Bladnoch

Distillery & brand

Bladnoch has been a busy site in terms of tourism and has long acted as a hub for the local community. Architecturally it is a fascinating example of how farm buildings have slowly been converted from their original use.

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History
Timeline
Facts
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Contact

Bladnoch distillery

Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Production-wise its style varied. At the start of the Bell’s era it was light and floral, but the blender’s template of nutty and spicy became the norm towards the end of its ownership. When distilling started again in 2000 the old, more delicate, style was reintroduced – which explains the variation in character in official bottlings. Some peated malt was also run in the Armstrong era, a period which also saw the firm expand into independent bottlings – all of which were sold at incredibly keen prices.

Today, under the auspices of Australian owner David Prior, Bladnoch produces a light, grassy and malty Lowland-style malt.

Region

Lowland
Production type

Single malt
Distillery Status

Working
Brands produced here

Diomhair'Eachd

Bladnoch History

It was 1817 when John and Thomas McClelland took out a licence to make whisky on their farm in the hamlet of Bladnoch near Wigtown in the far south-west of Scotland. It stayed in family ownership until 1905, when it was one of many stills to close during a period of over-supply and low sales.

Bladnoch is not far from the sea crossing between Stranraer and Larne and twice in its history its saviours have come from Northern Ireland. The first of these was Belfast distiller Dunville & Co. which owned the Royal Irish distillery. It bought Bladnoch in 1911 and continued production – albeit intermittently – until 1937. At that point, Dunville’s directors were spooked by (Scottish-based) DCL’s declaration that Irish whiskey had no future. After DCL turned down the chance to buy the firm, it went into liquidation, despite being profitable and having stock. Bladnoch was closed once more.

Worse was to follow. Its new owner, Ross & Coulter, sold off Bladnoch’s mature stock and sent the distilling equipment to Sweden – and so the story continues, with owners coming and going at rapid rate. Bladnoch reopened in 1956, was expanded to four stills in 1966, became part of Inver House for a decade, and then in 1983 was bought by Arthur Bell & Son. After Bell’s was taken over it was folded into Guinness/UD [now Diageo] and production once again slowed. In 1993, it was officially decommissioned.

The year after, however, two brothers from Northern Ireland bought it with the initial idea of turning the extensive site into a holiday village. A change of heart soon after saw them wishing to start making whisky again – contrary to the terms of sale. It took six years to persuade Diageo to allow them to make 100,000 litres a year – below capacity and as it turned out right on the limits of profitability.

Most of the distillery’s income came from tourism, events and the extensive warehousing rented out to other producers. Production remained intermittent with mothballing taking place in 2009/10. In 2014, the brothers placed it into administration.

In July 2015 Australian businessman David Prior, along with ex-Scotch Whisky Association CEO, Gavin Hewitt, announced the purchase of Bladnoch and plans to restore the distillery to its former glory.

Ahead of its reopening in 2017, three single malts created using existing stocks of Bladnoch (Samsara, Adela and Talia), were released in limited quantities in Australia, the UK and other global markets.

Production at Bladnoch offically restarted in June 2017, with the flow of a grassy, malty Lowland-style spirit.

Timeline

1817 John and Thomas McClelland are granted a license to distil on their farm in Bladnoch
1905 The distillery is closed and production halts
1911 Irish group Dunville & Co purchases the distillery
1937 With production intermittent under Dunville, the company is liquidated and Bladnoch is closed. Glasgow whisky broker Ross & Coulter purchase the distillery and sell of the equipment
1956 Now under the ownership of A.B. Grant, Bladnoch reopens
1964 McGown and Cameron take over the distillery
1966 Bladnoch’s production is expanded to four stills
1973 Inver House Distillers acquires Bladnoch
1983 Bought by Arthur Bell & Sons
1988 Guinness, which acquired Arthur Bell, opens a visitors’ centre at the distillery
1993 By now under United Distillers, Bladnoch is officially decommissioned
1994 Raymond Armstrong purchases the distillery and recommences production in 2000
2014 Armstrong places Bladnoch into administration
2015 The distillery is purchased by Australian entrepreneur David Prior, and undergoes an extensive refurbishment
June 2017 Bladnoch distillery officially restarts production

Bladnoch Facts

Blends contributed to i

Pure Scot and others
Capacity (mlpa) i

1.5
Condenser Type i

Shell and tube
Fermentation Time i

Min. 48 hours
Filling Strength i

63.4% abv
Grist Weight (t) i

5
Heat Source i

Steam
Malt Specification i

Unpeated: Max 2ppm
Peated: 35ppm
Malt Supplier i

Various
Mash Tun Type i

Semi lauter
New-make Strength i

69% abv
Spirit Still Charge (l) i

9,500
Spirit Still Shape i

Medium bulbous
Spirit Still Size (l) i

10,500
Stills i

4 (2 x wash, 2 x spirit)
Warehousing i

Traditional dunnage
Wash Still Charge (l) i

12,500
Wash Still Shape i

Onion
Wash Still Size (l) i

14,000
Washback Charge (l) i

23,000
Washback Size (l) i

26,000
Washback Type i

Wooden
Washbacks i

6
Water Source i

Bladnoch River
Wort Clarity i

Clear
Yeast Type i

Caked

Owners

Parent company

Bladnoch Distillery Limited 2011 - present

Current owner

David Prior 2015 - present

Previous owners

Colin and Raymond Armstrong 1994 - 2014
United Distillers 1992 - 1994
Arthur Bell & Sons 1983 - 1992
Inver House Distillers 1973 - 1983
Ian Fisher and McGowan & Cameron 1966 - 1973
AB Grant & Co 1956 - 1965
Ross & Coulter 1945 - 1956
WM Dunville & Co 1911 - 1945
T&A McClelland 1878 - 1911
The McClelland Family 1817 - 1878

Contact

Address: Bladnoch Distillery
Bladnoch
Dumfries and Galloway
DG8 9AB
United Kingdom
Visitor Opening Hours

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