Dailuaine Distillery, Carron: The Big Blend Malt off Ben Rinnes

Overview

Dailuaine (say “dal-yoo-an”, Gaelic for “green meadow”) is one of the great old blending distilleries of Speyside. It sits in a hollow below Ben Rinnes near Carron, just outside Aberlour. It was founded in 1852 by William Mackenzie. It has a special place in distillery design: in 1899 the architect Charles Doig gave it a pagoda-style kiln roof, a design that became the classic look of Scottish distilleries. It is now one of Diageo’s larger malt distilleries, with six stills and a capacity of about 3.4 million litres.

Where it is

The distillery stands in a wooded glen south of the Spey near Carron, about 3 miles south-west of Aberlour. Dalmunach is just across the river. Elgin is about 15 miles north and Grantown-on-Spey about 15 miles south-west.

The full history

1852: William Mackenzie

William Mackenzie founded Dailuaine in 1852. After his death in 1865, his widow leased it to the banker James Fleming, who later founded the Aberlour distillery nearby. In 1863 the Strathspey railway reached Carron, and a branch line was built into the distillery.

Dailuaine-Talisker and the pagoda

In 1898 Dailuaine merged with Talisker Distillery Ltd of Skye to form Dailuaine-Talisker Distilleries, a major force in the industry. A year later, in 1899, Charles Doig designed a new distillery with a pagoda-style roof over the kiln, to draw smoke up and out. The design spread across Scotland, and the pagoda is now the symbol of a Scotch distillery.

Fire, DCL and Diageo

In 1917 a fire destroyed the pagoda roof and closed the distillery for three years. It reopened in 1920 and was bought by the Distillers Company (DCL) in 1925. In 1939 a small locomotive named DAILUAINE was bought to work the distillery’s railway siding. In 1960 Dailuaine was modernised and expanded from four to six stills. It passed to United Distillers in 1987 and then to Diageo.

How it’s made

Dailuaine has three wash stills and three spirit stills, with a capacity of about 3.4 million litres a year. Water comes from the Bailliemullich Burn. The spirit is rich and meaty, well suited to sherry casks, and most of it goes into Diageo’s blends. An official 16-year-old single malt has appeared in the Flora & Fauna series.

Clans & the land

• The Grants held this part of Strathspey. See Clan Grant.
• Ballindalloch Castle, about 5 miles upstream, the Macpherson-Grant family home since 1546.
• The Gordons held the hills south and east. In 1594 they beat a royal army at the Battle of Glenlivet. See Clan Gordon.

Hills, river & churches

• Ben Rinnes (841 m), whose burns feed Dailuaine, rises behind the distillery. The climb from Glack Harnes takes about 2 hours.
• The Speyside Way follows the old railway past Carron, with fine views of the Spey.
• Mortlach Kirk, Dufftown, with its Pictish Battle Stone, is about 8 miles east. See our standing stones guide.
• There are no lochs here, only burns and the Spey. See our lochs guide.

Aberlour & Carron

Carron is a small village that grew up around its station and distilleries. Its neighbour, Charlestown of Aberlour, was laid out by Charles Grant in 1812 and is home to Walkers Shortbread. Between them, the Spey runs through wooded banks, past fishing beats that are among the most famous on the river.

Visiting

Dailuaine is production only, with no visitor centre or tours. Nearby, Aberlour, Glenfarclas and The Macallan all welcome visitors.

Nearby distilleries

• Dalmunach, just across the river.
• Benrinnes (about 2 miles).
• Aberlour (about 3 miles), with tours.
• Knockando, Tamdhu and Cardhu (about 3–5 miles).
• Talisker, Skye: its old partner in Dailuaine-Talisker Distilleries.

The Speyside Whisky Trail and the whisky hub cover the region.

Sources

• Dailuaine distillery — Wikipedia.
• Diageo / Malts.com.