The idea of building a distillery at Ballindalloch began late in the summer of 2011. The old steading was viewed by Estate owners Clare and Oliver Russell as an embarrassment and certainly not representative of the high standards elsewhere on the Estate. After looking at a number of different ideas, they decided that a distillery would be the perfect solution both for the old steading and for the long term benefit of the Estate. A number of conversations took place with some leading industry figures with the decision taken a year later to commit to the project. Plans were then put in place to turn the dream into a reality.

Over the next two years, work was carried out to renovate and fit out the old farm steading next to the Estate’s Golf Course from the near derelict state it was in. Working on a building that dates back to 1848 required attention from a small group of exceptionally skilled craftsmen. From the stonework to the slates on the roof, the woodwork to the interior decoration, the family was committed to the use of local trades; the result was that the vast majority of the work was done by businesses within 25 miles of the steading.

From the very outset, the production of our whisky was always destined to be “hands on”. With a clear commitment to tradition, the Single Estate nature of our process allows us to control every aspect of whisky making. From the barley we grow at our Home Farm to the draff fed back to cattle across the Estate, we craft our whisky in a way that generations past would have recognised.

The result is a distillery that has a look and an attitude more akin to the traditions so rarely seen today.