Speyburn

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Speyburn

No: 88
Producer: United
Region: Highlands
District: Speyside(Rothes) - Multimap view
OS Sheet 28 ; Map reference NJ 275 491 ; Latitude 57 31° N, Longitude 3 12° W
Founded 1897 ; Operating Status (1999): operating

There are many claimants to being the most beautifully situated distillery in Scotland and Speyburn is surely one of them. This handsome Victorian distillery, set in a deep, sweeping valley makes a spectacular sight on the road between Rothes and Elgin. It was built in 1897 and despite modernisations over the years has not undergone dramatic change.

Its whisky is not easy to find but a first official bottling, introduced in 1991, makes it a little more accessible.
© Michael Jackson 1994

Distillery rating: 3* Rothes, Morayshire, IV33 7AG
Tel: 01340-3213

tastings

SMWS bottling 88.5 - Speyburn 1980, aged 14 years
Very powerful and compellingly appealing nose of walnuts and caramel, magnificent mouth-filling flavour with strong hints of the same, BUT there's a strong and inescapable aftertaste of some kind of photographic chemical (fixer, I think) which I found extremely off-putting. In any case, many whisky-lovers would find this much too heavily sherried. I personally quite like the style, which I have found in other Speyburn casks, but even the ones without the aftertaste have faded or otherwise disappointed after the bottle has been open for a while. [jw, 1995]

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Search Dr. Do'g's index for the history of Speyburn
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