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Cragganmore
Founded
1869
Region
Speyside
Status
Operational
Company
Production type
Single Malt
Production capacity
2,200,000 litres per year
Cragganmore is a malt distillery in the Speyside region of Scotland, and one of the many that make up the Scotch whisky holdings of Diageo. It was built in 1869 by John Smith and is located at Ballindalloch along the River Spey.
The traditional Cragganmore style is a lightly-peated single malt and it is the only distillery in Scotland to use worm tub condensers on its spirit stills. The result is a complex make that is highly prized by blenders.
Under the ownership of the Distillers Company (DCL), the license for Cragganmore was assigned to the Edinburgh blenders, D&J McCallum. Despite being regarded as an A1 malt by it and several others, the company also saw value in the distillery's output in single malt form, launching the Cragganmore brand in the early 1980s with the introduction of a sole 12-year-old offering.
When DCL was merged with Arthur Bell & Sons to create United Distillers in 1987, the new company launched the Classic Malts of Scotland stable the following year. It selected Cragganmore as the Speyside representative for the range, relaunching what is recognised as the Cragganmore single malt brand of today. The chosen expression was a 12-year-old again, and despite rationalisation measures by United Distillers that saw most of the blending companies closed down, the D&J McCallum name was retained on the labels for Cragganmore into the 1990s.
Due to the continued importance of Cragganmore malt to a number of Diageo blends, its single malt portfolio remains limited. The flagship 12-year-old is joined by an annual Distillers Edition release, as well as occasional appearances in the Diageo Special Releases range.
Current owner
Cragganmore Distillery
Ballindalloch
AB37 9AB
Scotland
Active brands
Single Malt
