Scotland: Single malt whisky through the producing distilleries: history, making, production and tasting notes

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Speyside

Speyside: to the distillery main page

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It is not that easy to find the Speyside distillery in the countryside near Kingussie. People never arrive here quite by chance. Andrew Shand, director of the distillery told me: "The visitor who finds the distillery deserve a free guided visit of the installations."
The distillery is quite discrete indeed. No pagoda roof on top, and low buildings, work of one single man...
Speyside

But what a stroke of good luck, once the distillery is found, to discover this part of paradise on earth, at least by fine weather (which was our case). The Speyside distillery is the closest to the spring of the River Spey which flows just a few meters behind the distillery.
During the spring, the river is calm and flows peacefully, and it is hard to imagine that the same river is so stormy during the winter, sweeping the big stones of her bed along just if they were weightless, causing a kind of mini-earthquakes on the ground between the river and the distillery.

The winter 2005 was particulary severe, with lots of snow, which is really a godsend for the distillery. Usually distillation has to be stopped by end of April, because of a lack at sufficiently cold water, but it seems that the process can go on this year until begin of June. Nice for a young distillery...

Speyside: le chat But every rose has its thorn, and the joy of living in such a beautiful environment is compensed by the interdiction to make any new building near the existing distillery. Thus the distillery does not have any local warehouse, as it is situated in the heart of a Natural reserve. It's new make spirit is sent in bulk to the own warehouses of the company in Glasgow.

The first official releases of Speyside (the 10 years, and now the 12 years old) are promising. This distillery must be kept in eye by the malt lovers, as quality is really present.

And, if the distillery cat seems to be wel fed, it's owner does not like the comparison with Towser, the Glenturret cat who is in the Guinness Book of Records for having killed about 30.000 mice, as there is no mouse in the distillery....

The river

Outside the distillery

The distillery

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Last update: Friday, 23-May-2008 15:10:14 CEST
Sun 20 07 2008, 13:22 - 41 visiteurs au cours de la dernière heure et 5 visiteurs sur le site en ce moment.
Copyright:Jean-Marie Putz (2003-2007)

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