Glenglassaugh

Glenglassaugh - Wash Still & Spirit Still

History The Glenglassaugh distillery is a malt scotch whisky distillery which restarted production in November 2008 after being acquired by an independent investment group. Following a complete refurbishment by the new owners the distillery was re-opened on 24 November 2008 by the First Minister for Scotland Alex Salmond MSP who praised the company for their commitment to using the traditional equipment and methods to once again make the unique whisky which is produced at Glenglassaugh. The Glenglassaugh Distillery is a single malt Scotch whisky distillery located in a picturesque site just outside the Speyside region in Northeast Scotland, close to the small town of Portsoy, Banffshire some 54 miles Northwest of Aberdeen. The Distillery was established in 1875 by a local entrepreneur James Moir and his two nephews, Alexander and William Morrison. James Moir had an expanding grocery business in the town of Portsoy and was wanting to establish a distillery that would produce a whisky of the highest quality to satisfy the growing demand from his customers. The site was originally chosen due to its proximity to a clean and pure water supply of the highest quality (Glassaugh Springs), easy access to the nearby barley fields and because it was known locally to have been the site of one of the many illicit distilleries that had operated in the area and which had produced excellent whisky. Following the death of both James Moir and William Morrison, Alexander Morrison was forced to sell the distillery and in 1892 the company was sold to Highland Distillers and until 2008 has been owned by them. Highland Distillers are a subsidiary of The Edrington Group. In 1960 it was rebuilt and upgraded to double the production capacity and to yield lighter spirit. However, in 1986, when the whole whisky industry was reviewing operations the economics of running this relatively small and remote distillery, the owners decided that they should stop production and the distillery has stayed silent since then. Around this time, Glenglassaugh was sold to the Edrington Group. The whisky from this distillery had traditionally been used in the production of renowned blended whiskies such as Cutty Sark, Laing’s, and The Famous Grouse. In 2008, Glenglassaugh was purchased by the Scaent Group. Under new ownership, it released some the pre-1986 stock as exclusive Highland Single Malt Scotch Whiskies with outstanding success. At the 2009 International Wine and Spirit Competition Awards the 30 Year Old expression was awarded a Gold Medal (Best in Class) and the trophy for Best Cask Strength Scotch Whisky and the 40 Year Old was awarded Gold Medal (Best in Class) and the trophy for Best 40 Year Old Scotch Whisky. The 40 year old was also awarded Best 40 Year Old Scotch Whisky and 96 points in Jim Murray’s 2010 Whisky Bible. Upon purchase, Scaent refurbished the mothballed distillery and restarted production. In 2009 the company also introduced 2 new innovative products which are produced using the same process as that used for making single malt scotch whisky but without the ageing process. “The Spirit Drink that dare not speak its name” is the result of 1 mash of malted barley, fermented and distilled twice. The product is bottled without ageing at 50% abv.

“The Spirit Drink that blushes to speak its name” is also produced in the same way but is allowed to age for 6 months in casks that have previously held red wine. The result is a spirit with a rich rose hue and a flavour of soft fruits and spices and is ideal as a cocktail base or for making long drinks.

On 16 December 2011 the first bottling of Glenglassaugh whisky from spirit distilled under the present ownership was bottled and released for sale only from the distillery shop. In March 2013, The Benriach Distillery Company acquired the Glenglassaugh distillery from its previous owners, who were listed as Amsterdam-based Lumiere Holdings. Benriach Distillery company also operated the Benriach and Glendronach Distilleries. On 25th April 2016 Brown-Forman announced that it had reached definitive agreement to purchase The BenRiach Distillery Company Limited for approximately £285 million and are the current owner-operators. The history of Glenglassaugh distillery up to and including the first launches by the Scaent Group was described by whisky writer Ian Buxton in his book Glenglassaugh: A Distillery Reborn (NWP, Glasgow. July 2010). Buxton also worked as marketing consultant and adviser to the relaunch.

The Whiskyphiles tasting notes

Official Bottling
  • Glenglassaugh_CoastalCask_1346 Glenglassaugh 10 Years Old 2009 Single Cask 1346 (2020) - Very rich and full of nutty and creamy vanilla toffee, that core tropicality is there as well as a distinct coastal influence. 86/100
  • Glenglassaugh_CoastalCask_559 Glenglassaugh 10 Years Old 2009 Single Cask 559 (2020) - A lovely mixture of sweet vanilla tablet and ashen peat embers. 87/100
  • Glenglassaugh 35 Year Old 1978 Cask 1810 (2014) - Glenglassaugh 35 Year Old 1978 Cask 1810 -Rare Cask Release Batch 1 (42.9%, OB, 2014) 42.9%, £355 for 70cl Score: 89/100 What they say: 1978 cask # 1810 35 Years Old Finished […]
  • glenglassaugh-35-year-old-1978-the-massandra-connection-madeira-wood-finish-whisky Glenglassaugh 35 Years Old 1978 Madeira Wood Finish (2020) - Glenglassaugh 35 Years old 1978 Madeira Wood Finish Whisky Review: Another super old expression from Glenglassaugh, not perfect and I suspect very rescued by the Madeira cask finish which has a huge impact here. 86/100
  • glenglassaugh-evolution-50 Glenglassaugh Evolution (2017) - Glenglassaugh Evolution (50%, OB, 2017) Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky Origin: Glenglassaugh Distillery Bottling: Brown-Forman ABV: 50% Cost: £44.44 What they say: Evolution Glenglassaugh Evolution is created by maturing the whisky in […]
  • Octaves classic batch 2 infront retouch Glenglassaugh Octaves Classic Batch 2 (2018) - Glenglassaugh Octaves Classic Batch 2 whisky review: A touch spicy as presented but with lots of great structure and medley of fruits, quite a lot of different cask stave influences made this one difficult to ascertain more exact flavour descriptors. A drop of water made it creamier and sweeter and revealed malted milk biscuit cereal notes. 83/100
  • Octaves peated batch 2 infront retouch Glenglassaugh Octaves Peated Batch 2 (2018) - Glenglassaugh Octaves Peated Batch 2 whisky review: Quite savoury in comparison to the Octaves Classic Batch 2. Chalky and mineralic on the nose and palate and a lovely dry peat smoke (not oily Islay-like) much more herbal and mineralic Speyside peat at play here, delicious.
  • glenglassaugh-peated-port-wood-finish-whisky Glenglassaugh Peated Port Wood Finish (2017) - Glenglassaugh Peated Port Wood Finish (46%, OB, 2017) Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky Origin: Glenglassaugh Distillery Bottling: Brown-Forman ABV: 46% Cost: £60 What they say: PEATED PORT WOOD FINISH Glenglassaugh’s waves of […]
  • glenglassaugh-peated-virgin-oak-wood-finish-whisky Glenglassaugh Peated Virgin Oak Wood Finish (2017) - Glenglassaugh Peated Virgin Oak Wood Finish  (46%, OB, 2017) Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky Origin: Glenglassaugh Distillery Bottling: Brown-Forman ABV: 46% Cost: £60 What they say: PEATED VIRGIN OAK WOOD FINISH The […]
  • glenglassaugh-port-wood-finish-whisky Glenglassaugh Port Wood Finish (2017) - Glenglassaugh Port Wood Finish (46%, OB, 2017) Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky Origin: Glenglassaugh Distillery Bottling: Brown-Forman ABV: 46% Cost: £55 What they say: PORT WOOD FINISH The elemental freshness of our […]
  • glenglassaugh-pedro-ximenez-sherry-wood-finish-whisky Glenglassaugh PX Sherry Wood Finish (2017) - Glenglassaugh Pedro Ximenéz Sherry Wood Finish (46%, OB, 2017) Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky Origin: Glenglassaugh Distillery Bottling: Brown-Forman ABV: 46% Cost: £55 What they say: PEDRO XIMENEZ SHERRY WOOD FINISH The […]
  • glenglassaugh-revival-single-malt-whisky Glenglassaugh Revival (2017) - Glenglassaugh Revival (46%, OB, 2017) Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky Origin: Glenglassaugh Distillery Bottling: Brown-Forman ABV: 46% Cost: £37.43 buy What they say: Revival The Revival is the first expression released from […]
  • glenglassaugh-torfa-whisky Glenglassaugh Torfa (2017) - Glenglassaugh Torfa (50%, OB, 2017) Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky Origin: Glenglassaugh Distillery Bottling: Brown-Forman ABV: 50% Cost: £42.73 What they say: Torfa At Glenglassaugh, in addition to the traditional production, we […]
Independent Bottling
Port Sgioba
  • Glenglassaugh 5 Years Old 2009 Red Oktober (2015) - Glenglassaugh 5 Years Old 2009 – Red Oktober Octave Cask #SC115 (48.1%, Port Sgioba, Octave Cask #SC115, 2014) Highland single malt scotch whisky 48.1% ABV Score: 85/100 What they say: Distilled at […]
Scotch Malt Whisky Society
  • SMWS 21.28 Relaxing in a tropical garden (2015) - Glenglassaugh 37 Years Old 1974 21.28 Relaxing in a tropical garden (48.1%, SMWS, Refill HH, 188 Bottles, 2013) Highland single malt scotch whisky 48.1% ABV, £349 Score: 92/100 What they say: Cask No. […]