Mannochmore Distillery, Elgin: The Modern Sibling

Overview

Mannochmore is the younger twin of Glenlossie, built on the same site south of Elgin in 1971 by John Haig & Co. The two distilleries share a team. For years they took turns to produce, though since 2008 Mannochmore has run all year. It is a big, modern blending distillery, with six stills and a capacity of about 3.2 million litres. It is best remembered for one of the strangest whiskies ever made: Loch Dhu, the “black whisky” of 1996.

Where it is

The distillery is about 3 miles south of Elgin, near Thomshill, beside Glenlossie and the Bardon Burn. Elgin is the main town of Moray, about 1 hour from Inverness and 1 hour 30 minutes from Aberdeen.

The full history

1971: a Haig distillery

By the early 1970s the Scotch boom was at its height, and the Distillers Company’s blending brands needed more malt. John Haig & Co, owners of the Haig blend, built Mannochmore next to Glenlossie in 1971 so the two could share water, services and staff. It was a modern, practical building with none of the Victorian charm of its older neighbour.

Closures and alternate running

Mannochmore closed in the whisky slump from 1985 to 1989. A single malt was first released in 1992. After another brief closure in 1995, it ran on an alternating schedule with Glenlossie, one working while the other was idle, with the same crew. Since 2008 Mannochmore has run year-round with its own crew.

Loch Dhu: the black whisky

In 1996 the distillery’s owners launched Loch Dhu, Gaelic for “black loch”. It was a 10-year-old Mannochmore, coloured almost black with heavily charred casks and caramel, and aimed at younger drinkers. It was not a commercial success and production ended by 1999. Since then it has become a cult collector’s item, and bottles now sell for many times their original price.

How it’s made

Mannochmore has three wash stills (14,400 litres) and three spirit stills (17,000 litres), a 12-tonne mash tun and eight washbacks, with a capacity of about 3.2 million litres a year. Water comes from the Bardon Burn, and the stills are steam-heated. The spirit is light and fruity, made mainly for Diageo’s blends.

Clans, bishops & the Wolf of Badenoch

• Elgin Cathedral, the “Lantern of the North”, was burned in 1390 by Alexander Stewart, the Wolf of Badenoch, a son of Robert II. See Clan Stewart.
• Spynie Palace, the castle of the Bishops of Moray, has one of the biggest tower houses in Scotland.
• The Gordons, Dukes of Gordon, held great estates east of the Spey. See Clan Gordon.
• The Inneses of Innes House held land east of Elgin from the 12th century.

Abbeys, stones & lochs

• Pluscarden Abbey, 5 miles west: founded in 1230 and reoccupied by Benedictine monks since 1948.
• Sueno’s Stone, Forres: Scotland’s tallest Pictish cross-slab, about 12 miles west. See our standing stones guide.
• Loch Spynie, north of Elgin, is a nature reserve for wintering geese and swans. See our lochs guide.

The Moray coast

Elgin’s coast is 5 miles north. Lossiemouth, the town’s port, was the birthplace in 1866 of Ramsay MacDonald, Britain’s first Labour Prime Minister. It has two long sandy beaches either side of the River Lossie. To the west, the Covesea cliffs are full of sea caves. The Sculptor’s Cave, reached only at low tide, has Pictish symbols carved at its entrance and was used for burials in the Bronze Age and Roman Iron Age. The Moray Coast Trail follows the shore from Forres to Cullen, through Hopeman, Burghead and Lossiemouth.

Visiting

Mannochmore is production only, with no visitor centre or tours. In Elgin, Glen Moray offers tours, and the town has a great whisky shop at Gordon & MacPhail.

Nearby distilleries

• Glenlossie, on the same site.
• Glen Elgin, Longmorn and BenRiach (2–3 miles).
• Linkwood and Glen Moray, Elgin (about 3 miles).
• Miltonduff (about 4 miles).

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

Sources

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