Distillery

Bladnoch whiskies

Bladnoch is Scotland’s southernmost distillery, in Wigtownshire, near the town of Wigtown, beside the river that gives it its name. It was founded in 1817 and has gone through many closures and reopenings. Since 2015 it has belonged to an Australian businessman who has relaunched it with a range of fresh, creamy and fruity Lowland malts of its own. It is the southernmost of the Scottish distilleries.

Founded
1817
Owner
Origin
Lowlands, Scotland
In the catalogue
2 whiskies

History, style and where to startSee it on the world mapBladnoch official website

2 whiskies

Guide to Bladnoch

History

The distillery was founded at the beginning of the 19th century by two brothers of the McClelland family, and remained in their hands for decades. Then came several changes of owner and long periods of inactivity throughout the 20th century. At the beginning of the 1990s it was closed, and shortly afterwards a businessman from Northern Ireland bought it and reopened it on a small scale. In 2015, after another closure, it was acquired by the Australian businessman David Prior, who renovated the facilities and launched a new range with names such as Vinaya, as well as age-statement malts.

House style

Bladnoch represents the Lowland style well: light but creamy malts, with fresh fruit, citrus, vanilla, honey and a grassy touch. The sherried versions add dried fruit and spice. It doesn’t use peat in its core range. It is bottled at 46.7% ABV, without chill filtration and with natural colour, which gives it more body than you would expect from a malt from the region. It is a good example of how the Lowlands can offer malts with character, far from the idea of light, nuance-free whisky sometimes associated with the region.

Average flavour profile of its 2 whiskies in the catalogue

Sweet
3.3
Fresh fruit
2.8
Ripe and dried fruit
1.3
Floral and herbal
1.8
Cereal and malt
1.8
Vanilla and creamy
2.8
Oak
1.5
Spicy
1.5
Toasted
1.0
Smoky
0.0
Maritime
0.0
Body and intensity
2.3

Where to start

Start with Vinaya, the entry malt, smooth and fruity. If you like it, the ten-year-old shows the distillery’s cleanest, creamiest side. Compare them with Auchentoshan 12 and Glenkinchie 12, the other classic Lowland malts, to see the differences within the region.

This text was generated and translated by AI and may contain errors. Founding year, owner and official website come partly from Wikidata.

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