour: Rich Ruby.

Nose: Waves of honey, sweet spice and greengages, with gentle notes of mocha.

Taste: Brimming with heather honey, damsons, nutmeg and cinnamon with hints of mocha and rose hips.