Fettercairn is one of the oldest licensed distilleries in scotland. On 20th sept 1861, queen victoria and her husband albert snuck away from nearby balmoral to stay incognito at the ramsay arms still the village pub. Fettercairn is the only distillery to use this method of condensing. Fettercairn distillery is located in its namesake village in the northeast of scotland approximately halfway between dundee and aberdeen. It lies in the heart of rich farming land a beautiful rural setting which has always attracted visitors. Free historical records for fettercairn parish in kincardinshire. You are first guided by signs from the car park along the front of the distillery to the visitor centre at its east end. It was founded in 1824 by a company, with the late james durie as manager, who, after a time, acquired the concern, and carried it on successfully till his death in 1854. Fior is gaelic for true or pure its made up mostly of 1415 year old spirit, most of which is sherried, with about 15% of heavily peated five year old whisky from firstfill bourbon barrels.
Fettercairn library aberdeenshire library and information. But they can only enter the debonded capsule to pay homage, eight at a time. The writing of this history of fettercairn was first suggested to the author in 1882, after delivering a public lecture on the subject. Fettercairn distillery was one of the first distilleries to be legalized according the 1823 regulations act.
This survey should be completed by a person familiar with your libraries use of spydus. Unfortunately he had to sell the property to the gladstone family in 1829, after losing his fortune. The distillery sits beside the burn of rothes, hidden in a glen on the edge of the town. Situated under the grampian foothills in the howe of mearns. Fettercairn distillery aberdeen all you need to know. Amongst others, there are fettercairn 12yearold and fettercairn 28yearold, two new bottlings which are now distributed by the hanseatic family business borcomarkenimport in germany and austria and will soon be available in our online shop. The distillery is located at a very scenic location, tucked away in verdant greenery. The fettercairn whisky distillery lies not far from the river esk in the eastern highlands. As a result it is regularly the first road in scotland to close when the snows sweep in from the east. Tasting notes nose warehouses, bung cloths, sherry casks and hot tomato plants. The fettercairn distillery is located in the foothills of scotlands cairngorms, half way between aberdeen and perth. Our distillery and tours are now closed for winter.
Fettercairn distillery aberdeen 2020 all you need to know. Fettercairn is situated in a very scenic part of the world, close to a few historic castles and can be part of a comfortable drive from dundee. Visited fettercairn distilery on our way from stonehaven to stirling. On 20th sept 1861, queen victoria and her husband albert snuck away from nearby balmoral to stay. Search the history of over 424 billion web pages on the internet. There was further change in 1966 when the number of stills was doubled from two to four, they were modernised in the process with the addition of new condensers and steam coils. The board of supervision was established under the 1845 poor law act. In fine fettle fettercairn distillery the whisky shop blog. This was the first change at the distillery in several preceding decades of quiet old fashioned production. Fettercairn distillery booking unavailable on tripadvisor. Located south of aberdeen, fettercairn is situated very close to the river esk, nestled in the foothills of the cairngorms. The independent bottles are a good way to get the true distillery character of a distillery as most of the bottlings are single cask.
We dont just use crystalclear mountain water as an ingredient, we drench our still with it, cooling the copper so only the finest vapours. Its the smell of history mingling with anticipation. It was released in summer 2010 as part of the distillerys rebranding process, which is positioning them into the premium market. Following each tour every adult can enjoy a dram or two of our exceptional highland single malt.
Fettercairn distillery, fettercairn ticket price timings. Fettercairn s history fettercairn distillery was founded in 1824 by sir alexander ramsay and it was one of the first in the east highlands area to be granted a legal license. Edradour single malt whiskey fettercairn distillery was founded by alexander ramsay in 1824 on the edge of fettercairn village at the foot of the grampian mountains within the highland whiskey region. Fettercairn distillery, laurencekirk whisky distilleries. Described by the producers as tasting of dark chocolate, coffee beans and peat smoke, with nutmeg, mint, citrus fruits and truffle. Since then weve gone to extraordinary lengths to capture the purest expression of our whiskys character. Fettercairn distillery, fettercairn, kincardineshire fettercairn. This highland single malt whisky distillery was built in 1824 near the glen of north esk. Fettercairn 1988 28 year old signatory scotch whisky. It dates back to 1825 which is just two years after the customs and excise act of 1823, which reduced the amount of taxation placed on whisky production, meaning whisky makers could make some money. Here, at the foothills of the untamed cairngorm mountains, fettercain sits in its namesake town, far from any other scotch distillery, its cooling waters trickling down from the untamed peaks. The location is known as the granary of aberdeenshire, where barley and crystal springs have been abundant for over a thousand years, so it is not surprising that glen garioch distillery was established as early as 1794 one of the oldest operating distilleries in scotland.
So, thats the meaning of the number 1824 on the bottles its not the distillation year. Fettercairn distillery laurencekirk distillery facebook. Fettercairn distillery visit single malt scotch whisky distillery tour. The 10 best restaurants near fettercairn distillery, aberdeen. Founder sir alexander ramsey ran into financial difficulty and was forced to sell the distillery and the fasque estate on which it was located in 1830 to a merchant named john gladstone, who ran both until his death in 1851. It is located just in the outskirts of the picturesque village of fettercairn and both the village and the distillery are well worth short a visit when you are driving by. This tour concludes with the opportunity to sample 2 of our whiskies. It was founded in 1824 by sir alexander ramsay, the owner of the estate on which the distillery is located. Fettercairn distillery aberdeen 2020 all you need to. This is a malt whiskey distillery equipped with four stills and operates a unique system whereby cold water tumbles down the exterior.
Fettercairn closed in 1912 and production did not recommence until 1939 when associated scottish distillers acquired the distillery. Younger brother william was a politician, eventually being elected to prime minister four times. Old fettercairn scotch whisky distillery data on malt madness, including information, history and tasting notes. Make your visit suitable to your interest, use fettercairn trip planner for personalization. The distillery was rebuilt between 1887 and 1890 after it was damaged by a fire. One of the main attractions of laurencekirk, the village nearest to fettercairn, is a huge, ostentatious red sandstone archway spanning the road that commemorates the visit to the village of queen victoria and prince albert in 1861. Showing off the distillery s natural character, this was bottled by indie bottler signatory as part of the cask strength collection on 16 january 2017. Fettercairn whisky buy fettercairn whiskies online master. Green berets ultralight bug out bag with gear recommendations duration.
Fettercairn was founded in 1824 by the local laird sir alexander ramsay owner of the fasque estate. Having already worked in whisky and been to a variety of distilleries its very refreshing to visit somewhere like this that gives unique facts and techniques. The distillery was originally named nethermill, named after the converted mill building in which the distillery started operating. Fettercairn 12 years old pedro ximenez sherry cask edition.
The elder of gladstones sons, thomas took over the stewardship of the estate and the distillery, which was let to sitting tenants. Matured in exbourbon casks for 12 years, this is packed with tropical flavour without losing the distillery. We are conducting a study on the automation systems used in libraries. Tom brucegardyne is an edinburghbased whisky writer. Fettercairn distillery visit a little about fettercairn. One of scotlands oldest licensed highland whisky distilleries, fettercairn, did a global relaunch of its portfolio. The connoisseur tour you can taste both the 12 years old and the 12 years old px finish. Tour the distillery, learn about our whisky and how we make it. Fettercairn distillery the distilleries of scotland. This 1988 vintage fettercairn has been aged for 28 years in a single hogshead. Fettercairn whisky buy fettercairn whiskies online. Our tour season restarts in april 2020 and we look forward to seeing you then.
The unicorn on fettercairn s logo is from the ramsay family crest. The fettercairn name means the foot of the mountain. This traditional distillery is one of scotlands oldest licensed producers of single malt whisky. Today, fettercairn distillery produces light, balanced whiskies, the only official bottling being a twelve yearold which replaced the previous ten yearold. Restaurants near fettercairn distillery, aberdeen on tripadvisor. After losing his fortune, alexander was forced to sell the estate to the gladstone family in 1829.
Fettercairn 30 year old 1988 signatory cask strength. The largest is that of fettercairn distillery at nethermill, which employs ten or twelve men. Fior means pure or true in gaelic, and this noagestatement bottling launched in summer 2010 is something of a rebirth for the muchmaligned fettercairn distillery. Fettercairn parish records genealogy and family history in. Fettercairn or nethermill was built in 1824 by sir alexander ramsay. Fettercairn fior is the entrylevel expression of this distillery.
After two decades of maturation, the casks were cracked open and the whisky was bottled by signatory for the unchillfiltered collection. Matured for 10 years in a single cask before being bottled at a strength of 46% abv, free from colouring and chillfiltration. And no tour would be complete without a dram at the end. The roof of the viewing gallery is perforated, so that the aroma of maturing whisky can reach the eight hoses. Since 1824 weve gone to extraordinary lengths to capture the purest expression of our whiskys character. The distillery visitor centre run tours 10am until 4pm, tuesday to saturday, from april until the end of september. Historically fettercairn lies at the southern end of the monboddo estate, where the scottish philosopher and precursor of evolutionary thought, james burnett, lord monboddo, lived.
It lies at the southern end of the b974 cairn o mount road, a road that climbs over the eastern extension of the cairngorms to banchory. It was matured in american oak exbourbon casks and bottled at 40% abv. Old fettercairn or nethermill not a distillery that many have heard too much about, and one that many havent tried, so why not lets give it a bit of a focus here in a blog post and see what its all about. Fettercairn single malt scotch whisky information including fettercairn bottlings, fettercairn history, fettercairn. Was just coming back to life after the off season so now back to fully working, but really interesting. Old fettercairn was established in 1824,having been only the second distillery to become legal after the excise act of the previous year. Detailed information about the fettercairn distillery. Visitors to fettercairn distillery find a welcome that is as warm as the distillery itself is bright and attractive. A revitalised fettercairn, focusing on the distillery s fruity character. I preferred the standard 12 year old, the nose has some extra fruit and florality but the px flavours dont really shine through here just add a little extra to an already sweet and fruity malt. The water is collected and reused over and over again.
Situated under the grampian foothills in the howe of mearns, fettercairn towns name is loosely based on the phrase the foot of the mountain. Myself and my boyfriend both visited the distillery not knowing much about fettercairn. First editions fettercairn 2008 loch fyne whiskies. This makes the visit to the distillery very pleasant and one that you will enjoy to your hearts content. Join us for a visit through the distillery, seeing first hand the traditional methods that have been in use for nearly 200 years. It was founded in 1824 by sir alexander ramsay, the owner of the estate on. Fior is gaelic for true, and the whisky has an astonishingly rich flavour of cocoa, espresso, spices, fruit and almond. Fettercairn translates to foot of the mountain and the distillery is surrounded by beautiful forests and glens at the foot of the cairngorms.
We turned up at the distillery wwith our 10 week old baby in a carrier, she. The writing of this history of fettercairn was first suggested to the author in 1882, after. Oct 25, 2019 we called up fettercairn and booked in for what was to be a very personal and thorough tour of the distillery. It was released in summer 2010 as part of the distillery s rebranding process, which is positioning them into the premium market.
Fettercairn is also home to a fine church, built in 1803 and dedicated to st martin. Fettercairn whisky fettercairn scotch the whisky shop. Glendronach us visitor centre glendronach distillery. In 1823 fettercairn formed part of the fasque estate, and the then laird, sir. Fettercairn houses the fettercairn distillery owned by whyte and mackay ltd. Fettercairn scotch malt whisky distillery profile malt madness. En route you pass under the enormous fettercairn distillery co. In 1830, estate and distillery was sold to john gladstone, whose son william would later become prime minister. The fettercairn tour you can sample the 12 years old. The village of fettercairn has as rich a history as the distillery. It was the second licensed distillery in scotland in 1824. Sir alexander ramsay, owner of fasque estate, founds the distillery. Fettercairn whisky exceptionally refined single malt. One of four new fettercairn expressions to be launched in august 2018, the fettercairn 12 year old was intended to embody the distillery s floral and exotic fruitdriven character.
Visit us fettercairn distillery fettercairn whisky. In 1824, he was one of the first to apply for a license, and the fettercairn distillery was opened. The water supply is from springs in the eastern grampians mountains or binchinnin hills. The glenrothes is a speyside single malt scotch whisky it is made at the glenrothes distillery located in the town of rothes in the heart of the speyside region of scotland. Todays highlights include a tutorial about the anatomy of a squid as it is being prepared to feed the fish at macduff marine aquarium, strength and balance exercises aimed at older adults and multitalented david walliams talking about his hilarious childrens book gangsta granny. Fettercairn whisky buy fettercairn whiskies online master of malt. One of its tasks was to hear appeals by paupers against inadequate poor relief granted by parochial boards.
Seize the opportunity to visit fettercairn and discover how our unique spirit is crafted with one of our knowledgeable tour guides. Fettercairn distillery was founded in 1824 by alexander ramsay, owner of the fasque estate, who converted a corn mill at nethermill into a distillery. Nearly 30,000 visitors tour fettercairn distillery every year. Malt from the foot of the cairngorm mountains, fettercairn whisky has a diverse range with. Fettercairn closed in in 1912 and production did not recommence until 1939 when associated scottish distillers acquired the distillery. Alexander ramsay founded the fettercairn distillery in 1824, by converting a corn mill into a distillery. Fettercairn scotch whisky distillery fettercairn distillery, laurencekirk, kincardineshire ab30 1ye. Excellent fettercairn distillery, aberdeen traveller. Dec 03, 2015 although the distillery actually produces around 1. In 2010 however, fettercairn was rebranded as a premium single malt, of which fior is one of the main expressions.
Fettercairn distillery feature page on undiscovered scotland. Our founder, sir alexander ramsay was one of the scottish landowners who campaigned to license scotch whisky distillation. Unusually the stills are cooled by running water over the outside of them. In the centre of the square stands fettercairn s mercat or market cross.