Glen Keith

Introduction:

Glen Keith distillery is known for its rare official bottlings of Glen Keith Single Malt, mostly released in the 1990s. The 10-year-old expression is the only widely available option. Independent bottlers like Signatory Vintage and Douglas Laing have produced the majority of Glen Keith Single Malt bottlings, with Signatory Vintage focusing on older casks, including a 36-year-old and a 40-year-old.

Blending Purpose:

Glen Keith’s Single Malt output was primarily intended for blending purposes. It serves as a major component in Chivas Regal, Passport, and 100 Pipers Blends. The distillery has also conducted experiments, such as developing their own yeast strains, to benefit the distillation process.

Production:

Glen Keith was designed for mass production of Single Malt for American-oriented blends. Its modern production capacity is 6 million liters. The distillery reopened in 2013 after a decade of closure, nearly doubling its production capacity. Water for production is sourced from springs on Balloch hill, and Glen Keith was the first distillery to trial automatic mashing in the 1980s.

Pot Stills:

Glen Keith operates three wash stills and three spirit stills. Two pairs of stills were installed in 1970. The spirit stills have tall shapes with long, gradually narrowing necks, while the wash stills have an onion shape. The distillery switched between double and triple distillation for ten years before permanently adopting double distillation in the 1980s.

Maltings:

Glen Keith used unpeated maltings in its production. The distillery had its own maltings until 1976 when they were decommissioned along with the distillery’s Saladin Boxes. Currently, maltings are sourced from an industrial site.

Warehouse:

Large racked warehouses were built to house the Single Malt at Glen Keith. The spirit used in Chivas Blends is transported off-site almost immediately.

History:

Founded in 1957 by the Chivas Brothers, Glen Keith is one of Scotland’s younger distilleries. It is located in Keith, near the oldest distillery in Scotland, Strathisla. In the 1970s, the distillery expanded from two to five gas-fired stills. A sixth still was installed in 1983, completing the series of stills used today. The distillery was mothballed in 1999 but underwent a large-scale renovation starting in 2012. It reopened in 2013, with its production capacity increased to 6 million liters. Most of the Single Malt produced is still used in Chivas Brothers-owned blends, although Chivas itself has been acquired by Pernod Ricard.

Visitor’s Centre:

Unfortunately, there is currently no visitor’s centre at Glen Keith.

Visitor information:

Glen Keith Distillery
20 Station Road
Keith
AB55 5BU