Glen Moray Distillery, Elgin: Approachable Speyside from the Lossie

Overview

Glen Moray, on the banks of the River Lossie at Elgin, makes an easy-going, approachable, good-value Speyside malt that has won a lot of friends as an affordable way into single malt — and, more recently, as an adventurous distillery experimenting with wine-cask and peated releases. It is one of the friendliest and most accessible distilleries to visit in the region.

The history

Glen Moray was founded in 1897, converted from Elgin’s former West Brewery during the great Victorian whisky boom. For much of the 20th century it was a blending malt for Glenmorangie’s owners; since 2008 it has belonged to the French group La Martiniquaise, who have invested heavily and greatly expanded it while keeping its welcoming, unpretentious character.

The water & the land

Glen Moray takes its water from the River Lossie, which runs past the distillery through Elgin.

Glen Moray had no founding clan — it was a commercial brewery-to-distillery conversion. Elgin, the old cathedral city of Moray, sat in country historically shaped by the Gordon earls and the Grant/Seafield line.

How it’s made

Glen Moray runs four wash stills and six spirit stills after a 2023 upgrade took capacity to about 8.5 million litres a year, with water from the River Lossie. The site began as the West Brewery in 1897 and has been owned by the French group La Martiniquaise since 2008; its malt goes into blends such as Cutty Sark and Label 5, alongside its own 10- to 21-year-old single malts matured in American oak. Its “Phoenix Rising” won Best Scotch Speyside Single Malt at the 2024 World Whiskies Awards.

Visiting

Glen Moray has a welcoming visitor centre and runs daily guided tours, tastings and a shop — booking is advised, and hours reduce in winter; check the website. Its central Elgin location and good-value tours make it one of the easiest Speyside visits.

Nearby & more whisky

• Elgin’s other visitable malt, a couple of miles across town: BenRiach.
• Other Elgin-area distilleries, good drive-bys: Linkwood, Longmorn, Glen Elgin and Miltonduff.
• Planning a day of it? Our Speyside Whisky Trail bases its final leg on Rothes, Elgin and Keith.
• Speyside — the region overview
• The whole picture: Scotch whisky — the full guide
• South of Elgin: Glenlossie, the Bardon Burn malt
• On the coast by Burghead: Roseisle, Diageo’s 14-still modern distillery

Sources

• Glen Moray distillery — Wikipedia.
• Glen Moray; Undiscovered Scotland.